Is Elon Musk an Advocate for Creators?

It’s official. Twitter is now called “X”. If you’re rolling your eyes, I don’t blame you. The name change is easily eclipsed by the several jaw-dropping announcements we received from the company over the past year. Since Elon Musk took over, he’s introduced some pretty significant changes. Gutsy moves like introducing a subscription model and, not to mention, laying off thousands of employees were both introduced in an effort to improve profits and competition against other social media platforms.

Of all the changes that have come from X, a more recent one caught my attention. Musk announced that X will pay creators a share of the ad revenue generated by their content. In fact, Musk confirmed in a post on the app that the company has already paid out roughly $5 million in compensation to the platform’s creators.

X (formerly Twitter) has already paid out roughly $5 million in compensation to the platform's creators.

I spoke to Catch+Release VP of Marketing, Deirdre Mahon, for her thoughts on X’s pledge to compensate creators. Taken at face value, she likes that X wants to give creators a share of the revenue their content generates. “I will always support compensating creators for their contributions,” she says. At Catch+Release, Mahon is an advocate for creators and oversees the execution of creator storytelling on the marketing side. She says one of the most interesting challenges she comes across in her work is convincing creators that their content is valuable, that the creators themselves are worthy. Mahon adds, “One of the most interesting comments we receive whenever we reach out to a creator is that they’re not convinced this is a real invitation, because they don’t think their shot is anything special or extraordinary. I find that really ironic, because the brands we work with are very much interested in licensing the world’s content, and yes, that includes your home video of your grandma blowing the candles on her 80th birthday cake.”

Unfortunately, it’s not surprising that creators think this way. In a world where content creators are seeing less profit for more work, it’s no wonder that even “big name” influencers hesitate to trust anyone that wants to fairly pay and license their content. It’s why Mahon and her colleagues are committed to making the content licensing experience a positive one for creators. “We have an amazing team of professionals who come from the creative industry, and who work closely with creators to make sure they are listened to, respected, and fairly compensated for their work,” she clarifies.

Brands Are All About Creator Content Right Now

While X rolls out its pledge to share ad revenue with creators, we’re also seeing brands ramp up their advertising budgets once again, and this time with a strong push for creator content. “We’re seeing a trend in the market. Brands are so desperate to grab content from the internet, whether it’s from their users, influencers, or anyone with a cell phone or camera, because it performs really well,” reports Mahon. “The data is clear, unscripted content performs 4x times better, and 77% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase,” she explains.

Now that X has tooted $5 million in payments to creators, perhaps other social media platforms will start to feel the pressure and follow suit. (Did I just jinx it?) Let’s just say this, if companies like X and Catch+Release continue to be a proponent of creator compensation, there’s some hope. While demand for the world’s content soars, so with it grows the opportunity for creators to profit from their work. “My favorite emails, hands down, are the ones notifying me when we’ve paid a creator,” says Catch+Release CEO and Founder, Analisa Goodin.

Catch+Release is a content licensing company for brands and creators. Let us help you source and license content for your next campaign. Schedule a call with one of our experts.