The gig economy has been around for quite some time. New technologies ushered in opportunities for individuals to make a little extra on the side, giving rise to Uber and Lyft drivers, Instacart delivery people, and more. Platforms and opportunities arose for content creators, too. Those savvy enough to create quality entertainment–and gain an audience–soon became recognized as “influencers” who, depending upon their influence, began making good money. While this may have been a novel concept a decade ago, it is no longer the case. Welcome to Gen Z’s never-ending quest for extra cash, where monetizing content is king.
Unfortunately, in recent years, many Gen Z’ers have struggled to get noticed on platforms for content creators. Those who have done well have typically attracted the attention of major corporate brands. Still, gaining this attention isn’t easy, even if one’s content “blows up” on social media overnight, and only a small number actually earn six figures or more despite extensive efforts. Because of this, recent Gen Z content trends show that many are seeking alternative sites for their created content. These newer platforms offer a more direct way to monetize content by connecting creators with their audience. This is a noteworthy development given the changes affecting social media today.
Social Media and Content Platform Shake-Ups
Several months back, Elon Musk purchased Twitter for an excessive amount of money. Since then, most believe the changes made spell the social media giant’s doom. At the same time, Meta/Facebook has had to face declining share prices, forcing layoffs and policy changes. This includes a recent discontinuation of its Reels Play bonus program for content creators. And most recently, TikTok is facing a potential ban in the U.S. out of user privacy protection concerns. All of this suggests there is major shifts occurring in the world of social media. Thus, it’s not too surprising that changes in Gen Z content trends are occurring, too. With two of the biggest platforms for content creators being threatened, others appear to be stepping up.
Some of the newer platforms for content creators appear to be taking a different approach. Other social media content platforms offer creators payments for created content based on impact and outreach. While this algorithm works to an extent, the problem has been payment volumes. Likewise, even some of the most popular creators with large followings struggle to get brand sponsorship attention. Existing platforms thus fail to enable revenue production for content creators directly from their audience. However, newer platforms are enabling this type of direct revenue generation. And this is leading current Gen Z content trends as more and more see these gigs as tremendous opportunities.
New Content Platforms, New Strategies
Newer platforms for content creators are moving away from prior models that prevent direct follower revenue opportunities. Most now allow creators to charge their own audience a subscription fee to access their content, of which they keep the majority. The parent platform earns a commission percentage off these subscriptions with many having additional fees. In these scenarios, content creators feel more in control and often enjoy greater follower interactions. As a result, the added revenues and quality of contact is fueling current Gen Z content trends in social media. And most are providing Gen Zs and other metrics of their success that they can then leverage for brand recognition. Thus far, this formula seems like a win-win for all.
(Buzzfeed has gone all-in on AI chatbot-generated content–read more in this Bold story.)
Two such platforms for content creators today include Fanhouse and FanFix. Fanhouse charges its content creators a rate of 10% of their subscription revenues. However, they also charge additional fees in specific instances that can also be misleading for creators. FanFix on the other hand charges a higher commission percentage of 20%. But in this instance, hidden fees are absent, and FanFix continues to add new features free of charge. Such features include options to pay extra for direct messaging and phone calls to creators. They also plan to offer options for personalized videos and livestreaming for extra costs to users in the future. These approaches to content creation gigs look to be the new Gen Z content trends today. And it’s why many are choosing to try out these new platforms rather than struggling with past ones.
Niche Services for Higher Quality Creators
In addition to different arrangements for revenue generation, these platforms for content creators have other nuances. For example, FanFix requires that all content be “clean.” That means no nudity and content cannot promote anything illegal. The reason for these restrictions is due to FanFix’s primary audience, which ranges between 13 and 24 years. The site also provides an abundance of human oversight among private messaging. And all users can operator in safe mode where all messages are monitored by live staff. While this may turn off some content creators, Gen Z content trends seem to welcome this strategy. These requirements tend to attract a more loyal following among content creators. And this means more money in their pocket as time goes forward.
More than anything, these newer platforms for content creators provide detailed analytics for their activities. Not only do these dashboard enable the ability to track earnings and commission payments. They also allow graphs and depictions of subscriber and follower growth as well as content performance. These are important pieces of data that content creators can use to solicit brand sponsorship and support. These features account for major shifts in Gen Z content trends since other existing platforms don’t provide this. It’s also a reason that platforms like FanFix have over 3,000 content creators today. Given this, it is clear that the gig economy as it relates to content creation is changing. But it also shows Gen Zs continue to see this as a viable opportunity to supplement their income.