Being popular on social media sites like Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram is great for your career! But it takes more than just having lots of followers to be considered successful.

It’s impossible to be famous without creating an audience first, and then encouraging people to watch you use that platform. What makes someone become “famous” is when their messages and online content are seen by many different people.

By being well-known, you can gain exposure and recognition for your work or business, which could lead to more opportunities. You may even earn money from all the advertising you get done because of your popularity.

There are several ways to make yourself known across the internet so that people will know who you are and what you have to say.

Build a strong following

Being influential on social media doesn’t just happen overnight, it takes time to build up your followers and then keeping them is even more difficult!

It’s easy to get distracted by other things and stop focusing on growing your audience, but this is the most important thing you can do to ensure your voice gets heard.

If you want to be seen as an expert in your field, you have to invest into becoming known within that community first.

This isn’t just about having lots of followers, it’s about knowing what to say to whom – and being said for what matters to them.

Running giveaways or holding Q&As are great ways to draw new people into your camp and gain their trust. You could also start hosting topical discussions or events such as #SelfDoubtChat or #OwnYourVoice.

Whatever you choose to do, make sure it’s meaningful to you and your lifestyle and career goals, and keep yourself accountable by using tools like Tweetdeck or Hootsuite.

Be engaging on Twitter

Being interesting is one of the most important things to do as you grow your followers on social media sites like Twitter. If your tweets are all about you, then people will quickly tune out.

Your followers want to see glimpses into who you are and what you love. They would rather read something written by you than watch a video made up of advertisements.

Content that leaves a lasting impression is more likely to get likes and comments. Who you are should be an intrinsic part of your personality, not a fake picture with no expression.

Your profile photo, header image, and cover photos for your accounts can make a difference in how many people interact with you.

Post consistently

It’s not really trending if you don’t have anything new to say, is it? If you are just repeating what others said earlier or using funny pictures and hashtags, your followers will quickly give up and look for something more original.

So how do we become more engaging? By posting regularly!

The most successful accounts in our field post at least one short note per day. This could be an update about yourself, your workplace, or your career. It could be telling someone about a book they should read, sharing a tip or trick for doing things efficiently, or announcing an upcoming event.

Whatever it is, it must contain information people want to see. And it can’t be seen as self-promotional, even if that’s part of the message. Your followers will subconsciously discount any tweet with “I got paid to write this so meh” undertones.

But writing about your life can easily go wrong. A lot of times, people feel like their lives are too boring or dull to make interesting material.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but if you ever feel like you’re running out of things to say, try thinking about what you were doing two years ago and brainstorming ways to connect with those memories via social media.

You might find something that works better than before – like exploring different yoga positions.

Link your account with other social medias

Being influential on social media doesn’t exist unless you link your accounts together. This is possible through services such as Twellow, Ello, or even Facebook!

By linking your Instagram profile to Twitter, for example, you give every person who views your Instagram page their own little piece of your twitter feed.

Accept sponsorships

Being popular on social media is not free! It takes money to run your account, create engaging content, and respond to comments and messages. As you grow in popularity, you will need to find ways to make enough income to keep up with the demands of the platform.

Twitter offers its users many different types of advertisements that can be displayed automatically or manually. Automatic ads are based on what type of content you view and do things like promote brands or sell products, while manual ads ask you to advertise for an organization or product.

You get paid per advertisement or per interaction, so being exposure-worthy is very lucrative if done right!

There are several ways to make money via advertising on Twitter. You can start by doing sponsored tweets or replies where you are paid to mention or talk about a specific item or service. Then, people may contact you directly to ask questions about the product or to buy it. If you are able to supply good information and push sales, then you earn extra money.

Another way to make money on Twitter is to join the community and participate in conversations. By sticking around and giving helpful answers and feedback, you will gain followers who trust you and listen to you. People will notice when you enjoy a product or shop something and thus try to purchase the same thing, which is great indirect marketing for the seller.

By investing time into growing your follower base and engagement, you will begin earning more revenue.

Gain attention

As mentioned before, being popular on social media is totally different from having lots of followers. The first one is about engagement, while the second one is about people listening to you.

Having lots of followers may make you feel more important, but it will not get you very far if no one pays any attention to what you say. If you want your tweet to go viral, you have to actually put in an effort to gather attention.

This can be done by incorporating engaging colors, pictures or videos, interacting with other users, and offering helpful information. When doing all of these things, make sure they are relevant to your field!

By staying in your area of expertise, others will notice and come to you for answers. Plus, it looks professional and well-put together.

Be honest

As mentioned before, being authentic is one of the most important things for your social media success. If you are not putting in the effort to be personable and like yourself, then it will show in your content and how engaged people feel with you.

Your followers will quickly lose faith in you if you seem disingenuous or fake. They will also begin ignoring you and limiting what information they share because they no longer feel connected to you.

So, be sure to be real when posting updates, responding to comments, and supporting other users’ posts. Your followers will appreciate that you take time to engage with them and connect on an emotional level.

Be careful though not to overdo it by saying too much or using cliché phrases and images that have been said a million times before.

Develop your brand

Being popular on social media is more than just having lots of followers. It’s about developing your online persona or what you show the world through your digital footprints.

Your personal style, tone, and brand matter because people look at those things when they read your posts. If their actions suggest you have sold out or lost touch with reality, they will probably avoid interacting with you by keeping a distance.

When you start putting effort into creating an authentic profile that fits who you are, others will recognize it as such and interact with you accordingly. This is especially true on Twitter, where your avatar and bio can be seen by everyone.

You also need to update your bios and profiles regularly to keep them fresh and interesting. Your first name and last initial plus “Online Writer” isn’t very creative! Try coming up with something better. People might even tell you themselves if you're doing enough to establish yourself.

And don't worry too much about numbers — unless you really want to see how many people you can follow, not every interaction needs to result in another person. Some people value solitude so there's no pressure for one-on-one conversations either. For others, small talk is the reward for hanging around other people.

Another way to make your tweets more engaging is to use pictures and/or videos.