By Antoinette Siu • January 2, 2025 •
Ivy Liu
It’s unsurprising that more teenagers aspire to become influencers, given how many grew up watching TikTok stars like Charli D’Amelio and Ariana Greenblatt go from social media to the big screen.
During this year’s U.S. presidential election, we saw greater interest from candidate Kamala Harris to engage Gen Z through TikTok trends like “brat” summer. Many major creators have also expanded beyond social apps to launch careers in acting, music or starting other businesses.
These are the first cohorts to grow up as digital natives, so they daydream about being creators, explained Alyssa Stevens, global director of PR, social media and influencer marketing at independent agency Connelly Partners.
“[Being a creator] is something that anybody can do, and they’re watching everyday people start creating content and a massive following and make pretty sizable income — and then get that star power,” Stevens said.
In most cases, when agencies work with underage creators, they have parental involvement and protections on the type of work and financial arrangements that are in their contracts. As for labor laws, there are increased efforts in states to pass laws for stronger protections for kids and teens making content online. In California, for example, a new law in January extends Coogan’s law to children who are influencers — it currently requires parents or guardians to open a trust account to manage wages given to actors, singers and dancers. Additionally, the same data collection and privacy protections under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, are given to young influencers. There are also laws requiring deletion of their personal data, similar to the “right to be forgotten” rules in Europe.
As digital natives, teens also already possess the content creation, editing and device skills necessary for influencer marketing and social commerce. This makes it much easier when they can monetize content on what they already do and like, whether it’s makeup, hobbies or gaming, Stevens added.
“[Teens] have an innate ability to understand how to work on social networks, both for play and now perhaps professionally,” she told Digiday. “I think that it’s that perfect storm of growing up with it being this as a viable career path, and just the allure of the industry and how lucrative it can be, are huge motivating factors.”
To put it into perspective, one in three U.S. teens under the age of 18 have been approached by brands to advertise their products, according to social commerce platform Whop’s survey of teens aged 12 to 18 in the country. Two in five (42%) of U.S. teens are also actively earning money online, averaging some $717 in earnings in the last year, the study found. Additionally, nearly half a million teens made $1,000 or more in brand-sponsored social media earnings this year.
Teen creator incomes can range from hundreds per year to thousands on the higher end — around one in every 625 students (.16%) are “ultra-high earning” teens making $10,000 or more a year through their digital channels. That amounts to more than 40,000 American teens making tens of thousands every year from selling clothes (or resale) and e-commerce, social media content (like product reviews and brand sponsorship) or gaming and livestreams, Whop noted.
Teens make the most from selling clothes, footwear and accessories — earning a bit over $100 a year on average in a year. The higher earners can make at least $1,000 a year on these sales. The average hourly pay for babysitting in the country is about $17 an hour, which amounts to just over $35,000 annually, per ZipRecruiter — but that’s assuming they do it year-round.
But there’s a variety of reasons why teens would rather become creators over getting other jobs and babysitting.
“[With] traditional babysitting, the hours are more rigid,” Stevens said. “They are not as glamorous when you’re working with kids, and they can have a more flexible schedule and make a ton of money following their passion.”
But nothing is ever just glitz and glamour. In less than a month, major player TikTok could get removed in the U.S. One of the most successful influencers MrBeast and his massive Amazon reality gameshow are already facing controversy over dangerous workplace conditions as “Beast Games” releases this month.
There’s a bright spot as teens look to join the creator economy, though, as more brands and agencies vie to connect with younger creators to find niche communities and micro-influencers.
“Niche creator partnerships will thrive in 2025 as brands prioritize quality, storytelling, and shared values over follower counts,” said Julia Baker, senior executive producer at Stagwell agency Instrument. Baker gave the example of influencer Aleia, known for her snail videos online, getting tapped by Sephora to create a store replica with her snails.
Amron Lopez, director of U.S. talent at talent agency Sixteenth (a part of Whalar Group), said there’s a noticeable uptick in “teens expressing interest in pursuing careers as creators.” Many of them are fluent in digital platforms and are already influencing cultural trends – and some younger creators are also coming into the work with more professional resources, like talent management, parental support and legal protections. The teens they work with have active involvement from parents and guardians to comply with legal and ethical guidelines, he added.
“[Teen creators] offer cultural relevance — making them highly valuable for brands looking to connect with these younger demographics, like Gen Z and Gen Alpha,” Lopez said.
https://digiday.com/?p=564202
