Below is a transcript of the video.
narration: Do you have a hard time keeping up with all the latest memes and internet trends?
Tanya Blair: Before 2020, Munya Chawawa was a relatively unknown comedian.
But that quickly changed as people were forced to stay at home and inevitably spent more time online.
Chawawa’s news parodies and satirical characters on TikTok and Instagram have made him instantly popular, and some would even say he’s an influencer.
munyachava: The word “influence” is interesting because it carries a bit of a stigma. Some people associate the word with a certain level of emptiness or superficiality. But if someone uses that term to refer to me, I think of the 10 years before I built my profile, where I had to learn to edit, write, direct, and act. So in that sense, it’s quite reductionist.
Tanya Blair: By 2030, the creator economy is expected to reach $528 billion.
munyachava: The creative economy is booming. So, everyone is constantly posting stuff.
We now recognize that they are critical pieces on the marketing chessboard.
Tanya Blair: So how did we get to this point?
Do you remember this Coca-Cola ad?
commercial drama
Tanya Blair: In 1994, this was considered groundbreaking – using advertising to subvert gender roles.
Advertising has been around for a long time, but initially it was informative and boring. Then they started getting more interesting, and by the 1980s and 1990s they were hitting their stride, using songs, catchphrases and storylines that permeated pop culture.
commercial drama
Tanya Blair: Until recently, advertising appeared only in traditional media channels: radio, television, print and billboards. This means that if you want your product to get in front of many eyeballs, you have to do it through a mass media company.
Richard Edelman: The idea of top-down generation of information has been completed.
Tanya Blair: Richard Edelman is CEO of Edelman, the world’s largest publishing relations agency.
Richard Edelman: They no longer just watch mainstream media. They are on the phone. They interact with the brand through the prism of the influencer in some way, which gives them a way to push back. They don’t just talk the talk.
What the consumer is really thinking about now is what his or her friends are doing and what impact it means to carry a badge brand, fashion, food and drink.
Tanya Blair: Joe Gagliese is the CEO of influencer talent agency Viral Nation.
Joe Garglis: There’s been a very large media organization that’s been running around the world for a long time, and I think creators have been the biggest detriment to it.
So, I believe that, yes, in the long term, large media organizations are going to have to adapt to go where the people are, not necessarily just the creators themselves.
Tanya Blair: While the creator economy may seem like it sprang up overnight, it’s actually a story that’s been two decades in the making.
At the turn of the century, Internet connectivity began to accelerate, and platforms such as YouTube and Twitter emerged. These platforms allow anyone with an internet connection to share content with the masses, and some of their users have become stars. It wasn’t long before advertisers wanted to capitalize on their influence.
Still, the barriers to becoming a creator are high—often requiring expensive cameras and editing equipment.
That is, until TikTok levels the playing field further by building basic editing capabilities directly into the app. The platform popularized short-form, vertical videos, most of which are shot on mobile phones. Competitors such as Instagram and YouTube have launched similar products.
Blake Chandlee: Everyone is a TikTok creator. Like, if you think everyone can be a creator, we have such simple tools for people to use. I could even be a creator.
In the United States, TikTok has brought an economic impact of approximately $24 billion to the U.S. economy and created 225,000 jobs. We believe TikTok’s economic impact is particularly significant.
Tanya Blair: Today, there are an estimated 50 million people working as creators worldwide, according to Goldman Sachs, a number the firm expects to grow another 10-20% over the next five years.
So why are brands turning to influencers and content creators? Edelman told me it’s all about trust.
Richard Edelman: Trust is actually local. Trust is the third most important factor, price, quality and trust. So I trust an influential person, someone I actually feel close to because his or her values are similar to mine.
Tanya Blair: Edelman’s 2019 research shows that consumers’ trust in purchasing brands has declined, but trust in influencers has increased.
Richard Edelman: You have to talk about what you do in the community. You have to have local people in your ads or as spokespersons, as influencers. You have to make sure you are actually making a difference in each local market.
Tanya Blair: Chawawa said trust also extends to the types of influencer brands they work with.
munyachava: Children can smell mice. They can detect when someone is lying. I think this will spread to consumers as well. Consumers know when a brand is working with someone just for the numbers, and they also know when a talent is working with a brand just for the money.
I really make sure my comedy isn’t offensive and hopefully it’s smart. And, you know, the second thing is, you know, brands appreciate authenticity. I think I’ve had a few times where brands tried to distance me from sarcasm, but then I realized that’s what my audience liked.
Tanya Blair: The cost of working with an influencer can vary widely. Small influencers with 5 to 50,000 followers can charge as little as $10 per post. On the other end of the spectrum are mega-influencers, for example TikToker with 14 million followers reportedly earns $10,000 per post.
While brands have largely embraced the idea of working with influencers, the process of identifying and reaching these individual creators can be time-consuming and cumbersome for advertisers looking to reach large audiences.
In the past, the advertising ecosystem was controlled by agencies, brought to life by the famous AMC TV series Mad Men. But these days, your creative director, copywriter, account manager, and media buyer are often part of a team focused on social media and influencer marketing, like on Netflix’s Emily in Paris.
Jamie Gutfreund: The industry is not really geared towards working with individuals, as big brands and large institutions have traditionally preferred to arrange deals with large entities with large legal departments. This is not a creator economy.
Tanya Blair: While this may be convenient for brands, creator economics strategist Jamie Gutfreund said it could hurt influencers.
Jamie Gutfreund: The usual way it works is that brands sign contracts with creators through agencies. However, payment terms are usually around 120 days. So if a big brand doesn’t pay an agency within 120 days, the agency can’t afford to float the money and then pay the creator. Therefore, creators need to wait 120 days to receive funds. This is an incredible challenge.
Joe Garglis: We think about influencer marketing and social marketing at scale. Unlike traditional advertising methods where you can plan and plan a year in advance, social media moves at the speed of light. So when you think about activating human creators like you and me, and activating content around key trends, brands need to change the way they approach it to be able to be nimble and fast.
Tanya Blair: While there are still some issues that need to be resolved, one thing is for sure. Influencers have transformed advertising—but they’re not going anywhere.
munyachava: The creator economy can be said to be one where everyone serves themselves. But what we should really be doing is building a buffer around creators or people who have journalistic expertise, industry knowledge and are actually invested in longevity.
Joe Garglis: For a long time, social media was truly the wild west and lacked consistency in many aspects. So the best thing brands can do is really understand the space and start meeting creators.
I do believe that at some point creators will be viewed as the highest medium the world can buy. I think we’re on our way there.
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