Social media has become the preferred way for many influencers and content creators to make money. Through their profiles, they generate content to engage with their audience and promote their products, secure brand sponsorships, donations, and more.
However, staying in the spotlight is challenging. In many cases, one must stay up to date with the current viral trends. One of them is generating thousands of dollars in earnings for those who engage in it. What are we talking about exactly? Specifically, acting as an NPC in front of the camera.
What does it mean to act as an NPC?
To understand what an NPC is, we first need to turn to video games. NPC stands for Non Playable Character, which refers to characters in a game that are not controlled by the player. These characters take on various roles: they can be shopkeepers, enemies, or even ordinary citizens.
One of the latest trends on TikTok involves acting as an NPC during a live stream, which are the live broadcasts on the platform. Essentially, this means behaving in an automated and scripted manner. Those who participate can spend hours live-streaming, imitating a kind of “humanized robot.”
But what motivates users to do something like this? Well, like many things, it’s about money. One of the most recognized creators of this trend, PinkyDoll, claims to earn between $2,000 and $3,000 per TikTok live stream. This is because her viewers can send her real money through donations, stickers, and more. Each time a user sends a sticker, PinkyDoll reacts with a specific phrase or action.
For many, this seemingly harmless trend capitalizes on users with “NPC fetishes” for its own benefit. Additionally, the NPC trend has attracted a large number of creators who have seen a golden opportunity to make money.
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