AT A GLANCE
THOC's sales and marketing manager, Maann Barcebal-Alejandrino,describes her wards in the house as "social media stars who are huge on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and Youtube.
Somewhere in the south of Manila, there's a big house with an inviting pool, lounge chairs, a studio, and five bedrooms to "shelter" 25 of the country's fast-rising and upcoming digital media stars. The location is top-secret to keep the occupants away from snooping fans.
Welcome to The House of Collab! The Philippines' only reality show to focus on content creators and influencers is now on Season 7, where contestants with the weakest link are eliminated weekly, and the last few remaining will vie for the P1 million peso cash prize at stake for the grand winner.
Shades of Pinoy Big Brother, one may ask? THOC does not deny the similarity, although they stress the fact that it's more patterned after the "content houses" that have sprung up in the US within the last decade. Think about Jake Paul's YouTube mansion in California (later sold), Clubhouse Beverly Hills, and Hype House, to name a few. The idea is to have one place where content creators can shoot their videos, goof around, exchange ideas, and grow their supporters.
THOC's sales and marketing manager, Maann Barcebal-Alejandrino, describes her wards in the house as "social media stars who are huge on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and Youtube. What they do (in the house) every day is create content, whether it's static photos, branded content, or live streaming."
Spread across the 25 "occupants" of The House of Collab, that's an average of 200 pieces of content created every day for the brands that partner with them. The creators, in turn, get compensation by way of "talent fees," aside from the fact that everything during their stay is free—from the food to the shopping trips.
"All the hard work has paid off," according to Maann. Starting with THOC's seventh season, they've become an agency partner of TikTok Philippines.
She pointed out, "We've produced 31 billion-plus views for TikTok, and that's something that we are really proud of."
The numbers are big. When THOC talks about its P1 million cash prize for the Season 7 winner at the end of three months, it's only a small share of the huge pie. Maann revealed that some big-name creators in their fold (who are not part of the show) earn close to P3 million weekly from affiliate income alone - meaning they help promote products from their social media accounts.
"It really depends on the talent. Some are strong in affiliate promotions, while others do well in actual live selling. Some get brand deals and also monetize their Facebook and YouTube channels. In TikTok, they earn from the shops and receive virtual gifts," Maann explained.
Overall, THOC acts as the talent management outfit of the 200 or so creators under its wing. It does the dirty administrative work (for example, filing taxes) so the influencer can focus on creating content.
Season 7 cast members include Pabby Bartolome, Amber Miles, Lydsa Sabijon, Shaun De Mesa, Panty Queen, Luna Paulino, Lars Avila, Councilor JD Batino, and others. Most of them have a large following on TikTok.
"Our goal here is to build up these talents so they can create a sustainable career in terms of content creation and make a better life for themselves and their families. The House of Collab is like a boot camp for them. Here, they're able to create better content, build their audience, and establish their status as content creators," THOC's chief talent scout Casey Diy pointed out.
The proverbial question is: how does one penetrate or get into The House of Collab? Casey clarified that a few of their creators didn't start with a huge following.
"It's not really the numbers. We had creators here who started with 100 to 200 followers on their platforms and grew to 100,000 after the 90 days in The House of Collab," Casey stated.
"It's more of what you can bring to the table, and I am referring to talent, grit. And perseverance. Being an effective influencer means you know how to represent your brand and how you present yourself in the content. We teach our creators to love their fans and supporters and build a mindset - not just to be a star, but also an entrepreneur," she closed.
