A new industry report from CreatorIQ reveals that creator marketing investments have increased by 171% year-over-year, with brands redirecting significant portions of their digital advertising budgets toward influencer partnerships. The report, which surveyed 1,723 brands, agencies, and creators across 17 industries and 9 regions, identifies a notable shift toward what CreatorIQ terms the “Era of Efficacy.”
Investment Trends Defy Economic Headwinds
Despite economic volatility marked by inflation and tariffs, investment in creator marketing continues to expand. Brand respondents reported spending an average of $2.9 million annually on influencer marketing programs, while agency respondents reported an average of $4.4 million. Enterprise respondents now invest an average of $5.6 million to $8.1 million annually in creators.
The report indicates that 71% of organizations increased their influencer marketing investment year-over-year, with that figure rising to 80% among enterprise organizations. Looking ahead, 73% of mid-market organizations and 85% of enterprise organizations plan to increase their creator marketing investment over the next five years.
Nearly two-thirds of increased influencer marketing investment is being reallocated from digital and paid advertising channels. For 64% of marketers overall, these budget increases came directly from paid or digital advertising budgets, including 62% of mid-market brands and 54% of enterprise brands, indicating a strategic pivot rather than merely expanded marketing spend.
From Efficiency to Efficacy
The industry has gone beyond seeking mere efficiency to pursuing efficacy, encompassing operational maturity, strategic alignment, precision, and meaningful business outcomes. Measurement has replaced inadequate budgets as the top roadblock to program growth, marking a significant shift in program priorities.
“Organizations are navigating a complex mix of challenges, such as measuring program performance, accelerating content production, adapting to AI advances, and mitigating risk,” the report states. “In times of economic uncertainty, the demand for ROI (Return on Investment) is higher than ever.”
For brands, the primary effect of economic volatility has been an increased focus on ROI (51%), narrowly edging out cost-saving measures (46%). Enterprise brands were even more focused on ROI at 56%.
High-performing organizations are operating at a different level of maturity, according to the report. Industry leaders – defined in the report as brands reporting more than double the ROI from influencer marketing and spending $1 million or more annually – involve significantly more people in their creator marketing efforts (averaging 53 people compared to 34 for brands overall).
Centers of Excellence have become the norm, with 59% of enterprise brands and 57% of mid-market brands reporting they operate their influencer marketing programs through a central team that sets strategy and tools for the entire organization.
The report reveals that industry leaders devoted more than half (54%) of their marketing budgets to creator marketing, compared to 46% for enterprise brands and 40% for mid-market brands.
Brand Safety Emerges as Critical Concern
As creator marketing expands its role across channels, brand safety has become a critical concern. For agencies, ensuring creator suitability, risk mitigation, and legal compliance is now the number-one challenge (36%), with the figure rising to 42% for enterprise agencies.
The report states that 72% of enterprise brands report that brand safety has become more critical year-over-year. In a significant shift, follower count has fallen to being the least important factor when selecting creators (8%), replaced by creator suitability or fit for the brand (22%) as the top consideration.
ROI and Measurement
Nearly 7 out of 10 brand respondents more than doubled their ROI with creator marketing, with nearly 4 out of 10 reporting more than 3x the ROI. For 74% of enterprise brands, the ROI of creator marketing increased year-over-year.
The report identifies boosting creator posts (39%) and branded sponsored posts featuring creators (38%) as the top ROI-driving strategies. Notably, gifting and seeding – once the top strategy for ROI in 2020-2022 – has fallen to the least effective strategy (20%).
Measurement has become more sophisticated, according to the report, with organizations moving beyond surface-level metrics. When asked which marketing metric is most useful for justifying their programs to leadership, responses were nearly evenly split across multiple metrics, indicating that no single metric tells the full story.
For enterprise brands, engagements emerged as the top metric (24%), followed closely by impressions/reach/views (23%). Industry leaders prioritized engagements (23%) and conversions/clicks/CTR (Click-Through Rate) (20%).
AI Integration and Challenges
The report reveals that 95% of brands and 97% of agencies have used AI in marketing over the past year. The most common use cases include generating short-form content (45% for brands, 44% for agencies) and research and data analysis (44% for brands, 43% for agencies).
Despite widespread adoption, opinions on full automation remain divided. While 69% of brands want to fully automate creator marketing operations (35% strongly agree, 34% somewhat agree), creators express caution. When asked what AI shouldn’t fully replace, 39% of creators identified managing creator relationships as the aspect of their job they least want AI to replace.
The report states that “AI seems most useful and welcomed when it offers clear efficiency gains, such as evaluating large chunks of data, informing strategic decisions, aiding with creator discovery, and allowing for experimentation or targeted outreach.”
Platform Usage and Future Outlook
Instagram remains the most-used platform for creator marketing (84% of brands, 82% of agencies), followed by YouTube (82% of brands, 79% of agencies) and Facebook (74% of brands, 72% of agencies). Looking ahead, YouTube is the leading platform for experimentation among brands (23%), while TikTok takes the top spot for agencies (26%).
Platform algorithm volatility has overtaken brand deal inconsistency and low pay as the top barrier to growth for creators (18%). Creators identified better communication (44%), more creative input (43%), and longer-term collaboration (41%) as key factors that would improve brand partnerships.
Looking Forward to 2026
When asked what would have the biggest impact on marketing in the coming years, respondents identified AI and content automation (40%), the rise of affiliate/influencer commerce (34%), and brand safety and vetting sophistication (28%) as the top three factors.
The report concludes that “in an industry powered by creators, it’s necessary to maintain the human spark that fosters community and trust between creators and consumers.”
For the creator marketing industry, the question has shifted from “Does creator marketing work?” to “How can we build optimal infrastructure for creator marketing that makes success more likely?” As investment continues to grow, brands and agencies that can balance AI integration, brand safety, and authentic creator relationships will be best positioned for the “Era of Efficacy.”
Image credit: CreatorIQ The full report is available here
Dragomir is a Serbian freelance blog writer and translator. He is passionate about covering insightful stories and exploring topics such as influencer marketing, the creator economy, technology, business, and cyber fraud.
A new industry report from CreatorIQ reveals that creator marketing investments have increased by 171% year-over-year, with brands redirecting significant portions of their digital advertising budgets toward influencer partnerships. The report, which surveyed 1,723 brands, agencies, and creators across 17 industries and 9 regions, identifies a notable shift toward what CreatorIQ terms the “Era of Efficacy.”
Investment Trends Defy Economic Headwinds
Despite economic volatility marked by inflation and tariffs, investment in creator marketing continues to expand. Brand respondents reported spending an average of $2.9 million annually on influencer marketing programs, while agency respondents reported an average of $4.4 million. Enterprise respondents now invest an average of $5.6 million to $8.1 million annually in creators.
The report indicates that 71% of organizations increased their influencer marketing investment year-over-year, with that figure rising to 80% among enterprise organizations. Looking ahead, 73% of mid-market organizations and 85% of enterprise organizations plan to increase their creator marketing investment over the next five years.
Nearly two-thirds of increased influencer marketing investment is being reallocated from digital and paid advertising channels. For 64% of marketers overall, these budget increases came directly from paid or digital advertising budgets, including 62% of mid-market brands and 54% of enterprise brands, indicating a strategic pivot rather than merely expanded marketing spend.
From Efficiency to Efficacy
The industry has gone beyond seeking mere efficiency to pursuing efficacy, encompassing operational maturity, strategic alignment, precision, and meaningful business outcomes. Measurement has replaced inadequate budgets as the top roadblock to program growth, marking a significant shift in program priorities.
“Organizations are navigating a complex mix of challenges, such as measuring program performance, accelerating content production, adapting to AI advances, and mitigating risk,” the report states. “In times of economic uncertainty, the demand for ROI (Return on Investment) is higher than ever.”
For brands, the primary effect of economic volatility has been an increased focus on ROI (51%), narrowly edging out cost-saving measures (46%). Enterprise brands were even more focused on ROI at 56%.
Operational Excellence Becomes Competitive Advantage
High-performing organizations are operating at a different level of maturity, according to the report. Industry leaders – defined in the report as brands reporting more than double the ROI from influencer marketing and spending $1 million or more annually – involve significantly more people in their creator marketing efforts (averaging 53 people compared to 34 for brands overall).
Centers of Excellence have become the norm, with 59% of enterprise brands and 57% of mid-market brands reporting they operate their influencer marketing programs through a central team that sets strategy and tools for the entire organization.
The report reveals that industry leaders devoted more than half (54%) of their marketing budgets to creator marketing, compared to 46% for enterprise brands and 40% for mid-market brands.
Brand Safety Emerges as Critical Concern
As creator marketing expands its role across channels, brand safety has become a critical concern. For agencies, ensuring creator suitability, risk mitigation, and legal compliance is now the number-one challenge (36%), with the figure rising to 42% for enterprise agencies.
The report states that 72% of enterprise brands report that brand safety has become more critical year-over-year. In a significant shift, follower count has fallen to being the least important factor when selecting creators (8%), replaced by creator suitability or fit for the brand (22%) as the top consideration.
ROI and Measurement
Nearly 7 out of 10 brand respondents more than doubled their ROI with creator marketing, with nearly 4 out of 10 reporting more than 3x the ROI. For 74% of enterprise brands, the ROI of creator marketing increased year-over-year.
The report identifies boosting creator posts (39%) and branded sponsored posts featuring creators (38%) as the top ROI-driving strategies. Notably, gifting and seeding – once the top strategy for ROI in 2020-2022 – has fallen to the least effective strategy (20%).
Measurement has become more sophisticated, according to the report, with organizations moving beyond surface-level metrics. When asked which marketing metric is most useful for justifying their programs to leadership, responses were nearly evenly split across multiple metrics, indicating that no single metric tells the full story.
For enterprise brands, engagements emerged as the top metric (24%), followed closely by impressions/reach/views (23%). Industry leaders prioritized engagements (23%) and conversions/clicks/CTR (Click-Through Rate) (20%).
AI Integration and Challenges
The report reveals that 95% of brands and 97% of agencies have used AI in marketing over the past year. The most common use cases include generating short-form content (45% for brands, 44% for agencies) and research and data analysis (44% for brands, 43% for agencies).
Despite widespread adoption, opinions on full automation remain divided. While 69% of brands want to fully automate creator marketing operations (35% strongly agree, 34% somewhat agree), creators express caution. When asked what AI shouldn’t fully replace, 39% of creators identified managing creator relationships as the aspect of their job they least want AI to replace.
The report states that “AI seems most useful and welcomed when it offers clear efficiency gains, such as evaluating large chunks of data, informing strategic decisions, aiding with creator discovery, and allowing for experimentation or targeted outreach.”
Platform Usage and Future Outlook
Instagram remains the most-used platform for creator marketing (84% of brands, 82% of agencies), followed by YouTube (82% of brands, 79% of agencies) and Facebook (74% of brands, 72% of agencies). Looking ahead, YouTube is the leading platform for experimentation among brands (23%), while TikTok takes the top spot for agencies (26%).
Platform algorithm volatility has overtaken brand deal inconsistency and low pay as the top barrier to growth for creators (18%). Creators identified better communication (44%), more creative input (43%), and longer-term collaboration (41%) as key factors that would improve brand partnerships.
Looking Forward to 2026
When asked what would have the biggest impact on marketing in the coming years, respondents identified AI and content automation (40%), the rise of affiliate/influencer commerce (34%), and brand safety and vetting sophistication (28%) as the top three factors.
The report concludes that “in an industry powered by creators, it’s necessary to maintain the human spark that fosters community and trust between creators and consumers.”
For the creator marketing industry, the question has shifted from “Does creator marketing work?” to “How can we build optimal infrastructure for creator marketing that makes success more likely?” As investment continues to grow, brands and agencies that can balance AI integration, brand safety, and authentic creator relationships will be best positioned for the “Era of Efficacy.”
Image credit: CreatorIQ
The full report is available here
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