The economics of influencing: How creators really make money

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00:00It may not seem like it today, but many of the biggest names on YouTube started their

00:15channels with no equipment, no strategy, and no real plan.

00:20Sometimes the hardest part about being a YouTuber is not knowing what to upload.

00:24But over time, those hobby videos turned into full-time jobs.

00:29And now that content creation is a career, what can an influencer expect to make?

00:35These companies have money to spend.

00:36Oh, you'll give me $5,000 for this 30-second video?

00:43Let's face it, seeing a post like this, you're bound to ask the question, could I make a mint

00:48off some engagement?

00:53The majority of our creators are earning above six figures.

00:57With that said, we still see such a demand from micro-influencers, those just starting getting

01:03their first brand deals or first AdSense checks, and they have that panic set in if I don't

01:08know how to navigate this.

01:10Let's put it in perspective.

01:12Global influencer marketing is a nearly $17 billion business, and it's expected to grow

01:1816-fold over the next decade.

01:21So how exactly are creators making all this money?

01:25It really is fun to see those micro-influencers, those greener creators, if the algorithm God's

01:30blessed them one day or they just strike a lucky viral moment, they can go from making

01:36a couple hundred dollars a month to tens of thousands of dollars every single month.

01:40Katie Calloway is with Cookie Finance, an accounting company that works exclusively with influencers

01:46and content creators.

01:48The path to making money looks different for everyone, so we asked creators where their

01:52income really comes from.

01:54Walmart, Costco, those kind of brands for partnerships.

02:00So that's where the bulk of it comes from.

02:01I also work with small, locally owned businesses.

02:06Almost five years after starting her page and more than 133,000 followers later, Denise now

02:13partners with household brands and explores her city for a living.

02:17The creator behind Dallas Foodie Fix says when it comes to local businesses, she sets her own

02:22rates, and only a small portion of her money comes directly from the social media platforms

02:27themselves.

02:28That's because payouts from the platforms themselves are often meager.

02:33Recent data for 2025 shows most creators earned around 2 to 4 cents per 1,000 views, translating

02:40to 20 to 40 dollars for every 1,000,000, and that's an average, with some payouts on platforms

02:46like TikTok as low as 1 to 5 cents per 1,000 views.

02:51Compare this to the YouTube Partner Program, where a channel with 100,000 monthly views can

02:56make 10 to 30 dollars per 1,000 views.

03:00In short, relying on ad payouts from platform views alone just can't cut it for most creators.

03:06I also do a lot of events, local events here in Dallas.

03:10And those, I usually like to set up as commission-based, so I make a pretty good chunk there too.

03:15Enough to sustain herself and enough to become a full-time creator in 2023 after she was laid

03:21off, deciding to bet on her growing brand.

03:24My goal for the month is pretty much the same, but the actual income definitely fluctuates.

03:33And then also the timing on when that money comes in can fluctuate too.

03:37Lifestyle creator Savion Jordan told us the same thing.

03:40While YouTube does pay better than some other platforms, the majority of her money also comes

03:46from brand deals.

03:47And those rates differ.

03:49On Instagram, Savion has 68,000 followers, and on TikTok, nearly 189,000.

03:55When it comes to these brand deals, I can charge people, hey, $10,000 for a TikTok video for

04:0160 seconds.

04:02And they're like, okay, cool.

04:04Another element to the profit equation, platform rules.

04:10The most viewed YouTube video in the world, Baby Shark, has 16 billion views.

04:16Despite those massive numbers, the company behind the smash hit generated about 13 million

04:21in profit, a lot to some, but far less than one might expect given the reach.

04:27So what happened?

04:29YouTube restricts ads on made-for-kids content, limiting personalized ads and disabling comments

04:35notifications after a 2020 federal trade commission settlement over children's privacy.

04:40The result was severe drops in profitability for many kids' content creators, and creators

04:45face mounting uncertainty daily.

04:48TikTok could get banned at any point.

04:51So someone could also just have a flop in a video and their whole channel dies.

04:56If making money off views is a challenge, why not sell somewhere else?

05:01Think modern day QVC.

05:03I would say the biggest shift that we've seen in the last 12 to 18 months over here really

05:10is the growth of social commerce, specifically on TikTok shop.

05:15These aren't your typical influencers.

05:17A lot of these people are just really getting lucky with promoting the most bizarre random

05:23products like a pillow or a set of headphones, even just vitamins.

05:27And while creators treat this work like a business, so does the government.

05:32I would say before you get that first paycheck, whether it be from a brand deal, whether it

05:37be from affiliate links, make sure that you are putting aside 30% for taxes.

05:45When asked what the most common misconception about content creation was, these creators

05:49said it's that people think it's easy.

05:51I'm over here constantly filming, constantly editing.

05:55I always have something to post.

05:57And I think that's what they don't understand that this is really a full time job.

06:01Like people work nine to five is OK, well, now I'm working all the time, 24 hours.

06:06I've had brand deals that have gone on for six months.

06:10Obviously, I wasn't working that entire six months, but just like the back and forth negotiations

06:15and then the approval process and so forth and so on.

06:19I think that if they realize how much time and effort went into, you know, a little 30

06:25second video, that that would change their mind.

06:29And remember that Eve Jobs post proving that even a single photo can take off and make money?

06:35Katie said it's a viral moment all creators hope for.

06:39If the algorithm gods bless them one day or they just strike a lucky viral moment, they

06:44can go from making a couple hundred dollars a month to tens of thousands of dollars every

06:49single month.

06:50Yes, the work is more than people realize, but creators also say there's a reason they

06:55keep showing up.

06:56The pressure is real, but so is the payoff.

07:00When a supporter comes up to me and, oh my gosh, I've been watching your videos since high

07:04school and your video about God really helped me get closer to him and, oh, you and Corey

07:10are so inspiring.

07:11Like that is, that's everything to me.

07:13Like that's why I do it.

07:14I'm Kennedy Felton with Straight Arrow News.

07:16And for more on this story and others, head over to san.com or download our mobile app.

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