Alternate means of earning for influencers and creators amid the global pandemic

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the world has changed in more ways than we can even imagine. Things are different than what they were just a few months ago before the pandemic hit the world.

Amongst many things that have been affected, influencer marketing is on top. The trends in marketing have changed. What used to be an ad-centric business previously has now become more consumer-centric. Brands have cut down their costs on ads and many digital creators are focusing more on marketing through personal engagement with their followers, especially on platforms like YouTube and Instagram.

Many ad production houses have to shut down due to the global lockdown and social distancing measures, and this has prompted marketers and brands to pave new ways for influencers and other digital content creators.

Recently, media company Fine Brothers Entertainment’s CEO has said that revenue generation through YouTube alone is not advisable anymore, and people need to diversify their means of earning. This stands true for influencer marketers as well because direct ad revenue generation has become quite unreliable in these unprecedented circumstances.

Luckily for influencers, there are several ways through which they can diversify, as well as maintain a steady flow of income, which are as follows:

Sending personalized video messages through the celebrity shout-out app known as Cameo is one of the best ways to earn on the side.

For the first time in history, all celebrities, athletes, famous chefs, and famous influencers are all bound to sit at home due to the social distancing and lockdown implementations. The general public is also relying more heavily on mobile tech apps and social media platforms than ever before. Having nothing much to do at home, it is the ideal opportunity for these influencer celebrities to cash on and send personalized video messages like a special Happy birthday message to people and earn through it.

Creating a subscription-based membership program through platforms like Twitch, YouTube or third parties like Patreon is another wonderful idea.

It allows influencers to make money by direct revenue through fans who sign up to get access to some extra content or simply by supporting a creator they like and follow. Most of these followers belong to Generation Z and Millennials, who have grown up using YouTube and other video streaming apps. And it is very natural for them to show their support to content creators by following them and subscribing to their content. Therefore, through membership programs, it is easy to get them to sign up for more interesting content from the creators. So, it is a win-win for both, the creator as well as the subscriber.

One way to earn more revenue for influencers is by selling direct-to-consumer products like merch and transitioning followers into customers. Many famous influencers and celebrities work around this idea. Through affiliate links and close study, they get the idea about the interests of their followers. Before launching their products like clothes, or perfumes, they create an online buzz by posting videos about their upcoming products. They also create private content for their followers who sign up with them. So, selling products directly to the followers also is one of the top ways through which influencers can earn profits.

Selling a course, program, or personalized coaching on platforms like YouTube is like becoming the sponsor of yourself. It lets the influencers market their products and services, and earn a great revenue through it.

Micro-influencers can earn commission through affiliate programs. By linking their products with affiliate links, they can give the followers access to make purchases within an app.

RewardStyle, Rakuten, Magic Links, and Pepperjam, are some of the top most popular fashion affiliate programs.

Working through affiliate links gives an added benefit for marketers as well as influencers as the affiliate channels provide many aspiring influencers and new talent a ground where they can prove their mettle.

These channels also pave a launching pathway for these influencers when they can eventually start a sponsored campaign relationship with different brands that can pay them on a commission basis.

New studies show that the trend of live streaming is surging during the lockdown and social distancing implementations due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Keeping this in mind, without any doubt, live-video marketing on social media platforms has especially become a good way to earn for gamers and many other influencers who do not rely on brand deals, but on engagement with consumers through live streaming. Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram all are providing monetization policies for content creators for live marketing through video streaming.

Digital rights management companies like SuperBam partner with influencers and help them earn additional revenue while also taking care of issues like video content piracy and reposting without permission on YouTube. So, this helps influencers and content creators in both ways.

Last but not the least, another effective way to earn is to start creating content for brands, as many marketers are now hiring influencers for content creation. Ad production has ceased due to the closure of production houses amid the coronavirus pandemic, therefore, marketers have realized that digital creators and influencers with technical production skills like animation, photography, and video making and editing skills can do the job as well as a full-blown production house could do. Provided that these influencers have a fully equipped home office, which luckily most top-notch YouTube creators and influencers already have.



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