Advertisers risk overestimating the effectiveness of influencer marketing campaigns if they rely solely on engagement metrics, according to a Kantar study, which found that only 6% of creator content delivers both strong platform engagement and brand-building potential.
The research, The Creator Game Plan, which was presented at Cannes Lions yesterday, suggests that marketers may be misjudging the effectiveness of creator campaigns as investment in influencer marketing continues to grow.
Vera Sidlova, global creative director at Kantar, said that the research is a “wake-up call that high engagement and genuine brand effectiveness more often than not do not align.”
She added: “For all the authenticity and personality that creators offer, there’s no gain to be found in a campaign that lacks strategy, genuine audience insight and fails to add value to a brand’s long-term game plan.”
The report suggests that high-performing on-platform content is often not the content most likely to drive a brand’s growth, with engagement metrics typically reflecting what algorithms reward.
The research was based on an analysis of over 15,000 branded creator assets across TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram, and used Kantar’s LINK AI model to identify platform-specific benchmarks.
Data from Kantar’s Context Lab suggests that, when done well, creator-led content can deliver stronger awareness and consideration than other types of digital advertising.
It found that creator content outperforms digital marketing on metrics that drive a sense of connection, such as enjoyment and active involvement, but falls short on branding. The report links this to the editorial style that naturally softens conventional brand signals and suggests creator-specific benchmarks are required.
The report goes on to examine the drivers of branding effectiveness, and Kantar found that one of the strongest opportunities is when creators mention the brand name aloud. Only half of the creator content analysed included a verbal brand mention, but brand linkage increased by an average of 22 percentage points when it did.
For long-term brand building, Kantar found that communicating product benefits is the strongest contributor to effectiveness, with messages focused on innovation, convenience and versatility delivering particularly strong results.
The report also offers three strategies for chief marketing officers (CMOs) to approach creator content more effectively: as a media channel to access audiences, as a creative partner that can bring distinctive ideas to the brand, and as a cultural asset that can help brands tap into wider moments and conversations.
