If you are an aspiring Content Creator or just curious to know how Creators actually sustain themselves, read on.
Disclaimer: I have tagged a few creators ONLY as References & examples for the points mentioned.
1. PLATFORM REVENUE: YouTube runs ads in the videos uploaded by the creators & shares a part of the Ad-revenue with the Creators!
Lately Facebook has also started doing this.
This model provides good revenue for the creators.
Ajey Nagar @CarryMinati & Amit @iAmitBhadana are two of the top YouTube earners (owning to the volume of subscribers) and Aakash Chopra @cricketaakash & Nas @nasdaily are two of the top creators on Facebook.
2. BRAND DEALS: The most common & also the highest revenue generators for Creators - BRANDS! Brands pay creators to promote or integrate their products in the content released on public platforms.
Ironically, most audiences try to avoid branded content... while this is most important for the Creators’ survival.
Ashish @ashchanchlani & Gautami-Abhyudaya @SlayyPoint are among the popular creators often engaged by brands.
3. LICENSING CONTENT: This is predominantly applicable to Music!
Creators are able to generate royalties from platforms where the music is published.
4. MERCHANDISE: Some Creators are also able to create a brand themselves & monetise it by selling Merchandise as an extension of their personality / content.
Youthiapa is the merchandise brand of @Bhuvan_Bam launched with @Rohitonweb .
Mumbiker Nikhil @emNikhil launched Label MN & more recently Prajakta Koli @iamMostlySane launched her Mostly Sane merch!
5. E-BOOKS: Creators share their knowledge or a modified version of their content in the form of an eBook.
They are able to sell this to their audience.
@gumroad is a popular platform used by many creators for selling their eBooks, etc.
6. COURSES / WEBINARS: Creators share their skills / knowledge / expertise by creating Courses in their niche!
These are delivered to the audience in the form of cohort-based courses, pre-recorded courses, etc.
Saloni @salonisriv , @AliAbdaal & @rajshamani are some of the creators who have been hugely successful in this regard... by creating valuable courses loved by the audience.
7. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Certain creators separate their content into Premium & Regular(if I may divide it that way). The Premium content is offered at a certain Fee.
You often see a JOIN button below a YT video, which is subscription for Premium content.
Twitter is also testing the ‘Super Fans’ feature where creators can charge a fee for premium content. @Twitter
8. AFFILIATE MARKETING: You will often notice that there are LINKS / URLs mentioned in a video or the description. These links take you to an external website of a product mentioned in the video.
If you click on such a link & make a purchase, the Creator earns a % of the sale.
Please note that as a customer there is no additional cost or charge to you. You get the product at the regular cost itself... while the Creator is able to make a small % for their contribution.
Ankur @warikoo & @rachana_ranade are two of the best Affiliate marketers who organically integrate affiliate links in their content.
Ankur recently used this mode to generate good money for a girl’s education! #respect
9. SELLING DIGITAL CONTENT: NFTs, photos, digital art, etc. are all examples of pieces that a Creator can sell to make money.
10. TIPPING: Yes you read that right! Creators make some money, albeit very little, through Tipping! And there are platforms like @buymeacoffee who help creators with this.
Tipping is also seen during Gaming streams. Audiences contribute during the stream. @mythpat & @UjjwalGamer ‘s streams are evidence of this.
While there seem to be many options for Creators to make money, it is NOT EASY!
You first need to BUILD A COMMUNITY! An audience that engages with you, interacts with you & makes you a part of their lives.
I had earlier written a Thread on Content Creation as a Career.. check it out if you haven’t read it yet 👇🏻
Am working towards becoming an entrepreneur.
I recently attended a Masterclass on Entrepreneurship by Bhavish Aggarwal (@bhash ). So many learnings about starting up & the journey to success!
Beyond my consulting work & investing, I am looking to take the entrepreneurial plunge! I have worked with many entrepreneurs but wanted to do a course on the basic underlying principles!
I stumbled upon this Masterclass & the fact that it was by Bhavish himself, excited me.
Bhavish Aggarwal needs no introduction! But for those who don’t know, he is the Co-founder of Ola, and one of the most popular & successful entrepreneurs in India.
He featured in the TIME Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People of 2018” list.
1. Rahul Mathur (@Rahul_J_Mathur ) - One of the most exciting prospects in the Indian startup eco-system, Rahul has taken a very complicated category of insurance & simplified it for the consumers with @BimaPeBharosa .
2. Parveen Singhal (@parveenksinghal ) - Co-founder of @STAGEdotin which is an OTT platform showcasing content in Indian “dialects”. This is as Indian a startup can possibly get. Stage has already captured the Haryanvi market & is on track to expand in dialects across India
WHO is Shafali Verma?
A teenage sensation who made her debut for the Indian women’s cricket team at just 15 years of age. An explosive batsman, she has caught the eye of cricket fans from across the world!
2/n
HOW did a girl from Rohtak become one of the most exciting cricketers in India?
3/n
Firstly, WHAT HAPPENED?
At one of the press conferences of the UEFA EURO football event, the legendary Cristiano Ronaldo removed bottles of Coke placed on the table & urged people to drink water instead.
(2/n)
Why is it a big deal?
This is a first time something like this has happened in a sports event of this magnitude.. where a player has gone right up against an event sponsor. Unsurprisingly, the video went viral.
1. NOT INVESTING: From childhood I was taught the importance of saving! My parents came from humble beginnings, this is all they knew about personal finance!
So I saved a decent %, but I had no idea about investing. The money was just sitting in savings ac / deposits for years
2. LIFE INSURANCE: I believed Life Insurance is a lucrative form of investment. An entire generation has grown up thinking this is right... many still do.
I always admired Rafa for his achievements, his never-say-die attitude and his success in the RF era.
But my personal experience of working with him made me respect him for his character & personal traits. Honestly I was mind-blown!
It was in December 2015 that I got the opportunity to work with him.
I often refer back to that time for some basic but powerful lessons.
Here they are: