Party people, I've got drops on drops coming out in the next couple of weeks. Don't worry, you don't have to do anything. Just keep an eye on your inbox and enjoy.

In the meantime, let's dive in.

Today's Highlights:

• How GumRoad has powered the creator economy with $142M in GMV
• Virtual tips are driving creator monetization
• Netflix goes vertical (like TikTok)
• Drake drops Scary Hour 2

📰Talking Creators

Virtual tips are helping content creators actually make money

Creators have two large pain points; monetization and discoverability. Many creators grind for years before they see a return on their efforts, but with the gold rush of the creator economy, that may soon change. Outside of brand partnerships, creators are monetizing via the classic go-to's such as merch and courses. Now, a combination of new players are beginning to emerge. Those players being NFTs and virtual tipping. Virtual tipping is becoming a go-to-method for creators to monetize and leans into the popular 100 true fans and1,000 true fans theory.

In the past, creators needed large audiences to monetize. With the rise of the creator economy contributing to more creators and tools, the narrative is shifting that you don't need a large audience in order to build a financially stable career. Virtual tipping highlights that you only need a smaller number of your audience paying you. Think 100 true fans paying $100-$1,000 a month. Virtual tipping isn't new, but with more platforms needing to address monetization issues for creators, it will soon become more mainstream.
Source:Vox

🤳Talking Social & Platforms

Gumroad: The Android of the Creator Economy That Powered $142M in GMV

When we highlight the companies powering the creator economy, we often look towards social platforms given the sheer number of creators they generate. What we overlook are platforms such as GumRoad, which were built with the sole goal of helping creators monetize. Creator monetization is a significant pain point that can't be overlooked. If creators can't monetize there isn't a creator economy. We can't expect creators to keep up with the pace and work required for a full-time business without giving them financial security and the opportunity to follow their passion.

GumRoad is one of the few entities (alongside Teachable), that allowed people to monetize their unique skillsets with out of box business solutions. Simply upload your product, choose your pricing, and sell. They handle the rest. In this analysis from, Nan Wong, she breaks down GumRoad's financials to highlight the company's $142M in GMV and potential growth.
Source:Sacra

Netflix launches ‘Fast Laughs,’ a TikTok-like feed of funny videos

Netflix goes vertical. Yes, like TikTok. While not directly tied to the creators (yet), Netflix rolled out a vertical TikTok-like feed dubbed "Fast Laughs". Similar to TikTok, users can scroll through a feed of clips with the option to jump right into Netflix's full catalog. Depending on the success of Fast Laughs, it doesn't seem far off that Netflix will branch out to popular creators to create short-form content exclusively for Fast Laughs.
Source:TechCrunch

Instagram launches ‘Live Rooms’ for live broadcasts with up to four creators

It's a Talking Social & Platforms kind of day. This time with Instagram's launch of "Live Rooms". Live Rooms are live streams with the opportunity to add up to four people. This gives creators the opportunity to collaborate with one another, bring in surprise guests, and interact with their followers in talk show-like experiences. Think of Live Rooms as Instagram's answer to Twitter Spaces, Clubhouse and TikTok's Q&A feature. Live Rooms brings the video elements of live streaming with the intimacy and collaborative panel found on Clubhouse.

Source:TechCrunch

☂️Talking Drops From Creators

The team at One Day Entertainment just released one of the most comprehensive resources on how to level up as a creator. With everything from how to build a brand to how to build a team. It's both unique and extremely helpful. Dive in the below.

Creator Library

🧨Talking Marketing & Monetization for Creators

Brand Building & Driving Sales via Spotify

After Spotify's recent announcement of creator tools and improving podcast discoverability, I started looking at ways to monetize via Spotify. While the options are limited (e.g. ads or merch) here's a way playlist creators can monetize if they aren't releasing music.

Currently, the only way to sell merch on Spotify is to be an artist. Which transparently makes zero sense; however, I expect this to change. In order to become an artist, you have to submit your music and go through an entire process. But what if you don't want to go through that hassle. What if you want to sell products tied to a branded playlist? Here are a few workarounds:

1. In your playlist bio add a link directing to your merch or site.
2. Add your website or product link directly to the playlist title
3. Record an intro track for your playlist which plugs your site or product URL.

It's not a pretty workaround, but depending on your niche, building a brand presence via a playlist could also become a profitable monetization channel.

I'm testing something new. If you want more marketing & monetization tips updates text me:

(302) 240-3111

🏄Things you want to know

• I might be late to the party but I just discovered Reface.ai and I'm obsessed. Swap faces and be anyone.
• Drake dropped Scary Hours 2 and to be fair, it's pretty scary.

Until Next Time

I hope you enjoyed this week's newsletter. If you enjoyed what you read, forward this email to a friend. Just tell them to subscribe. Lastly, I tend to post more short-form content across social, so if you don't already, follow me and say hi.