Content Creator vs. Influencer: Understanding the Differences and Overlaps

With the rise of social media and internet usage, content creators and influencers are increasingly in demand. Content creators work across industries such as film, television, and social media and write content for books, newspapers, and magazines. Influencers primarily create content for social media channels such as Instagram or YouTube and typically promote products or services in the videos or images they share.

Learn more about the ways content creator versus influencer careers differ, as well as the similarities between the jobs.

What is a content creator?

A content creator is a professional who produces content for an audience to engage with. Examples of creative content may include books, blogs, films, music videos, commercials, and newspapers. In this role, you write, develop, film, or edit content as a freelancer or for a brand or advertising agency.

What does a content creator do?

As a content creator, your responsibilities may range from developing ideas for content to creating and sharing these ideas with an audience. Some of your tasks as a content creator may include:

• Coming up with ideas for new content 

• Creating and producing content in the form of writing, editing, or filming

• Staying up to date on trends

• Scheduling and posting content to platforms

• Analyzing content performance and strategizing for future campaigns

Your responsibilities as a content creator may vary depending on the type of content you create and whether you work for a specific business or brand, freelance, or create content for your own personal brand. 

Content creator salary

According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary for a content creator is $53,439 [1]. Content creator salaries can differ based on a variety of factors, such as the industry or location you work in, as well as the amount of experience you have in the field.

What is an influencer?

An influencer promotes products or services for a brand on social media platforms, advocating for consumers to purchase them. As a result of this marketing tactic, influencers earn money for the content they create discussing a brand. Influencers have gained popularity recently as more individuals consume advertisements via social media, using their following to target and reach a large audience.

What does an influencer do?

As an influencer, your responsibilities typically include partnering with a brand and agreeing to promote its product or service online. From there, you may create content—such as photos or videos to post on social media—speaking about the brand and its product or service to your followers. 

Influencer salary and job outlook

The average annual salary for an influencer in the United States is $89,860, according to Glassdoor [2]. Many influencers earn their income via brand deals, ad revenue, and sponsored content versus earning an hourly wage or annual salary.

The demand for influencers continues to grow in the United States. According to Statista, $22.19 billion went to influencer marketing in the United States in 2022, and the number rose to $26.09 billion in 2023 [3].

Content creator vs. influencer: Key differences

Content creators and influencers have some similar responsibilities, such as generating content and posting it online, but their approaches, specific skill sets, and the way they engage with audiences may differ. Additionally, while many content creators can work as freelancers, in-house, or for a specific company, influencers typically rely on self-employment through their own personal following, with brands reaching out to them for promotion.

Focus and purpose

As a content creator, your purpose is typically to create content that an audience will enjoy. If you’re filming a video, you want your audience to remain engaged and entertained. If you’re writing a blog, you want readers to consume every word. 

Influencers have a simple goal: to influence consumers. If an influencer promotes a skincare brand via social media, the goal is for the viewer to purchase an item from that skincare brand. 

Required skills

As a content creator or influencer, it’s important that you have specific job skills needed to perform your role. Content creators should be proficient in whichever mediums or platforms they’re producing content for, and influencers should know how to attract consumers and speak to their large social media following.

Content creator skills

Examples of content creator skills include:

• Writing: Many content creators generate content in the form of social media captions, blogs, books, newspapers, or other written formats. To become a content creator, you should know how to write professionally and in a way that engages an audience and makes them want to keep reading and follow your writing or brand in the future.

• Marketing: To ensure your content has an audience, you should know how to market it. Compiling content marketing strategies and campaigns for how to promote your content may help it gain a following.

• Audio and video knowledge: In addition to writing, many content creators produce visual content in long-form and short-form videos or audio clips such as podcasts. It’s important that you know how to capture content and edit it for easy consumption.

Influencer skills

As an influencer, you’ll want to possess the following skills:

• Creativity and storytelling: In order to prevent every social media advertisement from sounding and looking the same, you’ll need to find unique ways to showcase a brand to your audience.

• Social media knowledge: If you have a large social media following, you should know how to navigate various social media channels. This can include posting content at optimal times so the algorithm picks it up and shows it to your followers, engaging with your audience, editing videos, and using SEO and hashtags.

• Authenticity: As an influencer, your followers usually keep up with you because they enjoy seeing your content and believe what you’re selling them. One of the characteristics that consumers and followers value is a social media personality who is authentic and, despite selling them a product, doesn’t feel fake or ungenuine when doing so. You should believe in what you’re selling and partner with brands you have confidence and trust in.

Monetization strategies

The way content creators and influencers earn money typically differs. For example, as a content creator, you earn money from your employer or client. As an influencer, you partner with brands and earn money based on creating advertisements for their products. Influencers may also earn money, such as commission or affiliate marketing, based on the amount of engagement their posts receive. 

Audience engagement

The way content creators and influencers engage with their audiences differs. Content creators interact with their audience through their content, producing entertainment they think the audience will want to consume. Influencers, on the other hand, interact directly with their audience by responding to comments, sharing posts, and responding to followers via video and direct messages.

Career paths for content creators and influencers

As a content creator, your career may take various paths as you focus on a particular niche, brand, or audience. Examples of content creator roles and their salaries* include:

• Social media manager: $53,456

• Copywriter: $73,511

• Graphic designer: $67,745

• SEO specialist: $64,251

• Digital media specialist: $65,085

• Editor: $64,142

• Marketing manager: $81,220

• Director of content management: $151,782

As an influencer, you may begin your career as a social media personality and shift to creating your own products and services, such as online courses. 

*All annual base salary data is sourced from Glassdoor as of January 2025 and does not include additional pay, such as commission and benefits.

Build your content creation and influencing skills with Coursera

Content creators and influencers both create and post content to various platforms, but have differences when it comes to the skills needed to perform their tasks and the way they engage with their audiences.

Begin your journey in content creation and influencing by building your social media marketing skills through Professional Certificates on Coursera. Consider the Meta Social Media Marketing Professional Certificate, designed to help you establish your online identity and build a following. Google’s Digital Marketing & E-Commerce Professional Certificate can help you learn more about marketing analytics and customer engagement.