How are creators doing right now?

ChatGPT 4o is out while Google finally starts to integrate Gemini with Docs and positions it as a tutor at Google I/O. The possibilities this presents for solo creators is simultaneously incredible and terrifying.
If you have expertise in this area I’d love to have a conversation about it on the show. Hit reply if you got something to say about it.

💛 Valentin

State of the Creator Economy 2024

This is a guest post by Lenka Silhanova

ConvertKit published a report of their research. Have you seen it yet? What do you think? Here are my takeaways: When we ignore the fact that every platform that does these reports promotes their solution as the no. 1 thing that apparently creators lean towards (CovertKit - email, Kajabi - online courses, etc.), I think there is an interesting shift going on.

• A lot of women are leaning into becoming creators as this career provides more flexibility than a traditional one. Especally if you want to have a family and still make money.

• Short-form content is declining. Written content is on a rise. Now I'd say this goes back to the platform bias I mentioned above and it really depends what kind of creators this is. After all, not everyone is a writer or entrepreneur. I don’t see filmmakers or photographers being big on writing (though I have met some during the ConvertKit Happy Hours).

• Creators are definitely waking up to the fact that it’s not smart to rely on a single platform and that social media algorithms are fickle.

• Also more creators are leaning towards building ‘owned’ income streams (digital products) rather than relying on ad revenue or brand deals.

• Long-form video is on the rise again! As with all trends, they go through the trend life cycle and afterwards the anti-trend emerges, because people are sick of the trendy thing. In this case, the previous trend was short-form video. I’m curious to see how the TikTok ban will play out in this.

Lemme know your thoughts and what caught your attention! Here is the full report.

You can read more of Lenka’s thoughts of becoming a Creator in her newsletter Creative Coffee or follow her on LinkedIn.

How Creators make Products

Andong, a food Content Creator out of Berlin, partnered with a new start up to bring his very own dish to people all over Germany. How does a collaboration like this happen and what is the process from idea to actually shipping a product?

All of those questions Andong had as well, so he published a behind the scenes look. To give people an insight what it takes to launch a product that people are literally consuming.

What Do You Do With a Video That Tanked?

The emotional roller coaster of publishing videos on the internet can be hard to navigate. In the latest episode of the Orbit Podcast Tom and I talk about how to deal with disappointment when a video you know is good doesn’t meet your expectations in terms of metrics.

Is there a way to salvage it, is the best strategy to just sit and wait for YouTube to find an audience for it or should you just move on to the next one? I’d be genuinely curious to hear your take on this.

For now I moved on from this particular video but at least I know that there are a few good clips in there I can re-purpose in the future.

Fun stuff to click on

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Try

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Work

Viral Video Club is hiring a full time social-media nerd

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I Need Your Help

I'm doing a bit of traveling the next weeks so keeping up with the latest Creator Stories might be a challenge. To keep the content flowing, I'd love to feature YOU in the next issues!

Share what's moving you right now in the creator and media world. Is there a channel you just discovered or a particular video that changed your perspective?
Submit your recommendations (around 200 words) and any links by replying to this email.

Hit reply and share your latest milestone to share it with the Orbit Community. Or tell me about a creator you love that is underappreciated.