 The range of respondents to the online questionna ire reflects the breadth of the creative sector—from graphic designers, UX designers, musici ans, photographers, directors, illustrators, ar tists, adver tising and public relations strategis ts, to TikTok creators and freelance writers. We grouped them into three segments to better under stand nuances within the wildly diverse industr y : They repor t to a design, adver tising, or public relations agency and are t ypically par t of a team. They ’re more likely to be female and under the age of 35. This is the most ethnically- diverse group. Ag e n cy Staff    This segment comprises freelancers, consultants, or creatives running a small studio. They work directly with clients; about half are male and skew towards older age groups. C r e at i v e Profes sionals   Content They are self-star ters— enterprising individuals who conceptualize, produce, and publish content like tutorials, product reviews, newsletters, podcasts, or music tracks on social media plat forms. Most are not working directly with brands and make money from affiliate marketing commissions, paid ads, or donations. Majorit y in this segment identif y as male.    Cre ators The opinions of industr y thought-leaders are also r epresented in this year’s repor t . 09 Methodology Rewriting romantic myths of the creative industry