Can You Make Money With the Facebook Creator Fund?

Makenzi
September 14, 2022
Facebook creator fund: content creator wearing headphones and using a mic

The Facebook creator fund offers influencers at Facebook and Instagram rewards for hitting certain milestones. Here’s how to know if you’re eligible.

Facebook (AKA Meta) is playing catchup with other social networks. Meta launched its own Facebook creator fund (which is the same as the Meta creator fund) in response to TikTok’s surprisingly successful creator fund. Platforms like Snapchat are following suit, showing that creator funds are clearly reaping dividends for social media platforms. 

As a content creator, you know just how powerful your content is. Joining more creator funds gives you the opportunity to monetize your content — no brand partnerships or ads required. And we’d say that’s a win, don’t you think? 

The Facebook creator fund is still developing, but qualifying influencers can sign up for its early offerings on the Facebook app and Instagram app. Let’s look at how the Facebook creator fund works today, as well as how you can sign up to start monetizing your content.

What Is the Facebook Creator Fund?

Facebook creator fund: content creator recording a video of herself

In July of 2021, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced plans to invest over $1 billion in funds for creators. Although it was still pretty new in 2021, in 2022, most creators can use the Facebook creator fund to start monetizing their content immediately. 

The Facebook creator fund covers both Facebook and Instagram, which Meta owns. This creator fund works on a bonus-based system, where you sign up for certain programs and receive payments for completing milestones. That includes new bonus programs like:

  • You can earn an extra bonus if you use in-stream ads in your video content. 
  • Gaming creators who join the Facebook creator fund can earn monthly bonuses if they earn a specific number of Stars over three months. 
  • Create content on Instagram Reels and receive payments based on how the Reels perform.

The thing is, the Facebook creator fund offers seasonal programs that change over time. Some programs are available to all creators, while others are invite-only. As long as you agree to follow Meta’s Partner Monetization Policies — which are pretty standard — you should be able to join and start monetizing your content.

Why Did Meta Create the Fund — And Why Should I Care About It?

TikTok has a $200 million creator fund, but Meta’s $1 billion investment shows it’s willing to put more cash down to get ahead in content creation. (Even so, TikTok will likely spend more on influencer marketing in 2022 than Facebook.)

So, why did Meta make its own creator fund? There are plenty of reasons behind the move, but it ultimately comes down to: 

  • Content quality: TikTok’s creator fund shows us that, when you invest in creators, they make better content. Meta’s fund is a strategy for attracting high-quality content creators back to its platforms by encouraging more top-notch content. 
  • Moving away from ads: Consumers don’t like ads, and people have abandoned their Facebook accounts because of the platform’s reliance on ad revenue. Meta learned that lesson the hard way, so now it’s trying to get into the content creation game instead. In the future, Meta plans to provide seed funding for big-name creators to make commissioned content.
  • Feature adoption: Even if you use Reels or Stories, how often do you use features like IGTV? Meta knows it has an adoption problem with some of its features, but by rewarding influencers for creating in those formats, more people will use the feature.

Meta wants to reward creators who create awesome content on Facebook or Instagram. Thanks to the Facebook creator fund, the social network will pay you directly for your content, which means you don’t have to source sponsors or affiliate programs to make money (unless you want to, of course).

Plus, Meta said it won’t take a cut of your earnings through the creator fund until 2023, so you can keep more of your earnings until the new year.

How Creators Can Monetize Facebook and Instagram

Person using a phone

The Facebook creator fund comes with an overwhelming number of tools — yet creators might not realize just how much power they have at their fingertips. While the creator fund is still developing, you can sign up now to monetize your content. Here’s how you can monetize your content on Instagram and Facebook with the creator fund.

Monetizing on Facebook

With over 2.9 billion monthly active users, Facebook is still one of the biggest and most popular social networks on the planet. Creators mostly leverage this network to monetize Pages or Groups, which makes it the perfect tool for curating a community around your brand as a creator. 

If it’s high time to monetize your Facebook content, you should sign up for Meta for Creators. You’ll need an existing Facebook Page. From there, connect your page to your Instagram Creator account (or make an account if you don’t have one). 

Now, you can sign up for Facebook’s creator fund with a short application. Facebook has to approve your request to join the Bonuses program, so wait at least a week to hear back on your request. 

Once you’re in the program, you can make money based on: 

  • Earnings: Facebook will give you earnings goals for all of its monetization tools. If you hit those goals, you’ll earn a sweet little incentive. This includes earnings goals for paid virtual events, fan subscriptions, and in-app gifts
  • Performance: Do you get a lot of interaction on your content? Facebook’s performance bonuses will reward you for hitting milestones with likes, views, comments, and other interactions. 
  • Challenges: Facebook offers challenges infrequently, but these “spontaneous” events help you “earn a surprise reward and increase your earnings.” For example, Facebook increased the Reels earnings of creators who met certain Challenge requirements. 

Monetizing on Instagram

With over 2 billion monthly active users, Instagram is a very popular platform for creators. Instagram is also brands’ platform of choice for partnerships, too, so there are plenty of monetization opportunities on Instagram. 

Currently, Instagram creators can monetize their content with Badges, branded content, subscriptions, and shopping posts. Thanks to the Facebook creator fund, you can join Instagram’s bonus program to monetize your content even more. 

However, unlike Facebook, Instagram’s creator fund is a little more exclusive. It’s invite-only at the moment, so you’ll likely need a lot of followers and engagement to receive an invitation. 

The bonuses will change over time, but right now, approved creators can join programs for: 

  • IGTV ads bonus: U.S. creators, you can earn a one-time bonus when you sign up to display ads on IGTV. 
  • Badges in Live bonus: This bonus is available to creators in 11 countries. You’ll receive a reward from Instagram when you go Live with another account.
  • Reels Summer bonus: U.S. creators, you can receive payment for making content on Instagram Reels, but your earnings are based on performance. Meta hasn’t clarified what “performance” means, but we assume that means likes, views, comments, and other engagement signals.

Make the Facebook Creator Fund Work for You

Content creator using a laptop and a mic

Meta is a bit late to the game with its creator incentives, but its creator fund gives you plenty of opportunities to monetize your content. If you’re already creating on Instagram and Facebook, sign up for the creator fund so you can earn more money for the great content you already produce. 

On Facebook, you can monetize through: 

  • Earnings
  • Performance
  • Challenges

And Instagram allows you to monetize with current bonuses like: 

  • IGTV ads
  • Badges in Live
  • Reels

Want more tips on earning more for the awesome content you produce? Check out Hype’s blog for content creation tips, social media guides, and much more.