The Miner: Issue 7

Hello beautiful people! It's time for your weekly dose of OMG, LOL, and WTF in influencer marketing.

It's officially holiday season and I kicked it off yesterday with my birthday. Thank you so much for all your wishes on Instagram! In case you missed my post (thanks Mark) you can book a 30-minute session with me for $125 until 11:59pm tonight. Enter code BIRTHDAY and let's chat.

I hope you enjoy this week's edition and don't forget to tell your friends. Hit "reply" with any and all feedback and if you read a good link send it to info@carbonaugust.com. Here we go!

DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH

💎 The pilot episode of "The Middlests" just dropped and I'm the first guest. I think this may be the best episode I've ever recorded because the focus is on how I achieved success and what that even means. It was extra special because the host is my old boss and I filmed it at my first high profile job: Horizon Media. I love a good full circle moment. You don't want to miss this one so check it out. Listen to "Overcome The Feeling Of Being Stuck."

💎 Being an influencer is hard enough, but being a YouTuber might take the cake for difficulty. Many of these creators put out multiple videos each week in addition to posting on other social platforms AND the algorithm has a direct effect on their bank account. On top of that so many YouTubers are young. Like they're not even in college yet young. The burnout is real and I am so happy it's getting national attention like this. If you need a break, take it. No piece of content or brand deal is worth your health.

💎 2019 was full of marketing moments. JLo busting out that Versace dress was one of my favorites. If you're a fashion influencer this is a must-read on how brands are thinking about marketing in 2020. My favorite insight was that "aspirational realness" is in. Your audience knows how much of your content and your life is edited for social media so they're not as impressed as they used to be. And how can you influence their decisions if they feel like they can't relate to you? Thanks to Toi Sweeney for the link.

💎 Remember when Facebook was focused on the Wall and twees were only 140 characters? Remember when Instagram didn't even have an Android app and VINE was still a thing? This is a great look at social media over the last decade.

💎 Can you really be a sustainable fashion influencer? If you're constantly posting about clothes that people don't actually need even though they're sustainable, what does that say about you? A great read for anyone struggling with their own inner dialogue of the battle between commerce and conscience.

💎 Buzzfeed put together a great list of influencers their community loved this year. I definitely saw some old favorites but I followed a bunch more. Check it out if you need new people to be inspired by.

[You have through Tuesday to enroll in Influencer Business Plan for only $49. Less than two weeks until the course starts!]

GOLD MINE

💰 Instagram is getting into the branded content game. What does this mean for you? It means that brands will be able to find you even if you don't rank on a platform like Tagger. It means that if you create professional-grade content but have less than 1,000 followers you could still make big bucks from branded content. It means that if you're a black influencer, but your audience is 75% white, you'll be considered for campaigns that may have previously passed you by. But it really means that brands are about to be turning every single piece of influencer content into an ad so ya'll better be ready to negotiate that usage.

💰 Indecisive posters rejoice. Instagram stories now support collages. Brands will start asking for them in 2020 so get your skills in order.

💰 Someone told me @colormecourtney said you should be making at least your follower count every year. I think this is a good benchmark but it's clear not everyone is making that much. YouTubers shared the four ways they make money and HuffPo continues asking influencers how much they make.

💰 Bretman Rock is getting a show on MTV. I mean I don't think anyone watches MTV anymore, but this is still a big deal. We are going mainstream so if you have bigger dreams than making more branded content, study up on other industries and figure out how to make your entrance.

💰 Celine hired a TikTok star. That's all I'm going to say about that.

💰 Facebook and Instagram are banning influencers from posting branded content about vaping, tobacco, and weapons. If you're promoting alcohol and diet supplements there will also be new rules. It will be interesting to see how they react to CBD which isn't big enough in our industry to warrant scrutiny, but it's getting there.

[Are you coming to my brand building workshop? I cannot wait for LA, Atlanta, Dallas, and Chicago in 2020. I just added Montreal in June so let's get this party started!]

BLACK LUNG

⚫ WHHHHHHY are influencers agreeing to post a drink that doesn't exist? Especially when it has cyanide in it? I just... UGH. Thanks Karina Bonitto for the link.

[You don't have to live this influencer life alone. Come join the Carbon August facebook group and get your community on.]

That's it for this week's edition of The Miner. Don't forget to tell me your thoughts and share this issue on social! If you loved it you can buy me a coffee!