Photos by Eric Ray Davidson for Cosmopolitan
YouTube star Emma Chamberlain.
Welcome to this week's Influencer Dashboard newsletter!
As you likely know, this is Amanda Perelli, and I'll be briefing you on what's new in the business of influencers and creators.
First up, my colleague Dan Whateley and I highlighted the top 14 PR pros and publicists for YouTube creators, Instagram influencers, and other digital stars.
With the rise of social-media influencers, top public relations firms have developed digital departments and now work with popular creators, particularly helping them land coverage in traditional media outlets. For instance, YouTube star Emma Chamberlain (8.6 million subscribers) is represented by Align Public Relations for interviews and events, and recently the company worked to place her on the January cover of Cosmopolitan.
Want to see who the other powerhouse PR pros are? Check out the full list here.
You can read most of the articles here by subscribing to BI Prime. And if this is your first time reading Influencer Dashboard, subscribe to the newsletter here.
How Peloton's 21 fitness-influencer cycling instructors use Instagram fame to market the brand and keep customers coming back
Peloton
Alex Toussaint is a senior cycling instructor at Peloton and an Instagram influencer with over 100,000 followers.
Some Peloton instructors have become Instagram influencers and are helping market the brand with their social-media fame.
Peloton is an at-home fitness company that offers livestream and on-demand fitness classes to its subscribers, many of whom use the company's custom bikes and treadmills. The company hires popular fitness instructors to stream classes to thousands of users in the US, UK, Canada, and Germany, with 21 cycling trainers and an additional 11 instructors who teach treadmill and yoga classes.
Dan spoke to Alex Toussaint, a senior Peloton cycling instructor with 105,000 Instagram followers, on interacting with Peloton users and promoting the brand - and himself - daily on social media.
Dan wrote that Peloton's trainers actively encourage users to reach out on social media, sometimes shouting out their Instagram handles at the end of classes.
Read the full post on Peloton's cycling instructors promoting its brand on social-media.
How do influencers pay taxes? 4 steps to conquer tax season as a self-employed social-media creator
Morgan Yates
YouTube creator Morgan Yates.
At many jobs, a portion of your income is automatically deducted from your paycheck for taxes. But when you work for yourself, you are responsible for deducting this amount out and for keeping track of every dollar you earn.
Social-media influencers often work for themselves, which can make their taxes a lot more complicated.
How do they navigate tax season?
I spoke to Eric Bronnenkant, the head of tax at Betterment, a firm that offers digital investing advice, along with several influencers across Instagram and YouTube, on their tax-season tips.
They broke down four steps for conquering tax season as a social-media creator, from the best ways to keep track of both your income and expenses, to what you can deduct as a business expense.
Every time YouTube creator Morgan Yates (313,000 subscribers) gets paid, she moves a percentage of that revenue straight into a separate bank account, so that it's immediately out of sight, she told me.
Read the full post on how social media influencers face tax season, here.
Inside the business of an 'adventure cat' TikTok influencer, who has 2 million followers and earns up to $60,000 for a sponsored video package
David M. Rule/JJ Yosh
JJ Yosh and his cat Simon have built large followings on Instagram and TikTok by filming and photographing their hiking trips.
"Adventure cats" has become a popular genre of content online, going viral on platforms like Instagram.
Dan spoke with JJ Yosh, the owner of one adventure cat influencer named Simon, about the duo's digital business. Yosh has built a large following on Instagram and TikTok by filming and photographing his hiking trips with Simon.
The pair have a combined 2.8 million followers across their Instagram and TikTok accounts. Their largest account is Simon's @backpackingkitty channel on TikTok.
Yosh told Dan that he switched to focusing on social media full time in 2018, when it became more lucrative than his previous career commercial modeling and acting.
With the help of his manager, Yosh said he usually sells sponsored content as a package, attracting five-figure deals from brands. The pair has worked with a variety of companies including Procter & Gamble, Intuit, and Petco.
Read more about the business of a viral TikTok adventure cat and its owner, here.
What else happened this week on BI Prime:
TikTok star Charli D'Amelio gave Dunkin' 294 million free video impressions in under 2 months and got her own cold-brew tap as a thank-you: Dan wrote about how brands are taking over TikTok, making appearances in both organic (unpaid) videos and sponsored posts.
How much money a YouTube video with 100,000 views makes, according to 4 creators: I spoke with creators on YouTube who broke down how much money Google pays them on average for a single video with 100,000 views.
Influencer marketers share which platforms they are spending on and Instagram crushes the competition: Dan reported on how Instagram continues to dominate the influencer marketing category, with over 90% of marketers saying they invest in the app, according to a new study.
- A recent college grad living in New York says she makes a 6-figure income as a YouTube influencer. She broke down how she does it: I spoke to YouTube creator and entrepreneur Ruby Asabor on how switching up her YouTube content has helped her earn more money per view.
What influencers should know about Facebook's new app for video creators, Creator Studio: Dan wrote about Facebook's new mobile app version of its publishing and analytics tool, Creator Studio, as it continues to make moves to compete with YouTube.
YouTube video of the week: How much a YouTube creator makes, spends and saves in a single month as a minimalist
Screenshot of Kyra Ann/YouTube
Kyra Ann is a YouTube creator with 76,000 subscribers.
CNBC's "Millennial Money" series, which breaks down the budgets and finances of young people, has taken over YouTube. Many YouTube creators are jumping on the trend and filming videos about their expenses.
Kyra Ann is a YouTube creator and minimalist with 76,000 subscribers. In her most recent video, she broke down exactly how much money she makes, spends, and saves in a single month as a minimalist.
She has three revenue streams: her day job at a nursing home, Amazon affiliate links, and YouTube. As an influencer, she earned $158 from Amazon, and $1,817 from YouTube AdSense this month, which is more than what she earns a month at her day job, she said.
Here's a breakdown of her monthly expenses, according to her YouTube video:
- Rent: $675, Kyra lives in Massachusetts near Boston, she said.
- Laundry: $20, she said normally she spends up to $50 a month, but recently she stopped drying her clothes to cut the cost.
- Phone: $72, Kyra said she has the cell phone service provider Sprint, and that she receives a discount on her bill through her job.
- Food: $60, she noted that she works in a kitchen, so most of her meals are free.
- Electric: $15, she doesn't own a TV, and she said in the video that she typically has two floor lamps, her laptop, and her phone plugged in.
- Car gas: $80, Kyra said she plans to purchase a Tesla soon, and she that she currently owns a Honda SUV.
- Spotify: $10, and she added that her account includes a membership with Hulu.
- Other: medical: $45, heat for her apartment: $176, car insurance: $76, retirement: $100, an app: $5, eyebrow wax: $15, gift: $50.
Total February monthly expenses: $1,399.00. For a full explanation of Kyra's monthly finances, check out the YouTube video here.
Send tips or feedback to me at aperelli@businessinsider.com.
Here's what else we're reading:
- Benefit Cosmetics shifts marketing focus to macro-influencers: Emma Sandler for Glossy wrote about Benefit Cosmetics' new macro-influencer event, Beyond Benefit, and how the company is rethinking influencer marketing.
- Influencers are putting up paywalls. What does that mean for brands?: Kati Chitrakorn for Vogue Business wrote about how influencers are charging fans for a more intimate social-media experience.
- How the 'Bachelor' Franchise Became an Influencer Launchpad: Alyssa Bereznak for The Ringer wrote about how Bachelor contestants often find second careers on social media.
