Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) are having a huge influence online, often attracting millions of followers and generating big money. We catch up with 15 local ‘Influencers’ here in Macau to find out what it’s really like to be a KOL and get some tips on how to be successful in this new and sometimes lucrative industry.
In the past decade, the media landscape has changed dramatically with the increasing popularity of online platforms and, in particular, social media Apps. Whereas once, if you wanted to create any sort of multimedia production, you needed a professional studio with equipment and a crew, today, all you need is the smartphone in your back pocket and some creative ideas. And if you’re hard working, talented and maybe just a little bit lucky, you can become very famous, very quickly, and possibly very rich too.
Today, some of the most successful YouTube stars can earn more money than many Hollywood celebrities. In 2021, the highest earner on the platform was 23-year-old Mr Beast who earned US$54 million from his videos that have been watched billions of times.
While YouTube is a platform that can make you famous, over at Instagram, it is already very famous people who are having the most success. Some of the top earners on Instagram include the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Dwayne Johnson and Ariana Grande. With almost 300 million followers on Instagram, if you want Ronaldo to plug your brand you are going to have to fork out over US$1.5 million!
A certain level of fame and popularity have enabled all sorts of people to become Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) or ‘Influencers’, and those with large numbers of followers can begin to attract the attention of big brands who see KOLs as an effective way to market their products.
The prominence of KOLs on Chinese social media is also staggering, with billions of people using Apps like SinaWeibo, TikTok, Xiaohongshu (RED / Little Red Book), Douyin, Bilibili and Wechat. Whether it’s travel, beauty, fashion, health, sport, food or lifestyle, there are hugely popular KOLs in China giving their tips on every topic, and having your product endorsed by them can be extremely valuable.
One of the top beauty KOLs in China, Austin Li started his career as a live-streamer focusing on lipsticks, and now has 45 million followers on Douyin. Chongqing foodie Mi Zijun became famous for rapidly guzzling spicy hot instant noodles and now has over 19 million followers on SinaWeibo.
With all the possible fame and riches that can come with being a KOL, it’s not surprising that so many people want to get in on the action. And while Macau is small market, there are a number of Influencers who are working hard to expand their followings and gain success.
“Social Media has levelled the playing field, with a lot of us KOLs in many cases having more of a loyal following than superstars, singers or actors,” says Reggie Martin, who has an impressive 2.4 million followers on Instagram, the highest number of any KOL based in Macau. “As Influencers, we work to create an emotional connection with our followers. That’s what the brands are after. I love the business opportunities it presents.”
@reggiemartin10 / 圖 Photo Gonçalo Lobo Pinheiro
Model and rising DJ talent, Puinam is another one of the biggest KOLs in Macau. Since first posting on social media in 2014, she has amassed 334,000 followers on Instagram.
“The job of a KOL is to share what you’ve learned and to use your followers to spread your message and information that you want to bring to your audience. One of the things I like most is that I can use my small influence to grow and improve with others, and have the support and care of an audience I have never met,” comments the 27-year-old.
@puinam
While the job of KOL may look glamorous, a lot of work has to happen behind the scenes in order to generate high quality content and commercial success.
“It’s quite challenging to go from just a casual hobby to an actual business model. You have to think about how to market yourselves and find customers like hotels, restaurants and product brands. This is our first time running a business so it was a big risk,” observe Ken and Sheila, better known as weekdaycouple and hungerlady, and who both gave up their stable full-time jobs four years ago to pursue their passion for being Influencers.
@weekdaycouple / @hungerlady
Vienna and Tarran (aka sou.good) are another successful KOL couple, focusing on travel and lifestyle. In 2019 they visited over 40 countries, sharing their experiences along the way.
“When we were travelling, the process for each post actually involved a lot of planning and organisation. We take a lot of pride in creating quality content and with that comes a certain amount of stress due to the high expectations we put on ourselves.”
@sou.good
“The challenge is producing the content all on your own. Sometimes it feels really lonely, but if you persevere you can definitely achieve something,” notes Sulin Ip who was Miss International Macau 2016, and now has over 270,000 followers on Instagram.
@sulinip
Sulin passed the crown of Miss International Macau to Sofia Paiva the following year. Sofia has also generated a strong fan base on Instagram with over 150,000 followers.
“One of the most challenging things is that you need to be able to do it all yourself, because you’re basically in charge of everything from pre-production to post-production to front of house and even behind the scenes,” Sofia says.
@sofiavdsp
“Being an Influencer also means doing all the social media marketing processes that are often time-consuming, including researching, planning, styling, analyzing, shooting, post-processing, writing,” says Erika Ivanova, who posts health and fitness tips along with her partner Ivan Vargovsky. “There is a lot more to being an Influencer than just taking some photos of yourself, wearing nice clothes, and posting ads on your social media channels. The job requires a lot of dedication, effort, hard work, business smarts, and social media savvy.”
@varfitteam / @ivanova_erika / @ivan.vargovsky
There are of course many strategies for gaining a wider audience, and it’s important to have a clear plan before you get started.
“The main thing is to do what you like to do, be the real you and keep your passion for sharing,” advises Jeffrey Fok, a very popular Instagrammer and YouTube personality, who works with local content creator company Manner Culture Ltd. “In this business, you can become famous very quickly and many people will like you, but there are also many pitfalls,” he adds.
@jeffreyfok_224
Doris Lee is also a regular YouTube personality with Manner and has an Instagram following of over 240,000.
“The biggest challenge is to keep thinking of innovative content. You also need to be self-disciplined. If you don’t publish enough, your reputation will decline and your career will be affected,” she comments.
@dorisleetw
To be successful, Reggie Martin advises: “Identify a niche and your own style, have a detailed schedule for posting, keep visual consistency, engage with your followers to build up a relationship, and choose the right hashtags.”
“Hashtags are so important!” agrees Carolina Sousa, who has found particular success on TikTok with 183,000 followers and 3.4 million likes. “There are a few hashtags that I always use on my posts, for example: #travel, #beautiful, #love, #fashion, #OOTD, #girl, #photography, #summer or #winter (depending on what season we’re in), and many more.”
@carolinasousa425
Erika and Ivan offer similar advice: “Your main priority is to engage with your audience and people in your niche, by liking and commenting on their photos too. Editing your photos carefully can also impact your growth, and hashtags are important.”
Of course, putting yourself out there in the online environment means you can also attract some negative attention.
“You also have to deal with comments from other people, so whether it’s good or bad, you have to be able to take it,” says Sofia.
“I have received so many mean comments on some TikTok videos,” notes Carolina. “Some comments were actually so rude, and I was really upset, but there are also a lot of positive and supportive comments and messages too.”
“Every coin has two sides,” acknowledges Reggie. “As a KOL there can be a lot of haters and being the focus of negative and critical comments can be upsetting. I just stay in my lane and continue to walk by faith and not let the negativity bring me down.”
@bettyfung323
"It’s important to always keep informed and up to date with new trends and restaurants"
@blackjoe_5587
"The thing I like most about being on social media is the recognition of my fans"
@wongnuno / 圖 Photo Gonçalo Lobo Pinheiro
"If you are just starting out, find your own personal style and know your own unique values"
@memofoodie
"I’m really not aggressive about trying to get more likes or followers, I just want to record and share what I’ve eaten"
@zero_nowz
"I don’t have any particular strategies for getting more likes or followers. I just share what I want to share"
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