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Executive Summary |
YouTube Stars Ink 9-Figure Investment Deal with Growth Equity Firm Peacock Taps “Call Your Daddy” Host Alex Cooper To Host Live Watch Parties From The Paris 2024 Olympics MrBeast’s Streaming TV Show “Beast Games” Will Feature A $5 Million Prize Meta Is Testing Out A Cash Bonus Program To Amp Up Engagement On Threads
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Great Reads |
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YouTube sensation Dude Perfect has secured a major nine-figure growth capital investment from private equity firm Highmount Capital. |
The popular family-friendly sports entertainment group plans to use the funds to expand creative brand partnerships, strengthen management, and develop new products and experiences for their 100 million followers. Co-founder Coby Cotton said the deal will help bring Dude Perfect's on-screen fun "into real-life products and memory-making experiences" fans can interact with. |
Highmount cited Dude Perfect's pioneering status in the "creator-led media space", mainstream appeal with families, and invaluable brand trust built through wholesome content garnering billions of annual views. The investment caps a series of significant moves for Dude Perfect, who generated around $25 million revenue in 2022. They are building a headquarters, premiering an ESPN "30 for 30" documentary, and planning an international tour |
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Three New York influencers - Tanika Rottura, Nick Lowry, and Carly Fuller - have turned their small rental apartments into lucrative businesses through sponsored content partnering with brands. Rottura earns $5,000-$10,000 per month showcasing her 958 sq ft Upper East Side home. Lowry is now a full-time creator after growing his Instagram following to 223k with the mid-century decor of his 700 sq ft Long Island City rental. Fuller's relatable tiny space content for her 450 sq ft Hell's Kitchen walk-up has reached 173k followers and $4,000-$10,800 monthly through partnerships. |
All three have monetized with a mix of sponsorships, affiliate marketing, and user-generated content payments by developing aesthetic niches and consistent output. Challenges include balancing day jobs, generating fresh ideas, and negotiating fair rates while protecting privacy. But their lucrative side-hustles offset New York's high rents. As the creator economy grows, their success exemplifies how personal spaces can become monetizable digital assets. |
Campaign Insights |
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Peacock has tapped podcast star Alex Cooper to host "Watch with Alex Cooper", an innovative interactive viewing experience for the Paris 2024 Olympics. |
Cooper, host of the hit "Call Her Daddy" podcast, will throw live watch parties during major Team USA events. Using a picture-in-picture format, Cooper and guests will provide commentary and interact with fan questions in real-time. |
The partnership aims to engage younger audiences by featuring the popular creator's authentic voice during the Olympics. NBC sees Cooper's massive following and vocal support for women's sports making her the ideal host. |
The announcement highlights how streaming platforms are turning to creator personalities to enhance programming. Interactive elements like Cooper's watch parties, along with customizable viewing options, cater to modern audience expectations. |
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Visit Scotland, the national tourism organization, is pivoting its marketing strategy from physical visitor centers to digital platforms like TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and online travel agencies. Over the next two years, Scotland will shutter its remaining 25 visitor information centers. |
The goal is to provide travel inspiration and trip planning through content more discoverable on social media, travel sites and search engines before visitors arrive. Video and creator partnerships will play a bigger role as platforms like TikTok gain prominence in trip research. |
"Our greatest opportunity is to influence people digitally before they arrive," stated Vicki Miller, Visit Scotland's marketing director, citing the need for "flexibility and agility" as digital channels evolve. |
While some lament the loss of in-person expertise, the move reflects changing traveler behaviors. Over 50% of U.S. travelers now use social media and online resources for planning by late 2023. |
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Tattoo care brand Mad Rabbit has built a massive brand ambassador program of nearly 8,000 followers to promote its products on social media. |
Founded in 2019, Mad Rabbit formalized the effort two years ago, encouraging customers to showcase their tattoos and the brand's balms and washes online. |
The relatively accessible program considers applicants' follower counts but has a low entry barrier for fans. It includes tiers like an affiliate model, social media challenges for cash/rewards, and special perks for around 800 tattoo artists and apprentices. |
Higher tiers provide more benefits like headquarter visits, focus groups, and for the top 60 "sponsored artists" - the ability to tattoo at brand events after vetting. Co-founder Oliver Zak hopes this pipeline graduates artists to paid "pro team" figureheads. |
In just one year, the ambassador program has driven nearly $500,000 in revenue for the $56 million brand sold at major retailers. |
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German beauty-tech brand Geske has launched a multi-phase global campaign leveraging celebrity endorsements and influencer partnerships to drive awareness as it expands into the U.S. and 67 other countries. |
The first phase enlisted high-profile stars like Nina Dobrev, Megan Fox and Charli D'Amelio sharing product integrations across Instagram and TikTok, generating 62.5 million impressions. |
The second phase targets emerging markets through collaborations with 40 micro and mid-tier beauty influencers like Yuri Lee showcasing product efficacy, aiming for 5 million social impressions. |
The final phase utilizes paid advertising on global platforms like WeChat, YouTube, and social livestreams for commerce engagement. |
Geske also partnered with TikTok's Cocomint Beauty on a Hello Kitty device collection sold via TikTok Shopping. |
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When selecting college athlete influencers, top brands prioritize factors beyond just follower counts. A study of college athletes hired by the 100 most reputable companies found: |
High follower numbers aren't essential - 59% of sponsored athletes had under 50,000 followers, with brands valuing their image and character fit more. |
Sports aren't limited to football and basketball - About 50% came from other sports like golf, gymnastics and soccer. Posts should showcase their athletic identity - 48% of influencer posts featured sports content compared to more personal posts. Suggestive imagery is avoided - 85% never posted sexualized content, protecting brand reputation with wider audiences. |
More candid, authentic photos are preferred over staged shots signaling self-promotion. While ROI is still unclear for this new marketing channel, the lower costs of college athlete influencers compared to pros offers brands an early opportunity to build lasting relationships with rising stars. As the NCAA partnership grows, best practices are emerging. |
Interesting People |
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YouTube superstar MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson) has struck a major deal with Amazon MGM Studios to produce a reality competition show called "Beast Games." The show will feature an unprecedented $5 million cash prize - the largest ever offered on TV or streaming. |
This collaboration highlights how major entertainment companies are increasingly seeking to work with online creators who have massive followings. MrBeast is YouTube's most popular individual creator with over 389 million subscribers across his channels. |
Donaldson will host and executive produce the global show, available in 240 countries, with creative control - a milestone for YouTube creators expanding to traditional media. While his YouTube videos can net 300-500 million views, he acknowledged Beast Games will initially reach Amazon's 80 million U.S. streaming households. |
The deal signals a broader trend of top creators diversifying revenue by bringing their brands and franchises to TV and film studios. For studios, partnering with established digital stars reduces risk and taps into coveted youth audiences. |
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Two college students, Jordan Green and Matt Bergman, are cashing in on the NCAA's March Madness through their agency, Glacier Marketing Group. They secured a viral sponsorship deal between NC State's breakout star DJ Burns and grooming company Manscaped. |
As Burns led the Wolfpack to the Final Four, Green and Bergman worked quickly to coordinate content, shipping products, and hiring videographers - all within 48 hours before tip-off against Marquette. The resulting social media video showcased Burns' fun personality. |
This is part of a new wave of monetization in the NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) era. Brands are paying top dollar to attach themselves to NCAA tournament darlings and viral moments. The students identified Burns early as a potential star based on his size, skills and charismatic interviews. |
Their Gen Z perspective allows them to anticipate trends and strike quickly. Glacier has now facilitated multiple lucrative deals during March Madness runs, with Burns earning six figures off the court this year. As the creator economy expands, more students are getting in on the action. |
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United Talent Agency has signed model and influencer Emira D'Spain for representation across all areas. D'Spain rose to fame sharing beauty content and "Get Ready With Me" videos, amassing over 1.3 million TikTok followers. |
In 2022, D'Spain made history as the first Black transgender woman to model for Victoria's Secret. She has graced covers of publications like Galore and Paper, attracting major brand partnerships. |
UTA agents praise D'Spain as "a truly unique creative force" who has "broken barriers" through her "authentic" presence. With her "devoted fan base," the agency is excited to expand her business ventures. |
For the creator economy, D'Spain's signing highlights the immense influence and commercial opportunities for diverse voices disrupting traditional industries like fashion and beauty. Agencies are increasingly attracted to creators transcending niche audiences to reach global brand appeal. |
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Hugo Travers, the influencer behind French online media company HugoDécrypte, has ventured into the job market by launching a new employment site aimed at connecting companies with young candidates. |
The platform, jobs.hugodecrypte.com, debuted in collaboration with Élan, and already features internship, apprenticeship and entry-level job postings from major employers like SNCF, Decathlon, L'Oréal and others. |
With 14 million social media followers, predominantly aged 15-34, HugoDécrypte provides these companies unparalleled reach to a coveted demographic as they struggle with youth recruiting challenges. 61% of French employers cited difficulties finding qualified young talent last year. |
Beyond the job board, the site will offer career guidance content tailored to HugoDécrypte's youthful audience on topics like housing, finance and administrative skills. |
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YMU, the UK talent agency representing Simon Cowell and Claudia Winkleman, has signed social media influencer Grace Beverly to its entertainment division. |
Beverly, 27 is an entrepreneur and digital broadcaster with 3 million followers across Instagram, TikTok, and other platforms. She has founded three companies, including the activewear brand TALA. Her debut book, “Working Hard, Hardly Working,” became a Sunday Times bestseller, and her podcast has reached 25 million people. |
Lucy Loveridge, YMU’s Joint Managing Director of Global Entertainment, told Deadline that Beverly is a “stand-out” talent. |
The influencer signing aligns with YMU’s strategic foray into the creator economy. Last month, the agency merged its social and entertainment units to form a global entertainment division dedicated to online stars. |
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Industry News |
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Creator management platform GRIN has launched Activations Benchmarking, a new data-driven tool to help brands optimize their influencer marketing performance. The tool provides customized benchmarks tailored to each brand's campaign goals, size and needs. |
Powered by over a decade of customer data encompassing billions of data points from 84,000 influencer activations, the tool offers key features like recommended KPIs, real-time campaign tracking, and brand comparisons within industries. |
This allows brands to pinpoint gaps, monitor progress, and benchmark against competitors - addressing a major hurdle where 47% of social marketers struggle to measure campaign effectiveness. |
GRIN's CEO Brandon Brown stated the tool will "democratize influencer marketing expertise" by providing data-backed recommendations to run programs efficiently, regardless of size or maturity. |
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Meta is trialing a bonus program that allows creators to earn cash rewards for generating engaging content on Threads. The program bases payouts on the performance of creators’ posts, measured by metrics such as views. |
The catch? The program is invite-only. To participate, creators must first receive an invite as a pop-up notification in their Professional Dashboard on Instagram. Setting up a public Threads profile is required to receive the bonuses. |
Posts must include text written in supported languages and garner at least 2,500 eligible views from the Threads app and website to qualify for earnings. Content containing unauthorized branded material, copyrighted works, artificial engagement boosting, or watermarks from other platforms is ineligible. |
Meta determines bonus payouts at the end of each period, with earnings distributed to creators the following month via its Professional Dashboard. The cash bonus initiative signals Meta’s desire to position Threads as the successor to Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter). |
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Snap will host its 6th annual Partner Summit on September 17th in Santa Monica, unveiling new products and services for its partner, creator and developer ecosystem. |
The Summit keynote will be livestreamed, followed by interactive demos, sessions and workshops. Immediately after, Snap will hold its 7th Lens Fest on September 18-19th, welcoming augmented reality developers to learn about new AR tools through hands-on workshops. |
CEO Evan Spiegel expressed excitement to share Snap's latest innovations and engage the AR community across both events. As Snap invests in creator capabilities like AR, the dual Summit and Lens Fest provide a platform to announce new monetization features. Creators should monitor for product updates that could impact their businesses on Snap's platform. |
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"Uber Eats has unveiled a new short-form video feed similar to TikTok that allows its 1 million restaurant merchants to showcase their dishes through vertical video content. Currently being tested in New York, San Francisco, and Toronto before a planned global rollout, the feed aims to inspire users to discover and order new menu items by replicating the experience of dining at the restaurant. Videos of food preparation and details like portion sizes are displayed in carousels throughout the Uber Eats app. |
Tapping a preview launches a vertical feed of related videos from nearby restaurants available for delivery. For merchants, it provides a new way to directly reach customers as they browse and decide what to order, leveraging popular social video formats. Uber Eats has also revamped its merchant management software with personalized growth recommendations like suggested promotions. The video feed launch coincides with Uber Eats surpassing 1 million merchants globally across 11,000 cities. |
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The top online creators earning over $100,000 annually rely on an average of 5 or more income streams, with the highest earners over $150,000 having 7 distinct revenue sources. While social media brand deals were the top single income source in 2022, the most successful creators diversify by selling digital products like online courses directly to their audiences. Nearly half say losing access to YouTube would cost them over $50,000 per year income. |
However, they strategically avoid overreliance on any one platform's policies. 60% would consider sponsorships contradicting their values for high enough pay. The top creators reach six-figure revenues twice as fast, use AI tools more frequently, and over 40% own homes and fund retirement accounts. Looking ahead, many support creator unions, worry about economic impacts on brand deals in 2024, want fairer compensation from platforms, and view AI as key to increasing productivity while avoiding burnout. |
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Numerous creators, activists, and journalists have signed an open letter urging Meta to reverse restrictions limiting the reach of accounts posting "political content" across Instagram, Threads, and Facebook. The letter, organized by Accountable Tech and GLAAD, argues automatically restricting political recommendations threatens political engagement, education, and activism on topics like LGBTQ rights, racial issues, and women's rights. Creators say they've seen significant declines in engagement and reach since the policy took effect in February. |
The letter calls for allowing users to opt into viewing political content recommendations. Some creators who opted out still report reduced reach on social issues. Critics argue Meta is too broadly defining "political content" in a way that marginalizes underrepresented voices and limits access to critical information, including upcoming 2024 election news. The extent of the impact is unclear as Meta hasn't provided data, but the policy change has alarmed many who fear it will further marginalize already marginalized communities. |
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Warner Bros. Discovery has sold the podcast network Roost from its former gaming division Rooster Teeth to talent management firm Night. Night represents major YouTube and Twitch stars like MrBeast and Kai Cenat. |
The deal includes 47 original podcasts from Roost that garner over 350 million views and 20 million monthly audio downloads. Notable shows moving to Night are "This Past Weekend With Theo Von," "H3," "The Phil DeFranco Show," and "The Yard" with Ludwig. |
However, the "Flashback With Smosh" podcast is not included, as founders Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox plan to announce separate plans. Night's founder Reed Duchscher cited Roost's brand identity, talent network and creator-focused mission seamlessly aligning with the firm's strategy around top digital stars. |
The acquisition follows Warner Bros. Discovery's recent decision to shutter Rooster Teeth, the gaming and media company it bought in 2014 that originally launched Roost. |
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The dream of becoming a famous influencer may be fading for Gen Z as artificial intelligence disrupts the industry. Over half of Gen Zers want to be full-time influencers, but the market is saturated and competition is fierce. |
Now, AI influencers are emerging as a more cost-effective marketing solution. Companies like The Clueless Agency and 1337 are creating realistic AI personas with backstories that can continuously engage audiences at a fraction of the cost of human influencers. |
Major brands are expressing interest in partnering with AI influencers who provide knowledge exchange rather than just product placement. However, questions remain around building authentic audience trust and potential reputational risks. |
As AI content creation becomes more affordable, it could upend career paths for the influencer economy. Younger generations looking to social media stardom may face an even greater challenge as the definition of engaging, authentic content evolves to incorporate AI influencers alongside human creators. |
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Link Lauren, a 25-year-old TikTok influencer, has gained fame covering fringe presidential candidates often ignored by mainstream media. With over 455,000 followers, he was hired by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s campaign as a senior advisor tasked with reaching young voters on the platform. |
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Lauren has designed viral social initiatives for RFK Jr., including videos aimed at under-30 voters that garnered over 1.5 million views. Though not endorsing Kennedy's controversial views, Lauren sees an opportunity to connect with youth disaffected by the two-party system. |
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An anti-establishment voice inspired by conservative media personalities, Lauren hopes this campaign experience launching him as an influential commentator or even candidate himself someday. He believes legacy outlets abandoning young audiences on TikTok created an opening for new political influencers in the creator economy |
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