Everyone sees how social media like YouTube has allowed a person to seemingly become an overnight celebrity.
We see people like Justin Bieber, who got signed to a record deal after being discovered on You Tube and has become one of the most sought after entertainers in the music business for better or for worse.
We also see Taryn Southern, who had build her “celebrity status” on YouTube with her outrageous and funny videos.
What many might not know is that Ms. Southern once audition for American Idol and did not make it past the stage on where people showcase their talent on national television.
Speaking of American Idol, we have seen people who have made a name for themselves like Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Ruben Studdard.
They have endured the constant critique of the judges, (some of the critiques really over the top) and aimed to make sure that they do not lose their cool.
They believe that if they continue to work on their craft, they can show the judges and the entire country that they are worthy to be called the winner of American Idol and land a recording contract.
Another person that comes to mind is Eva Longoria, who supposedly gained instant celebrity status after starring in “Desperate Housewives” and is now a household name.
They do not see that Ms. Longoria worked for about a decade in television before achieving the so-called “sudden fame.”
Now that is a lot to think about.
While you are thinking about it, let me talk more about celebrities.
We have the opportunity to interact with them in real time on Twitter.
These celebrities have Twitter followers ranging in the hundreds of thousands and the millions.
You might notice that they are only following a few hundred or a few thousand people that is mostly the people they interact with on a daily basis.
It seems like they believe that they do not have to interact with their admirers on Twitter.
It is true to a small degree that they can’t interact or follow back their admirers because they are in the hundreds of thousands and the millions.
That is not an excuse for them to be so self-absorbed and egotistic.
And the sad part is that many thought leaders who have been named to many important influencer list like Forbes, are not really engaged with their followers or fans.
They have what is probably called the “celebrity ego disease”
What many don’t seem to understand is that social media is a two way street.
Meaning that if someone interact with you, then you should have the courtesy to interact back with them.
When a person have the mentality that they don’t need to interact with the person who is following them, then they are losing out on learning something new that could help them to gain more fans and even build their reputation as a approachable person.
So you might be thinking that I am not a celebrity and I don’t have that much influence like all of the big name celebrities or thought leaders.
Well I have great news for you: Everyone Is A Celebrity In Their Own Right.
Just because you are not well known does not mean that you don’t have influence.
If you are doing well in your niche, creating value for your customers and are interacting with your fans on social media, then you are really gaining more fans and are earning the respect from others even if you are a business owner or an employee.
In my mind, a true social media celebrity is a person who are interacting with their fans, sharing valuable content and is making the effort to make sure that they are solving everyone problems even if they have not made the most influential lists on the most respected media companies.
Though there are so many people and companies who are true social media celebrities, for the sake of this article, I have listed a few below. So don’t get mad at me if your name is not on this list:
Tamara McCleary, National Speaker and Creator of Relationshift
Rachel Miller, Chief Listener at Pipeliner CRM
Brian Fanzo, Chief Digital Strategy Officer at BroadSuite Media Group and Co-Host of #sbizhour
Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer at Marketing Profs
Lorrie Guerrieri, Community Manager at Joyce Co.
Christin Kardos, Social Media Strategist at Bay Leaf Digital
Samantha Klein, Employee at IBM
Sherrie Rohde, Community Manager at Rebellion Media
Teri Kojetin, Social Media & Community Coordinator at ICUC
Kelly Hungerford, Ambassador for Paper.Li
So if you want to be a true celebrity, I would highly suggest following these people and/or companies who are on this list.
You will learn a lot from them and be able to improve your engagement on social media.
