347: Building 6-Figure Revenue Streams as a Creator in 2025

[00:00:00] Bree: Welcome back friends. Today Emma is joining us again for another episode. Emma is a content creator over at Emma's edition, and she is also the host of the Creative Edition podcast. And today we are talking about revenue streams in 2025. We're talking about the state of the creator economy this year, including, you know, where we're at with how much content creators are making some income disparities, and all of the different revenue streams that we think content creators need to be taking advantage of.

It is a jam packed episode. So let's dive in. Welcome to the Thrive Podcast, where we believe creators deserve more. More money, more freedom, and even more love for what they do. I'm Bree P, your coach for content creators. And I know the struggle, the long hours, the endless ideas, the feeling that success is just out of reach.

But here's the truth. You've got what it takes. In this podcast, it's your shortcut to getting there from strategies that actually work to behind the scenes insights. We are unlocking your potential one episode at a time. So if you're ready to turn your creative hustle into a thriving business, let's get started.

[00:01:23] Emma: All right, so I'm really excited we're gonna be chatting about revenue streams today because I feel like there's still conversations out there where there are people seeing influencers and content creators and bloggers, like it's still all a fad. Like this is not a real courier. People need to go out and get jobs and yada, yada, yada.

But the the truth is. This is a real job. A lot of content creators, influencers, bloggers, anyone who creates content online. We are all small business owners, if not massive business owners, and the general state of the creator economy heading into 2025 is that. The Creator economy is literally representing a $250 billion opportunity, and this is from Deloitte's Creator Economy, 3D Report.

You know, as someone who covers the creator economy, I'm a, again, I'm a contributing writer for Forbes. I. I have just done the research and like read through all the reports and I, everything I'm reading is like this creator economy, influencer marketing. It's just going to continue to grow because today a content creator is not just an influencer.

A content creator is not just a blogger. They might be a musician, they might be a chef, they might be a craftsperson, a small maker, a music producer, right? Anyone who creates content online. Is the content creator. And so I think it's really important to like understand the market opportunity and that most of the attention today is still on our phones, our social media platforms, the articles that we read, what we're scrolling on, on TikTok, you know, whatever it may be.

And so I. Just know if you're a creator out there or, or you want to be, you know, a writer or any type of creator, know that this $250 billion opportunity is nothing to be joking around about.

[00:03:08] Bree: No, it's a hundred percent serious and it's so fascinating to watch and it's exciting to see that like you can be any type of content creator you want to be.

And before it was like, oh, I'm a blogger. Right? I feel like that's how a lot of it got started. But yeah, the fact that you could be a musician, a chef, anything like that, like you can be and pursue your passion and be able to participate in this greater economy. I also think on the flip side, it's so interesting.

For anybody that's like, oh, I'm, I am a musician and now I have to be a content creator. Right? Like you, maybe you went into a degree or a career where you didn't realize content creation was now part of your job description. And that part is kind of, uh, funny to me, obviously, but it's just. It's not going anywhere.

Right? It's not dying, it's not shrinking. It's, it's continuing to grow. And so I think there's no better time to get involved and to start growing your brand.

[00:04:15] Emma: For sure, for sure. Yeah. That is funny that you say that. But then on the flip side, it's like I look at, for example, if you're an aspiring. Producer or a dj.

And if you can create a fun mashup and like make it become a trending sound on reels and TikTok, I mean that like artists are literally launching their careers online. You don't, you don't need to go and get signed by a label anymore. You literally could like set up a camera, show yourself like. Mixing, creating your art.

I actually have no idea how to like mix music, so lemme not even pretend I'm your part. I dunno. So what you're saying is

[00:04:49] Bree: fine with me,

[00:04:51] Emma: but like I've, I've seen that I've, I've discovered artists and like DJs because they, they make like fun, you know, music that's shareable and people wanna create content too.

And so again, I think like. There's ways to do it. There's ways to grow your business online and grow your brand.

[00:05:09] Bree: Yeah. Isn't that so exciting too, that it is tapping into other industries now in the way of like, oh, I have to be discovered, or I have to get signed or get a TV deal, or whatever it may be. Now you have a little bit more control.

It is a little bit more like I can show off my creativity and put it out there and see what opportunities come my way versus the other things. It's like, okay, well I have to go do auditions. I have to go do this. I have to go send out a sample CD and hope somebody listens to it. Right? Like now there are so many opportunities and I think that is so exciting.

[00:05:48] Emma: So I think one thing too that we have to have a conversation about is because you know, people see the number, $250 billion. People are like, how do I capitalize on that? Right? And so that's why, how do I grab that? How do we make some money? And so I'm really excited that we're gonna be talking about revenue today.

But I also, I'm so glad that we're also gonna be talking about just like the income disparities. 'cause I think because there's such a low barrier to entry to becoming a creator today, or a blogger or or whoever you wanna be, right? I feel like because. It's a low barrier to entry. You don't need to be signed by a music label.

You don't need to get a book publisher right to start creating content. I also, I also think it's hard to figure out how to make money and like one of the stats that you pulled up, which I thought was crazy and I actually have seen this, is that for professional early earnings, only 4% of global creators in the creator economy earn over a hundred thousand a year.

Only 4%. That's wild. I know. Considering how percent

[00:06:52] Bree: big that industry is. Right. Exactly. For how big the industry is and it showcases that there is a lot. And you know, to speak to what you said, that there's really no barrier to entry, which in some cases is great, but I think is what makes that disparity like so much larger.

I. People will just jump into it not knowing anything and saying, oh, well so and so did it, and they just started posting on TikTok. I could do that. Right? And that's not always the case. There is a lot of strategy that has to go into it. There is knowledge and expertise that does have to go into it. It is simple in the fact that yes, you can just get started today, but it is not simple in the fact that you can't just rely on posting and being successful.

So I think that does contribute to this wide, you know, range of, you know, only 4% making over a hundred thousand dollars a year. I did so, so much research on this, um, in so many things of what I was saying, like there were varying numbers, but it kind of all just came back to a very small percentage o earning over a hundred thousand or more a year.

Also, a very small percentage that we're making over $50,000 a year. A very, you know, so that means a, such a large percentage that are under 50 k well under full-time. One stat that I saw even said 48% of influencers making 15 k or less per year. So it is, you know, it makes me. Sad. It also makes just, I'm sure with you too, it fuels that fire to have these conversations on the podcast and to provide information and education expertise in these areas so we can try to make up for that.

[00:08:42] Emma: Disparity for sure. And it's funny 'cause I see these stats on like how much creators and influencers are earning and then on the brand side I see their stats. So like for example, I read a recent study with LTK, like huge platform for creators, right? They're one of the like leading brands in creator commerce.

And they did a study with Northwestern, Northwestern University, and the brands that they worked with reported that 93% of them said they're either going to increase their creator budgets or increase how creators play a role in their overall strategy. Right. And so to me, I'm like, wow, like that's a 93% of brands.

Like there's a lot of brands on LTK who do their partnerships through them, and that is. Like that's a ton of brands who are saying, Hey, I'm going to increase that. And then one thing I also read through the study I was really shocked about is that 43% of brands are also saying that they are diversifying the way that they're using creator content.

'cause I feel like the social media world I grew up in, the influencer industry I grew up in, brands would just use influencer content to post the content. On their feeds, maybe they might use it again on another digital channel, maybe posting it on the website or an email newsletter. Now, the brand surveyed on this report actually said that they're planning on using creator content on CTV ads, which is connected tv.

And so you might start, start seeing your favorite influencers on like streaming platforms on Hulu or Netflix or YouTube, like using their content as ads. 39% of them also said that they plan on using it for television advertising. And so for me it's like, wow, like there's brands out there who are valuing influencer content.

And so hearing like the disparity of like how much influencers are making, but then like if brands are starting to use your content in commercial ways on CTV or regular television advertising, right, like your pricing as a creator should be reflected of, of that. Because now we're not just reposting your content on Instagram or TikTok.

We're using your piece of content to distribute it nationally or regionally across like other channels. Whereas before, brands would spend tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars producing commercials to put on CTV and to put on. Regular television commercials. And so that's why we're talking about it today.

That's why we're gonna be talking about revenue streams today. 'cause I think just like being aware of that, like the influencer and content creator content, whether it's in written form, in video form, in audio form, right? Like just knowing that the content is equal to, if not better than the content like being produced at like a commercial level.

I think it's really important to like value yourself as a creator and understand and figure out ways on like how you can better leverage and increase your revenue streams.

[00:11:41] Bree: Well, it makes it so exciting because it just proves that there is so much opportunity out there. Right. I feel like for a little while there I was hearing kind of across the board with, you know, brand deals coming in a little bit slower, or people starting to get a little bit nervous about, is this going to be sustainable?

Are brands going to want to continue in this way? Especially with the rise of UGC, just kind of wondering like, oh, there's kind of this new player, like what's going to happen here? But I think it does, you know, with those numbers and those brands saying, no, we're going to actually increase our creator budgets.

And I think this is something that isn't going to go away because we see, and you know, this is proven and why this industry is growing so much is because of the effectiveness. Of these creators showcasing things from this brand because they have built such a trust with their audience. It is so much more of that human connection rather than a company just putting out an ad with people who you have no idea who they are because they're actors, paid actors, right?

Voiceover artists, all of these types of things. However, when you see your favorite influencer promoting a product. You have such a trust already built with them, so it, it makes sense that they're like finally hopping on board with this. I feel like this was something back, back in the day that we were like educating brands about like, no, this is why it's so important to work with us now.

We're starting to see the fruits of all of the OGs hard work with these brands to be like, oh, okay, we get it now

[00:13:23] Emma: for sure. And so I am excited to jump into it. Should we? Go through and just like talk about a, a few revenue streams. I know we've been talking about brand partnerships. I wanna tell creators out there if your, like, focus on brand partnerships.

I feel like my personal strategy, 'cause that's like 90% of like my revenue streams to, in all transparency, like I am a creator that relies pretty heavily on brand partnerships. But I feel like every year has been pretty successful. Like I, I have always, with the exception of the year I had. My baby had my son 2023 and I, and I took Matt leave, right?

With the exception of that, I've made six figures through brand campaigns every year as a micro influencer. And so I think if you're out there, just like understanding like how the market is, and I think like my biggest tip, especially if you wanna keep working with brands as a creator, is really just come from like a clear point of view.

Who you are, who's the audience you serve. These are things that we both talk about on our podcast, right? What problems do you solve? Like who do you connect with? Like I am continuously tweaking my content, and I know this sounds so funny, but like finally after like 10 years of creating content online, I'm finally like.

With the style piece. 'cause I've always been like a style creator. That's like one of my favorite things to do. I'm finally just nicheing down to like the petite style and I'm like seeing it resonate with people. And so I know that sounds funny, right? To put like my height and my weight. But when I'm shopping for stuff online, one thing I was doing a consumer is when I was reading through reviews.

I was filtering on height and weight. 'cause I wanna see how it's going, how it, how it fits. And I was like, wait a minute, why am I not doing this for my content? And so just coming from like a clear point of view I think is, is a great way to do that. And so, yeah, that's just like an example. But I know we're gonna be talking about affiliate programs in just a sec.

Anything else with brain partnerships you wanted to add on Bri?

[00:15:17] Bree: Yeah, I think one thing that I wanna stress and with this entire conversation. I think a huge part that contributes to this income disparity and such a wide range of how much creators are making is not charging enough. Oh, yes. And is this, you know, huge part of not talking to each other, not getting advice from other people, whether it's other content creators or other coaches like myself.

If you are not talking to others and you are just like Googling something, let me tell you what, this is something that we do constantly and. Searching out there to see what others quote unquote recommend you charge is always substantially lower than what you should actually be charging. I don't know if brands are like trying to pull a fast one or trying to like pay off these, you know, buying blog posts basically to get people to charge less.

But across the board, whenever you look for something like that, we've always seen, or like an, you know, a calculator, right? It always comes out so much lower. So. Just be aware of that. Don't sell yourself short. Talk with others. We've put together a pricing guide, like I'll go ahead and plug that it's absolutely free if you head to Thrive Together, blog slash pricing, or we'll link it in the show notes as well.

But what we've done is we've taken it on ourselves to talk to other content creators. Emma, I know you were one of them and have gotten so many of them to share their numbers with us, so that way we can tell you, okay. If you are a content creator with a following of zero to 10,000 and you want to charge for a reel, here's how much others in the industry are charging.

So we've given ranges for pretty much every platform. I think the only thing we don't have in there right now is UGC, but every other social media platform is in there. So download that and just make sure you're at least

[00:17:12] Emma: in that range. I love it. No, thank you for plugging that resource. 'cause when we.

Talked about that on the podcast last year. I was like, this is, I feel like every creator needs this. And just for reference, friends, like last year, 2024 as a micro influencer, around 50,000 followers, I think it's just helpful 'cause this is us talking about it, right? Right. Or one of my biggest, like my highest paid campaigns for the least amount of deliverables.

Right. For. One of the best campaigns I was so excited to do with like one of my favorite ran, they paid me $10,000 for one reel to be repurposed to TikTok and Instagram stories. Amazing. 10,000 for one piece of asset, right? Obviously that's because we were negotiating exclusivity. It was a big exclusivity window.

Obviously. We were also negotiating the usage piece, the brand. Paid to push that piece of content out so more people could see it. Right. And so and so, I know people are like, wait, how is that possible? Like you're a micro influencer. Like if you think about it though, if the brand went out and filmed that piece of content themselves, they would've spent more than $10,000 easily.

'cause then you would've, hi, you would've had to hire an act or an actress, a model. Right? You would've had to. Hire someone to like styling, plan the project, styling, makeup, everything. And so yes, they paid like me, oh, and my agency, right, that 10, $10,000. But like they literally probably sit still saved so much money in the end.

And I would not be surprised if they actually spent more money promoting that piece of content. So it could reach the target audience. And so yeah, I share that. But then there's also campaigns I might have agreed to where the usage, there's no usage, there's no exclusivity, and I agreed to $2,500. Right?

So people are like, oh my gosh, like how come that varies so much? It just depends what the statement of work is. And again, I think it's really important to chat. I also had a recent conversation with a. She's actually an influencer manager and she also has her own coaching programs. Um, her name's Naomi had her on the Creative Edition podcast and she was also sharing, she was like, you know, just because you are a macro influencer does not mean you make more money than a micro influencer.

And I think it's really, it's really important to keep that in mind. And that's one thing I learned this year. They were saying that like, yes, there's, you know, like celebrity style influencers might be charging. A hundred thousand dollars for one post. But if brands are going to spend that, they expect a certain lift.

Whereas if they're only spending a few thousand dollars on a micro influencer, they know it's not gonna generate like the same traffic. Like it's just different expectations. So sometimes it's actually works out if you are a micro influencer. I couldn't believe that. I was like, is that why I always have study work?

Like, I don't know. I

[00:20:07] Bree: don't

[00:20:07] Emma: know.

[00:20:07] Bree: No, it's true. It's absolutely true. And you know, there is. You know, kind of a, a limit that, you know, some people that I coach, they're like, I don't really wanna grow anymore necessarily, because it doesn't, it doesn't necessarily mean more money. And it could actually, you know, go down slightly.

There's like this weird middle ground there that there is a slight like. Plateau or dip. It's kind of interesting, I think, you know, taking away and, you know, for us to be able to move into talking about affiliates, but the biggest thing I want people to take away from this part of the conversation is how important it is to not make up these numbers on your own and not to just take what you Google.

But to actually have conversation with other people. So whether that is you being a part of a community, you being in a coaching program, something to where you are getting advice and help with making these decisions, and somebody is helping you figure out how much should you charge for exclusivity, how much should you charge if they want to.

Have use of your photos to use anywhere they want. You know, there's, there's a lot that people will sneak into contracts as well, so be aware of that. There's there, I mean, there's so much we could talk about with that, but I think the biggest thing I could say is just make sure you're talking to others.

I

[00:21:24] Emma: love it. All right, let's talk about affiliates, because I think affiliates is still a strong way. Many content creators and influencers and blockers are making money in 2025.

[00:21:37] Bree: Yeah. For some of them it is like their, that is their 80, 90% right of their income. For others, it's a little bit lower, but you, you can be anywhere along that scale and do really well with affiliate programs.

I mean, popular ones that, that people are using right now is like Amazon, LTK, collective Voice Share a Sale. With that, I mean, there's so many different pros and cons of each. I don't know. Emma, we're we're, what are you? Yeah. Especially since your income is like 90% brand. I know. I'm curious what your thought is on affiliates right

[00:22:14] Emma: now.

I know. So my thought of affiliates has evolved and we've had conversations about this. I attended LTK Con this past September. And my mindset and perspective completely shifted on affiliates because, okay, I'm an, I was a former project manager in my corporate life, became a full-time creator. And brand partnerships were the right fit because every brand partnership is a project, right?

And so like with my skillset, it just made sense. But going to LTK Con meeting other creators, so there were probably the top. 300 LTK creators were invited? If not, probably more. 'cause I know not, not a hundred percent of the top 300 can always make it right. So maybe, I would say maybe I would estimate top thousand, maybe creators were considered on LTK and I think they have like a hundred thousand creators on the platform.

300, I don't know. There's, they have a ton of Peterson. It's, it's a lot. And then out of the 300 at LTK Con, 20% are LTK millionaires. Meaning they have earned over a million dollars in revenue through LTK. And that to me blew my mind. I said, hold on. What? Like, this is, I was very, I felt so lucky just to like, chat with those women because I was like, holy cow.

Like you're, you've earned over a million dollars through this. So what I have found with LTK, like is. One, and that you guys might think this is crazy. Those creators, those top earners are still posting four to six times a day across all their channels. They're posting that much on LTK, if not more, and then the if not more, and then repurposing it on TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest.

And the trend over the last few years has been, creators have been decreasing the amount that they're posting, but these lt, LTK creators have been increasing and so they've continued to capture. Attention, market share, whatever that may be. And so it blew my mind and I said, oh my God. I see the possibility now, and I think I have to have a different approach to approaching affiliate.

And so I'm actually trying to get better. Right now, my daily goal is to post at least once on LTK. I'm trying to do two times a day. I'm also retraining my audience to see links for me because over the last 10 years, I have not been great about. Sharing those links, but I wanna be better at it because I see the opportunity, and I know for myself that like I'm a great brand awareness type of creator.

That's the type of content I create, recommendations where to go in Seattle coffee shops, you know, things to do whatnot. So it's like naturally people really look for me, look to me for recommendations and like the brand awareness piece, and I want that to convert to what I'm wearing, what I'm. Where I'm shopping naturally.

So yeah, I actually think like if you are just getting started today, I'd probably say like, don't overlook LTK, like don't overlook affiliate links because it does take time to like kind of learn a new revenue stream and like learn a new craft. But I know the opportunity is is out there and I think.

Just because the founder of the company was a blogger and a creator, like she's very response. Amber Vince Box is very responsive to the community that she like builds for. But yeah, I don't know. I think that's my 2 cents. I used to be very like, oh, like I don't wanna do affiliates. Like it's too time consuming.

Like you make more money doing brand work now in 2025. I was like, why can't it be both? Why can't I do the brand work and just add the link to like whatever I'm wearing? Because one thing that's not changed over the last few years, I. 10 years, I still continue to shop in style like my outfits because it brings me joy.

Like I love styling outfits. I just wasn't sharing the link. And so, yeah, that's kind of my, my 2 cents. I want people to know that there are still ways to be very successful with affiliate links. And whatnot. I don't know. What about you? What about with the creators that you've worked with?

[00:26:22] Bree: A hundred percent.

And you know what is wild is Yes. Like so many of those creators have made over a million dollars. There are also creators that are relying primarily on affiliate links and making over a million dollars a year. Not just in the lifetime. It's, isn't that crazy? It's wild. What am I doing? It's absolutely wild.

So the money is there. You and I have talked about this. I'm like, you need to start staring them a little bit here and there. And it's really, you know, I just recorded a podcast on this and I think it's already published. You guys can go check it out. Overwhelmed with your content biz. Tired of doing everything yourself and still not seeing consistent income.

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the easiest way to just like get started is just to set a schedule and then. Make sure you more so like batch it. Don't feel like, oh, today it's like a, don't make it like a daily task that you have to do, but instead like, look the week before and be like, okay, what am I sharing next week? Let me gather some affiliate links so I can share two to three affiliate links maybe twice a week or three times a week, right?

Like make it a manageable schedule. But if you make it to where this is something that is new to you, you're already making money from other revenue streams. So we need it to be a low lift now. There are, you know, others that are, you know, the ones that are making a million dollars a year are literally doing it every single day and they're doing the research and they're, you know, gathering all the links and everything every single day.

But I think for anybody that is just getting started with it is set a schedule and, you know, just start to get consistent with it. The other thing to note about LTK, which is really interesting is. You have your own feed on LTK, and so you can just post and you can also schedule over there and just post over there.

You don't necessarily have to share your Amazon or your LTK affiliate links on Instagram, on Facebook, on any other platforms. Does it give it legs and is it probably gonna make you more money? Of course, but you can also grow a following. On the app itself, so that itself could be another way for you to strategize an additional revenue stream.

[00:29:12] Emma: That was the one of the things I realized. I was like, why am I not using this as a social media channel? And it actually doesn't matter if you post seven times a day because it doesn't matter. I was like, it doesn't matter what. Yeah, that again, mind blown. I also wanted to echo one thing, one of the things I learned with LTK Con, I'm sorry, we're talking heavily about LTK, there's other platforms out there like Amazon it, I mean, the strategy kind of applies to every other platform, right?

Especially Amazon. I think Amazon's like a very, very huge player in the game. And yeah, one of the things I also learned is that there's plenty of creators out there not even using social media. I've met creators who just have a Facebook group. It's like a deals and discounts Facebook group, and they post deals and discounts.

All the links are through LTK, and I was like, hold on. What? I was like, you're not on social media. They're like, well, we have a Facebook group. And I was like, what? Then I met another social media,

[00:30:11] Bree: but yeah, I was like,

[00:30:12] Emma: yeah. I was like, wait. You're right though. Like that's not like something I was thinking about.

I also met a lady at Ltk Con. She was like, I'm not on social media. She goes, I have my block in my email newsletter, and that's it. That's all she

[00:30:24] Bree: does. That one, when you told me that one, that one blew my mind. The fact that she was at Ltk Con and the only place she posts affiliate links is her blog and her email.

That one still, my brain breaks a little bit.

[00:30:36] Emma: I, I wish I had gotten her name. 'cause I was, it was like, in passing. I was like, next time I need to just be like, I want

[00:30:42] Bree: us to interview her.

[00:30:44] Emma: I need to like, like please gimme your names. Like I just, mm-hmm. I was so in shock anyways.

[00:30:50] Bree: I know it's wild.

[00:30:51] Emma: There's a lot of ways.

Another creator I wanted to call out, you friends, might have heard of her, her first a hundred k. She has her own podcast, Tori Dunlap, huge, huge in like the, in the money and personal finance space. She, I'm pretty sure her business does six figures alone in just affiliate links because of the financial products, the financial products that she shares.

Because people ask her, well, what. Like credit card, should I open, where should I bank? What CD should I open? And she literally has like affiliate links for all those things. Oh, a

[00:31:28] Bree: hundred percent.

[00:31:29] Emma: With all the financials, you can do

[00:31:31] Bree: any niche. Like it doesn't, I think we automatically go to like, we automatically default to like, oh, affiliate links means this to me.

Maybe it's fashion, maybe it's home, DIY, whatever it may be. But it can be across the board. So like for us, flow desk. Is one of our number one affiliates that we use, and that's for email marketing. So there are things across the board. No matter what your niche is, if you're a chef, a musician, if you do fashion, like it doesn't matter what you do.

There's affiliate programs that are going to work. For you And yeah, like I, we also have somebody inside of Shift our coaching program that, um, they're the frugal floozies over on Facebook if you wanna follow their group. And they are making all of their money from a Facebook group. It's wild and they post like 20 times a day and up in that group.

[00:32:23] Emma: Oh yeah. See, and that, but if that's your main thing, it makes sense. Mm-hmm. Right? Yes. Like I'm, that makes sense to me. Okay. Wow. Alright. Any other,

[00:32:31] Bree: we didn't even mention TikTok shop.

[00:32:34] Emma: Oh my god. Literally TikTok Wild. It's crazy. It's wild. I, I have heard of creators doing hundreds of thousands of dollars a month, a month.

[00:32:47] Bree: Yes. On TikTok shop. It's insane.

[00:32:49] Emma: It is. And TikTok shop is not even the, the number one market is not even in the United States. The number one market for TikTok shop is in Southeast Asia. I was like, really? I was literally like, 'cause they, they roll out, I mean, it makes sense, right? Like their China-based company.

And so like I'm sure like all the stuff that they roll out probably is probably like on that side of the world first. But yeah. TikTok shop, if your creator out there, you don't even have to buy anything from TikTok shop. So, for example, rare Beauty is on TikTok, shop Tart Cosmetics is on TikTok shop. If you have the mascara or the lipstick or whatever and you're just applying it, like showing how it looks on and you're linking to TikTok shop, that is another way you can make an affiliate income.

Like it's incredible

[00:33:36] Bree: to me. Plus, once you're in their program, brands will also send you the products to make the videos with.

[00:33:43] Emma: I love it. It's on my list. I need to get, they're like, here's our

[00:33:46] Bree: stuff. Go, go sell it for us and make some money.

[00:33:49] Emma: But it's so smart. Yeah, it's amazing. And that

[00:33:52] Bree: like, talk about a low barrier to entry.

We're just flabbergast it over here. Need to

[00:33:56] Emma: even this, even this conversation is inspiring me. I need to like, I need to do it with TikTok shop anyways. Okay. Flight links. I feel like that was a great way that, you know, just like talking about that. We wanna talk about UGC. How do we feel? Yeah. Have we chatted?

What do you think?

[00:34:13] Bree: Oh, I have pros and cons to it. I think I'm still like, just, you know, I've kind of talked about it a little bit. It's, it's so interesting because being in this space prior to UGC being a thing, when it first started, I was like, it feels a little icky to me in some ways. Because I'm like, well, brands are paying so little for this content, which is very interesting to me, and it's because, so UGC is user generated content.

What is nice about UGC is that anybody can get started. You don't have to have a following at all. You don't post it on your account, which is why they're paying you less for it, because you don't have to type an audience and it's not something you're promoting to your audience. It's literally you're just taking a photo, a video, whatever it may be, a piece of content, creating it and giving it to the brand, and then they use it for whatever they want.

So what I love about it is that I think it is a really good. Revenue stream for aspiring content creators who are building up their audience, building up their own brand, but are very talented and have the ability to create some really amazing content that brands can use. My biggest thing with it is just make sure that you don't feel like you're being taken advantage of.

[00:35:34] Emma: Yeah. I was gonna say, I think part of the reason I have not maybe like talked about UGC enough is because. I think coming from the influencer, content creator space, I look at it and I, and I'm just like, they're just they, they're just charging too low. It's like, okay, it's great. Yes, you can just get into it.

You can start creating content. But then you see people on TikTok, they're like, wow, you can get started. You can make $50 today. And it's like,

[00:36:01] Bree: Hey, $50 and it took you five hours.

[00:36:04] Emma: Yeah. And so I think like that's not enough. It's like if you are someone wanting to start creating content, maybe you do wanna be the UGC space.

I hope you hear this. I hope you know that these brands, their coffee orders and their lunchtime meetings is costing more than what they're paying you like. I, okay, so another example. I'm over here just like, I'm like, should I snap? Should I clap? Like I, yes. Coming from a corporate background, like seeing how like people will budget $50 a head for food.

Oh, so more than that. More than that, right? So like, yeah. Okay, so example 2023, the year I worked the least because I had a baby. I was pregnant half the year, and then the other half of the year I was like six months like postpartum trying to like survive.

[00:36:56] Bree: Also, same, I don't know if anybody knows this, but like personal antidote about Emma and I, yeah, I had my baby in March of 2023.

And then I had my baby in June. Yep. So we, we've been close for several years now and that just like bonded us even closer together.

[00:37:15] Emma: For sure. For sure. So I wanna talk about this UGC content because I landed my biggest UGC contract and my manager, who's amazing, I'm with an I'M with Influence, with Impact, which is my influencer agency that I'm signed with.

They negotiated four videos for $13,000. The content did not go live on my content on any of my channels. The content went the brand, they can use it however they want. They probably could. They could probably still use it if they want it. $13,000 for four P four videos. And so I see these UGC creators, they're like, oh, I increased my rates, like I'm charging $350 a video.

I'm just like, you could be. It's still not enough. I know. I'm like, your minimum should be maybe like. One, two, $3,000 because you're not just charging for the video. You're charging when you're getting on the call with the brand and you're reading the brief and you're pro providing the concepts and then you're pri writing revisions.

And then, yeah, like it doesn't matter that it's posted on channel, it's still your name and likeness. It's still your name and like this. And so. Anyways, like I would say understanding that piece and then also looking at a completely different industry. Like you know now in colleges, NIL, it's a major thing athletes, collegiate athletes can benefit from like commercial campaigns if their name and and likeness is used, which is great because before they would get zero money for anything, which is unbelievable.

Unbelievable. So it's like, hey, like. The industry recognizes that your name and likeness, no matter who you are, is actually a valuable asset. And so for UGC to be like, Hey, like, it doesn't matter. It's not, I'm like, yeah. I'm like, it still matters. They're, they're using your face, they're using your voice.

You're producing the whole video, right? That's why it feels

[00:39:09] Bree: ugh, it makes me uncomfortable, is because it feels like brands are just taking advantage of people. They're taking advantage of students, of people that are, you know, maybe stay at home parents of somebody that's looking just to like make a couple extra dollars here and there.

Meanwhile, they're saving tens of thousands of dollars by paying these people 50, a hundred, 200 sure throw, throw $200 at them. You know, they find a content creator or they find a person that like makes amazing UGC content and they're like, yeah, make 'em happy. Give them, give 'em $500. We don't care. That's a fraction of what our budget would have to be if we produce that content on our own.

And so again, it just comes to like we have to have conversations, we have to stick together, we have to talk to each other, and I think UGC is a huge, huge player of it that's like an offshoot of working with brands and brand partnerships that is just kind of, they're trying to like slide it under the rug

[00:40:08] Emma: for sure.

Yeah. One of the things I'm signed up for, just 'cause I like to see what else is out there, I'm signed up for Backstage and typically. Actors, actresses use backstage to like see what jobs are posted, but people don't know this. They also post all the UGC like opportunities out here. And I look at these posts and I'm just like, what?

Like I have an email, right? Like I, I look at their emails just 'cause I just wanna see, right? So they want a creator. With dogs over 50 pounds, they're going to use it for a social media ad. It's $160 for two hours of work. And I was like, this is, I,

[00:40:52] Bree: I lost

[00:40:52] Emma: my voice for a second, $60. And so what someone might be like, and for your

[00:40:57] Bree: pet,

[00:40:58] Emma: I know, I was like, someone might be like, oh, that's $80 an hour.

It's not just two hours though. It might take you two hours to film it, but. To apply, to interview, to read the brief, to submit content, to revise, to refilm. It's, it's over two hours. And so to drive there, to be there, to be present to, it's going to go over another one. One more, and then we can move on another one.

Okay. Okay. Another huge C opportunity. They want the video deliverable to be fully edited, ready to run on paid social channels. It's one day of work, a full day of work, $175.

[00:41:36] Bree: For a full day of work. Full day of work, assuming, and it's your likeness there. Yes. Your likeness is also, you are just giving that to them.

You're giving them whatever footage they may capture of you they now own. So UGC, yes, it can be amazing. It can be a full-time income for you, but you have to make sure you are advocating for yourself and that you are charging enough. I love it. It's true.

[00:42:05] Emma: Okay, so another way I feel like this is probably like a non-traditional way, but a very traditional way.

I think content creators, influencers, bloggers out there, one of the main skill sets they probably already have is writing. Writing is not a new way. To make money on light write, like you can make, you could write an ebook, you could write for a publication. That's one of the ways I make money. I'm a contributing writer for Forbes, right?

All the articles I, I push out, I get paid per article. That's one way to do that, do that. I think one thing I've seen a lot of creators who are strong writers or strong. Maybe email marketers is Substack. Yes. Have you had any experience with it? What do you think? Yes.

[00:42:48] Bree: I, when first, when Substack first kind of like came to my attention, and I don't even know how long.

I feel like it's probably one of those platforms that's been around for a long time, but now it's like generating buzz. I don't, I would have to look into that, but I think a really cool concept. At first, I was a little skeptical about it because I'm like, well, why wouldn't you just start a blog? Why are we kind of doing this like third party type of thing?

But how I've kind of like, as I've like dug into it a little bit, it's actually. A little bit like a Patreon where you have different tiers that you can set up and you're providing content for them based on the tier that they are paying for, and you can also do a free tier. So in that aspect, I think it's really neat opportunity, especially if you are wanting to create some type of long form content.

You don't wanna commit to a blog and to getting all of that out there. I think Substack is a really good option right now, especially since it is popular and gaining even more and more popularity. You know, like Sharon McMahon, America's government teacher, like has a substack now vSphere, who is a reporter on social media, she's created one, and so the more and more people that have larger influences.

The more that they are starting to use it, the more popular it's becoming. And so that's great for us as content creators because that means it's not gonna be like this new thing that you are having to introduce to your audience. They already know what it is. They know how to use it. So I think it's a great way to create long form content, if anything, to have a free version where you are growing your email list at the same time, because.

The importance of having that is that if social media disappears or the algorithms stop sharing your content to your followers, you have a way to reach them still. There are so many different ways that you can get your, I'm obsessed with email. We could talk about that all day, but there's so many different ways that you can really get your email open rate over 40%, where the average lately I was looking at some new stats is for, let's say Instagram in particular.

The average amount of engagement rate and the rate of people that are seeing your content is less than 1% of your followers. Less than 1% of your followers are seeing the content that you're putting out. There is like a new average that has been put out there, which is insane. Versus email, you have the opportunity to have 40% of the people that are following you see your content.

So that's why I'm a huge advocate for email and why I do like Substack as an option for content creators, especially if you like to write. But you can also, you can plug in video over there. There's a lot of options for you.

[00:45:45] Emma: I love that you shared some of the substack. Like people that you've heard of, I'm subscribed to one.

Leah Haberman covers social media, everything under the sun around that. Her free substack is. Failed. Failed with information I'm considering going paid 'cause I'm like, dang, if you're giving me this much content right in the free version, I'm just like shocked. Like one of the things that she shared, and I think everybody obviously saw this happen in January, TikTok got banned for less than 24 hours.

So did cap cut, a lot of people were using cap cut right to like edit and they like listed out. Cap cup cap cut alternatives and they were showing like Adobe Premier Rush in shot, final cut, fill Morris a slate. And then like she broke down like the cost for each one, which I thought was so helpful. And then, yeah, anyways, it's just crazy to like see this and I was like, this is like so much great information and it's free.

I open every email, she sends me every single one. Love it. 'cause I don't wanna miss it. I'm like, oh. Is valuable. And so it works on the consumer side, I guess. Like applying this, right? If you are, I'm trying to think. Oh, so one of the things I'm doing, if anyone's based in the Northwest, I'm teaching a content creation class for Camp Thunder Craft urban, um, craft uprising based in the northwest region.

They serve. Massive community of craftspeople, makers, jewelry makers, like anything like if you're a maker out there, I hope you have connected with this community. And one of the things that I have learned with these makers is they are, I mean, obviously like su, they're experts in what they do. So if you're a crocheting expert, maybe you like crochet, cute toys or whatever that may be like, and you're a great white writer, you might start a substack where you're like.

Just catering to that community, showing latest techniques, sharing where you're buying your tools, showcasing what events you're going to. So I know that's like a little bit of like left field, but when I go and connect with this community, I always try to like figure out different ways and like show that like one social media platform is not the end all be all.

'cause a lot of them are like, I don't wanna show my face online. And I'm like, you, you don't have to. You don't have to. Like, you could focus on your email. You could. Post on LinkedIn, you could post on Pinterest, especially if you have your own website. Right. But like, especially with like, I, I, I just, I have found that like, obviously because their passion is their careers and like it's what they do.

They have, so they have such like in depth knowledge about that. And there's ways to do it online. And you could obviously like create a blog and like showcase that. That's actually what the president of the company did. She's the president of Urban Craft Uprising. She had a store in downtown Seattle. She was like, how do I get people to like know about my store?

She, she started a blog in 2008 and like, that's how she, I know. Isn't that crazy? She was, she was like, I want people to like know about my store. And so she just like started writing about like what she was carrying in store and like the different craftspeople like that she, you know, worked with and all that stuff.

And then obvi, now she's like, president of this. State organization in Seattle. But anyways, yeah, just know that like no matter what type of creator you are, if you are interested in writing, like whether it's blog or whatnot, I feel like. There's a way to do that with like long form content, whether it's an email newsletter or a substack or, or your website.

So, right.

[00:49:19] Bree: And then Substack is also great because it can be an revenue stream for you too, because if you're like, you know what, this free one is awesome, but I could also do this and add this extra little bonus and start to make some money from it and charge for it and have different tiers within it.

So I love it. I think it's very effective and something that could be really interesting for everybody to. Check into, and I'm looking at the time now and I'm like, oh my gosh, we've been talking for so long up. We should probably wrap it it up a little bit. Wrap up. Yes. Let's go. It. Um, so is there anything that you want to just share with everybody before

[00:49:52] Emma: we go?

Yeah. Um, I think I just wanted to share a few podcast episodes that I think we're very valuable on the Creative Edition podcast. So if you're a creator, entrepreneur out there, one thing I was not thinking about at all this year until I talked to Nikki Nash. Who I had on the podcast is generational wealth, so kind of an extension of our conversation today.

If you wanna start thinking about generational wealth, highly recommend going back to the Creative Edition podcast, searching Nikki Nash, because this is like what we're talking about. And then also one of my most requested things from last year is how do you find a manager is an influencer creator? So I had Naomi Genoa on the Creative Edition podcast.

She is, is a creator, represents creators, works as an agency, and also coaches them. So highly recommend checking that out because a lot of times people are like, I need a creator, or I'm sorry, I need a manager so I can start making more money through brands. But we just spell out a lot of those things.

What about you B, Brie? What's going on?

[00:50:48] Bree: Yeah, amazing. Those are fantastic. I would say, um, one thing that I'm excited about that we just released is our Content Creator's profit audit. And it's a guide that helps you find and fix what's holding you back from 10 k plus months. So really addresses like that disparity of like, how do we get to that six figures, how do we get to that 100 K?

We created a guide where you can just. Really plug in your numbers, hone in, and come away with a plan to help you grow your income. So you guys can check that out at Thrive Together blog slash 10 k and we'll link that and those podcasts that Emma mentioned in the show notes along with there's so many links that we're gonna include in these show notes for you guys.

So definitely check them out. I love it. Alright. All right. Thanks guys. We'll see you next time. If you like this episode, then I have a surprise for you. You can now head over to Emma's podcast, the Creative Edition podcast, and right now you can listen to our episode on ai. Emma and I had a amazing conversation about that, and you can go over and listen right now to hear how we are using different AI tools in our businesses and as content creators, what you guys should be using and what to look out for with these AI tools.

So head over to. The Creative Edition podcast right now.

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