The Dilemma of the Content Creator, and the Platforms Failing Them

Becoming a content creator is the new American dream, yet very few achieve financial stability

We’re barreling towards a digital-first world.

The new generations are born as digital natives. They’re the kids who have grown up in the era of ubiquitous technology, alongside the Internet, iPads, and iPods. Over time, the human race will be composed entirely of digital natives and the digital immigrant will become extinct.

With technology becoming deeply embedded in our everyday lives, things are rapidly evolving. The lines between real-life and virtual worlds are blurring. Technology companies are now the ones shaping our new reality. They hold immense responsibility to create a world that balances both profit and purpose.

But as of now, this isn’t the case.

Society isn’t supporting a digital-first world, specifically for its content creators. New creators lack the tools, resources, and communities to grow their audiences and make a living off of their content. There’s an immense disparity of wealth, and today’s creator platforms resemble economies where wealth is concentrated at the top.

Making a living off of one’s creations is the new American dream. But for many, this dream remains unattainable. Very few creators are actually attaining financial freedom, while the majority remain overlooked.

What is a Content Creator?

Not supporting our content creators at first appears inconsequential. Yet they’re an integral part of society. Without them, our world would be a dimmer place.

A creator isn’t someone who simply posts their thoughts on Facebook. They build experiences that people interact with, whether it be digital design courses, artwork, or TikToks.

Over time, they amass audiences, curious onlookers who find their content meaningful.

A creator spans over many industries and technical expertise. They’re the engineers, coders, influencers, digital marketers, and more. They’re the ones who take what they’ve learned and then contribute to the larger community.

A recent study found that nearly 30% of children from ages eight to 12-years-old aspire to become YouTubers. It’s sensical why becoming a content creator is a dream career. It allows people to specialize in their passions, and cultivate rich and supportive communities.

Yet, these dreams remain unfilled for the majority of content creators because there is no creator middle class.

Why Do We Need a Creator Middle Class?

The middle class is a necessary prerequisite for a successful economy. It builds societal trust, provides a source of demand for products, and drives innovation. In our current world, low-skill workers are becoming victims of offshoring and automation, while the upper-income echelon holds the advantage.

The internet removes these physical barriers and empowers creators of all kinds to flourish. Opportunities in the upcoming decades will be bustling for those who are creators. And for those that aren’t, opportunities will be coming to a close.

But our current technology platforms facilitate inequality among creators. Platforms such as Roblox, Spotify, Patreon, or YouTube have their wealth concentrated at the very top. It’s accessible to only a minuscule fraction of creators. Smaller creators, on the other hand, are barely getting by.

This is preventing people from joining the creator economy. To them, becoming self-employed means unsustainability, uncertainty, and struggle. But this doesn’t have to be the case if we make room for a creator middle-class.

If digital platforms ensure ubiquitous opportunity for anyone to grow and succeed, a creator middle-class can flourish.

A platform must recognize that it has its own economy. In fact, launching a new platform is similar to creating a new country. Meaning, it is up to the platforms to take the necessary steps within their design decisions to strengthen the creator middle-class.

Our new platform, Officeparty, will be making those decisions to empower all creators and their communities.

How Officeparty Aims to Build a Creator Middle Class

Officeparty is built by creators, for creators. We:

• Favor directly paying creators and their fans instead of an ad-based model.
• Create passive income opportunities for everyone, as both creators and communities can support one another through affiliate marketing, donations, or subscription models.
• Give the tools to creators so they can successfully run and grow their communities.
• Empower niches by facilitating the discovery of new, lesser-known communities.

These factors combined will build a more inclusive and sustainable economy.

Adopting a New Social Media Model

Ad-based models aren’t the best way for content creators to make a living wage. Yet for the majority of social media platforms, this is the way things are done.

For instance, Youtube takes 45% of the creator’s ad revenue shown on their videos. They incentivize creators to make content for affluent, advertiser-friendly audiences in order to monetize. Not to mention, a YouTuber can only begin monetizing their content once they’ve reached over 4,000 watch hours and have over 1,000 subscribers. If you’re new to the YouTube world, good luck.

Making it difficult for content creators to monetize their content stalls the efforts of building a creator middle class.

Officeparty will challenge the traditional social media giants that are proven to be sketchy and unreliable. You know, the ones whose CEOs are in court being sued for illegal monopolization.

Our goal isn’t to extract attention or data from users so they can be bombarded with advertisements. This attention-extraction model is severely outdated and unsustainable. Plus, it’s creepy.

As we move further into the new decade, social media models are changing. Ad-based revenue models are beginning to wean. Instead, they’ll be replaced with paid social apps. People are eager to join bespoke communities and group chats, and will willingly abandon open social networks. Users will migrate towards these closed communities. In these new ecosystems, they’ll be able to exchange physical and social currency, either through monetization or social tokens.

Community purchases will begin to be mainstream. This will help creators make a living off of their passions and content in a way that feels more authentic and meaningful compared to the other platforms that are selling people’s data.

Officeparty aims to operate in this transparent way, giving creators and communities tools to earn, learn, and connect.

Our mission is to allow everyone to be able to leverage the power of the internet. We want creators to be able to build once and sell twice, a million times over. All the while allowing them to strengthen the bonds they have in their communities and connect with like-minded individuals.

Our success as a company relies on the success of the creators and their communities. Our vision is to carve a new path as the real and digital world collide. By assuring that all creators will have the opportunity for upward mobility, financial stability, and self-actualization, we are confident we can help make the world a better, more inclusive place.