Twinkle Stanly, an “overnight” social media sensation went from 6,500 thousand followers to 50,000 thousand in just 8 weeks, and we ask how she did it.
From just one viral video, her Instagram account saw a reach and engagement that Twinkle had never seen before. Weeks before her video went viral, I asked Twinkle over WhatsApp for tips on content creation. Expecting a few sentences back, I was pleasantly surprised to read her in-depth knowledge, scroll through detailed information and insights into what I should do, and apps to download.
Just like over WhatsApp, Twinkle ensures she is portrayed as authentic as she can be by helping others. From learning how to content create, to being open about her relationships, family dynamic and culture, Twinkle has grown dramatically on Instagram, and TikTok, with slow but gradual growth on YouTube.
Although some may feel self-conscious opening their lives to strangers online, Twinkle enjoys conversation, mostly with herself! She has an energy that is no-nonsense, direct yet warm and comforting using dry humour to welcome a smile through the screen.
Twinkle’s videos are more than a “chat,” but for her followers “it’s like being at a sleepover with their favourite brown cousin.” We ask Twinkle how she grew so quickly on social media, so be sure to grab your pen and paper as you’ll find a lot of valuable information.
Table of Contents
Tell us a bit about yourself
I’m a 25-year-old Dubai kid, who is quite literally obsessed with video content. I was born and brought up here my whole life, so I’m your typical third-culture kid.
I studied filmmaking and used to work as a freelance photographer and videographer, but two years ago I landed a full-time role as a content producer for Cosmopolitan Middle East and GRAZIA Middle East, and I never looked back. I currently spearhead video content across all platforms on both brands. I also work in print – so I basically have *the* dream job for every content creator.
I’m a cancer baby, so I’m always in my feels, which led me to create super relatable videos on my personal profile, which took off a couple of weeks ago and I now take a lot of pride in them.
You went from 6.5k followers on IG, to 50K in 8 weeks. What’s your secret & how did you do it?
Relatability, and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of virality. Over 6 weeks ago, I randomly posted a video of me talking about my strict parents while doing my makeup, and to my surprise, it went viral with a million views which gained me 10,000 followers. I then started posting more honest and relatable content every 2 days to ride the wave and capitalise on the profile visits, but my newer videos of the same format continued to perform well with millions of views.
The secret is to learn engagement points: How can a video be made more engaging? It comes down to a few things: subtitling, the opening line or the hook, and storytelling in 90 seconds – understanding these can massively help with engagement, which is what drives the views.
You go quite deep into relationships and upbringing – what does your family think of your content, and how do you deal with negative comments you receive online?
In all honesty, my mom used to be super embarrassed about it in the beginning because of how openly I, as an Indian woman, spoke about having boyfriends and prior relationships. But she reads the comments that other girls leave on my videos talking about how I make them feel less alone, so she’s come around to it. She also gets super excited to see my growth and the opportunities it brings, so that will always be her priority.
When it comes to negative comments, I have a simple rule: If I wouldn’t trade lives with the person, I will not take their negative comments to heart. It’s easy to sit behind a screen and spew hate, and that alone makes someone less worthy of listening to it.
What is your favourite type of content to create and what do you want to do more of?
Storytimes are my favourite because of how much I love talking (hehe). I really enjoy talking about singlehood and past relationships because I’ve learnt a lot being in a few unhealthy ones, and I always feel like other women can take away a few things from it as well.
However, I eventually want to do honest videos around content creation because I strongly believe that a lot of us want to be creators but are too embarrassed to admit it. It’s something I will focus on when I’m slightly more influential and start making money off social media.
What piece of advice can you give to someone starting out as a content creator/influencer?
My biggest advice is to accept that if you want to be a creator, you cannot be subtle about it. I used to be really embarrassed, but I’ve learnt that you can only gain an audience when you show up like you already have one and you do that consistently, and someday you will not have to fake it anymore.
Another tip is to accept that at the end of the day, no matter how much effort you put into it, your 30-second video is JUST a 30-second video and no one really cares about it in the grand scheme of things. Some people think they’re constantly being watched, analysed and made fun of, but people really do have better things to do. You can be discouraged by that fact, but I use it to post what I create without overthinking it.
Nobody cares about my videos, so I can post whatever I want – how amazing is that?
What is your goal with social media? What is it that you want to promote/advocate?
My long-term goal is to monetise my social media in a way that’s authentic and fulfilling to me. Whether that’s talking about my shitty relationships or sharing my favourite products of the month. My dream collaboration would be a first-date series with Bumble, I’m hoping to someday make it happen.
When it comes to what I want to advocate, I once received a DM where someone told me that watching my videos is like being at a sleepover with their favourite brown cousin, and that stuck with me. No matter what route my social media takes, I hope that’s how people always feel when they come to my page.
You talk a lot about your past relationships and current relationship status. Is that something you like talking about or what your followers want to hear?
Definitely both! I eventually do want to direct the focus a bit more toward personal growth and career, but I’m not fully confident in that aspect yet, so I’ll have to wait for a bit more.
You hit 50k followers from 49k in just a day. How did you celebrate?
By taking my family out to a nice dinner. They got me a cake the day I hit 10k, which was a couple of weeks ago. They’re my biggest supporters, no matter how embarrassing my topics of conversation can be for them haha, so that will be the first on my list.
Is it difficult juggling Instagram content, and YouTube content, and working full-time? How do you do it? What’s your content plan and which platform do you want to grow/focus on?
Not a lot of people know this, but my full-time job takes up 80% of my time and IS my priority. When it comes to my Instagram videos, it only takes me an hour to film and edit them, which I do during the weekdays before 8 am as I start work at 9. TikTok is simply a replication of IG videos, so that’s not hard at all.
However, one platform I want to grow in is YouTube due to a few reasons. Number one being it is one of the best to foster a community. If people invest 10 minutes to watch your YouTube video, they feel like they already know you.
Another reason is the monetary value. Once successfully built, YouTube works as a great source of passive income that will continue to generate revenue through Google AdSense.
And the last, which is the most important to me is competition. It is not hard to blow up on Instagram and TikTok, as a lot of creators have nailed the art of short-form storytelling, but YouTube is a different ball game. I’m hoping that if I learn to create engaging, and informative long-form videos, it will help me stand out from other creators.
Do you see yourself being a full-time creator?
It’s still early to be sure, but I don’t think I’d do well as my own boss. I really love my full-time job because it keeps my life organized. My goal is to live an affluent life, but I also know that Dubai’s job landscape will not fulfil that. So, I’m hoping that my full-time job helps me reach my career goals and aspirations, while my social media presence brings in exciting opportunities and helps me generate the additional income I need to live the life I want.
What are important skills for a creator to have?
Editing. Editing is EVERYTHING. You can completely change how engaging a video is in the way it is sliced up. There are loads of apps you can use to make this process easier such as Captions, Videoleap, Capcut and more. The second is not necessarily a skill, but it is being obsessed with analytics. I picked up this from my full-time job, but your analytics will tell you everything you need to know to create better videos. Understand your watch hours, drop-off points, view retention and more.
Now that you’re officially a social media content creator/influencer, what is next for you?
Next is definitely partnerships. I have the reach, so my aim is to monetise that and create more series that brands can buy into. Over the past 2 weeks, I’ve had loads of brands reach out with paid opportunities, but since I’m still new to this, I’m in the beginning stages of negotiation, deliverables and more, which I’m sure I’ll figure out!
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