Creators with over 1 mn followers earn between Rs 20,000 to Rs 2,50,000 per month: Report

With over two lakh full-time content creators who monetise their services, India’s creator economy has matured, with brands leveraging user-generated content for marketing.

According to the EY-FICCI’s latest report on the M&E sector, creators with more than one million followers earn anywhere between Rs 20,000 to Rs2,50,000 per month.

The ability to integrate and monetise creator networks will be critical for continued success of M&E companies, stated the report.

“Content creators have become mainstream and will not only continue to occupy a large portion of social media networks but begin to integrate their content creation capabilities with traditional media networks,” EY wrote in the report.

Therefore, media companies must leverage the large creator ecosystems and build influencer content into programming.

Even when it comes to news consumption, Indian language consumers rely on homegrown content creators and engage in local chat groups to stay updated about locality and neighbourhood news, mentioned the report.

As per the report, for one Indian platform, over 60% of creators hailed from Tier 2+ cities. While metro cities contributed to most of the viewership, regional content dominated on the platform.

With creators using Shorts as another tool in their arsenal to express themselves, YouTube Shorts’ average daily views grew by over 120% year-on-year in 2023.

While the adoption of virtual production grew, many Indian creators found it challenging to integrate this technology with traditional filmmaking practices, stated the report.

User-generated content continued to thrive

UGC platforms in India prioritised live interactivity to attract new users and engage more with them.

In the live UGC segment, astrology and entertaining live conversations dominated in Tier 2+ cities, whereas metro city users preferred content related to lifestyle and live shopping.

The localisation of content on user-generated content apps in India was the driving force for increased engagement, user retention, and brand effectiveness.

Ankush Sachdeva Sharechat and Moj, said, “In the next few years, there will be a massive increase in micropayment-led monetisation for digital influencers through livestream gifting. This will help grow the creator ecosystem in the country by allowing creators to have a steady monetization stream beyond ads.”