The Creator Economy is an increasingly powerful force in the ever-shifting shape of consumer behavior and advertisers have made significant strides in harnessing the Creator’s unique and authentic vision to sell products and services.
But the Creator economy itself remains in flux – particularly with regard to Black creators. Largely unrecognized, Black creators offer levels of impact and influence that consistently outstrip their non-black peers – and yet, their remunerations lag behind the market norms by as much as 35%.
Group Black, a modern media company with the largest collective of Black-owned media, and Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics, today announced that they will be unveiling a first-of-its-kind Black Creator Impact Report.
Comparing Black creators to their non-black counterparts, the report takes a deep dive into the economic and cultural impact of Black creators based on their influence on social media platforms including Instagram, Tiktok, Youtube and Twitter from 2020 to 2022. The report also quantifies the impact of Black creators based on three key metrics: follower growth, follower interaction and media value.
Using Nielsen InfluenceScope, the report analyzed creators based on three metrics: follower growth, follower interaction and media value. Media value is a proprietary Nielsen metric to determine a monetary value for digital and social content, based on the audience’s exposure and engagement. The study focuses on creators in three categories: fashion, lifestyle and gaming.
REELated:
The study found that Black creators generate a higher media value compared to non-Black creators in fashion, lifestyle and gaming. Black creators in the lifestyle category performed 10.5 times better than their non-Black counterparts, 6.7 times better in gaming and eSports, and 1.6 times better in fashion.
In addition to generating a higher media value, Black creators also saw higher levels of follower growth and interaction rates between 2020 to 2022. In the lifestyle category, which makes up 40% of paid advertising opportunities, they outperform non-Black creators by 10.5 times.
Even though diverse Black creators possess immense cultural influence and credibility, the influencer pay gap between Black creators and their white counterparts is nearly 35%.
“For too long Black creators haven’t had access to the same opportunities as their non-Black counterparts due to the myth that they were unable to deliver the same ROI as other creators in the industry, ” says Kerel Cooper, President of Advertising at Group Black. “With our Black Creator Impact Report, we are delivering concrete proof of the opposite. Black creators have the ability to deliver exponential growth for brands—now brands must provide the opportunities.”
“Black America influences both content and brand engagement as consumers of media and creators of trends,” adds Charlene Polite Corley, VP, Diverse Insights and Partnerships at Nielsen. “By investing in Black influencers, brands can amplify their authentic voices—driving deeper engagement with Black communities and other consumers who follow their lead.”
