“Content creator” has become such a broad term that it can refer to anyone who makes any kind of written, video, or audio content you can find online, especially on social media like Instagram and TikTok. However, no matter what field you’re looking for, content creator jobs have an understandable appeal.
Arguments over whether the term reduces artistic skill and creative labor to “content” aside, plenty of people are interested in joining the field. Maybe they want the freedom to make their own hours or work from home. Perhaps they see it as a path to future opportunities.
Regardless of what drives you, here are some tips for finding and landing content creator jobs.
How To Find Content Creator Jobs
1) Build Your Portfolio
Most content creator jobs will want to see that you’ve done the kind of work they’re hiring for in the past. You need samples that show you know what you’re doing. That is where having a portfolio of your past work comes in.
A portfolio can be as complex as a custom-designed section on your personal website to as basic as a Google Drive folder you share a link to in your application.
Your portfolio should include examples of the kind of work you’re trying to get, but it can be something other than work clients commissioned you to create. Suppose you’re looking for work as a social media manager creating short-form videos. In that case, your personal videos demonstrating your familiarity and competence with platforms like TikTok will help build your case.
You can also consider creating demo material for your portfolio. For instance, if you’re looking for copywriting work, making a few examples of how you would approach writing copy for different brands could be useful. Just note you created the work as a personal exercise rather than for an actual client.
2) Work on Your Resume And Highlight Content Creation Work You’ve Done
Your resume should be more than just a dispassionate listing of every job you’ve ever held and every degree or diploma you’ve earned. Instead, try to focus on the accomplishments that are relevant to the work you’re looking for.
For instance, if you’re applying for video content creation jobs, bring up any experience and training in that area — even if it’s experience from personal projects like your own YouTube or TikTok channels. If you’re applying for brand-building or marketing positions, you should also highlight your successes in terms of your followings and subscriber counts across different platforms.
Also, try organizing your resume under skill groupings rather than chronologically by job history. For example, you might have one heading for “content development” listing your accomplishments across all of your jobs and personal projects in that area. Then make another for “strategy,” and so on.
Organizing your skills can help your resume stand out. You can include a traditional chronological listing of your previous employment and education in a condensed format off to the side.
3) Check Job Boards
Sites like LinkedIn and Indeed are some of the most prominent destinations for job seekers across all industries, and they’re worth a look if you’re trying to find a content creator job. You should also consider more specialized sites like YTJobs for YouTube-related jobs or Hitmarker for content creator jobs in the games industry.
Titles and areas to look for jobs include:
- Content marketing
- Community management
- Digital marketing
- Video editing
- Social media manager
- Media coordinator
- Influencer marketing
- Copywriting
- Editing
Remember that companies often list all of the qualities of their “dream candidates” in their job postings. If you meet most but not all of them, don’t let it dissuade you from applying.
One problem with job boards like LinkedIn is that they make it easy for potential applicants to submit resumes. This means that it takes more work for individual applicants to stand out. Jobs are also often reposted to bump them up in the listings, making things harder to keep track of. Worse still, many job postings on these sites may not even be real.
The difficulties many people face applying for jobs means that there’s a lot of different, sometimes conflicting, advice out there. Some say hiding “keyword” terms on your resume in white text to get it past bots. Other suggest using ChatGPT and other services to write cover letters.
Many insist applying on the company’s site directly rather than through a job listing portal is vital, and so on. Unfortunately, there is no one magic bullet solution here. It’s probably still easiest to land a job through connections you’ve made working in the past rather than by sending in cold applications.
4) Consider Freelancing or Consulting To Help Other Content Creators
While there are full-time content creator jobs for graphic designers, copywriters, and video creators, you might also consider freelance and consulting opportunities. Companies and individuals often want to hire content creators for particular tasks or one-off jobs rather than on an ongoing basis.
Consider signing up on a platformer like Upwork or Fiverr. If you have a following on an existing platform, let your followers know you’re looking for freelance or consulting work.
It’s essential to set your rates properly for this type of work. Setting your rates as a freelancer or consultant is beyond the scope of this article. Still, as a general rule, your hourly or per-project rate should — if possible — be higher than it would if you were employed full-time. The higher rate makes up for potential freelancer taxes, lack of benefits, and other expenses.
5) Don’t Be Afraid To Submit Because You Think AI Will Take the Job
Even as AI tools are becoming more widespread, there’s still work out there for content creators. These tools are far from perfect, and the material they generate can’t currently be copyrighted.
Plus, some sectors are hesitant to use AI for regulatory or privacy reasons — such as finance and health care. It can be tough finding a job as a content marketer, social media content creator, or copywriter, but these positions do exist, so work on your resume, build up your portfolio, and start applying.
