Traditional Influencer Strategies Need To Change As The Creator Economy Matures
Getty Images for Cannes Lions
It has been a month since Cannes Lions, the festival where brands, creativity, and the future of marketing converge. The creator economy’s next challenge is asking both brands and creators to pay attention before it devours all the budgets and creativity on both sides.
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) projected U.S. creator ad spend would reach $44 billion in 2026 and found that 48% of creator ad buyers now consider creators a “must buy,” ranking the channel just behind paid search and social media. On the one hand, creators are investing like small businesses in infrastructure, ideas, and performance before they have any guaranteed return. They are betting on proximity to brands, agencies, potential clients and other creator communities so that the trust within…
