How people are earning by monetising their daily activities into vlogs

An elderly villager, around 60 years old, was doing what he enjoyed as a pastime, cutting guavas and mixing them with chillies and other ingredients to make a salad that tasted sour and spicy. All of these activities are done in front of a camera, made into a video, and uploaded to social media. The video had over a million views, meaning millions of people watched the making-of a random dish video, which is famous in almost every household in the country. The man we are talking about is a content creator. He makes cooking videos to upload to social media platforms.

Nowadays, content creation has become a phenomenon; content creators surround us. Every single subject has been modelled under the tagline of contents.

There are food vlogging, fashion alteration, travel diaries, etc, which we are aware of at a basic level and consider as content from the start.

Recently, Daily household chores have been labelled as social media content. This has also created opportunities for homemakers to showcase their creativity, taste, and tidiness to their audience and well-wishers.

As the content creators' platform offers to make content a money-making source, the interest in this sector is increasing daily.

Previously, vlogging and content creation across different genres were often done with research, cultural references, and numerous challenges. Before going to a restaurant or clothing shop, customers sometimes took the advice from ratings or reviews by vloggers.

Recently, with the receipt of huge monetisation access and money-making opportunities, the genre of content has become as basic as possible.

Mainly, the Daily life-based activities have received a positive welcome from the social media users. The small and detailed activities, such as making tea, changing bed sheets, displaying decorative items, and cooking regular meals, have all been included in these contents.

Although this content may not accurately reflect reality for most viewers, they watch it as a form of entertainment or an escape from the daily grind.

Sanjeda Nizum, a rising content creator in this area, explains why she chose household chores as content. She says that as a homemaker, there are fewer opportunities to explore the world and try new foods. The financial budget also prevents exploring fashion or shopping hauls.

Sanjeda started working as a teacher in a college. However, supporting a toddler and caring for the family made it hard for her to balance her professional life. Eventually, she chose to stay at home. As a home-based person, she began to engage her friends in her small home activities.

To grow her fanbase, she began connecting with other emerging content creators who also needed support. They made a pact to support each other for better reach and growth.

"I enjoy my work, though this was not my ideal idea of professional achievement, but I found a way to balance my aspirations of work and family life," she says.

Social media content making may look easy. Yes, it brings cash, but is it sustainable? "With growing engagement in this field, the earning opportunities are shrinking daily. As there is no boundary for the quality of the content, everyone is targeting only for better reach. And the social media platforms, although they facilitate monetisation very easily, are also presenting newer and newer challenges for content makers to achieve their daily goals," she says in this regard.

A primary school teacher, Sathy,

the owner of the page Zaara Vibes, finds this platform to be a scope for nurturing her aesthetic taste in homemaking decor and sharing it with people. She says,

"It would be risky because audience tastes change, and they sometimes get bored seeing one's daily life or decor repeated."

She also questions the changing policies of social media platforms that make achieving daily goals difficult. But social media pushes content according to our algorithm. For example, if someone is interested in learning easy packing techniques, they can watch a video where a content creator shows how to pack clothes and put them inside the closet. That is how daily work like closet managing, washing dishes or walking with the pets becomes content for those who love to watch them anyway.

In a patriarchal society, homemakers are stereotypically considered the dependent ones in the family. Their daily activities are thankless and are often taken for granted. Content creation has become an opportunity and a refuge for those who want to be homemakers by choice or are forced into this role, but also want to be economically independent.

This has benefited them to work within their limit. Also, some creators don't consider this as work. They think it's an opportunity to present their ideas, favourite events, creativity, and sometimes just random thoughts from their day-to-day life, which they cannot share individually but with followers, who they get support from.

It has reduced the hectic journey and sometimes challenging work environment, which is why some choose this kind of work for its independence and cosiness. But when the content makers are women, do they get support like men?

Mrs Sanjeda says, "Some friends and family members initially judged my initiative. They called this hindering privacy." However, Sanjeda always maintain her child and family's privacy from any unwanted situations. She explains she used her home surroundings for content purposes, not to address any personal issue or catch attention.

But things have changed now. She is now well-established in her sector and earning a substantial income. Like her, many have joined the world of likes, comments, and shares. What once seemed a regular activity or a thankless job now becomes a symbol of economic freedom and self-dependency.

suriyajesminee@gmail.com