The primary value of working with smaller creators is not their audience reach, but their ability to produce authentic content at scale. This content can then fuel paid media campaigns, which is the biggest driver of growth in the influencer marketing industry today.
If a brand's media plan heavily favors bottom-funnel channels and looks the same as it did years ago, their measurement is flawed. This indicates they are over-crediting demand capture channels and ignoring the impact of upper-funnel activities that create initial interest.
For years, marketers could succeed with mediocre creative by optimizing media buys. As platforms automate targeting, creative excellence is now the primary lever for success. An organization that doesn't respect and elevate creativity across the entire marketing function is destined to underperform.
Over-relying on last-click measurement is like only crediting the striker for a goal, ignoring the midfielders and defenders. This flawed logic causes marketers to over-invest in bottom-funnel "strikers" (e.g., branded search), creating a dysfunctional team that ultimately loses.
The marketing landscape is saturated with hype and bad advice, making the noise-to-signal ratio dangerously high. The key is a dual mindset: actively filter out distracting noise while maintaining a personal interest and curiosity to experiment with genuine shifts in technology and user behavior.
Instead of allocating a small percentage of a media budget to creative, flip the model. First, budget for a robust creative content engine (UGC, creators, etc.). Then, treat paid media as the amplification layer for that content, which could lead to a 50/50 split instead of the typical 80/20.
When shifting budget to upper-funnel activities, sales impact takes time. Use leading indicators like increases in branded search volume, website sessions, or social follower growth to show early positive signals and maintain buy-in from leadership while tests are still running.
Marketers fear missing the boat on major trends, but jumping in too early can be catastrophic as new models can wipe out entire strategies. Focus on experimenting where user behavior is already changing (e.g., LLM search), but avoid over-investing until the market is more mature.