Adobe Future of Creativity Study shows growth for creators

Adobe has released new data and insights from the Adobe "Future of Creativity" Study, focusing on growing business opportunities for creators.

The latest report titled "Monetisation in the Creator Economy" provides an in-depth look at how non-professional creators who are exploring creative side hustles and hobbies are now monetising their content and engaging with a new medium: the metaverse.

Adobe's study found that the majority, 48% of Australian creators, monetise their content, out of which 79% of creators just started monetising content in the past year. 

"The rapid expansion of the Creator Economy has spurred increasing opportunities for creators to monetise their creative talents, turning their passions into new careers and businesses," says Ashley Still, Senior Vice President, Digital Media Marketing, Strategy & Global Partnerships, Adobe. 

"It's an exciting time to be a creator, and we're committed to fueling these business opportunities by providing tools such as Adobe Express, making it easy and fun for everyone to be a creator and bring their inspirations to life." 

In the past two years, the global Creator Economy grew by 165 million and is poised for further growth as Gen Z creators continue entering the workforce. Monetisation has grown significantly in the past year and has become a goal for Gen Z creators as opportunities entice them with their creative content. Almost half of the Gen Z creators surveyed said they would start their creative businesses rather than attend university. 

Adobe's Future of Creativity Study provides a comprehensive view into the Creator Economy, including how creativity is changing across nine major regions: the US, UK, Australia, Spain, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and Brazil. 

Adobe tools from Creative Cloud to Adobe Express, the leading all-in-one tool for creating social graphics, flyers, logos and videos, empower individuals, solopreneurs, social influencers, small business owners and enterprises around the world to tell their stories, enabling anyone to create professional-quality content with unprecedented speed and ease.

Now comprised of more than 303 million creators globally, the Creator Economy is poised for continued growth as monetisation opportunities entice creators to turn their passions into businesses. 

Australia is making a considerable contribution to this momentum, adding 3 million new creators from Australia since 2020, which means a 48% increase in its Creator Economy. 

Australian creators have capitalised on this, with nearly half (48%) earning money from their creative pursuits. In addition, nearly half (58%) of Australian creators make 50% of their monthly income from social media content creation.

Gen Z in Australia is betting on the Creator Economy. Their entrepreneurial spirit inspires the pursuit of non-traditional jobs, including content creation, with 1 in 4 (49%) of Gen Z monetisers saying they would prefer to start their own creative businesses rather than attend university.

Witnessing the exponential rise of the Creator Economy in Australia, the study confirms that around (30%) of Australian creators are motivated to create by the potential of the earning opportunity and to make it their full-time career.

Despite pay equity gaps, Australian creators are working ambitiously towards the causes they feel most strongly about. 

Over (37%) of Australian monetisers are creating original content advocating for the causes they care about. Issues of utmost importance include climate change, followed by social justice and diversity and inclusion.

As Gen Z creators continue entering the workforce and opportunities to monetise creative content grow across traditional and new immersive media, the Creator Economy is poised for further growth.