Web Summit 26: Research highlights fragmentation challenge

Research unveiled at this year's Web Summit shows nearly a quarter of digital subscription businesses now operate across multiple platforms.

It comes as marketers face growing pressure to manage customer acquisition, engagement and data across an increasingly fragmented digital landscape.

Pavlo Kharmanskyi, founder at OnlyMonster - a creator operations software company - said businesses built around digital subscriptions are becoming more ambitious as they expand across multiple platforms and seek better ways to manage growth.

"The creator economy is changing quickly, and the businesses operating within it are becoming much more ambitious," he said.

"Teams are growing, expanding onto new platforms and looking for ways to manage everything more effectively."

Data released by OnlyMonster found that 24% of businesses managing paid creator communities now operate across multiple subscription platforms, up from 18% a year ago. More than 1,200 teams have added a second platform within three months of connecting their first, highlighting how rapidly digital businesses are diversifying their operations.

The findings reflect a broader challenge facing marketers, including those in financial services, as audiences spread across a growing number of digital channels and communities.

As brands invest more heavily in creator partnerships, community-led marketing and owned audiences, the technology required to coordinate activity across multiple platforms is becoming an increasingly important part of the martech stack.

The company, which has been selected for Web Summit's Startup Showcase as part of the BETA programme, said the trend is increasing demand for technology that can manage multiple platforms, teams and workflows from a single environment.

Kharmanskyi said the industry's growth is creating new operational pressures.

"What's particularly interesting is how quickly some of these businesses are expanding," he explained.

"Adding another platform brings new opportunities, but it also means more to manage. That's where CreatorOps comes in. Our job is to give teams the tools and infrastructure to run their businesses properly and keep growing."

OnlyMonster now supports more than 2,000 organisations managing more than 14,000 creator accounts across 100 countries.