51% of Creators Make Less Than $500 Per Month: New Influencer Data
source link: https://www.businessinsider.com/mavrck-data-report-compensation-creator-income-brand-deals-sponsored-content-2023-8
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A new survey of 689 creators revealed that over half make less than $500 per month. Here were 5 key takeaways.
- The creator economy is booming, but some creators aren't earning as much as you might think.
- Influencer-marketing platform Mavrck surveyed 689 creators to assess their income earned in 2023.
- Here are 5 takeaways, including how more than 50% earn less than $500 per month.
More than half of creators earn less than $500 per month, according to a new survey.
Earlier this month, the influencer-marketing platform Mavrck released its 2023 Creator Compensation Report, highlighting how much the 689 creators surveyed make in today's changing economic landscape.
Almost half of the creators who participated in Mavrck's study were between 18 to 24 years old. 86.3% of creators identified as female, and a little more than half of the participants were nano and micro influencers, with an online audience ranging from 5,000 to 50,000.
Creators in Mavrck's survey reported an increase in the number of brand deals and the amount of income they earned this year compared to last year. The report found that creators had higher rates for Instagram reels and in-feed posts compared to TikTok videos or YouTube.
Still, though brand deal rates and earnings are on the rise overall, 51% said they were making less than $500 a month from their content, and only 4% reported that they earned more than $10,000 per month.
But looking beyond brand deals can help some creators increase their incomes.
"We're seeing an increase in affiliate revenue as a source of income for creators — it went from 47% in 2021 to 56% in 2023 — and a decrease in sponsored content from 91% in 2021 to 82% in 2023," said Rachael Cihlar, Mavrck's VP of corporate communications. "I think a big takeaway of this is that for creators to also be successful and for them to continue to establish themselves and make this their full-time career, they need to diversify their revenue sources, too."
Here are five takeaways from Mavrck's Creator Compensation Report:
More than 50% of creators surveyed are making less than $500 each month.
While the creator economy has seen a boom, not all creators are cashing in. Mavrck found that a majority of the 689 creators surveyed — about 51% — made less than $500 a month from their content. That's about $6,000 in a year.
However, nearly a quarter of the creators surveyed reported that they earn more than $2,000 per month. Only about 4% reported that they earned more than $10,000 per month.
Here's a breakdown of how much money creators earn per month, according to Mavrck's data:
| Creator Monthly Income | Percentage of Respondents |
| More than $10,000 | 4.4% |
| $6,001-$10,000 | 4.4% |
| $4,001-$6,000 | 4.0% |
| $2,001-$4,000 | 11.7% |
| $1,001-$2,000 | 10.3% |
| $501-$1,000 | 14.2% |
| $251-$500 | 19.2% |
| Less than $250 | 31.8% |
Sponsored content and affiliate marketing are how a majority of creators make money.
Around 82% of the creator respondents said they made money from brand deals. The second largest source of income was affiliate marketing, which creators often use by sharing links that help generate commission based on the sales and traffic their content generates. About 56% of respondents reported that they make money through affiliates.
About 33% of creators said they make money from ads, such as with YouTube's Partner Program, which pays creators a percentage of revenue from ads placed on their videos. Only 25% of respondents said they make money from creator funds, such as TikTok's Creator Fund.
Just 15.7% of creators said that they earn an income from paid subscription offerings. Among those who make money from paywalled content, Patreon was the most common option.
Here are the four forms of subscription or paywalled content creators make money from:
- Patreon (29% of creators who made money from subscriptions)
- Paid livestreams (27% of creators who made money from subscriptions)
- Newsletters (22% of creators who made money from subscriptions)
- OnlyFans (16% of creators who made money from subscriptions)
Generally, most creators surveyed reported that they charge between $1 and $10 per month for their subscription content.
The final top stream of income for creators surveyed was selling merchandise, with 15% making money this way.
Overall, brand deal rates and earnings are on the rise for creators.
Heading into 2023, the creator economy was like many other industries reacting to a looming recession with layoffs. While some creators saw brand deals dwindle in mid-2022, the sponsored content landscape appears to have rebounded, per Mavrck's data.
About 44% of creators reported an increase in brand deal offers year-over-year and 23% of respondents said they'd witnessed no change. That means it is business as usual for some areas of influencer marketing. Still, at least 32% of the creators surveyed said they'd seen a decrease in brand deal offers.
In terms of income from brand deals, nearly 43% of creators said they were earning more in 2023 than in the year prior, compared to about 33% who reported that they were earning less.
Beauty brand deals tend to pay the lowest, while media and entertainment deals had the highest rates.
Beauty content is all over the internet and it makes for some of the most viral products, whether it be the latest new blush or skincare hack.
However, cosmetics and fragrance as a broader category had the lowest rates when it came to brand deals, according to Mavrck's data. For instance, for sponsored short-form videos on both TikTok and Instagram, a majority of cosmetics and fragrance rates reported by creators were less than $500.
Mavrck asked creators about the average sponsorship rates across Instagram reels, stories, and feed posts, as well as TikTok posts. In addition to cosmetics and fragrance, Mavrck also asked about rates for fashion, food and beverage, lifestyle and interior, and media and entertainment industries.
Media and entertainment deals had higher rates across the various formats, including TikTok and Instagram, and had the highest proportion of rates that exceeded $2,000, Mavrck concluded. Given the ongoing strikes in the entertainment industry, creators who forgo brand deals in solidarity with the striking actors could be giving up thousands of dollars.
Instagram is a hub for sponsored content, but newer platforms like Lemon8 and Twitch are becoming destinations.
Instagram feed posts, which include photos and carousel posts, are the most common format for sponsored content. Over 98% of creators said that they share sponsored content in Instagram feed posts, stories, and reels.
About 90% of creators said they post sponsored content to TikTok, according to Mavrck's data. Only 69% of creators said they share sponsored content on Facebook, as well. YouTube, on the other hand, was lower on the list with only 62% of creators posting sponsored content to YouTube shorts, and only 59% sharing sponsored content via traditional YouTube videos.
Outside of the major platforms, sponsored content is being shared on smaller or newer platforms like Snapchat, Twitch, and even ByteDance-owned Lemon8. About 34% of creators said they had posted sponsored content to Lemon8, while 31% said they had posted sponsored content to Snapchat.
"Lemon8 is getting its legs," Cihlar said. "There's a lot of investment of course from TikTok to get creators to engage with Lemon8. We know Lemon8 is doing their own influencer marketing as well and is paying creators to post on the channel."
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