How Creators are Becoming Startups

Content creators have become a driving force in the entertainment industry. They are no longer just creators, but have transformed into startups, building support teams, scaling their operations, and even taking on venture funding.

Creators = Startups

Startups succeed based on their ability to beat out competitors, offer a differentiated product, scale their operations, and manage their costs. Content creators are no different. For example, in growing his media empire, Mr. Beast essentially operates as an agile startup.

Creators have begun building sizable support teams--editors, creative directors, videographers, social media managers, CFOs, COOs. Creators aren’t just creating--they are running businesses.

The creators adopting this mindset are achieving outsized success relative to their peers. By viewing themselves as startups, content creators are gaining an edge as they work to scale their audience and impact.

Venture Capital x Creators

Venture Capital is an integral part of any discussion about startups. If we think of creators as startups, where does VC fit in? Interestingly, Venture Capital for creators is a new but growing trend. Without external funding, creators are limited to relying on the infrequent and variable payouts they get from content platforms to support and scale operations.

To address this issue, companies like Spotter are providing venture-like funding to creators to help them grow. Spotter has been instrumental in the success of some of the most renowned content creators, including MrBeast and Dude Perfect, allowing them to assemble teams, produce superior content, and capture a global audience.

The crossover between venture funding and the creator economy has the potential to create an entirely new investment class--whilst enabling creators to grow.

If you were to invest in a creator, who would it be and why?