Josh Harmon has 4.4 million followers on TikTok and 2 million subscribers on YouTube.
Like many creators, his income comes mostly from brand deals that may be threatened by a downturn.
Here’s how Harmon plans to weather the looming economic storm.
The US economy is showing signs of a looming downturn. Inflation is surging, and many economists say Americans should brace themselves for a recession in 2023.
For social media creators like Josh Harmon, the economic outlook is a cause for concern. Companies often cut marketing and advertising budgets first to save money. Harmon – like most influencers – relies primarily on brand partnerships for income.
He told Insider that some of his fellow content creators have had brand deals axed mid-production.
Harmon quit his “dream job” at NBC’s ‘Today’ Show in 2020 to become a full-time content creator on TikTok and YouTube. This decision was bolstered by Harmon’s various successful brand deals that account for the “vast majority” of his income.
Now he’s self-employed, “the highs are higher and the lows are lower,” Harman told Insider. Because income is irregular, “it doesn’t always feel very stable,” he added.
Nevertheless, Harmon doesn’t regret his decision. He shared ways content creators can survive an economic downturn.
It’s important to build up a portfolio of income streams in case one dries up.
Harmon estimates that brand partnerships account for about 85% of his income, but he’s trying to redress this imbalance.
He told Insider: “I’m writing a book and I’m working on original music, which then I can sell — and I’m also considering going on tour.”
A creator’s audience is their biggest asset, according to Harmon.
By keeping in regular touch with their fans, creators can make sure they stay engaged — which makes it much easier to secure bigger brand partnerships.
They can also directly advertise any merchandise and promote their alternative commercial endeavors, so communication is crucial to building up a portfolio of income streams too.
“Find a way to communicate with your fans in a way that isn’t dependent on the whims of social media platforms,” he said.
It might seem old-school, but Harmon suggests launching a newsletter: “Email is definitely not going away.”
“When money is tight, people are often hesitant to make big investments. But if you’re serious about being a creator, it’s always worth investing in yourself,” he said.
Harmon bought some expensive lights early on that “paid for themselves in just a few weeks” by allowing him to make better-quality content that attracted a wider audience.
Creators can also benefit from hiring staff. “As soon as I went full-time I hired somebody to help me, even though I couldn’t really afford it at the time,” he said.
Harmon told Insider: “If the content stays good, the fans stay engaged.”
If you’re self-employed, it’s crucial to get to grips with handling your own money.
Setting aside some savings is an important first step for long-term stability. “If you have a nest egg, you won’t need to panic all the time,” Harmon said.
It’s also vital to plan ahead. Harmon told Insider he’s preparing financial forecasts for 2023 by outlining predicted income and expenditure and trying to “line up longer-term partnerships that I can rely on.”
Building reliable relationships offer much-needed stability, so creators have to prove themselves as trustworthy workers.
“It’s a crazy industry, but it’s really important to maintain professional standards.”
Harmon told Insider he always replies promptly and politely to professional partners — and he aims to complete all commercial work ahead of schedule.
“I know some creators who blow off brand deals, turn them in late, or get into arguments with the people they’re working with. That’s never a good idea.”
When times are tough, it’s never a good idea to go it alone. “Having a network of creator friends is really important because you can be in the trenches together,” Harmon said.
“The more information you have, the better prepared you’ll be. My creator friends and I are very honest – we talk about numbers. We talk about brands.”
In times of economic anxiety, creators might be tempted to accept lower prices, but they should also think carefully about devaluing their own products.
It all comes back to communication, said Harmon. Harmon told Insider creators need to be “clear with companies” about their budgets — and they shouldn’t let themselves feel pressured to accept anything less.
While Harmon’s not certain about the future, he is “very certain about my ability to be creative, make creative content, and find creative solutions.”
Read the original article on Business Insider
It has been one of the worst times to be a Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) investor, with the stock down a whopping 70% since hitting an all-time high in the latter half of 2021. Amid difficult times for tech stocks and Meta specifically, CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently sat down with Andrew Ross Sorkin at the New York Times Dealbook Summit for an interview on Dec. 2. In addition to conducting the first part of the interview in the current incarnation of the Metaverse, Zuckerberg also laid out in better detail what's going on with Meta's controversial spending, where it's going, and what the potential payoff could really be.
We love the fact that former Friends co-stars Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, and Lisa Kudrow are still all the best of buddies. But we can’t help but notice something that rubs us the wrong way when we’re watching reruns of the show. When watching, we can’t help but think, “Why did they dress Kudrow like […]
Konnan has started dialysis treatment while he waits for a […]
Utility companies may have to pass the money they're making off EV owners to their customers.
Indonesian businesses are concerned a new ban on sex outside marriage could deter visitors.
UW is adding Davion Thomas of Racine St. Catherine's as a preferred walk-on. Thomas was an all-state performer at receiver and defensive back.
Some ticket holders were denied access to a Bad Bunny show in Mexico City shortly after the musician said he plans on 'taking a break' in 2023.
The resolution to change the name of Temple Hall to honor retiring U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt will go before the MSU Board of Governors this week.
As Twitter Blue plans its relaunch, Apple users face a surcharge.
The richest man in the world got booed in front of thousands during an appearance at a Dave Chappelle show.
Find Ken DeLand Website handoutThe family of 22-year-old study abroad student Ken DeLand. Jr., who has been missing in France since Dec. 3, are desperate for information about their son. DeLand, who is in his last year at St. John Fisher University in Rochester, New York, is part of a study abroad program run by the University of Grenoble Alpes under the American Institute for Foreign Study group. His mother Carol Laws said an administrator with the study abroad program contacted her in late Nov
Author Michael Shellenberger on Saturday night released the fourth installment of the “Twitter Files,” an initiative backed by Twitter CEO Elon Musk to shed light on “free speech suppression.” This latest portion of uncovered information regarding Twitter’s content moderation pre-Musk focused on employees’ reactions to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, leading up…
This month Musk called OpenAI’s ChatGPT “scary good” and warned, “We are not far from dangerously strong AI.”
Yahoo Finance Live anchors Jared Blikre, Seana Smith, and Pras Subramanian discuss a a new Morning Consult Survey that found Gen Z's favorite social media apps and which movie franchise they like more than Marvel.
That’s a 14x increase.
Twitter is officially bringing back the Twitter Blue subscription Monday, starting in five countries before rapidly expanding to others, according to Esther Crawford, director of product management at Twitter. Web sign-ups will cost $8 per month and iOS sign ups will cost $11 per month for "access to subscriber-only features, including the blue checkmark," per a tweet from the company account. The higher cost for iOS sign ups might be a move by Twitter to offset the cost of Apple's 30% commission for in-app purchased subscriptions, or simply to deter users from subscribing through the Apple Store at all, following a Twitter storm from an angry Elon Musk over allegations that Apple was cutting advertising on the platform.
Elon Musk likes to control the narrative. This is all the more true about the social network Twitter, of which he became the owner and boss on October 27. Since then, he has reinvented Blue, Twitter's subscription service, which now includes the famous account authentication check mark.
Twitter plans to restart its Twitter Blue subscription program Monday with new rules and, in one case, a new price.
After several false starts, Twitter announced on Saturday it would relaunch its subscription service next week, including a system for authenticating accounts on the platform.
Williams (WMB) implements agreements that are likely to lead to the establishment of the industry's first next-generation natural gas certification process across all the segments of the value chain.