Top 5 Takeaways From bemyfriends’ CMS 2022 Keynote

On August 23 at the 2022 Content Marketing Summit in Seoul, bemyfriends’ co-CEO, Steve Seo, discussed how Web3 technologies are opening up the creator economy by empowering brands and creators to own their platform.

But what does owning your platform really mean, why is it becoming so important now, and what can you do to get started on your journey toward online independence? Seo answered all those questions and more over the course of a keynote speech entitled “The Future of Fandom: How Platform Ownership Will Revolutionize the Creator Economy.”

Read on for five key takeaways from that presentation, including insights on how content creation is evolving, and how platform ownership can help you stay ahead of the curve.

1. The creator economy is expanding at a record pace

The creator economy is growing, and it’s growing fast. How fast? Over the last decade, the creator economy’s year-on-year growth has increased from $600,000 in 2012 to a whopping $143 million in 2020. With an estimated 50 million global creators and a market size of $104 billion, the creator economy’s reach is wider than ever.

As the creator economy has expanded, the line between creators and businesses has blurred. Creators have become businesses by building brands online, and businesses have become creators by leveraging content to reach their customers. Now, with so many platforms out there and so much competition for content, we’ve had to rethink how we build followings online. Which brings us to our next point:

2. Connections have become the currency of the creator economy

True fans are worth their weight in gold, and they’re changing the calculus of how creators – both big and small – build businesses based on fandom.

For many creators, the question isn’t “How many followers do you have?” It’s “How many loyal fans do you have?” How are you monetizing your relationships with those fans, and what else could you be doing to bring them closer to your brand? 

The true value of fandom has never been clearer. Those who recognize that value and take steps to enhance it are setting themselves up for lasting success.

3. Ownership means everything in a Web3 world

For too long, if you built a presence online, you didn’t have full control over it – Big Tech companies did. Because they owned the social media platforms, they set the algorithms and revenue shares, and they decided what content was allowed and what wasn’t.

For years, we’ve accepted this dynamic as a necessary reality of using social media to grow our brand. But not anymore. The next evolution of the internet – a decentralized, blockchain-based internet known as Web3 – has opened a door for us to finally get around these gatekeepers of the online world.

Web3 will offer a chance to reimagine the internet and rebuild platforms based on fresh principles. While there are still plenty of questions about what the Web3 era will look like, experts agree that ownership will be key.

4. The benefits of platform ownership are clear

One of the key benefits of platform ownership is the ability to take control over how content is monetized. Owning your own platform allows you to directly monetize your relationships with followers by selling things like memberships and subscriptions.

Revenue streams like these allow you to take the middlemen (platforms) out of the equation. This can reduce your reliance on shares of ad sales, which have always favored social media platforms. So now, instead of selling advertisers indirect access to your fans, you can sell your fans direct access to you.

But the benefits go well beyond monetization. Owning your own platform also gives you access to all its data, which you can use to identify your biggest fans and most loyal customers. On top of that, gathering content and fans on a single platform is a great way to build community, and much more convenient than producing content on multiple channels and tailoring it to cater to other platforms’ guidelines and algorithms. This means you can create the content you want, how you want, and when you want.

5. Ownership is for everyone

You don’t need to have tens of thousands of fans to build a sustainable business through platform ownership. Creators of all sizes can unlock the true power of their fandom by taking advantage of the fundamental freedoms that owning your own platform brings. 

When you’re ready to take control of your platform, put yourself in your fans or customers’ shoes and ask yourself these questions first:

· What’s missing from your current website experience? Is there something that fans have asked for?

·  Who are your fans and what is most important to them? Do they want exclusive content? Direct communication? Early access to merchandise?

·  What can you do to make your fans feel more special?

·  What are your biggest revenue drivers? (This will help you determine the best opportunities for monetization.)

Take control of your platform

Visit bstage.in to find out how bemyfriends’ bespoke platform builder, b.stage, can help you turn your followers into lifelong fans and enjoy a simpler and more rewarding creative experience.