Social media can be a challenging space for Creators to share their work. To help out, we wanted to call attention to 7 of the main problems Creators face on social media platforms and then offer some unique solutions. We hope these tips will help keep you motivated, balanced and successful as a Creator over the long term. 

Here are the 7 problems Creators are facing, and our best solutions:

1. Motivation

As a Creator, it can sometimes feel like you’re on a hamster wheel, constantly doing the same thing over and over again, but losing touch with the motivation that made you want to start creating in the first place.

Sometimes a simple break can be all it takes to feel recharged and motivated again. It’s important to schedule these breaks regularly. This can mean taking a vacation once in a while, or it can be as simple as “going screenless” (trying not to use electronic devices) for one day every week. This can help you detox and maintain a healthy relationship with your work.

2. Creativity & Creator’s Block

In order for Creators to grow their audience, they have to regularly post new content. But what if you’re feeling blocked, or even worry that your best ideas are behind you? How can you continue to innovate and come up with new ideas that are going to please your audience and reach more people?

One of the best ways to get new ideas is by following other Creators in your niche. Or even better: talking to other Creators and bouncing ideas off of one another. This is why we created our Creator Discord server, which has an entire channel dedicated to this. Support is important, and talking to other Creators in your situation can help you feel both validated and inspired. 

Another thing you could try if you’re feeling blocked as a Creator is taking a new approach to your content. Is there old content that your Fans loved that you could repurpose in some way, or cover again with new angles or insights? 

Many Creators also forget that they can curate content rather than having to create content completely from scratch. With content curation, you can comment on things you find interesting or inspiring in your niche. A popular (and extremely successful) example of this is Tim Ferriss’ Five Bullet Friday Newsletter, where he simply shares and comments on his five favorite things he learned throughout the week.

3. Harsh Criticism & Hatred

Being a Creator on social media can expose you to criticism and hate-filled comments. This has gotten to the point where some Creators end up hiring people to screen their comments for them, because they can’t take it anymore. 

If criticism has gotten to the point where it’s impacting your mental health or making you not want to create the content you love, then it may be time to get hate protection and be transparent about it. Talk to other Creators and see what solutions they’re using to deal with this problem. But most importantly, shift your focus building your audience on Community-first platforms like Mintted, which allow you to take care of your True Fans, and escape the noise of bigger platforms.

4. Constant Changes in Social Media Algorithms

These days, building an audience on social media means Creators must rely on the rules set by big platforms. The algorithms on these platforms change regularly, which can make it feel like one day you’re relevant, and the next day you’re not anymore. These changes can be very frustrating to keep up with.

To help protect yourself from algorithm changes, it’s important to diversify your revenue sources, and also make sure you are diversified across different platforms, rather than relying on a single one. There are too many examples of Creators building their audience on just one platform, and then losing everything when the algorithms or rules change on that one platform. You can also hedge against this by focusing on platforms that you own, like a website or an email list. 

Another helpful strategy is to leverage your True Fans instead of obsessing about growing your broader audience on social media.

5. Demanding Needs From Too Many Platforms 

Social media is designed in such a way that you have to post content very regularly in order to not be penalized by the algorithm or your followers. Think about it: most tweets or Facebook posts won’t show up on anyone’s feed ever again after they’re a few days or a week old. This means Creators have to constantly post in order to stay relevant. This gets even more challenging when you have Fans spread out across many different platforms. 

Rather than create completely original content for each platform, you can save time and bandwidth by repurposing your content across platforms. For example, if you make a YouTube video, post it on Twitter and Facebook. If you write a blog post or newsletter, turn some of the most powerful sections into tweets or Instagram infographics. You can also outsource or delegate this kind of work using freelancers on Fiverr or Upwork. There are even tools like Hypefury which allow you to post and schedule across multiple different platforms at once.

6. Making a Living From Your Content and Earning Enough Revenue

Unfortunately, most Creators are not making a living off of their content. Out of over 50M content Creators, only 2M are considered professionals, meaning they earn enough to live off of their content. Plus, the few Creators who can make a living off of their content mostly rely on paid collaborations or advertising monetization.

It’s important for Creators to have multiple income streams, ideally with multiple products or offers. Ads are okay, but you can also offer your audience things like information products (PDFs and eBooks), courses, and paid subscriptions. Look for alternative ways to monetize your content and influence by creating for your True Fans, or Super Fans. Platforms like Mintted have a built in Fan Tier system which allows you to do this easily.

7. Follower Count Anxiety

In order to make money from their content, Creators need to regularly increase their number of followers. Over time, the constant pressure to do this can lead to anxiety and stress. 

While increasing followers is important, one way to relieve anxiety around this is to focus on creating good content, rather than focusing on your follower count. If you create content that helps people, more and more people will eventually find it, share it, and follow you. “If you build it, they will come.”

Need More Help? Join A Community of Fellow Creators

At Mintted, we’re first and foremost a Community of Creators, dedicated to helping you and offering solutions. We want to help Creators thrive and be successful, but also maintain a healthy balance in their lives. To get the help and support you need in your creative journey, join our Discord group of fellow Creators.