When Portugal’s influencer scene began to take off, digital marketing strategist Marco Gouveia noticed something missing: professionalism. Brands were spending more than ever on creator campaigns without knowing what worked, and creators lacked the tools to turn viral moments into viable careers. He launched influencer marketing agency Influenza in 2020 to close that gap, bringing the discipline of digital marketing into a space driven by creativity.

“Brands needed clarity, structure, and measurable results. Influencers needed fairness, transparency, and professional guidance,” Marco explains. “What we saw was a space where creativity could meet accountability – and with the experience my team and I already had in digital marketing, we knew we could bring a new level of professionalism to influencer marketing in Portugal.”

Before launching Influenza, Marco spent more than two decades in digital marketing, leading digital strategy at Pestana Hotel Group for more than seven years, running his own consultancy and digital marketing school, and (still) serving as a Google Regional Trainer. These experiences revealed deep systemic gaps in how brands and creators worked together.

“Through my work, I noticed a clear gap in the market: influencers weren’t properly supported or protected, and brands didn’t really know how to measure the success of influencer campaigns,” he says. “Operationalizing campaigns and tracking results were major pain points. In Portugal, there was very little structured support in this field.”

Drawing on his expertise and experience as an invited professor at Católica Lisbon School of Business and Economics and ISEG-Lisbon School of Economics & Management, Marco approached influencer marketing with both practical and academic rigor. With Influenza, he set out to establish a professional framework for the industry, serving both multinational brands seeking Return on Investment-focused (ROI) creator partnerships and influencers seeking fair, structured career development.

“Our mission today is to elevate influencer marketing to a strategic level where it’s recognized as a core part of the marketing mix, not just an afterthought,” he says.

Creating Structured Methodologies

At the core of Influenza’s value proposition is a methodology that brings structure to previously ad hoc processes. The agency has developed proprietary frameworks that guide every phase of influencer marketing, from strategic planning to campaign execution and measurement.

“We’ve built methodologies that go far beyond vanity metrics,” Marco reveals. “For example, in a recent retail campaign, we measured not just engagement, but actual store traffic generated by influencers. That’s where the industry needs to go – proving tangible impact and giving both brands and influencers the confidence that collaborations work.”

This system organizes Influenza’s services into four interconnected areas: strategy development for identifying optimal creators and formats; full campaign management, including content production; detailed measurement and reporting; and educational support for both brands and creators. 

“We use a mix of quantitative and qualitative metrics,” Marco notes. “On the quantitative side, we track reach, engagement, conversion rates, and ROI through custom tracking links and brand lift studies. On the qualitative side, we look at sentiment, community feedback, and whether the campaign narrative resonated genuinely with the audience.”

On Creator-Brand Relationships

Beyond methodologies, Marco is reimagining how creators and brands should interact with each other. Rather than treating influencers as media channels, Influenza positions them as strategic creative partners with valuable expertise about their audiences.

“It’s collaborative from the very beginning,” Marco describes. “With brands, we dive into their business objectives and design campaigns where influencers aren’t just media channels, but genuine creative partners. We co-create briefs, align on storytelling angles, and define clear KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) that tie back to the brand’s goals.”

This collaborative model also extends to creators, whom Influenza supports with professional guidance and protection. “With creators, our role is to ensure they’re fully protected, matched with the right brands, and supported with clear expectations and resources,” Marco explains. “We believe the strongest partnerships happen when both sides feel equally empowered.”

The approach differs from the traditional influencer marketing model, where brands often dictate terms with rigid briefs and creators struggle to advocate for their creative autonomy.

Anticipating Tomorrow’s Challenges

Marco’s forward-looking perspective extends beyond current market needs to anticipate emerging challenges. 

“The future challenges are already visible today: transparency, credibility, and oversaturation,” he observes. “Audiences are increasingly skeptical, brands demand measurable results, and influencers want fairer, more professional collaborations.”

This proactive stance informs how Influenza develops its services and advises clients. The agency helps brands avoid common pitfalls, such as treating influencers like advertising slots rather than creative partners. “This results in forced content that audiences scroll past,” Marco cautions. Instead, he advocates for long-term partnerships over one-off transactions, allowing genuine connections to develop naturally over time.

The marketing veteran also sees clear patterns in what’s working and what’s not in today’s context. 

“What’s working: genuine expression over perfection, niche creators with high trust in their communities, and short-form video content that feels raw and unpolished. Story-driven, ‘day-in-the-life’ style content is outperforming polished ads,” he explains. “What no longer works: mass celebrity endorsements that feel separate from the brand, or campaigns where influencers simply ‘hold the product’ without weaving it into their real lifestyle.”

Predictions for Professional Influence

Marco predicts the next significant development as the creator economy continues to progress. “The rise of social commerce. Influencers won’t just inspire purchases. They’ll increasingly become the direct sales channel,” he forecasts. “We’re moving toward a model where content, inspiration, and checkout happen seamlessly in the same place.”

This progression, he adds, will further erase the boundaries between marketing and sales, with influencers serving as both storytellers and revenue drivers. Preparing for this shift, Influenza is developing new approaches that combine live experiences, user-generated content, and creator-led storytelling.

“Our focus is twofold: strengthening Influenza’s presence in Portugal with flagship campaigns that set new benchmarks for genuine content and ROI, and launching engaging interactive activations that don’t just involve creators, but bring entire communities into the conversation,” Marco says.

While the agency is currently focused on the Portuguese market, Marco sees Spain and Brazil as natural expansion opportunities due to cultural and linguistic similarities. These growth plans are guided by his commitment to maintaining the human element in an increasingly metrics-focused field. 

“It will absolutely become more measurement-oriented, but the human element is essential,” he emphasizes. “Trust, genuine expression, and creativity can’t be automated.”

For Marco, the future of influencer marketing lies in balancing professionalism with purpose. “What truly motivates me is helping influencers grow, not just as partners for brands, but as entrepreneurs in their own right, supporting them to leverage their platforms to launch their own projects, businesses, and initiatives,” he reveals.

As creator marketing continues to mature, Marco and Influenza are working to professionalize it, creating frameworks that bring accountability and structure to what was once an informal field. 

“Influencer marketing is only at the beginning of its significant transformation,” Marco concludes. “The future is about genuine expression, responsibility, and measurable impact. Influence is power, but it only matters when it’s used with purpose.”

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