Unleashing the opportunities of the creator economy boom

Paco Suro at Tipalti explains why benefitting from the boom in creative services isn’t simply a matter of finding more freelance creatives

 

The rise of the creator economy has highlighted a new way of working. To bring in revenue, creator businesses rely on ‘partners’ to provide either content - think Twitch streamers or content creators on TikTok,  or a service – like Deliveroo and Zapp riders.

 

More than 1.5m people now work in the digital economy, contributing £149bn to the UK economy each year – a clear driver of innovation, growth and competitiveness.

 

There are many reasons why people are turning to a career in the creator economy. Flexibility to change their hours, the appeal of being self-employed or perhaps pursuing a career that sees them align their work with their passions are all alluring factors.

 

However, up until now, some parts of this economy have only been available to a select few, typically those within close proximity to cities and large towns in the UK. Those in rural communities have often been left behind, hindered by unreliable connectivity and lack of access.

 

Change is on horizon following the recently announced levelling up plans from the UK government.  As a result, the more rural areas of the country are set to experience greater broadband speeds, 4G and 5G connectivity, transport links and a number of other infrastructure improvements. What this change ultimately means is people will have more choice on the way they work, and with whom.

 

Key to successfully engaging with more partners will be providing excellent experiences. And whilst there are a plethora of ways to deliver the perfect partner experience, there are three non-negotiables to create a partnership which are built to last.

 

 

Seamless onboarding

For the creator economy it is key that partners have a positive experience from the start. Creators’ strengths lie in their infectious passion for their niche, which draws viewers to the platforms they publish on.

 

Businesses that have creators as a core part of their proposition need to ensure that the majority of their time isn’t spent navigating a crowded, confusing back-end of the platform. A straightforward sign up process means creators can focus on what they do best - creating.

 

Ultimately, the more content produced, the more consumers there are. And this means more monetising opportunities for the organisation.

 

The cyclical nature of this economy means that from the very beginning, organisations must ensure the success of the onboarding experience. This will contribute to their success story and be fundamental to enticing more creators. It must be simple, help and support must be readily available, and feedback should be regularly sought in order to improve the overall experience.

 

 

An ecosystem that helps your partners thrive

Priorities shifted and attitudes towards work changed over the course of the pandemic, so much so that almost one in four UK workers are planning job changes as returning to the office and traditional work loses its appeal amid the Great Resignation.

 

In many ways, this is what has fuelled the creator economy – a desire to explore passion projects and entrepreneurial ventures. Latest figures suggest there are over 50 million creators worldwide, and over two million consider it their full-time job.

 

Not long into the pandemic, once it became clear the majority of businesses were able to continue operating with staff working remotely, many predicted the demise of the office. However, businesses aren’t ditching their office space quite as quickly as many first predicted. The value placed on connecting with co-workers, clients and partners on a regular basis, in-person, is once again rising.

 

The nature of large parts of the creator economy is that work is often done in a silo. So it’s vital that businesses consider ways to ensure their partners have an opportunity to connect with each other, building a culture that encourages new talent.

 

For example, back in 2012 YouTube launched YouTube Spaces - physical locations consisting of labs, cafes and private studios kitted out with high end equipment, all with the purpose of encouraging creators to connect, learn, and become better creators.

 

Whether it’s through training, dedicated social mixers or awards ceremonies, partners should have the opportunity to meet with their peers. The most successful businesses will provide their partners the opportunity to work independently, whilst feeling part of a team.

 

 

A reliable payment infrastructure

The digital economy is distinctly different from mainstream employment and has its own set of pros and cons.

 

Employees ordinarily have formal contracts and a payroll infrastructure which works like clockwork from month to month. On TikTok for example, it’s a very different story. From viral cat videos through to watching artistic creations unfold on camera, it pays eligible members for their video content – based on views, engagement and adherence to content rules and income from these videos can be significant.

 

However, recently, many TikTok stars were shut out of the registration system due to a glitch in the software, which caused frustration and public outrage among some of the app’s most dedicated creators.

 

And this example is not unusual. Businesses across the digital economy quite often fall short – paying partners the wrong amount or quite often, missing payment dates all together.

 

This can happen when a business begins to out-grow its current infrastructure and a backlog starts to build. Once a business sees an uptake in creative partners, no matter how rapidly, it must be prepared to scale its critical infrastructure at the same pace to ensure creative partners have a reliable, consistent experience.

 

By automating the entire payments experience, businesses will see that their creative partners are paid on-time, every time. Accuracy will also improve as payments can be scheduled in different methods, countries and currencies in a single application.

 

 

Building partnerships to last

For those moving out of traditional employment and embarking on a career in the creator economy, they’ll be looking to build trust with whichever business they look to partner with. The good news for them is they won’t be short of choice as more and more businesses look to take advantage of this mushrooming economy.

 

It’s therefore crucial that businesses put in the right steps, such as a smooth onboarding process, a connected ecosystem of partners, and a reliable payments system, to help build partnerships that last.

 

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Paco Suro is General Manager of Global Partner Payments at Tipalti 

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com