Debunking Support-a-Creator Program Misconceptions

Industry leaders like Supercell (Clash of Clans, Brawl Stars, Clash Royale), Epic (Fortnite), and Scopely (Stumble Guys) know just how powerful Support-a-Creator programs are when it comes to fostering player and content creator engagement and driving sales. 

Despite their effectiveness and continued investment, there are still lingering misconceptions that might be holding some publishers back from building their own program. Let's debunk four of the common misconceptions about launching a Support-a-Creator program.

Misconception 1: Creator Programs Cannibalize Revenue 

It's a valid concern – why share revenue with content creators if you think you would have already gotten those exact sales without creator marketing? 

In studies run with our partners, content creators drive incremental revenue. In many cases, players who support content creators go on to spend more and make purchases more often than other paying players. Creator programs have also been proven to re-engage paid players who previously churned. 

When done right, these programs increase revenue rather than cannibalize it. With our Support-a-Creator platform, publishers can build a unique revenue-sharing model program that complements their monetization strategy. These models can be based on creator attributes (e.g. geo, audience size, etc.), SKU (e.g. battle pass has a higher revenue share than currency), and time (e.g. a higher revenue share during an in-game event). 

Misconception 2: Creator Programs Aren’t Performance-Based 

It’s challenging to measure the true ROI that traditional influencer marketing (e.g. a flat fee for sponsored content) has on the success of a game – views and engagement on sponsored content are great, but those views don’t necessarily translate into in-game engagement or revenue.

When publishers direct their influencer marketing efforts through a creator program using creator codes, those efforts become rooted in performance. They can then very precisely measure the impact that content creators have on KPIs like free to paid player conversion, player spending, retention, and re-engagement.

Support-a-Creator programs allow you to measure what matters most and be a more effective and efficient marketer. 

Misconception 3: You Need a Large Creator Community for the Program to be Effective 

Sure, having a vast network of creators onboard is great, but it's not a prerequisite for success. Quality over quantity is key here. Even a handful of highly engaged creators who align with your brand values can yield significant results. 

It's all about cultivating meaningful partnerships and nurturing authentic connections that resonate with creators and their audiences.

Fostering relationships with content creators initiates a flywheel effect. By investing in creators, actively listening to their feedback, and offering incentives, content creators then become more enthusiastic evangelists and promoters of the game.

Misconception 4: Implementing a Creator Program is Overly Complicated 

Building a creator program on your own can be a complicated and expensive endeavor – but it doesn’t have to be. The Nexus Support-a-Creator platform, as well as our Unity/Unreal SDKs, reduce the engineering time required to design and build a highly scalable program (including the attribution system, program landing page, and dashboards for sales tracking) from more than 1,000 engineering hours to just 4; saving you not just money, but also valuable engineering time that could be better spent building your game. 

Misconception 5: It’s Hard to Scale Creator Programs

Expanding your creator program without the proper management infrastructure is a challenge.

While it may be appropriate to manage a small program through spreadsheets and a Discord server, Nexus was built specifically to help you manage the program end-to-end with minimal manual overhead. 

Nexus makes scaling a creator program infinitely easier. From our team’s expertise to platform features, we will support you every step of the way.

Now that those misconceptions are debunked, you may have questions on how to build a creator program for your game. If you're interested in learning about our impactful programs and process, check out our approach here.