How a 32-year-old earns thousands with fewer than 8,000 followers

Alyssa Poplaski doesn’t consider herself a large-scale influencer. The 32-year-old technical designer for a high-end fashion brand in New York has fewer than 8,000 followers on TikTok, where she posts videos about her life.

But her modest following hasn’t precluded her from finding financial success online. In the first three months of this year, she says she has earned $4,355 before tax from brand partnerships, affiliate links and Amazon commissions.

In November, Poplaski received an email from a beauty brand offering her a four-figure brand deal. At first, she presumed it was fake. “The email was so professional. It was kind of undeniable,” she says. In the end, she was paid $1,500 for one 30-second TikTok video. which she also shared to her Instagram account, where she has 4,000 followers.

From how to spend a Saturday night out in New York City to a 10-step morning routine, Poplaski shares her life online, though she says monetisation was not her original goal. After entering the workforce, she says she longed for a creative outlet different from her full-time job and turned to social media to begin documenting moments with friends. “And then I was like, ‘Oh, this is kind of fun,’” she says. “So it kind of snowballed.”

Despite generating some income, Poplaski has no plans to leave her nine-to-five role, valuing the stability it provides. “All of the benefits are amazing and I don’t have to worry,” she says. “I know every two weeks I’m getting my paycheck, but this has honestly supplemented my income.”

She films and edits her videos before and after work — sometimes for an entire day on the weekend — to have content lined up for the week. As her day job remains her priority, she’s selective about partnerships. When approached by brands for sponsorship opportunities, she describes the negotiation process as “like a dance,” noting that “you have no idea what the budget is on the other side.” She has turned down potential collaborations that she felt paid too little. She also earns money through affiliate links, which pay out every two weeks. Amazon’s affiliate program provides another stream of income, paying her a monthly commission on popular products she recommends.

Although many content creators aim to maximize their reach, Poplaski says it’s not her primary objective. “Truthfully, I don’t want viral videos; that kind of scares me,” she says. As a nano influencer, she strives to build an authentic community. “I’m a big sister in real life and I feel like that’s just what I want to give off online as well.”

Still, Poplaski may set up a limited liability company — a business setup that protects your personal assets — to help manage her online income more formally.

The Wider Trend

According to financial technology platform Lumanu’s 2025 payout analysis, nano influencers (defined as having fewer than 10,000 followers) averaged about $4,800 in yearly earnings in 2025, up 45% from 2024, while micro influencers (who have 10,000 to 100,000 followers) averaged about $38,500.

Bill Shafransky, a senior wealth adviser at financial planning firm Moneco Advisors, says even modest side income can help cover a person’s day-to-day expenses. Once those earnings become consistent, he advises creators to set up a business structure and begin routing income through it to ensure financial compliance. “If you’re not paying taxes on that money, then it’s definitely more of an IRS audit risk, which is never going to be fun for anybody,” he says.

Key Takeaways

You don’t need a massive following on social media to make money. Smaller creators can still be commercially valuable. Poplaski says that having a clear personal identity is key.

Treat a side hustle like a business once it becomes reliable. Once income from social media looks sustainable, Shafransky says creators should start treating it like a business to help with structure and deduct costs.

Keep your financial records up to date. Without proper accounting, creators risk tax penalties or losing business-related tax benefits. “If you show too many losses, too many years of losses, the IRS says you’re not a business, you’re a hobby, and you lose all your tax benefits,” Shafransky says.