Facebook Adds to Monetization Options for Video Creators

Facebook rolled out several updates last week aimed at enabling creators to better monetize their video content on its platform. Product marketing director Yoav Arnstein and head of creator and publisher experience Jeff Birkeland outlined all of the changes in a blog post, writing, “Now more than ever, creators, video publishers and media are using Facebook to build a meaningful community and business. We’re seeing the traditional notion of a creator evolve as comedians, artists, fitness instructors, athletes, small businesses and sports organizations use video and online events to connect with their audience.” Facebook is making its Fan Subscriptions and Stars options available to more creators. Fan Subscriptions enable people to support their favorite creators via recurring monthly payments, and Facebook said any page in these markets meeting these eligibility criteria can sign up here. And viewers can buy and send Stars to creators via the comments section of videos, enabling creators to monetize their livestreams. Creators can now set a Stars goal that appears as a permanent overlay on their videos, and managing Stars was improved with tools in Creator Studio including automated thank-you cards. [kickout id="1"] Facebook said creators in these markets can get started with Stars here. Arnstein and Birkeland also outlined updates to the social network’s in-stream ads. Creators can now monetize videos of 60 seconds to 180 seconds with image and post-roll ads, with Arnstein and Birkeland noting, “While we continue to invest in long form content, shorter content can also build loyalty and intention, so we’re testing these two non-interruptive ad formats in engaging short videos.” New formats were developed for Facebook Live videos, including a new type of mid-roll ad that plays in the main video player while the livestream plays in a smaller window. Select Live videos are also now eligible for monetization. Facebook is also testing the option of allowing users who start watching videos in News Feed to continue viewing them in Facebook Watch after viewing a short ad. The social network is making it possible for pages to create, promote, host and monetize live events on its platform, with select pages receiving invites to its paid online events product, and more details to be shared in the coming weeks. Video insights in Creator Studio are being expanded to include the performance of Facebook Live videos and Stars, and a new Video Details Explorer dashboard includes traffic sources insights for each video. [kickout id="2"] [kickout id="3"] Hourly metrics were added for the first 48 hours after videos are published, and Facebook posts can be published and scheduled directly via the Creator Studio application. The social network introduced Comment Insights, showing creators how commenting on their own posts boosts engagement and impressions. They will appear as a weekly notification. [kickout id="4"] Finally, Facebook is investing in a suite of tools that are specific to Instagram, including the ability to log into Creator Studio with Instagram credentials and expanded access to branded content tool Brand Collabs Manager.