Over the week, a TikToker with the account @ReesamTeesa has taken the platform by storm telling the story of her ex-husband, who she claims to be a pathological liar. Over a series of 50 10-minute videos she lays out how they met, their courtship, marriage, and how she found out that supposedly everything he told her was untrue. The story captivated TikTok users to the tune of some 100 million views.
Reesa Tessa, photo via TikTok, @ReesaTessa/Photo by Solen Feyissa:
And due to the high number of views, she might have become rich in the process, according to Jordan Green, an acclaimed British content creator known for his focus on entrepreneurship and financial strategies.
Green, who goes by the moniker “I’m Broke Baby,” suggests that TikTok got ReesamTeesa paid — and how anyone could do the same thing.
Who TF Did I Marry?
As an informal case study, Green focused his attention on who he believes has become rich— not wealthy — by sharing her outlandish experience through TikTok.
@reesamteesa Who TF Did I Marry- Part One #pathologicalliar #reesateesa #fypシ #fyp ♬ original sound – ReesaTeesa
Starting on Feb. 15, the video series has already garnered nearly 100 million views collectively, with her very first one making close to 30 million just six days after being published. In these clips, some lasting up to 10 minutes each, she recounts her journey from meeting and dating to marrying and divorcing her “pathologically lying ex-husband.”
“I’m assuming she’s monetized and in the creativity beta program,” Green states in one of his pocket-watching videos.
@jaystips Who tf did i marry is rich ? #imbrokebaby #entrepreneur #sidehustle ♬ original sound – I’m broke baby
He assessed that when she was only at 86 million if she was in the TikTok system and was paid $1.00 per 1000 views, she would have made $86,000.
“Here’s where it gets interesting,” he continued to surmise, “Some of her videos are close to 10 minutes long, and usually platforms pay more the longer your videos. So if TikTok [does] the same and pay you more the longer your video, realistically she could be making $4 or $5 per 1000 views. That could be almost $400,000 for this series.”
What Does the Social Media Platform Supposedly Pay?
TikTok offers three ways to make money: Branded Content, the Creator’s Fund, and the Creativity Program Beta.
According to its website the Branded Content program is a way that creatives on the platform can work with recognized brands and make money.
The Creator Fund is currently available to adult content creators in the U.S., U.K., Germany, Italy, France, and Spain with 10,000 authentic followers and “100,000 video views in the last 30 days.”
The Creativity Program Beta is for users who create high-quality and long-form TikTok videos (10 mins. to 30 mins.) and desire monetization. To be eligible, the profile has to belong to an adult American (over 18 years old) with “at least 10,000 followers” and “at least 100,000 video views in the last 30 days.”
The difference between the Creator Fund and the Creativity Program Beta is that CPB “offers higher cash incentives with earnings based on qualified views” giving the TikToker “the potential to earn 20 times the amount previously offered by the Creator Fund.”
One TikToker @smartworkai explained, “Here are the three major things you need to know about this program. 1) Like the Creator Fund you get payments based off of how many views you get. However, unlike the creator fund in the creativity program, someone has to watch your TikTok for at least 5 seconds for it to be considered an eligible view. 2) the only videos that can even have those 5-second multiple views are those that are over 60 seconds. 3) A video over 60 seconds is only eligible to start earning if there have been at least 1,000 qualified views on that video.”
@smartworkai How much does the TikTok creativity program pay? I break down my earnings results and what I’ve learned about the program rules. #creativityprogram #tiktokcreators #creatorfund #tiktokcreativityprogrambeta #tiktokcreator ♬ original sound – Celia | Ai Tips & Life Hacks
She goes on to say that some creators think that TikTok manipulates views to hinder payments. But she says that is not her experience.
During the one month that she was in the TikTok Creativity Program, @smartworkai experienced her highest earnings yet. On these days, which typically saw around 300 to 400 thousand views, the earnings were notably higher.
When she was in the Creator Fund and made about 30,000 or more views, she was earning around $0.22 per 1,000 views.
The TikTok Creativity Program proved to be more lucrative, yielding her $1.00 per thousand views. She said the key is making content that goes viral.
Going Viral
Going viral may not be as easy as some people think. However, some helpful tips can help run up numbers on videos and spread them internet-wide, according to Time.com.
One, a content creator to understand the platform’s algorithms, understand your audience and keep an eye on trending content. Another way to go viral is to participate in TikTok challenges and add hashtags to your videos.
Experts also say that people should add trending music to their content to go to the next level. @ReesamTeesa used some many of these practices to make her series become popular.