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.

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TikTok users are now spending half their time watching content over a minute long

The platform is moving away from its trend-setting short form video content styles that the likes of YouTube and Instagram have been trying to compete with for years. 

Earlier in October, TikTok invited several creators to its New York office for a private event in attempts to persuade them into creating longer form content. Why? Simple:

• It makes more money

• It gives you more time to get your message across

• Creators who have been regularly posting videos longer than a minute, in the past 6 months, have received 5x the growth rate in followers 

“YouTube went out of its way to become more like TikTok, and now TikTok is trying to become more like YouTube” says Matt Koval, founder of consulting agency Creator Dynamics. 

With TikTok testing 10 minute uploads back in 2022 and introducing the ‘Creativity Program Beta’, focused on minute plus videos, this is a trend for 2024 that all social video content platforms and creators will be looking to leverage. 

7 creative design trends to look out for in 2024

The team at Depositphotos have curated their annual list of emerging creative trends, based on rising search enquiries amongst its 40 million user community. 

We are already seeing the discourse of design styles become more accessible to wider creators who may not have the resources and teams to invest in. And with the developments of Generative AI, creators are becoming more design savvy to harness a desired connection between brand and customer. Personally, my TikTok algorithm has been heavy on the analysis of ‘Frutiger Aero’ aesthetics which dominated 2000s digital design. 

Particular predictions include:

• Nostalgic millennials will refer ‘back to the streets’ of pre-internet subcultures. Think graffiti, community and street athletes

• Minimalist typefaces will undergo a next step evolution

• ‘Core wave’ will continue the decentralization of aesthetics, from Barbie-core to anime-core looking beyond just one type of ‘look’ for spaces such as fashion, marketing and more

• With old money and quiet luxury discourse making winds, expect ‘retro yet timeless’ feels 

• ‘Personality, not gender’ will lead the way with more emphasis on a model’s unique beauty, emotions and personal stories to inform visual storytelling - as opposed to gender stereotypes

How an ‘amateur’ podcaster become a chart topper on Spotify

Competing against huge celebrity personalities like Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper and Emma Chamberlain can feel like being a fish out of water. The sheer resources, systemic backing and audience clout makes the most generic of celebrity podcasts more likely to succeed in a very competitive space. 

Yet Australian psychology graduate, Jemma Sbeg, managed to defy all odds with her podcast “The Psychology of Your 20s”. The premise is simple, Sbeg takes her degree learnings and applies these concepts to common issues faced by people in the 20s. Recording in the back of her Subaru car and using Anchor (Spotify’s DIY podcast creation and distribution tool), Sbeg covers topics such as climate anxiety, stress and relationships. Within 10 months, she managed to rake in 15,000 downloads, a modest figure in comparison to the celebrity giants dominating the space.

One day in April, Sbeg posted an episode on loneliness. After months of slow and steady growth, “The Psychology of Your 20s” made a breakthrough. Clearly the topic resonated with audiences well as the podcast reached new heights, ranking in the top 10 in the UK, US and Australian. All of a sudden Jemma Sbeg, a podcast ‘amateur’ was gaining more listeners than Alex Coopers and managing to retain them consistently. 

A straight-forward title, a female-focused audience (which has not been tapped into enough), easily digestible content (think ‘edutainment’) and a ‘word of mouth’ frenzy amount to the key factors for Sbeg’s success. Factors all creators can take as inspiration and learning going forwards… 

Platform round-up

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

📲 TikTok: Struggling to find inspiration on the right content styles that can boost your business? TikTok has launched a series of ‘Creative Cards’ - simple, data-led prompts based on community growth, ‘edutainment’, creator tools, trends and storytelling tips…

📲 Meta:

• Meta is expanding access to its content library and API tools to allow research into Facebook and Instagram content for creators to explore key usage trends and insights. 

• After an initial rollout in the US back in June, users can now download publicly posted reels, making sharing content just that much easier. 

📲 LinkedIn: Collaborative articles are now reported to be the fastest growing traffic driver. LinkedIn’s latest article outlines best practices.

📲 Google: YouTube is expanding into games as TikTok owner ByteDance scales back its efforts.

More reads:

• Instagram’s algorithm delivers toxic video mix to adults who follow children (The Wall Street Journal)

• 16 influential talent management firms and agencies helping micro influencers build businesses, from getting brand deals to podcast collabs (Business Insider)