Lessons from the creator economy

How has the process of content creation changed over the years? Read on to find out.

Over the last few years, content creators has developed into a new genre of artwork, influencers and careers. Influencers have been on the rise on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. Brands have partnered with influencers for their online videos for quite some time now.

To understand the influencer economy, afaqs! recently hosted a panel discussion during the seventh edition of vdonxt Asia conference and awards. The topic was: ‘Lessons from the Influencer Economy’.

Moderated by Shreyas Kulkarni, assistant editor, afaqs!, the panellists included Gautam Madhavan, founder & CEO, Mad Influence; Gunjan Khetan, marketing director, Perfetti Van Melle India; Rajni Daswani, director marketing, SoCheers; and RJ Mahvash, a digital content creator.

The discussion started with a brief on how cameras, scripts and content creation have evolved over the years.

“From a time when I used to write 4-5-minute-long scripts, now we have 15-second videos. Writing long scripts have evolved to making 15-seconder video. Many things have changed coming from landscapes to verticals,” says Mahvash.

According to Madhavan of Mad Influence, today’s creators are quite smart, but require a lot of hand-holding when it comes to writing scripts and production processes.

Perfetti Van Melle India’s Khetan mentions, “The marketing landscape has evolved significantly. We were the creators of content in the form of advertising, but now that landscape has moved to people. A smart marketer uses the power of community to create content that’s easily palatable.”

“The influencer economy now revolves around building trust and word of mouth. If the content isn’t well integrated, then it can backfire for brands,” he adds.

On the things that work for brands, Daswani of SoCheers shares, “Long-form content works brilliantly for a brand that is looking to establish it seamlessly on platforms like YouTube and Facebook. Short-form content gets consumed a lot because it’s just 15 seconds long. If you want more storytelling, then long-form content works. It entirely depends on the brand and its objective.”

You can watch the full panel discussion below: