Creators Buddy is a startup division within Channel Factory poised to elevate the relationship between content creators, brands, and social media platforms. Led by Dylan Conroy, Head of Strategic Partnerships, this innovative company is rolling out a self-serve media buying tool for YouTube that promises to solve persistent challenges in view counts and brand deal fulfillment.

As the boundaries between B2B and B2C influencer marketing blur and niche sectors embrace creator-led strategies, Creators Buddy expands its vision beyond YouTube to encompass broader social media. The startup’s ambitious plans include the convergence of content amplification and authentic storytelling. Despite market skepticism, Creators Buddy’s strategic partnership with Google underscores its commitment to legitimate growth tactics in an increasingly competitive field. Dylan shares how Creators Buddy plans to impact influencer marketing and content monetization.

From Channel Factory to Creators Buddy

Dylan’s journey in the media industry began 15 years ago at Channel Factory, now the world’s largest buyer of YouTube TrueView. Channel Factory’s relationship with Google led to the development of View IQ, a technology designed to enhance brand safety on the platform. This technology evolved to include contextual targeting, allowing advertisers to match their ads with relevant content. 

Creators Buddy emerged from this foundation, applying Channel Factory’s technology to the creator economy. The platform addresses several key challenges content creators face, including boosting view counts for premium content and meeting brand deal requirements.

Dylan illustrates a use case: “If you’re an influencer agency or if the brand has an expectation based on how many views your videos normally get on YouTube, and you mark it as a paid collaboration, and then immediately, it has a deficit of views against what it would normally have got if it was a non-paid promotion. Just go into the creator’s body, type in how many views you want that video to get, swipe your credit card, and then you can perform and make sure you hit that minimum threshold.”

The platform also offers a solution for creators looking to maximize earnings from brand sponsorships. You may get a brand deal that [offers] $0.05 per view, up to the first million views, and you only generate 800,000. [With Creators Buddy], you can get to that 1 million view guarantee and then earn the full amount of that sponsorship opportunity,” Dylan explains.

Overcoming Stigma: The Case for Strategic View Acquisition

Dylan acknowledges the platform’s hurdles in the competitive creator economy. “We have a big challenge to accomplish with this tool, a lot bigger than I initially expected,” he admits.

One significant obstacle is brand recognition. Despite Channel Factory’s prominence in the media buying world, it lacks visibility among creators and influencer agencies. Dylan explains, “When I’m talking to influencers, influencer agencies, creator economy professionals, a lot of them haven’t heard about Channel Factory.”

To address this, Creators Buddy is focusing on building brand awareness and educating the market about the legitimacy of their services. Dylan emphasizes their partnership with Google: “We only use Google Inventory, and we don’t do anything outside of Google’s four walls… we’re a premier partner, and we’re somebody that the Fortune 500 comes to when they want to do the same thing.”

Another challenge is overcoming the stigma associated with buying views. Dylan argues, “Just because you’re buying views doesn’t mean you’re doing something shady. It means that you’re investing in your content. You’re investing in growing your audience.”

Creators Buddy aims to connect short-form and long-form content creation. “You have this whole new generation of creators born on TikTok,” Dylan notes. “They were born because they could master the art of the 60-second video.” However, he points out, “YouTube is where all the money’s made… You can make a real living with a very modest audience.”

The platform is working on solutions to help creators transition between formats. “Some cool platforms in the AI video editing space allow short-form creators to upload the same content they’re creating for TikTok, adding a few extra bells and whistles. And then AI is helping them get that into a long-form storytelling product,” Dylan reveals.

Creators Buddy is still in its early stages, but the industry veteran shares an example of its potential impact: “During our proof of concept phase… there was a woman in Brazil who had sat on the boards of many Fortune 500 companies. She had written books. She had appeared in the news… We quickly took her from hundreds to tens of thousands of views.”

The Convergence of B2B and B2C: Influencer Strategies for All Sectors

Dylan sees influencer marketing reaching new heights, focusing on the rise of business-to-business (B2B) influencers. “I’m a big fan of what’s happening right now, like with the quote-unquote business-to-business influencer,” he states. Dylan points to LinkedIn as a leading network for this trend but notes that these influencers are active across multiple platforms.

The scope of influencer marketing is expanding beyond traditional consumer products. Dylan cites examples of business-to-customer (B2C) brands engaging in B2B campaigns and even niche sectors like medical tourism leveraging influencer strategies.

A Case Study in Niche Advertising 

Dylan shares an anecdote of encountering a B2C marketer in San Diego specializing in medical tourism to Mexico. The marketer focused on attracting Americans seeking cheaper or experimental medical procedures unavailable in the U.S. due to FDA regulations. Specifically, they were targeting individuals needing knee replacement surgery.

The challenge was to find an American influencer willing to travel to Tijuana for an experimental knee and shoulder surgery involving new medication. Dylan conducted keyword searches related to knee replacement surgery and contacted approximately 100 influencers. Eventually, he successfully located a gentleman in South Carolina who was experiencing the exact medical issues the client could address. This influencer agreed to a trade deal, consenting to travel to Mexico for the surgery in exchange for coverage.

“That just proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is not a business model out there that cannot benefit from influencer marketing,” says Dylan.

The entrepreneur emphasizes the authenticity that creators bring to advertising: “If you’re doing advertising, it might as well star and be led by a creator because they look and feel like your customer.” He predicts this trend will continue growing, with creators playing an increasingly central role in organic storytelling and targeted advertising campaigns.

Expanding Horizons: Creators Buddy’s Vision for the Future

Dylan envisions Creators Buddy becoming the go-to platform for content creators seeking to amplify their reach. His ambitious goal extends beyond view counts. The goal is to transform YouTube’s advertising ecosystem and make it more creator-centric. “There’s no reason why we should watch YouTube and still watch TV commercials 99% of the time,” Dylan argues. “We should see ads, videos, and content featuring the creators we know and love on the platform.”

Furthermore, Creators Buddy is exploring expansion beyond YouTube. Dylan hints at upcoming initiatives to support growth across multiple platforms, stating, “We want to be multi-platform… In the next six months, something to look for is the ability to perform your content and grow your channels from the other platforms that matter to you.”

Blurring Lines: How Brands Can Embrace Creator-Led Strategies

Dylan offers valuable advice for creators and brands just entering the creator economy. He emphasizes the importance of staying true to oneself, stating, “To authentically serve an audience is the best thing they can do.” Dylan believes the line between brands and creators is blurring, with the most successful companies adopting creator-led strategies.

“The best brands today are doing some type of storytelling,” Dylan explains. He advises brands to develop a creator strategy and suggests that if a CEO isn’t comfortable being the face of the brand, they should “hire an up-and-coming TikToker to be the face of your brand, and to be the person who’s out in front of the camera and storytelling every day.”

For creators, Dylan stresses building sustainable revenue models. “Influencer marketing is fleeting,” he warns. “You better think about what is that thing that you can do to monetize that 1% of your audience that wants to support you.” He encourages creators to explore options like Patreon, digital products, or physical merchandise.

Dylan’s key takeaway: “Every brand needs a creator, and every creator needs a brand.”

Reflecting on the industry, the seasoned manager desires more integrated creator technology solutions. He notes the current fragmentation of tools for various aspects of influencer marketing, from discovery to payment to content revision. “I’d like to see somebody emerge either through consolidation or R&D,” he says, envisioning a comprehensive platform that could serve emerging brands from start to finish.

Finally, Dylan invites creators to partner with Creators Buddy, offering to “juice” their videos in exchange for endorsements. “We want to drink our own Kool-Aid,” he concludes, highlighting the company’s commitment to proving its value in the creator ecosystem.