Every day the public learns of a new video or social media post by a content creator that’s gone viral. But who are these creators and what is inspiring them to create content that people want to engage with?
The creator economy is a new class of businesses made up of over 50 million independent content creators who are banishing the corporate gatekeepers and writing a new set of rules that allows anyone with a passion and a smartphone to share their message with the world.
But before we get too deep into what these creators are doing to spread their message, let’s start to unpack what the creator economy means in its simplest terms.
What is the “creator economy?”
The creator economy consists of independent creatives who have found ways to use their knowledge and skills as a side hustle or full-time business. This community of creators includes social media influencers, bloggers, videographers, and the tech companies that fuel their ability to share their passions with the world. This unique community of creators utilizes technology to sell their knowledge as products that can include courses, books or ebooks, specialized services, and more.
Content creator opportunities
There are a number of social media monetization opportunities available for all different types of creators. The key is matching your talent and skills with the media platform that best fits your offering. Let’s take a look at a few.
Video and live streaming
Platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Twitch, Instagram Live, Facebook Live, and OnlyFans allow creators to use live video to interact with their followers in real-time. Creators can share personal stories, a “day in the life” vlogs, tutorials, and more. If your followers miss a live video, there’s an opportunity for them to catch the replay at their convenience. Videos can be repurposed across platforms to create multiple income creation opportunities.
Photography, painting, drawing, illustration, graphic design
If you gravitate towards the visual arts, then media platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest, etc. allow you to share your work along with text that delves deeper into what your piece is about. You can invite followers to leave a comment or even tag you on some of their own work inspired by one of your own posts. You can direct followers to a link that allows them to buy original pieces or other products featuring your designs. Create a membership program that allows you to share special content with paying customers using Patreon.
Music and podcasts
Are you a singer or musician and want to skip the record labels to get your work directly in front of your target audience? Perhaps you’re a thought leader that has a strong message you want to share on your own radio show. Media platforms like iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, and Soundcloud may be just the tools you’re looking for. It has never been easier to create, record, and share your work with millions of people across the world. Make your sounds and other products and services available for sale using easy-to-use technologies that simplify the process of selling digital items.
Writing of all genres
Bloggers, essayists, humorists, consultants, authors, and more are able to write and share their own stories on a number of platforms including Twitter, Medium, Quora, and Substack. Create a community around your thoughts and ideas. Become known as the “go-to expert” in your field of expertise. Build a library of digital or printed books and other resources that your followers can refer to at any time.
How big is the creator economy?
If you want to know how much you can make as a content creator on YouTube and other platforms, the truth is that the answer can vary. It all depends on a number of factors including the number of followers, the type of content you produce, the almighty algorithm, and a host of other touchpoints that are not always under your control. But let’s take a look at how much some of YouTube’s most successful content creators are making in a year via ad revenue.
- Ten-year old, Ryan Kaji, creates videos for kids to help them learn more about the world. In January 2022, Ryan’s channel of about 31 million subscribers pulled in a whopping $26 million dollars in ad revenue alone.
- Gaming enthusiast, MrBeast, made $24 million dollars between June 2019 and June 2020 across several channels with 87 million subscribers.
- Boxer and social media personality, Logan Paul, has more than 23 million subscribers on his main channel and makes roughly $20 million dollars a year.
Creator platforms are growing quickly with one of social media’s newest darlings, TikTok. But are they as successful as creators on YouTube? While YouTube creators can make money directly with ad revenue, TikTok uses built-in monetization tools like virtual “gifts” that can be converted into cash and a Creator Fund that pays creators who have at least 10,000 followers and 100,000 views within a 30-day period. While Creator Fund payments don’t pay for all the bills, many creators have turned towards brand deals to make extra money.
So is it possible to be a success without millions of followers on YouTube and TikTok? The answer is yes, but only for those who create a business strategy that matches their intensity of the passions.
Start your own website to monetize content
If you’re a serious creator, then you want to know how to keep more of the money generated by your content in your own pocket. The secret is to be able to house your content on a website that you own. Vimeo OTT allows you to do just that using a subscription-based service for all your fans and followers.
What subscription model can work best for your creator business? Let’s take a look.
#1. Create exclusive content for paying subscribers.
Do you create specialized content you want to share with serious learners? Perhaps you teach something like watercolor painting, vegan cooking, or interior design. A membership-based subscription model will allow you to create content for people who are willing to pay for exclusive content that serves their needs. Your members can choose to interact with pre-made content at their own pace. You, the creator, can also add in live stream demonstrations and answer their questions in real-time.
#2 Become your own Netflix with original niche entertainment.
No, you don’t have to be a giant media company like Netflix to create a streaming service. All you have to do is focus on creating high-quality, original content that keeps people wanting more.
With a niche entertainment monetization model, you get to do more of what you do best – create great content. Your subscribers will be able to stream your content on-demand. Furthermore, you’ll be able to predict your monthly or annual income and make plans to scale.
#3 Create a content library that’s available all year long.
If you’ve got a business that depends on seasonal or time-sensitive activities, you can create a content library that your fans can plug into on demand. So whether you’re doing a book tour, speaking appearances, or product line releases, your fans can go home and connect with you on their device of choice.
Why does this model work for creators? It allows you to stay connected to your fans and followers between appearances without having to skip out on an added income stream. Stay connected to your community while on the road or at home.
#4 Hook subscribers with free content, then transition into paid.
Sometimes it makes sense for a creator to want to attract new subscribers with free content. It allows them an opportunity to get to know the creator and style of content before being asked to pay for more advanced content. These are called invested subscribers – or people who recognize the value of the content and choose to stay connected. This works well for fitness instructors or other creators who are teaching content that is highly focused on results.
#5 Build community online and off.
Does your subscription-based business depend on income from in-person events? A subscription-based business model can be a boost to individual creators, companies, and organizations who want to stay connected to their followers at any time. The pandemic has shown us that in-person meetings, be they a mastermind, church service, or company meetings, can be interrupted at a moment’s notice. Rather than wait for the green light to meet again, why not engage your followers with content they can stream at their leisure?
This content can be past sermons, classes, recordings of special guest speakers, and more. The price of the membership can offset the ticket prices of events that attracted lower than expected numbers of attendees or events that had to be canceled altogether.
Examples of brands/content creators monetizing with OTT
Who are the creators who are leading the way in the creator economy revolution? Let’s take a look at companies that’ve decided to make a subscription-based monetization model a part of their overall business strategy.
ISC Sports Network is Indiana’s premier sports streaming channel with live and on-demand sporting events for the state’s die-hard sports fans. How does it generate income? There’s an ongoing subscription available for those who never want to miss an event. In addition, there are ways to offer paid advertising and ticket sales for one-off events. The network is able to accept payment directly in-app while increasing opt-ins for pay-per-view events.
Speed51 is the online home of grassroots and short-track racing for the U.S. This is the go-to network for editorial and live stream coverage of racing events. This company made their mark during the pandemic with pay-per-view live streams on top of their regular video-on-demand service. This allowed them to earn back some of the funds lost from live event ticket sales.
GazeboTV has produced some of Canada’s most beloved film classics such as, “Anne of Green Gables.” Rather than wait for limited television distribution, the company decided to take their creations from home video and DVD sales to a global live streaming service in 2015. Vimeo OTT allowed the company to offer a transactional video on demand (TVOD) service that allowed their customers to own digital copies of their most loved content.
DIRTVision, World Racing Group’s live and on-demand streaming service, boasts over 7,000 hours of free dirt racing content from the U.S. The company found that they had outgrown their original platform and transitioned to Vimeo OTT for its simplicity. They needed one partner and a single reliable platform from which to run their programs. In addition to free content, the channel has hosted over 400 races bringing in income from live pay-per-view events and in-app purchases.
Looking to add subscriptions to your creative business?
As the creator economy starts to produce more professional content and turn it into profitable businesses, they will need to have tools that allow them to have more control over their work. Vimeo OTT provides an ongoing subscription-based platform that allows creators to develop new content, as well as repurpose content that can be turned into multiple income streams. Creators can build community, create live streaming content, produce exclusive content, and more.
Ready to get started? Connect with Vimeo OTT today.
