Platforms Compete For Creators’ Attention
Ad dollars follow creators and the fight for the attention of creators continues to ramp up
Over the last two years TikTok has shaken up the social media sector and with it comes an intensified battle for the advertising dollars that have made the platforms profitable. Follow the eyeballs is what it’s all about. Advertisers want to be where their consumers are putting their attention and increasingly that means the platforms with the best creators - not friends and family. Well certainly that’s the case for younger consumers.
This means the platforms are increasingly working to attract and retain creators, so we took a look at some of the latest updates.
As Forbes reports, while social platform continue to expand the options available to creators it often means that creators opt to utilise multiple platforms, not only to extend exposure, but also to diversify income streams. The platforms are busily developing ways to attract and reward creators financially, rolling out a range of features including currency options Facebook Stars and TikTok coins that fans can purchase and gift to creators.
The platforms have also launched creator fund programs in some markets, however TikTok creator fund is not yet available to Australian Creators. Whilst Instagram Reels Play Bonus Program is invitation only.
TikTok Pulse launched to attract brands and it rewards top creators
At its recent Austrtalian up fronts TikTok rolled out its first creator revenue-share programme, TikTok Pulse. Under the scheme, marketers can buy inventory in the top 4% of all videos on the platform in a dozen different categories (including beauty, fashion, cooking, and gaming). It allows brands to place ads after the top content within a specified category, facilitating their exposure to target communities. Creators get 50% of revenue TikTok brings in from the brands. To qualify for TikTok Pulse, creators must:
Follow all Community Guidelines
Have at least 100k followers
Have posted at least 5 videos in the last 30 days
Be at least 18 years old
TikTok Newsroom highlights leading creators in this update: TikTok Creators to Watch in 2022
TikTok recently announced a raft of new offerings for brands, creators and agencies that, commercially, will see its audience more elaborately segmented and content more e-commerce friendly in 2023. On the e-commerce front, there is a shoppable livestream with TikTok Shopping Ads that will allow merchants to sell directly through their TikTok account.
Importantly, this will give TikTok Australia the capability of housing real-time showcase for viewers, enabling interactions with streaming hosts, and making purchases from the livestream.
Creator Marketplaces
The platforms have launched Creator Marketplaces that compete with the existing creator discovery platforms and continue to roll out features.
TikTok Creator Marketplace connects brands with creators with 10,000 followers but they also support smaller creators with their Branded Mission.
Branded Missions allows creators to connect with brands and receive a cash payment if their video is chosen. Creators can submit up to three videos, before the brands make a choice about content suitability for ad amplification. Creators must be over the age of 18 with at least 1,000 followers.
This move positions the platform as an opportunity for micro-influencers and for creators to establish a footing in the world of influencer marketing.
As part of the push to attract creators and access brand dollars Instagram’s Creator Marketplace launched in July in the USA, but will not hit Australia until sometime in 2023.
This new discovery feature designed to connect creators with brands, means brands can message multiple creators at once via a prioritised partnership messages inbox. It enables brands and creators to close branded content deals quickly - brands can send projects with fixed offers that creators can review and accept immediately. Instagram creators will be able to sell themselves via a portfolio (think: ‘media kit’) to share their brand position and unique story to attract brand partnerships. With a portfolio, creators can share an overview of who they are, highlight previous content, and showcase their past brand partners.
Brands can turn creator content into ads with the Instagram Code System - a range of new features have been developed to make it easier for creators and brands to work together. A new boosting feature on Instagram enables creators to provide brand partners with a unique code they can use to run creator content as ads. When creator partners use the ad code they will be tagged into the post as a paid partner. As an ad, the content may appear from the sponsoring brand’s account rather than the creator’s. The ad will be publicly listed in the Ads Library, and the creator’s ability to edit the post will be limited. A post can only be boosted as an ad by a single brand. Instructions for this new feature are under Business Partners here.
Shopify launches collaboration tool for creators
Shopify is now also offering a creator matching service. Shopify has recently launched a new tool to bring brands and creators together, making it easier for creators to monetize while giving merchants a new sales and marketing channel. Shopify Collabs enables creators to discover and partner with merchants to build curated shops and share products that reflect their own interests, accelerating their path to entrepreneurship. For consumers, that will mean hearing from independent brands via creators they follow. Here’s the product overview from Shopify.