Why holidays are most lucrative time of the year for creators

Adobe has released new data and insights from the latest instalment of Adobe’s “Future of Creativity” series, focusing on the holiday season’s monetisation opportunities for non-professional creators.

Adobe’s findings provide an in-depth look at how non-professional creators are evolving their content strategies to drive growth during this holiday season, boosting their income by partnering with brands, working with other creators, and increasing their creative output.

“Creators are at the forefront of driving trends during the holidays, evolving how they engage with their audiences and create new opportunities,” said Ashley Still, Senior Vice-President, Digital Media Marketing, Strategy and Global Partnerships at Adobe. “We are committed to fueling opportunities for creators to bring their stories to life and express themselves by providing powerful, easy-to-use Adobe creative tools including Adobe Express, making it simple and fun for everyone to express their holiday spirit with seasonal templates – and much more.”

The holiday season brings growth opportunities

During the 2022 holiday season, creators are creating more, engaging more frequently with audiences and brands, and monetising more content. Some of the study’s top findings include:

• Nearly three-quarters of monetisers (73%) indicated that the holidays are their most lucrative time of the year.
• On average, monetisers report that holiday revenue represents just over one-third (34%) of their annual creative income.
• Among creators who have been monetising their work for a year or more, 51% anticipate significant growth in 2022 income over 2021, while 26% say they will earn at least 50% more year-over-year. 
• Over 8 in 10 (86%) monetisers will earn income this holiday season through selling directly to consumers, and almost two-thirds (63%) will earn income via promotional revenue.
• Despite uncertainty regarding social media platforms and the economic environment, 88% of creators expect to grow their audience this season, and nearly half (49%) named building brand awareness as a goal.
• Nearly half (47%) of creators, who have monetised for a year or more, expect to post content at least once a day, and 59% say they have increased their posting frequency since last year.

Brand partnerships offer monetisation opportunities 

Brand partnerships are key to making money, but creators are selective with who they collaborate.

• 71% of monetisers are partnering with brands this holiday season, and over one-third (36%) of brand-partnered monetisers say their creative income represents half or more of their total income.
• 75% of monetisers say a brand’s values are more important than their size and influence; 74% say they’d rather partner with other creators than large brands.
• Half of monetisers who partner with five or more brands plan to proactively seek new brand partnerships, while most expect to increase the frequency of audience engagement (53%), create more video content (60%), create new types of content (61%), and create more content (66%).

 Macroeconomic environment drives new strategies 

As is the case in other industries, creators are aware of the uncertain macroeconomic environment, and nearly one-third (32%) of monetisers say they’re proactively shifting their strategies to engage with their audiences.

• Of those who have changed their content and/or business strategies, 63% say they’re creating more content, 60% are creating new types of content, and 49% are engaging with their audiences more often.
• On average, monetizers will create and post four different types of content formats this holiday season including photography (70%), videos (61%), art/graphics (47%), memes (31%).
• Monetizers’ most popular platforms for posting creative or social media content include Facebook (70%), Instagram (65%), and YouTube (57%), with TikTok more regularly used by Gen Z monetizers (60%) than with Millennial (47%) or Gen X (42%) monetizers.

The Future of Creativity Study also found that the vast majority (81%) of monetisers use apps, software, and digital tools to create their content.

 Adobe’s Future of Creativity study aims to understand how creativity is changing around the world, speaking directly with those at the forefront of online creativity: creators in the Creator Economy. The study examines the future of creativity from a variety of perspectives.

In November 2022, the Future of Creativity study surveyed ~1,000 online non-professional creators aged 18 and up in the United States. “Creators” are defined as non-professionals having participated in creative activities (such as photography, creative writing, and original social media content creation) and posting, sharing, or promoting their work from these activities online at least monthly with the goal of growing their social presence. “Monetisers” are a subset of these creators who earn income through their creative activities, selling via websites or marketplaces, or generating revenue from partnerships, affiliate links, and/or ad revenue.