The influencer marketing market size has quadrupled since 2019. That statistic alone tells us that influencer marketing is more than just another social media trend—it’s a monumental shift in how brands connect with their audiences.
Authentic connections and consumer trust are the driving forces behind purchase decisions in the modern digital landscape. And creators deliver those essentials in a way that traditional marketing can no longer compete with.
To win in 2025 and beyond, brands must prioritize strong creator relationships and invest in the tools necessary to optimize those partnerships.
Brands must invest in creator relationships.
The reason for influencer marketing’s growth is simple: Consumers trust creators more than they trust traditional brand advertisements.
Brand advertisements are glossy and polished—almost like viewing the product or service from a showroom. On the other hand, creator content feels raw and unfiltered (the most successful creator content is, anyway).
The latter is preferred because consumers increasingly value authenticity and relatability in marketing. Consumers don’t always want to see things in the best possible light. They want the truth! And that is what content creators deliver.
But why do people follow creators in the first place? There are two main reasons:
- They relate to them. They share the same interests and feel like the creator is someone they would actually hang out with IRL.
- They aspire to be like them. And they are paying close attention to how they can live a similar lifestyle. But why do people follow creators in the first place? There are two main reasons:
That means when brands partner with creators, they get someone whose endorsement feels similar to a recommendation from a friend. OR they get an endorsement from someone who can show their followers how to reach their goals (sometimes both).
This trust and relatability leads to an impressive return on investment—hence the reason for influencer marketing’s meteoric rise over the last half-decade.
In fact, a recent study found that 80% of U.S. companies using creators experienced a median ROI of 160%. The median ROI of traditional advertising? 50.3%. That alone is reason enough to take the strategy seriously (if you aren’t already).
Allocate budget.
Increasing your budget is the first step. Simply put: You have to pay your creators.
There was a time when many creators were more than happy to receive free products in exchange for content. But today, most of those creators have graduated to paid partnerships.
That’s not to say you have to pay a flat rate to every creator on your roster. Affiliate marketing is still a hugely effective strategy. And there is still room for gifting campaigns if you can find the right partners.
However, most successful brands have a combination of all three strategies.
For example, they might have 10 high-impact creators working on paid campaigns. Then, they could have 100 affiliates working on commission. And at the same time, that brand might keep an eye out for brand-aligned creators who might post about the brand in exchange for free products.
The key takeaway here is that you can’t expect creators to post about you for free (or for your cost of goods). Whether it’s a flat rate or competitive commission structure, you have to pay to play.
Allocate (quality) time.
The brands pulling in 160% ROI from influencer marketing aren’t just throwing money at a creator and asking them to hawk their product. Creators aren’t just automatically relatable and trustworthy. There has to be brand alignment and a genuine relationship.
Successful brands treat their creators like partners—not transactions. But that can require a bit of a time commitment. For example:
You have to take time to identify the right creators. Similar to the employees you hire, your creators should be a good culture fit for your brand.
Then you have to ensure they understand your brand and have all the information they need to succeed in your partnerships. The best creators know your brands, use your products, and genuinely believe in both. If a creator is new to your brand, you have to put in the time necessary to make them a believer.
You also need to stay engaged throughout the partnership. If your creator performs well, give them a shoutout for a job well done. If they underperform, you may have to work with them on strategies to improve.
If a creator performs exceptionally well, you want to make sure they’ve had a pleasant enough experience with your brand to consider working with you long-term. That’s when your creators can truly become partners and help your brand continue to grow over time.
Brands must invest in tools to optimize creator relationships.
You have invested budget and time—now you have to protect those investments. That’s where an influencer marketing platform comes into play. Choosing the right platform ensures you get the most out of every dollar (and minute) you spend so you can scale your program and drive even more value.
Discover high-impact creators.
Your platform comes into play from the very beginning. It’s important to be selective during the creator discovery process, and the right platform will ensure you partner with the creators with the best chance for success.
What to look for:
- Brand alignment: Does the creator share your mission and values? Do they align with your ICP?
- Content style: Will your audience find your creator’s content style interesting and engaging?
- Engagement rate: How well does the creator connect with their audience?
- Past partnerships: How has this creator done on other sponsored content?
- Follower count: How large is the creator’s reach?
Having stats on your creator is great, but don’t forget about their audience. Audience insights are the most critical (and often most overlooked) part of the creator discovery phase. Analyzing them ensures your creator’s followers match your ICP so you can ensure your message reaches the right people.
Manage relationships at scale (with a personal touch).
If you’re just getting started with influencer marketing, you can probably get away with sending one-off emails and DMs to creator prospects and collaborating with your partners via email. But as you scale, you’ll need a streamlined way to keep communication organized and relationships strong.
The right influencer marketing platform allows you to scale your outreach without losing that personal touch. From personalizing messages to briefing creators on brand guidelines and campaign details, it gives you everything you need to keep connections authentic—even at scale.
Remember: It’s the little things that make all the difference. Using your creator’s name in a message, remembering their birthday, sending them a product in their favorite color—all of that really matters. And with the right platform, you can keep it all straight (even at scale).
Are you ready to stake your claim in the creator economy? Discover more helpful tips and resources from the experts at GRIN: Creator Management Learning Center
Get all the data you need.
We already touched on how important data is during the creator discovery phase, but it only gets more critical as the partnership evolves.
You need to have a real-time, accurate view of success from the creator, campaign, and programmatic level. That way, you can double down on what’s working and quickly jump in to fix what isn’t.
Plus, the more you increase your influencer marketing budget, the more attention you’ll have on your program from your leadership team. Your brand’s key stakeholders will want to know how that investment is paying off. And with accurate reporting and analytics, you can keep them squarely in the loop and look like a star at your next all-staff meeting.
Be a brand creators LOVE.
Ultimately, your influencer marketing strategy is only as strong as your creator partnerships. If your creators love you, they’ll go to bat for you time and time again.
How do you build that love?
Competitive compensation, shared values, a great product—these are all essentials. But at the end of the day, creators don’t want to have to jump through any hurdles to partner with your brand. Their workflow should be smooth and straightforward.
In a nutshell, your influencer marketing platform should make collaborating with your brand simple, and free up your creators to do what they do best—create!
Key takeaway: The future of influencer marketing belongs to brands that are willing to invest.
Influencer marketing in 2025 is an investment. It’s up to you to protect that investment and make your marketing dollars go as far as possible. Choosing the right platform to accompany you into the new year will do just that. Together, you’ll make 2025 the best year yet.
