It’s just about that time to plan your marketing initiatives for the next calendar year – where do you stand? Our strategists shared their observations during “The CMO’s Creator Guide 2026” webinar, exploring insights from the LTK & Northwestern 2025 CMO Study of top-level marketing professionals and decision makers who used Creator Marketing in the last year. See why you need to put Creators at the top of your list.
Use this as your go-to CMO Creator guide for the year ahead.
Marketing has transformed, making Creators a central component of nearly every brand's strategy. Executive decision makers and marketers are turning to Creators to drive business results across the entire funnel.
CMOs are increasing Creator Marketing spend more than any other channel as brands strive to connect with consumers. In fact, while 90 percent of brands already leverage Creator Marketing, a substantial 97 percent expect it to play a larger role in future marketing efforts.
Audiences look at advertising differently than in the past, seeking the authenticity that “real people” provide. Creator content now outperforms branded social media advertisements and celebrity endorsements, consistently ranking as the most trusted source for product recommendations, especially in top industries, such as:
To meet increasing consumer demand, brands are embracing an "always-on" approach to Creator Marketing that spans the customer journey. The majority of CMOs (65 percent) work with 50+ Creators to distribute content across multiple channels in their marketing ecosystem.
LTK partner brands build Creator “armies” by incorporating Creator content across an average of four channels:
Did you know that an average of 20 percent of brands’ Creator budgets are dedicated to boosting content? Brands using LTK Boost can experience significant growth in clicks and sales.
But you can also access a variety of other advanced tools to amplify Creator content, drive growth, and track performance. Fine-tune Creator Marketing performance with such features as:
Creator content is more versatile than you may think. Put it to work across departments, both on social media and off-platform.
Creator content is being used by multiple teams across brands, expanding its impact across several key departments, including:
Much of this is still social media-focused; Creator content on Instagram (69 percent), Facebook (66 percent), TikTok (60 percent), and YouTube (51 percent) is boosted most to reach consumers. But Creator content across media is growing, with display advertising, content marketing, and user-generated content all on the rise.
LTK brings brands and Creators together to combine their expertise for brand growth. Support upper-funnel and lower-funnel goals in equal measure.
Brands launch Creator campaigns to support goals ranging from generating sales (53 percent) to building loyalty and retention (49 percent) to generating content (47 percent). Both CMOs and Creators measure success in remarkably similar ways too:
Creators
CMOs
The most sought-after partners for brands? CMOs rank lifestyle Creators as No. 1 overall (59 percent), in addition to being tops across verticals such as health, wellness, and fitness (75 percent) and fashion (63 percent). But you may also seek out a few other types of Creators to authentically connect with consumers:
Brands know they don’t need to be overly prescriptive in their guidance to Creators. The best way to collaborate with Creators is to trust them.
Very few brands provide prescriptive guidance. Give Creators the autonomy to interpret projects and develop authentic content that drives results. Some food for thought:
Nervous about handing over the keys? Compromise and collaborate for the best results. More than 45 percent of brands co-create content ideas with Creators.
Are you making room in your 2026 budget for Creator Marketing? Start forming partnerships now to stand out in a sea of branded social media, CTV, and web content. LTK gives you everything you need to succeed, from AI-powered casting to campaign creation and measurement. Turn the page on your old approach and get started today.