Business of Creators 💬

The Business of Creators is your comprehensive support guide, in the form of a weekly newsletter, giving you the run-down of what’s new for platforms, trends you could be jumping on and tools to help spend less time on the mundane and more on your interests.

Hello! Welcome to the newest edition of the Business of Creator newsletter! Immerse yourself in today's top stories:

• Ad-free Snapchat is coming

• Fave creator economy wins

• Closing the influencer pay gap

• Snapchat + Amazon = A match made in social commerce

• AI creator monetisation…

Snapchat tests new ad-free subscription tier

Snapchat is experimenting with a higher-priced subscription tier, Snapchat+, priced at $15.99 AUD per month, aimed at providing users with an ad-free in-app experience. The new tier removes Story and Lens ads, aligning with evolving data privacy regulations in the E.U. While the U.S. availability remains uncertain due to Snapchat's reliance on ad revenue from the North American market, the move reflects a broader trend among social platforms to explore ad-free subscription options.

E.U. focus and revenue considerations: The primary focus for Snapchat's ad-free tier is aligning with E.U. regulations on data usage and offering European users the option to opt out of targeted ads. The pricing strategy, in comparison to Meta's ad-free option at $10.60 per month for E.U. users, considers the revenue dynamics, with Snapchat potentially earning less than $3 per U.S. user monthly from ad exposure. Despite this trend towards ad-free subscriptions, the numbers suggest that a small fraction of users are willing to pay, emphasizing the ongoing dominance of ad-generated revenue for social platforms.

AdAge’s fave creator economy wins

AdAge is at the heart of brands and the creator economy and each week, highlights new partnerships between brands and creators, notable new features across social media platforms and the growth of creator-led businesses. 

• TikTok It girl Alix Earle joined forces with Bumble for Friends with a sponsored friendsgiving party, complete with customized denim jackets and embroidered cosmetics bags for each guest.

• Microsoft recruited a team of creators whose content revolves around art, design and other creative endeavors—including fashion designer Joe Ando-Hirsh and rug maker Madeline Ronzoni—to share some of the holiday gifts they’re creating for friends and family.

• YouTube offered a glimpse at a new “Dream Track” feature it’s currently testing with nine artists—including Demi Lovato, John Legend and T-Pain—that enables users to generate short songs that include an artist’s AI-generated voice. To create these tracks, users simply enter a prompt into Google DeepMind’s generative AI music tool, Lyria, according to a YouTube blog post.

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Closing the influencer pay gap

Pay disparities unveiled: Influencers of color on TikTok and Snapchat have exposed the existing pay gap between white and BIPOC creators. Despite limited data on the issue, numerous influencers claim discrimination, with one travel creator revealing a $20,000 pay difference for a sponsored brand trip compared to a white counterpart.

Platform initiatives to bridge the gap: TikTok's #BlackTikTok and #CasaTikTok, along with Snapchat's 523 program, spearhead efforts to address pay inequality. These initiatives offer tailored support, including funding, mentorship, workshops, and community-building activities, aiming to empower BIPOC creators and amplify their voices on these platforms.

Building inclusive networks for success: Executives like Alexzi Girma and Kayla Zapata Fory are leveraging their positions to create inclusive spaces for creators of color. Initiatives like workshops, feedback calls with executives, and networking events are helping BIPOC creators connect, learn, and navigate the challenges of the digital landscape while striving to close the pay gap. (Read more: Insider)

Platform round-up

Leverage the latest updates and features across digital platforms to help you get ahead of the game…

📲 YouTube: Ahead of the holidays, YouTube is launching a new feature called "Dream Track", utilizing generative AI to enable users to create music resembling various famous artists' styles

📲 Google: Google is incorporating a new gift recommendation feature into its AI-based Search Generative Experience (SGE) for even better product matche.

📲 X: Paris Hilton's media company pulls ads from X amid concerns of antisemitic content on the site.

📲 Meta:

• Meta’s two newest AI projects for Facebook and Instagram enable text-based videos and customizable images in real-time and more

• Messenger introduces Notes, similar to Instagram's inbox feature, enabling users to share text-based prompts with all contacts and foster more interaction.

• Meta reveals latest updates for Instagram creation, specifically for Reels and Stories, encompassing new filters, enhanced audio elements, improved drafts, and more. 

📲 TikTok: TikTok now allows all users to create custom AR effects directly in the app

A match made in social commerce

In a move set to reshape the landscape of social commerce, Amazon has made a groundbreaking deal with Snapchat, enabling users to seamlessly purchase Amazon products directly through ads on the popular social app. 

Amazon's foray into Snapchat advertising brings real-time pricing, delivery estimates, product details, and Prime eligibility directly to the fingertips of users. The integration allows customers to bridge their Snapchat and Amazon accounts in a one-time setup, streamlining the shopping experience. Once linked, users can effortlessly complete purchases within the Snapchat platform, utilising their default Amazon shipping address and payment method, eliminating the need to exit the social app.

This move aligns with Amazon's recent engagements in the social commerce sphere, as it seeks to compete with emerging platforms like TikTok. The latter, having recently launched TikTok Shop in the United States, poses a considerable threat to Amazon's outreach to younger demographics, particularly millennials and Gen Z users. 

Quora's AI chatbot platform Poe is now paying bot creators for their efforts

The program, which went live last week, is among the first of its kind to monetarily reward the efforts of those building AI bots.

At launch, there are two ways for bot creators to generate income. With the first, if a bot leads a user to subscribe to Poe, the company will share a cut of the revenue back with the bot's creator immediately. Another method involves bot creators setting a per-message fee, which Quora will pay on every message. The latter option is opening up soon, the company says.

More reads:

💸 Spotify’s new royalty scheme picks the winners (The Verge)

⛔️ YouTube says it’s not slowing down Firefox — just ad blockers (Insider)