What does an industry analyst say about the past, present and future states of creator marketing? Does our State of Creator Marketing report hit the mark?
Tune into this week’s episode of Earned to hear Brit Starr and Jasmine Enberg go deep into the State of Creator Marketing report as they discuss marketers' shifting priorities, focus on trust and ROI, and surprising findings from this year’s study.
We dive into CreatorIQ’s annual State of Creator Marketing Report and what it reveals about the future of trust, community, and content performance. Brit and Jasmine unpack the shift from creator-focused to content-first strategies that are driving measurable business impact. You’ll hear how influencer marketing investment has surged 171% year over year, signaling a major move from traditional media to creator-led strategies. We dig into how marketers are redefining ROI, navigating new measurement challenges, and building scalable programs that deliver lasting results. We discuss how brands can balance innovation with authenticity—using AI to enhance workflows without losing the human touch. From the rise of professionalized creator ecosystems to the growing competition across platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, this conversation offers a clear view of where content creation is headed next.
Check out highlights from the episode below, or or tune into the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen!
The following interview has been lightly edited for concision.
“For me and for the marketers that I speak to, measurement really is the missing link in unlocking more budget.”: Jasmine Enberg on today’s top roadblock in creator marketing
Brit Starr: Resourcing and budget was always a top roadblock for marketers, but this year and last year we have seen measurement, a focus on efficacy. Measurement has really taken top billing when it comes to challenges marketers are facing today. The role of the CFO has increased and with great power comes great responsibility. I'd love to hear more from you around that roadblock of measurement.
Jasmine Enberg: That shift is something that I've covered extensively in my research this year, and proving ROI of influencer marketing is now the top priority for pretty much every marketer who I speak to. Bigger budgets mean bigger demands for financial accountability and then, if you add on all the economic uncertainty this year, that has accelerated the need for marketers to show tangible business results. As for budgeting and staffing, which used to be the biggest roadblocks to influencer marketing according to your research, I think brands really have already gotten smarter and more sophisticated in their strategies. A lot of that also has to do with time and experience, as well as the buy-in that they now have from the C-suite. Now for me and for the marketers that I speak to, measurement really is the missing link in unlocking more budget.
I think a lot of brands are still relying on outdated or misaligned metrics, both to identify creators who they want to work with as well as to measure the success of their campaigns. There is a broader understanding now in the industry that follower counts are not the best predictor of business performance, but they are the metric that many marketers end up falling back on. Most of the metrics out there are misaligned, incomplete, or they just don't know how else to measure. There is no standardized measurement framework for influencer marketing. That is because it's really complicated. Influencer marketing has become a full funnel marketing tactic and people are using it for goals from brand awareness to consideration all the way down to sales. It's used across so many different platforms and so many different channels that it becomes really hard to have this industry-wide framework for measuring the success of a creator partnership or a creator campaign. I think that brands can standardize internal processes, and one of the best ways to start doing that is making sure that you are aligning your business goals with success metrics right up front. Then, continuing to build and iterate on that strategy with those goals and success metrics in mind.
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