The Business of Creators
The Business of Creators podcast is for content creators and professionals in the creator economy. Each week we speak to the businesses supporting the creator economy with new tools and effective means of monetisation. Subscribe to the show to learn more about the people powering this amazing new industry. The origin of the show is actually a network I set up in 2017 called The Business of Influencers, back when everyone was talking about influencers and not creators. I built the network to bring people together and it grew to more than 500 people as the creator economy boomed. But I've never liked the word influencer.Having spent more than 20 years in the media industry, I am deeply passionate about supporting creative talent. Today I am the co-founder of a business called Electrify Video Partners which invests in creators. And I created this show to raise awareness of this great industry.
The Business of Creators
Circle's Eclipse Is The Biggest Creator Economy Product Launch Of 2026
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The future of the creator economy isn't content—it's something much bigger. In this episode of The Business of Creators, Ian Shepherd sits down with Sid Yadav, Founder and CEO of Circle, to explore why the future of the creator economy is shifting from audiences to communities. Sid shares how creators can build sustainable businesses beyond social media platforms, increase customer lifetime value, and create meaningful transformations for their most engaged fans.
The conversation also dives into Circle Eclipse, the company’s biggest launch to date, introducing AI-powered business building, a marketplace for creator-led transformations, and a white-glove service designed to help creators scale community-driven businesses.
Topics Discussed:
- The difference between an audience and a community
- Why creators need to own their relationship with their audience
- How community-led businesses generate higher lifetime value
- Lessons from successful creators and communities using Circle
- The launch of Circle Eclipse, including Circle AI, Discover and Studios
- Why the future of the creator economy is moving beyond content alone
- Building the “Shopify for the digital economy”
Key Takeaways:
- The most successful creator businesses focus on transformation, not just content consumption
- Communities create stronger relationships and more sustainable revenue streams than audience-only models
- AI can dramatically reduce the complexity of launching and growing a creator business
- Discovery and distribution remain major challenges for creators—and new platforms are emerging to solve them
- The next wave of the creator economy will be built around deeper engagement, ownership, and community
Watch to learn actionable strategies to grow your creator business — and don't forget to subscribe to the channel for more insights on the business of creators!