We all want to live our best life, right? India Blue Severe, or more commonly known as “Indy Blue” is doing just that, and has successfully gained hundreds of thousands of followers, both on Twitter and Instagram. Indy is a 21-year-old social media influencer who gets paid by other companies to travel the world alongside her best friends while she documents her adventures via video and pictures.
Indy markets herself to brands by posing with certain products pertaining to traveling or speaking on behalf of airlines or affordable Airbnbs. She has branded herself to be a stylish, free-spirited traveler who takes aesthetically pleasing videos and pictures. Influencer marketing is a part of IMC and brand strategy that is booming in today’s society. There are thousands of well-known influencers on social media, many of which do something similar to Indy in regards to getting paid to travel. Becoming an influencer is not as easy as it seems, though. Scoping an audience and finding new and innovative ways to stand out from competition can be the hardest part of becoming an influencer in the marketing industry.
In Indy’s road to creating a brand for her name, she first started out by saving money and finding cheap ways to travel often, something that she currently promotes on her social media platforms. According to her self-made blog, Indy stated, “My first blog had a lifespan of about 5 years. A wide audience of about 5 readers (mom, grandma, aunt hil, my young women’s leader, big fat jerk Jessica from the fourth grade) But I didn’t care. I wrote everything a 12 year old could write about. School lunch. Justin Bieber. “ Indy eventually realized she wanted to see the world for herself and grow her blog analytics through quality content. As her follow on social media grew, more and more brands wanted to collaborate with her.
Indy uses her creativity to brand herself and promote other brands. By age nineteen, Indy was a freelance wedding videographer, giving her even more reason to travel the world, which in end, would help her visit even more exotic places she knew her audience tuned in for. She even admitted to scheduling weddings around the trips she would book once she gained a following on social media. Due to her quality photography and videography, Indy’s posts get thousands of likes and shares at a time, something someone who has great marketing skills possesses.
Overall, IMC has taken a hold of today’s world with social media branding, including Indy Blue. With that being said, maybe it’s time to research more about brand strategy and jump on the boat to being internet famous. You never know-with the right techniques, you could be paid to travel the world with your friends, too!
Good Luck,
Tally Pavel
IMC Hawks Blog 