New Discussion & Poll for Site and Creator Sustainability
We'll be locking this thread to continue the discussion in our latest article about choosing the best paths forward for making the community sustainable. Read here
What are Clubs?
Creator Clubs (Clubs, for short), are a way for users to show their appreciation to Creators they like, while receiving access to extra reward content. Think Patreon, or Ko-Fi, but integrated into the Civitai platform, powered by Buzz ⚡.
It’s important to note that Clubs are intended as a way to support your favorite Creators and receive additional content for doing so, not as a paywall for otherwise free content!
Club owners will be discouraged from releasing all of their new content into a paid Club tier.
Club Best Practices
We’re excited to see how Creators will use Clubs to enhance the Civitai experience. Here’s how we envision Clubs enriching the site while maintaining a balanced and inclusive environment:
Timed Exclusive Access – Some Clubs may choose to offer temporary Early Access to their newest resources, allowing their members to get a sneak-preview before anyone else. After a set period of time, these resources would “unlock” and become available to all site users, ensuring that while Club Members get a first-look, everyone will eventually enjoy the content.
Enhanced Resources – Within Clubs, Creators might choose to provide two versions of a resource – a “lite” and “premium” version. The premium version, exclusive to club members, might include additional enhancements (enhanced outfits, different characters, etc.). The lite version, accessible by all users, ensures that everyone has access to great content.
Exclusive Metadata and Insights - For those who want to delve deeper, Clubs might offer exclusive image metadata, or insights into the creative process. This could include additional prompting metadata, settings, or step-by-step guides.
Who Can Create a Club?
Initially, the ability to create a Club is invite-only. We’ve selected a number of the top Creators to create the initial round of Clubs, and will be adjusting the requirements for Club ownership in time.
Discovering Clubs
The new Club Feed is accessible from the top menu. Clubs will only appear in this feed if they contain a minimum level of content – at least one resource, at least one Club Post, and at least one joinable Tier. We’re still working on features to enhance Club discoverability, including search, and categorization.
Learn More About Clubs
For a comprehensive guide on Creator Clubs, please visit the official Club article in our Education Hub. If you have any questions about clubs that remain unanswered here or in the article, feel free to ask them in the comments below!
Feedback Response
Hey everyone, so obviously we are aware of the varied reactions here about the introduction of Creator Clubs on Civitai...I'm going to try to address some concerns that I've been reading here.
1. The Value of Buzz: We understand concerns regarding the perceived value of Buzz. To enhance its worth, we are on the cusp of launching a program similar to the partner programs on Twitch and YouTube. This will tangibly reward the creativity and dedication of our content creators.
2. Transparency and Creator Support: Our decision to introduce a creator program was not made lightly. Through polls, direct messages, emails, and conversations during Office Hours and on Featurebase, we have consistently received feedback emphasizing the need for a program here on Civitai that values and compensates creators fairly.
The unfortunate reality is that many creators have seen their work exploited by others for profit, with little to no recognition or compensation. This issue deeply affects us and the creators we support. As Community Manager, I have had numerous discussions over the past year with creators who are understandably frustrated and disheartened by these practices. Many have even ceased creating SD content altogether. However, the assurance of fair compensation and protection has encouraged a lot of these creators to come back.
We are committed to maintaining the spirit of open source while providing avenues for creators to receive fair compensation. The introduction of clubs is a direct response to our creator's calls for a balanced approach, allowing creators to offer both free resources and exclusive content through a structured program. This is not dissimilar to the model used by creators on platforms like Kofi and Patreon.
Our goal is not to alienate or frustrate our community, we love you guys! But to reinforce our appreciation and respect for the creators who are the lifeblood of Civitai, without whom Civitai would not exist. We understand that change can be challenging, but we intend to foster a more sustainable and supportive environment for both users and creators. The success of Civitai depends on the continued passion and creativity of our community - both users AND creators, and we are dedicated to ensuring that every member feels valued and heard.
We will continue to engage with all feedback received here and through other channels. Please understand that nothing is set in stone yet with how Clubs work - things can always change! We sincerely hope the prevailing sentiment is that we are and have always been committed to actively listening and incorporating improvements based on your feedback to the best of our ability.
I will continue to edit this post in response to any additional feedback. ❤️