CreatorIQ's State of Creator Marketing Report reveals a significant shift to creator-led marketing, with 94% of organizations saying creator content drives more ROI than traditional digital advertising
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 10, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- CreatorIQ, the leading enterprise influencer marketing platform, today released its fifth annual State of Creator Marketing Report. The fifth annual study underscores the rapid growth of creator marketing investment and maturity, with industry leaders allocating 57% of their marketing budgets to creator marketing and spending 299% more on creator marketing than organizations overall.
Creator Marketing Growing Faster Than Ever, Drives Outsized ROI
74% of organizations reported increased creator marketing investment over the last year, up from just 55% the previous year—the most significant jump since CreatorIQ's first study in 2020. Additionally, 78% of organizations expect to invest more in creator marketing over the next two years.
This growth follows a 143% increase in spending on creator marketing over the last four years, lending further support to projections that the creator economy will reach $500 billion by 2027. Driving this momentum is growing proof that a creator content-first strategy works better: 94% of surveyed organizations reported that creator content generates more ROI than traditional digital advertising. This perspective increased 20% YoY.
"Creator marketing has fundamentally changed how brands connect with consumers, and there is an untapped opportunity to leverage creator content better. Algorithms now feed consumers the likeliest content to engage with, regardless of whom they follow. As a result, breaking through the noise has become increasingly difficult," said Chris Harrington, CEO at CreatorIQ. "The future of marketing is content-first and creator-led. Brands need confidence that their programs are safe, seamless, smart, and scalable. CreatorIQ is building upon 10 years of data, expertise, and machine learning to meet the growing needs of brands for this future."
Brands Evolve Past Basic Creator Program Foundations to Focus on Measurement, Content Effectiveness
For the first time in five years of the study, inadequate budget and staffing are no longer the top creator marketing roadblocks for brands. Instead, difficulty measuring creator performance is now the top challenge, despite 70% of brands reporting that creator marketing contributed to their highest ROI campaign.
While organizations widely recognized creator marketing as a top ROI driver, CreatorIQ's survey found that there is potential to utilize creator content more widely. Just 42% of respondents used creator content for digital ads and paid social targeting. Brand safety has emerged as an additional challenge: one out of five brand respondents consider brand safety one of the most important factors when selecting new creator partners.
Creators are Powerful—and They Care About the Integrity of Their Content
CreatorIQ's proprietary data found that for Fortune 100 brands with leading social programs, creator content powered 32 times more posts, 12 times more impressions, and 17 times more engagement than brands' owned content across Instagram and TikTok.
Creators care about the integrity of their content and seek to maintain authenticity when partnering with brands. 99% of creators surveyed report that they care about creative control when working with brands. 84% of creators would not work with a brand with poor-quality offerings, even if the compensation was high.
"The sheer volume of creator content allows brands to connect with consumers within their distinct communities while still operating at scale," said Brit Starr, CMO at CreatorIQ. "Creator content unlocks a more authentic and resonant path to consumer engagement across all channels—and brands must pull that lever strategically and responsibly to build sustainable connections with their audiences."
Social Platform Dynamics Are Changing
Instagram has been the dominant platform for creator marketing for five years—but TikTok and YouTube are climbing the ranks.
- 84% of brands say Instagram is their top platform for creator marketing, followed by YouTube (73%) and TikTok (71%)
- 27% of brands say TikTok is the top platform for experimentation
- 31% of creators selected TikTok as the most creator-friendly platform, followed by Instagram (29%) and YouTube (19%)
- 28% of creators chose Instagram as the most lucrative platform, followed by TikTok (27%) and YouTube (23%)
CreatorIQ launched its State of Creator Marketing Report today at its annual CreatorIQ Connect conference. The conference brings together industry leaders from 1,200+ brands, agencies, and platform partners, including Edelman, Paramount, Unilever, and YouTube.
Download the full report here.
Research Methodology
This research from CreatorIQ surveyed 902 organization respondents and 231 creators in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Australia, UAE, and Brazil from July to August 2024. Sapio Research and CreatorIQ administered the survey.
About CreatorIQ
CreatorIQ is the leading creator marketing platform brands and agencies rely on to maximize creator marketing programs. Its enterprise-grade workflows and industry-leading intelligence deliver AI-powered creator discovery, unified program management, and standardized measurement that is safe, seamless, smart, and built for scale. Thousands of global organizations use CreatorIQ, including Logitech, Movers+Shakers, Nestlé, RQ, Sephora, Unilever, and more. Learn more at CreatorIQ.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram.
Media Contact
Martha Bennett, CreatorIQ, 1 7049565404, [email protected]
SOURCE CreatorIQ
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