By Ahile Shima
Who are social media influencers and why should you follow them?
Before looking into the most influential travellers, let us understand who are social media influencers and why should you follow them? These questions have to be answered for us to understand why this subject of this article is valid. An influencer is someone who has a lot of sway over the actions and understanding of other people. Further, an influencer is an individual who is capable of ensuring that a large number of people, commonly referred to as their followers or audience accept and want a particular product or service.
Therefore, a social media influencer is an individual who has a lot of control over the internet space (could be Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Hobo.Video, and a personal blog) and is capable of influencing or controlling the narrative online. Social media has succeeded in connecting people across miles and so a social media influencer will not be limited to distance but is able to have an audience from various communities and countries.
Social media influencer
A social media influencer is followed because most influencers don’t only post their personal businesses. As a matter of fact, most influencers have a dedicated page used in collaborations with brands and for executing market strategies. A social media influencer, therefore, is followed because brands used influencers to promote and advertise themselves. Following an influencer will therefore mean access to the latest trends, information on certain products and services, and most importantly, authentic product review. So, having the opportunity to see an influencer reviewing a brand gives you an idea of what you require. For cautious and first-time customers, there is a certain relief when they see a popular influencer endorsing a brand they want to patronize.
Each community and by default, the country has influencers that are well known to the people in that region. This article considers social media influencers in India which is a country out of many that mostly appreciate the endorsements of influencers before they make any buys. Above all, there are over a thousand influencers and popular people in India. However, we will be looking at the 20 most influential travellers in the whole of India. Further, these individuals are persons who are well known and who are known to review products and services.
Moreover, there are several Indian who are popular in India worldwide. However, we will be looking at social media influencers with a large following especially on Instagram and who are consistently involved in destination reviews.
What qualifies social media influencers as the most influential travellers?
Before deciding to follow a social media influencer, it is important to confirm that they are actually influencers with a huge audience base. It is also important to be aware that having a huge audience base isn’t all there is to being a top influencer; the engagement rate has to also be very high. For instance, an influencer with 2 million followers but a 2.4% engagement rate is not as influential as an influencer with 800 thousand followers but an engagement rate of 16%.
There are certain ways to know for sure that a social media influencer is worthy of brand collaborations and obtaining your following. Below is a list of considerations before picking a top influencer (most influential travellers for this article) to follow and work with.
1. Trends of top influencers in the Indian marketplace
2. An Influencer sphere of influence (personal marketplace)
3. Quality of content on their home pages across different social media platforms
4. Follower to Engagement Ratio
To know more about how to ace the game as a top influencer, you can read our previous article here.
20 most influential travellers to follow on social media
1. Siddhartha Joshi
He is a top professional in Industrial design. He also is known for his TEDx talks and has been known to say you don’t have to quit your job to become a traveller. (Instagram handle @siddharthajoshi)
2. Archana Singh
She enjoys travelling while doing her job as a public speaker and excelling in photography. She also combines having fun while taking care of the environment. (Instagram handle @travelseewrite)
3. Aakriti Rana
She is a sensational traveller and fashionable content creator. She was born in New Delhi. But after an advertising job, she is focused on travel blogging. (Instagram handle @aakritiranaofficial)
4. Archana and Vidur
This couple loves biking. They’ve incorporated it into their travel lifestyle. Further, this couple uses bikes to travel to various cities within India. (Instagram handle @travelmynation)
5. Nikhil Sharma
He is a lifestyle blogger who posts and reviews pictures and videos of places he has visited. (Instagram handle @nikkkhil)
6. Dheeraj Sharma
Dheeraj’s Instagram page and blog have been known to make a follower want to plan their own adventures. Further, his content and beautifully taken photos make his page an exciting place to visit. (Instagram handle @devilonwheels)
7. Shivya Nath
She has been described as many things but she likes to simply be referred to as ‘a girl who travels’. (Instagram handle @shivya)
8. Ajay Sood
Ajay is an award-winning photographer. He also spends his time as a TBEX Speaker. Further, when he isn’t doing that, he is off taking pictures and travelling. (Instagram handle @travelure)
9. Nivedith Gajapathy
He is a tech enthusiast and a food blogger who spends his time travelling and blogging from different locations. He also has authored several articles in popular periodicals. (Instagram handle @nivedithg)
10. Seema Gurnani
Seema has been blogging while reviewing meals long before travel influencers became a big thing. She quit her job and is currently a vegetarian travel blogger. (Instagram handle @pandaviewz)
11. Revati and Charles Victor
The couple has toured so much of India and the world together. They also maintain their day jobs and blog as they travel. (Instagram handle @differentdoors)
12. Neelima Vallangi
She is a writer who has travelled to several places because of her interests in climate and adventure. She also uses the opportunity of her job to document and post about said places. (Instagram handle @neelimav)
13. Ami Bhat
Ami is a digital marketing expert who has successfully found how to do that while travelling and documenting her adventures. She also uses her blog to talk about where she has been and how to create fascinating content. (Instagram handle @amibhat)
14. Abhinav Singh
His page tells the stories of all the places he has enjoyed travelling to. Having been fired from his job, he also became a full-time travel blogger and his posts never disappoint. (Instagram handle @asoulwindow)
15. Swati and Sam
This Indian couple spends most of their time travelling and blogging about adventures in different cities and countries. (Instagram handle @swati_n_sam)
16. Soumya Gupta
Soumya is a social media fashion sensation and enjoys travelling She providing make easy tips to handle skincare routines and other entertaining content. (Instagram handle @thesassthing_)
17. Shubham Mansingka
Shubham is an established travel blogger from South Delhi. He also has made an occupation out of combining photography, writing and travelling. (Instagram handle @shubham.mansingka)
18. Indrani Ghose
Indrani loves to take pictures of places, people and animals that she comes across while she enjoys travelling and being a featured tour guide on Google. (Instagram handle @indranipics)
19. Niranjan Das
His style of travel blogging is slightly special. As a traveller, he posts all that he sees, without worrying about how it all looks. Moreover, authenticity is his trademark. (Instagram handle @rniranjan_das)
20. Footloose Dev
Devesh went into travelling and by the time he had hiked the Himalayas, he was certain this was something he wanted to keep doing and more often. (Instagram handle @footloosedev)
Conclusion
There are several areas that social media influencers cover. However, this article has taken into focus the most influential travellers to follow on social media. As a brand or an individual just looking to have good content on your screen, it is necessary that you properly check to be sure an influencer is what you are looking for. Some travel bloggers are popular, however; it isn’t profitable to follow them because they do not generate a lot of interactions. There are several more travel bloggers in India you can follow and work with. Although it might seem like all travel blogging is the same thing, it is not as each blogger brings his/her own style into it. It is important to look for the uniqueness of each influencer based on wants and needs.
