CHARBONNEAU – Bring social media workers into the light

SOCIAL MEDIA content creators toil away to make a living, not that Statistics Canada would know. If they can attract enough viewers, they can make a living wage. Most make very little, some make much more.

The numbers are hard to pin down. A study by the Canadian Media Fund shows there are between 8,200 and 19,889 full-time digital content creators in Canada.  They produce content for a number of platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitch.

Despite the fact that these workers generate billions of dollars of activity annually, there is no way of knowing their exact numbers.

That’s because they are not recognized under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Governments use the system’s numeric codes in statistics to classify businesses by their primary economic activity.

Without codes, social-media workers are in the dark.

The NAICS system is used by Canada, the United States, and Mexico to classify businesses and track economic data. There is no dedicated, standalone code for “Digital Content Creators” or “Influencers.” Instead, creators are forced to register under outdated catch-all categories, such as Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers or Advertising Agencies.

Without a unique code governments cannot track their exact GDP contribution, growth rates, or tax revenues generated.

When independent creators apply for commercial business loans, mortgages, or corporate insurance, financial institutions rely on NAICS codes to evaluate the risk of the loan. Codes help legitimize the income of content creators.

YouTube wants the content creators recognized under NAICS. Nicole Bell, head of YouTube Canada, says:

“We just do not have great data on the impact of the creator economy in Canada. This is a business sector that is projected to be worth billions of dollars in the coming years and we have no visibility as to who is doing this work, how many people work as creators and what size their businesses are.”

YouTube says it created 35,000 content creator jobs in Canada last year that contributed more than $2 billion to Canada’s GDP in 2025.

Content producers create more than just fluff.  My YouTube video, for example, has been quite a hit with 675,000 views.

I made it after I couldn’t find anything on how to build a garden stream in my backyard. So I went ahead with a plan and produced the video.

Fortunately, the garden stream worked well and the video became popular. Even after a decade, my old video will still be in the top ten hits if you search “how to build a garden stream.”

I never tried to monetize the video but if I had, I could have made $4,000- $7,000 .

The amount depends on the potential audience. Since mine fell into the do-it-yourself category of home improvements, advertisers on my site could assume that viewers had money to spend.

I’m hardly what you could call an influencer but many content producers are.

And two thirds of young Canadians are engaged with political content from influencers –more than mainstream news outlets.

With such a reach, content creators should be recognized. Beyond recognition, they could have greater access to the financing and policy-making tools that are available to other small businesses and professional groups.

David Charbonneau is a retired TRU electronics instructor who hosts a blog at http://closetproductions.ca/EyeView/eyeviewcover.htm