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Discussion on: The creator economy can't rely on Patreon.

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drdeception profile image
DrDeception

One thing that often goes undiscussed is that relying solely on direct audience subscriptions can cause creative burnout. You feel because you have paying viewers that the show ‘must go on’, because after all people are paying you.

If you ran an ad-supporter business, or occasionally took ad sponsors, you don’t have nearly as much of an obligation to your audience. You can choose to not post or produce for awhile, and not accept ad sponsors for some time.

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maven64 profile image
Maven

If you are at the point of having users pay for something, my suggestion would be to make it something that 1) scales well and 2) doesnt create a golden handcuff situation. Promising some sort of output for the rest of your life is a surefire way that you set yourself up for some sort of guilt, or worse, when you need a break.

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firesquid profile image
Jeremy Beckler

That is true, but sponsorships are far more fickle and elusive (unless you have some sort of retainer deal or something major built out contractually).

You may find that you are more stressed financially due to the unknowns around being paid/ how much you will be paid / when you will be paid. You will be constantly chasing your next sponsor. You may even bend your content more than you are comfortable with due to the large lump sum of money.