I Don't Like Creator Funds ($$$)

I reposted this ping pong ball trick that I made in 2018, and it had me reflecting on how at the time I just wanted to make a good video.

This was the first thing I made after leaving my studio job and jumping into social media full-time. My thought was that if I made something that created a splash, it would advertise my skills to brands that could then hire me. It worked!

Social media's a bit different now in that feed-based platforms like Facebook, X/Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok all have creator funds that pay based on views (I'm excluding YouTube, where selective viewing supports ad revenue). In my opinion these funds start to corrupt the motivation of making videos.

Instead of simply wanting to make a good video, there's now a trap in making whatever's necessary to capture views and earn a cut of the fund. It's almost (or exactly) as if these platforms are dangling a carrot in front of every user to generate a never-ending stream of content.

I think a healthier mindset is to treat short form video like an advertising channel for whatever skill, service, or product is at the core of your business.

I've dipped in and out of the creator fund trap more than a few times as I've navigated social media as a job. It's good to reflect and remember that a career built on amazing work is worth 100x more than whatever few dollars a platform can pay me.

P.S. Here's how I made the ping ball ball trick!