Creator economy
Startups helping to keep clicks, collabs and cash flowing
Last updated: 4 Aug 2022
Market 101
What could be better than making a living from doing what you love? More and more creators have flocked to YouTube, Instagram and TikTok to find out — but for most of them, things haven’t quite panned out as they might have hoped. Incumbent platforms encourage ever more content production in a zero-sum competition between creators that lets only a select few rise to the top. For the rest, passion has turned into grind, and the once-attainable dream of fame into a reality of precarious or unpaid labour.
A new wave of startups is convinced there’s another way though, whether by building platforms that offer creators a bigger slice of the revenue pie and more engagement, or providing the tools that free up more time for creators to focus on what they’re actually good at. The jury’s still out on whether their efforts will be enough to rebalance the sector towards the needs of the long tail of creators who, once hankering for fame and fortune, are now merely getting by.
Early stage market map
Key facts
12
% of online creators who make more than $50k per year1
$3 to $5
creator earnings per 1,000 views on YouTube2
86
% of youngsters who want to join the creator economy3
Trends to watch
1. Setting the creator founder free
→ While creators start out with the goal of producing content, many of them become bogged down with admin, chasing invoices and other repetitive tasks. → Startups are now popping up to solve these headaches, from providing creators with working capital while they wait for invoices to come in to developing the tools they need to manage their communities or edit their content more quickly.
2. Art vs the algorithm
→ Creators’ main goal is to find new fans, not only engage more deeply with existing ones. But to be discovered, they need to rely either on word of mouth or cater to platforms’ preference towards viral content.
→ Funnelling a critical mass of users to their platforms is no easy task for startups, which are up against the recommendation algorithms of social media giants.
3. New income streams
→ Some challengers to the big social media platforms let creatives profit from fewer but more engaged fans.
→ Then there are creators who are experimenting with new income streams like merchandise or meet-and-greets — and those dabbling with Web3 technologies like tokens or NFTs, both to earn more money and animate their community.
4. Beat platform dependency
→ Creators are increasingly spreading their reach across platforms and face a high cost if they’re late to a new platform that’s mid-blowing up.
→ In this context, among the startups providing the plumbing between platforms and creators, those which are platform agnostic may have the highest chance of success.
Startups tracked by Sifted
Sifted take
Creator economy startups have no easy task ahead of them: serving a class of highly price sensitive customers who are effectively running small businesses, yet have earnings that are too low to charge SaaS-level prices. Startups will need a sound strategy both for taking a share of already-small revenues and growing into billion dollar companies.
Rising stars
Backed by the likes of FoodLabs, GE Ventures and Village Global, The Plate is a platform for culinary creators focused on live formats to let them engage more deeply with their followers. Its cofounders are two former management consultants.
Round
Pre-seed
Date
2021
Size
€1.6m
Provides a content library for creatives that uses AI to let users categorise material according to styles, shots and even human emotions. Its investors include Creandum and EQT Ventures.
Round
Pre-seed
Date
2020
Size
€1.5m
Founded by serial entrepreneur Paul Veugen, Detail provides one app for users to record, stream and edit their videos using their cameras. It has secured backing from the likes of Point Nine and angels including Sten Tamkivi and Taavet Hinrikus.
Round
Seed
Date
2021
Size
€4.3m
Early stage startups to watch
Artivive
Backend tool
Content creation
€1.5m
€1.5m
-
Beatly
Creator marketplace & management
€500k
€300k
-
Condense
Alternative platform
Web3
€4.4m
€3.5m
€420k
Contact
Creator marketplace & management
€5.1m
€3.3m
-
Detail
Backend tool
Content creation
€6.1m
€4.3m
-
Earnr
Backend tool
Fintech
€910k
€780k
-
FAVE
Alternative platform
Growth & discovery
€3m
€1m
€15m
Flowrite
Backend tool
Productivity & collaboration
€4.3m
€3.7m
-
FUEL
Alternative platform
Web3
€1.5m
-
€11.5m
Guild
Alternative platform
Growth & discovery
€3.1m
€4.2m
-
Hypest Hive
Creator marketplace & management
€90k
€350k
-
Influo
Creator marketplace & management
€2.1m
€580k
-
Kive
Backend tool
Productivity & collaboration
€1.5m
€1.5m
-
Make Influence
Creator marketplace & management
€800k
€400k
-
Mana
Alternative platform
Monetisation
€1.8m
€1.8m
-
MONET
Backend tool
Fintech
€750k
€565k
€3.2m
Off Script
Alternative platform
Monetisation
€1m
€270k
-
OnJam
Alternative platform
Growth & discovery
€100k
€100k
-
Passionfroot
Backend tool
Productivity & collaboration
€3m
€3m
-
Pixchange
Alternative platform
Web3
€500k
€300k
-
StreamBee
Alternative platform
Growth & discovery
€300k
€300k
-
The Plate
Alternative platform
Monetisation
€1.6m
€1.6m
-
Vimma
Backend tool
Productivity & collaboration
€350k
€127k
-
Sources
Research reports
The New Creator Economy: A guide on Web3 creator platforms | March 2022 | Antler
1 2022 Creator Report | 2022 | Linktree
News articles
1 How Startups Can Survive the Creator Economy Winte | May 2022 | Napkin Math
Creator economy startups to watch, according to top investors | October 2021 | Sifted
3 A 'neobank for influencers': Why the $15bn creator economy is fintechs' next battleground | August 2021 | Sifted
The creator economy is in crisis | August 2021 | Li Jin
5 creator economy VCs see startup opportunities in monetization, discovery and much more | February 2021 | TechCrunch
2 Building the Middle Class of the Creator Economy | December 2020 | Li Jin
Mapping the Creator Economy | December 2020 | Arm The Creators
What is the creator economy? Influencer tools and trends | September 2020 | SignalFire
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