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Sierra Fernald just launched her first course, "The Escape Plan"
Sierra Fernald
In 2025, the term “influencer” no longer tells the full story. According to Kajabi’s new State of Creator Commerce report, over half of content creators now identify as entrepreneurs. This is a shift that marks a new era in the creator economy. Unlike the social-first creators who rely solely on brand partnerships or platform bonuses, “entrepreneurial” creators are building businesses that go beyond the social platforms, tapping into digital products and services to generate real, sustainable income.
Not only are these entrepreneurial creators earning more, they're also feeling more confident. Kajabi’s data shows that entrepreneurial creators make 25% more than their social-first counterparts and are 20% more likely to report higher self-confidence and self-esteem. With platform volatility on the rise (for example, fears of a TikTok ban or ongoing political concerns around Meta), creators are actively bringing their monetization strategies off-platform and into their own hands. Perhaps one of the most essential aspects of all, you don’t need hundreds of thousands of followers to do it. Some of today’s most successful creators are thriving with audiences under 20K.
Hailey Young made $2,000 in her first weekend selling digital products.
Hailey Young
Hailey Young,2.6K Instagram Followers
When Hailey Young launched her YouTube quilting channel in 2021, she was a stay-at-home mom earning about $500/month through AdSense and affiliate links. “The idea of needing to double or triple my video output just to increase my income felt impossible,” she says. In 2023, everything changed when she launched her first digital product and ran a flash sale to a long-forgotten email list resulting in an additional $2,000 in one weekend.
That single decision unlocked a six-figure business. “I realized I didn’t need to create more content—I needed to build smarter systems,” Young explains. With funnels and flash sales, she built a repeatable revenue stream that gave her financial control outside of the algorithm. “Digital products felt like flipping on a money faucet,” she says. “Now I have real control over my income—and a business I can sustain.”
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