YouTube’s Next Move
YouTube, who recently launched “YouTube Shorts” as a way of competing with the short format videos produced on TikTok, has made another move to compete with the platform, giving “shorts” creators 45% of the revenue generated by the ads that play in between their videos starting in 2023. YouTube’s “shorts” are another example of a social platform following in the footsteps of TikTok, with Instagram launching “Instagram Reels” in an effort to compete as well. These mobile-friendly videos typically average 16-60 seconds and can help creators build up their subscriber and/or follower count.
YouTube’s new move is being regarded as one of the biggest expansions their monetization program has undergone in quite some time, likely in a bid to retain creator loyalty. While YouTube remains the top performing social platform with over two billion monthly users, TikTok’s increasing popularity, jumping over 200% in active users throughout the 2nd quarter of 2022, has evidently pushed the platform towards creating more enticing offers for their current and future creators. TikTok has also become the platform of choice for younger users, particularly Gen Z, which is the growth market nearly every social platform is targeting their services to.
YouTube’s recent move is a clear sign that the impact of social media influencers has started to grow and shift. Prior to this, creators would have to attain 1,000 followers on the platform and have an audience that had watched over 4,000 hours of their content. Now, creators need 1,000 followers and 10 million total “shorts” views in the course of three months in order to join the partner program, allowing them to make money from the content. While the jump to 10 million may seem staggering, YouTube “shorts” are getting an average of 15 billion daily views.
Amazon’s Free Email Marketing Campaigns
Amazon recently launched three new audience types within the Amazon Customer Engagement Tool that will give brands that use Seller Central the opportunity to build their email marketing reach with zero associated costs. Rather than only being able to access their brand followers, sellers can now reach their most loyal customers, their biggest repeat customers, and their highest spend customers, regardless of if they are followers of their brand store. This comes on the heels of sellers expressing a desire for more tools to increase the customer’s lifetime value.
The program, entitled “Tailored Audiences,” also lets sellers monitor and track customer engagement through open rates, click-through rates, sales, conversions, and more. While the program is still in the testing phase, it’s expected to become available in the US starting in early 2023. Sellers will be able to access the tool in Seller Central at no additional cost. Sellers can also expect improved design and custom HTML abilities, along with a variety of new templates.
To learn more about how this can help your organization on Amazon, chat with the experts at Highlands.
Walmart’s New Content Creator Platform
Walmart recently announced the launch of their new platform, designed for creators, entitled “Walmart Creator.” The one-stop portal will make it easy for creators to make money off shoppable products from the retailer. Once they sign up, they will be given access to over 10,000 products, giving them the chance to earn revenue and commissions on any sales they refer. Users will be able to share product links on any social platform, receive product recommendations that align with their interests, and gain insight into performance data to help them grow their following.
Walmart hopes that this move will help to inspire customers to make more purchases, as they see the power that influencers can have on consumers in today’s market. While Walmart already offers shoppable live streams to their customers, this move is yet another addition to them adapting to the new world of e-commerce and meeting consumers where they are. Currently, creators can apply for the beta version of the “Walmart Creator” program.
To learn if the Walmart Creator platform is something that can benefit your business, reach out.
