Before we dive into our first newsletter of 2025, I want to share a collection of resources that our Beacons team in LA have gathered to help those impacted by the LA fires.

Our hearts are with you, LA. If you know of other resources or funds needing donations that you'd like to share, send them to me here and I will share them with the rest of the Beacons community next week. ❤️‍🩹

You, and me, and every other TikTok user is currently on the edge of their seat waiting to see whether TikTok will be banned in the US.

When discussions about a TikTok ban started, it felt like an existential threat to content creation and community. But is it really?

ICYMI, here's a quick recap of the latest updates on the TikTok ban:

• Currently, unless TikTok is sold, a TikTok ban is scheduled to go into effect in the U.S. as of Sunday, January 19, 2025.
• A ban would mean the platform would be unavailable in the U.S. and it would be illegal for internet hosting services and app stores to distribute it.
• News outlets have reported the Biden administration is "exploring options" for how to prevent the app from being banned on Sunday.
• There have been offhand comments from public figures like Mr. Beast about buying TikTok so it does not get banned. So far these are unconfirmed.

Which is all to say... as of this moment, we don't really know what TikTok's future in the U.S. looks like.

But here's the truth: whether or not the TikTok ban goes through, your creator business will be okay. It can be more than okay—it can continue to grow and thrive!

Without sounding too trite, Beacons is always going to be here for you. You can protect and grow your content business and the audience you've worked hard to build.

And because you're a Beacons creator, you literally have all of the tools you need to protect and grow your business at your fingertips already.

So here's how to prepare, because if TikTok goes away, that doesn't mean your audience has to. You can do these 4 things on Beacons today:

1. Link to all of your social platforms on your Link in Bio and make sure to shout out your Link in Bio and other platforms in your TikTok content these next few days.
2. Build and own your email list by adding an email collection block ASAP (it's free on Beacons, btw) and telling your followers to join your email list to stay connected in your community.
3. Send broadcast emails and stay connected to your audience by sending updates, new content, and promotions to their inbox directly.
4. Set up a free download or digital product so you don't just protect your traffic, you build a new income stream.

At the end of the day, these are really the best practices that every creator should be doing. There's always going to be some level of platform risk with any platform, whether a TikTok ban goes through this weekend or not.

By building your Link in Bio as a central hub for all of your channels, your audience, and the value that you offer to your audience, you can have true ownership over the business you're building.

I'm really excited for this new feature (the first new feature we're shipping in 2025!) because it equips you with the data you need to consolidate your business on Beacons and truly own your audience.

Today, we're launching Sales Analytics, a brand new dashboard to view and track all data on your sales through Beacons.

This dashboard will show you all of the key metrics you need to keep a pulse on your sales:

• Views
• Orders
• Conversion rate
• Earnings

You can track these metrics over time with the date picker and look at all of your sales or choose to drill down into metrics for specific products.

Find your new Sales Analytics dashboard under the "Analytics" dropdown in your navigation bar. Check it out in your Beacons account today!

Some of my absolute favorite replies to get are emails from readers about how they're using the new features we ship every week.

I wanted to shout out one amazing Beacons creator, @danialkhemi, who emailed me at the end of last year to share her new product with a payment plan!

Her Genius Jumpstart: Private 7-Day Accelerator is an awesome example of a product that uses a few different powerful marketing techniques—a discount, a payment plan, and buyer reviews.

Amazing job, Dani! 🙌

👉 Feeling inspired? Set up your own product to sell on Beacons, and send it to me to share!

I was hanging out with a creator at the Beacons office in NYC yesterday and I asked her what she thought about the potential TikTok ban. I was not prepared for her answer.

She said she was over it, and didn't really care. Mind you, this is a full time creator who has 1M+ TikTok followers and a thriving business based on her content.

Her response was truly a huge unlock for me. That's how creators should feel. They're the ones in control here, not the platforms.

I think this hot take that’s going to set the tone for all of 2025.

YOU belong in the driver’s seat of your business and career this year (not platforms, ahem, or companies).

The theme of 2025 is going to be “creators in control.” I know you’re tired of waiting, asking, and being limited by the services and brands that power your business.

Beacons’s 2025 commitment to you is that the things we’re building this year are going to be focused on empowering you to own and run your business the way YOU want.

We plan to bring you more brand customization, more account and audience organization, and more opportunities to build relationships with other creators, managers and brands that can help you take your business to the next level this year, whatever that next level means for you.

And of course, I’d love to hear from you: what do you most want to take control over for your business this year?

It feels like over the last few weeks everyone has posted their 2025 ins and outs.

We've been loving seeing what others are sharing. So some of our team got together in the San Francisco office to think about what new energy we’re embracing and what we’re waving goodbye to.

This is what our Creator Success Lead, Ben, shared in Slack:

I’m personally especially excited about our bigger NY and SF offices. We’ll be moving in the coming weeks and I’ll definitely be giving you a behind the scenes tour! 

Of course, like any good list, some points may be a little more realistic than others:

Reply and let me know—what are your top INs and OUTs for 2025 in your creator business?

Welcome back GRORT readers, and I hope your 2025 will be everything you want it to be and more. We're in it together!

💰Invite friends and get paid! Every time you refer someone to a Beacons Pro plan, you earn 25% lifetime commission for their paid subscription. Learn more

Creator University

Pricing and Plans

Report Violation

Beacons for Managers

Community

Help Center

Beacons® is a registered trademark of Beacons AI Inc. ©2024
2261 Market Street #4319 San Francisco, CA 94114