Everyone is becoming an online creator during the coronavirus outbreak
- Sara Fischer, author of Axios Media Trends
From barbers to pastors to fitness instructors, any person that used to make money via brick and mortar services, is now turning to online platforms to make money for their expertise.
Why it matters: A slew of old-line industries that once hesitated to embrace digital technologies are now being forced to do so for the sake of survival.
Driving the news: Patreon says that 30,000+ creators signed up for its service in the first three weeks of March. That's paired with a surge in people willing to pay.
- The average growth of new people signing up to pay people for content across the U.S., UK, Canada, Germany, Australia, and Italy is up 36.2% in March compared to February.
The big picture: Other creative platforms are seeing a major uptick in sign-ups. TikTok has reportedly seen a surge in U.S. downloads in response to the crisis.
- Be smart: Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, told NBC News' Dylan Byers last week that he's seeing an increased interest in "moments," like live music performances via Instagram or churches that "go live on Facebook."
What's next: Once consumers get used to accessing services digitally, these services may find it hard to go back to completely go back traditional operations.
Go deeper: Coronavirus pushes traditional businesses into the digital age