Social media millionaires soar

AS of 2.10am today US time, David Zuckerberg is worth $29,9 billion according to Forbes Magazine (the celebrated wealth magazine)!

AS of 2.10am today US time, David Zuckerberg is worth $29,9 billion according to Forbes Magazine (the celebrated wealth magazine)!

The following is an excerpt from Forbes magazine: Facebook turned 10 this year and no one was celebrating harder than CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

After seeing his company past the growing pains of a disastrous May 2012 IPO, Zuckerberg has the Menlo Park, California-based company flying high.

Facebook’s shares are up more than 130% over the past year as of Feb. 2014, enabling blockbuster deals like the $19 billion purchase of WhatsApp and more than doubling Zuck’s net worth over the same period, even after he gifted away 18 million shares in late December.

He sold more than 41 million shares and exercised 60 million options around that time as well. Once a laughing stock because of its Nasdaq fiasco, Facebook has recovered with huge improvements in mobile revenue, with many congratulating Zuckerberg for refocusing the company on translating eyeballs into dollars.

The business of life: Only in America? Well, not necessarily. As it happens there is top twenty list of persons across the continents (excerpt Africa) who are cashing in on the numbers of people interacting on social media giant YouTube.

Apparently, according to the Business Insider, social media users are joining the Facebook bandwagon to monetise. . .er, human contact! The platform is basically an online host for millions of content creators who upload their content free of charge.

If the content goes viral ie becomes wildly popular, as in thousands or millions of view, then bingo! Bingo means that YouTube gives the content owner a cut after removing 45%.

How is the money made? Advertising revenue. First you must set up a YouTube channel which is the same as a Gmail account. Second you add high quality content which is not long. Thirdly, generate an audience. If you have numbers, you are on your way to cash.

Fourth, monetise your videos by permitting YouTube to place adverts in your video. There is a caveat here.

Don’t rip off someone’s copyrighted material and pass it off as your own. You get sued. YouTube has the provision to allow you to do all these things. Fifth, check the stats. YouTube like Facebook, provides users with demographic information.

This info helps you to check earning potential based on numbers, who is viewing your content and where.

You can then tweak your content accordingly to maximise your earnings. Creative persons should start dreaming up concepts they can monetise.

Comedian on the Internet rich list So maybe Clive Chigubu or Umahlekisa Comedy should seriously consider beating the blues and uploading their content. Who knows, our struggling artists might also make the top twenty YouTube rich list. Take for instance Toby Turner with 13,96 million total subscribers and 2,87 billion total views.

Didn’t know such an animal existed, but Toby Turner is an Internet comedian and has been very popular at that.

He hit the big time in 2006 after producing a parody of Adam Sandler’s movie Click which he uploaded.

He has also launched the popular series CuteWinFail, which is a sort of YouTube equivalent of America’s Funniest Home Videos.

Turner is also making a foray into traditional media, and reportedly snagging film roles and promotional campaigns. Turner earns $226 000 to $2,18 million estimated yearly income across all three channels after YouTube’s 45% cut. Ultimately, remember that you can use other social media platforms to grow the numbers and promote your content. So numbers matter; which leads me to the next point.

Is Mudede mad? The Zimbabwe Registrar General (RG) can safely be said to have been on a war path against contraceptives and the depletion of our population.

He, however, expectedly has been lambasted by many as saying things politically incorrect.

Aids activists, the organisations whose raison d’étré is to push family planning products are understandably not happy.

Mudede is a leader and he cannot espouse such ideas.

But the man won’t budge. I am torn. On one hand, you have China and India overwhelming the world with their numbers and not doing too badly economically.

We have Africa, there are not many of us by the way in the greater scheme of things. You drive across Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana and Namibia. Wide open spaces.

Put HIV infection rates and battered economies in the mix and bingo again, you have perfect arguments against increasing the family brood. On goes the debate.

The Vatican for example is not traditionally in support of such initiatives.

The Catholic Church has its reasons for the position. They have their own ethical standards which they have stuck to against a tide of critics. The late pontiff Pope John Paul III was quite strident. Locally, madzibaba does not generally base his family planning ideas on the ideas espoused by the NGOs.

He asks himself, what say the prophet? Then he goes ahead and makes babies. Finish and klaar. Somehow he seems to thrive and live on. What is the point?

The subject of contraceptive use is a very delicate and emotive one because of the vicissitudes of life with regards to sexually transmitted disease, poverty and even infant mortality. What do you say?

Content creators’ opportunity As I have already said, if you are an independent content creator you can make money.

There are people whose day job is just to create content that they upload which is generating revenue for them. Some, according to Business Insider there is now a top twenty who are each making an estimated $1 million a year in advertising revenue and even more.

This happens because they are able to hog attention from viewers drawn to their compelling content. Here is a disclaimer: Not everyone who uploads videos of his cutesy kid gets to hit the sweet spot.

But heck, why not “die” trying? There are too many unemployed folk, so they must just score.

The last word : The Bible speaks Here is a quote from the Bible: Genesis 1:28 — “And God blessed them, and said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply, replenish the earth, and subdue the earth: and have dominion. . .” These are the words of God without equivocation. Hope you are also not torn as I have been about whether to dismiss the RG outright.

Looking at our artists for example, they may never make money locally as long as we can count us all Zimbos on two fingers! Am just saying numbers do count.

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