What do businesses think of the Creator Economy (and the best way to create a business model to benefit from it) --
As a content producer There are many opportunities to earn money through sales of goods or services, sales of course materials, as well as via sponsored content.
Content creators often build their careers around their passionsthrough blogs, course creation, and creating merchandise that reflects their branding. Sponsored content is another great method to boost your earnings.
By combining a few bits of knowledge, some data that support your claim with some effort, you will be well on the way to making more and creating relationships which be a source of income.
What is the Creator Economy? Economy Work?
The creator economy is the distribution of content (education or entertainment information) that is made available via the internet as well as web-based app platforms for people in general. As per Signalfire that the Creator Economy is built of "over 50 million content creators, curators and community builders such as bloggers, influencers on social media and videographers, along with finance and software tools designed to help them grow and make money."
Creators
Creators make up the core of the Economy of Creators. Creators provide the content that the public loves to consume. From dance videos on TikTok to photos of Instagram videos on YouTube (and all of the rest) Creators offer us all a reason to scroll, to learn, to pass time, and to be entertained.
The creation of original content is always wanted and will continue to be a demand. Creators bring that for the general public.
Consumers
Consider consumers as creator's customer. In most cases, users aren't charged for contents. Users vote using their fingers - moving quickly or visiting a creator's profile to take in their material.
Though consumers might not actually pay for the media they consume, they are often affected by the creators of content to purchase goods or services that are either blatantly being presented, or subtlely shared.
Throughout 2020-2021, TikTok creators began displaying the Coldest(tm) bottle of water within the 60 second videos. Although the company has not shared their sales because of this product placement, based on the longevity of the product placement, as well as the sheer number of content creators that were involved, one can assume that there was, at the very least, a modest amount of success - if not existential increase. If you do a quick search on the internet for the product reveals numerous pages of customer reviews as well as sales possibilities.
People can be influenced by artists they admire and follow.
Platforms
Platforms for content creation come and go - or be a part of the same. Vine, for example, was an American short-form video hosting service where users could share six-second-long looping videos. (Wikipedia.) Vine was short-lived. Others social-sharing platforms (like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok) have endured.
Platforms give creators the opportunity to publish their work, with a built-in audience that can take in the content.
Businesses
In the Creator Economy, businesses can be any one of several contributing parties. Creators themselves may develop into enterprises. The social sharing sites are definitely companies. What we're trying to concentrate on is businesses as content sponsors.
Businesses (like The Coldest(tm) that was mentioned earlier) seek out content creators for influencers they can partner via product placement or through endorsement.
Content sponsorship is part of a marketing strategy for businesses. Get influencers to use and share your products to ensure that their followers turn into your clients.
The Creator Business Model
Based on our definitions above, the interactions between creators of content, their platforms, and corporate sponsors can be used to provide the creators with revenue. There are many ways this can happen.
Platform Revenue Sharing
Often called "creator funds" platforms offer more well-known creators to continue to produce content. As creators are driving usage of their platforms, social media giants, such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and yes, TikTok, pay creators to continue to drive traffic.
Advertisers pay for platforms to provide ad space and airtime. (How often did you have to sit through five- or 15- seconds of ads on YouTube in order to view the video?) They rely on their creators for traffic. Thus, having content that can drive visitors is worth the investment. That's where you, the creator of content, step into.
Platforms are ready to pay you for the content that provides something (information or education).
Affiliate Marketing
Content creators have been part of affiliate marketing from the moment social sharing began. Armed with affiliate links bloggers, YouTubers, Facebookers and more share about products and services that they use within their content They then distribute their affiliate links for followers to make purchases.
Affiliate marketing (like the placement of brands and products below) can be effective since followers are conditioned to believe that the source of content uses and endorses the content they share. Sometimes referred to as "social evidence," endorsements and reviews aid consumers in making purchase decisions that are based on trust.
Product Location
Like the coldest Water(tm) example before the example, placement of products is typically subtle. (With this particular example, TikTok users simply had their signature blue bottle somewhere within the clip.)
It also implies endorsement by the content creator. If you notice someone you admire using an item, then you're likely to assume they like it - and extrapolate that you will, too.
According to an article from Elite Daily, people who use the platform become obsessed by items they've found by utilizing influencers. From skincare products to food storage containers, product placement works.
Brand sponsorship
Brands sponsor content. If you're offering an email newsletter, video, podcast episodes blogs, or some courses that are sponsored by brands, they will be willing to pay to promote your material.
Many TikTok creators' accounts are dedicated to Amazon "finds" that they would like you to purchase and try. In many instances, the products could be sold to you through endorsements. The benefits of sponsored content are for both the brand as well as the consumer.
A majority of brands look to sponsor content which is related to their products or services they provide, however that isn't always the case. Larger brands, like Coca~Cola as an example are sponsors of events and other content just because they perceive opportunities for selling and their content is likely to be seen by a large number of. One of Coke's most famous commercials depicted a footballer "Mean Joe Green" sipping a Coca~Cola at a football match. It is not common for athletes to drink drinks like that at sporting occasions, however this commercial was a hit with the public and continues to be a reference more than 40 years after the fact.
Many brands prefer to promote content that aligns to their services and products. If you are offering online training in photography, for example then you could seek sponsorships from products or websites for sharing photos that cater to professional photographers, cameras, and equipment for photography.
The courses that offer cooking or recipe-related content may have sponsors from the producers of kitchen utensils, food preparation appliances, and food brands.
The closer to your brand's content, and the bigger your audience is, the more likely a company will agree to sponsorship opportunities.
Partnering with Sponsors to monetize Your Content
Though sponsors could offer to collaborate together, it's much more likely that (at at the very least, when you're just getting started) you will have to contact prospective sponsors. There are certain things you'll want to have prepared before you do that, so that you can make your presentation professional, and be equipped to answer any questions they might have.
Develop Your Sponsorship Offerings
First, decide the sponsorship options you will include, as well as the amount you want to make a charge for your sponsorship. Consider all the content you provide, how frequently you publish in the future, and how you'll need to determine your fees.
Some content to include in sponsorships:
- Main site
- Classes
- Lessons
- Blog posts
- Newsletters
- Podcast episodes
- Posts on social media
Define the duration of sponsored content:
- Per blog post
- Per social post
- A course or lesson
- In the form of a newsletter
- Per podcast episode
- Or for a set period of time: weekly, monthly, annually
Make a landing page for your site (or a downloadable PDF) with a description of sponsorship opportunities. You can then direct marketing efforts to this page, and any questions you may receive.
Make an Media Kit
The media kit of your company is the perfect opportunity to shine! It should include all of the essential elements to showcase the brand you represent. You can incorporate information that is from your About Us page, but isn't as big an outline as it is easily digestible information chunks. Bullet points and short paragraphs are great in your media kit.
Be sure to include:
- Brand stats
- How many students are in your classes?
- How many site visitors you have
- Amount of newsletter subscribers
- Listenership to podcasts
- Details about the course (how many courses? What is the number of lessons?)
- Audience demographics
- Social media following per platform
- Brand information
- Logo
- Tag line
- Testimonials
- Timeline of when you started to where you are now, showing progress
A good media kit will assist potential sponsors to determine if your company is a suitable fit for them, and the best place to spend their sponsorship dollars.
Develop a List of Potential Advertisers
Spend some time creating a list of potential sponsors/advertisers. Make use of a spreadsheet to include the website address and email address (or the contact page) and contact person (if you have one), phone number, and any other information that is pertinent.
Make an email that you can send to advertisers you're interested in (or for use as the body of their contact form) in which you describe your identity, the brand you've created, and the potential sponsorship opportunities you're sharing. (You can also use this as a loose script for calling prospective sponsors.)
Write down in a column in your spreadsheet of the date you conducted your outreach, and then any additional conversations you have with sponsors as well as the result.
Keeping all of this information all in one location will help you streamline your outreach, and ensure that you're not missing out on any potential chances.
The future of the Creator Economy
Since the advent of the printing press, to the latest social networks as well as the possibility of publishing whatever you like online, content continues to be consumed in large volumes.
As the younger generation grows older, their use of technology to create a lifestyle that is self-managed grows. Creativity and understanding the different ways in which content can generate revenue has made it possible to lead a nomadic life (van lifestyle, making things yourself as well as bicycling to name just a handful) and funding goals (like tiny sustainable farms, tiny homes, and even photography), and supplementing day job opportunities with passive income (like paid content, e-commerce products) and course design).
The future of content is now, and you're just a few steps away of doing something amazing (and being paid to do it).
Get our business canvas creator template and create your own sustainable financial viability by creating content that matches your interests!