We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kate Rebel Socials a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kate , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

I failed as an influencer so I started earning as a UGC creator instead. Last year UGC went mainstream and it was all over Tiktok. I am an introvert and I could never make myself be on social media on a daily. But I always thought that the only way to make money on social media is to become an influencer. That means I have to chase followers, I have to put out content daily to keep my engagement rate high.
Until I found out about UGC and my life changed.
Anyone can become a UGC creator, you don’t need any followers to start and really all you need is a phone and a window for a good lighting. You create content for brands, they use it on their own social media or Ads and you call it a day, you don’t post it on your own socials.

my first UGC deal was when I had 70 followers on Tiktok.. My mind was blown. I dont have to hustle like other influencers and still make money. I was reaching out to brands, pitching my services and in the meantime I was perfecting my craft.
The biggest misconception about UGC is -it’s so easy. It’s easy to start, absolutely. But if you want to make some serious money with it you need to understand direct response, buyer psychology, copywriting and marketing in general. I didn’t go to college for marketing – I learned it on Tiktok.
Last month one of the brands I work with made $100,000 in revenue from one of my ads. They were selling a $50 product. And they came back for more Ads.
I mostly work with paid media ( Ads) because the pay is way higher then any organic content. I have a lot of returning clients and my rates are tripled from when I first started.
But in order to succeed in this industry you have to learn to wear multiple hats. Especially if you are hired for ads. The competition is high now and just being creative is no longer enough. You need to be creative and strategic about content you are selling to brands. Because at the end of the day it’s all about ROI for them. So the more money you bring, the more your ads convert the more money you will make. And I “understood the assignment” as Tiktokers like to say.
My income now varies from 5-6 figures a month. I am a stay at home mom and everyday I’m so thankful for taking that jump into this industry because I never looked back.

Kate , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

What sets me apart I think is a lot of things I do is backwards. When I started doing UGC, there weren’t a lot of info about it. I learned as I went. But everyone was saying that you need to pitch pitch pitch because it’s a numbers game. I did the opposite, yes I was pitching in the very beginning but now I mostly work on inbounds ( brands find me). Because in the beginning I decided to build a personal brand and optimized my content to be discovered and put in front of brands eyes.
Now I teach other creators what I do, I teach them the best practices and give them shortcuts. They start earning as early as 2 weeks into their journey.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I’ve grown my audience relatively quickly on Tiktok. I new I wasn’t going to post 3 times a day like everyone was telling me. Instead I started posting 3-4 a week. But I was consistent!
Consistency is key, your audience expect to see your content, plus your are talking with an algorithm. You are showing them that you are here to stay.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I’ve always been a creative person I just had no idea, I could monetize on it. Once I found a way to do it, it gave me so much freedom. Money wise, time wise etc.
I can stay at home with my kids, create converting content, get paid for it and work with huge global brands. And now also help brand new creators to do the same, mentor them and give them a shortcut.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://stan.store/Rebelsocials
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/rebel.socials?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/socialsbykate?s=21&t=SQRUewtjVJK2jI-KUes5Kw
• Other: TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@rebel.socials

Image Credits
Myself