Creators are the #1 place CMOs plan to invest more in 2026; 97% plan to increase creator marketing budgets

LTK, the company that turned influence into a global economy, today released findings from its third annual creator marketing study in partnership with Northwestern University’s Retail Analytics Council. The study reveals how CMOs are prioritizing creator-led strategies in 2026, underscoring the channel’s growing role in shaping brand trust, awareness, and commerce.

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Creators are the #1 place CMOs plan to invest more in 2026; 97% plan to increase creator marketing budgets

Creators Take Top Spot for Increased Marketing Investment

For 2026, creators lead the list of marketing channels where CMOs plan to increase spending. Creators rank above AI-driven search, paid social, and paid search for increased investment, with 97% of CMOs reporting they will expand creator marketing budgets next year. Trust in creators is the driver - with CMOs citing creators as the most trusted source of product recommendations for consumers, outperforming social media ads and celebrities. That aligns with the rise in consumer trust in creators, which increased 21% year-over-year, reinforcing their role as the most credible voice for brands.

The Expanded Role of Creators Across Every Channel

Creator content is no longer confined to social platforms. The majority of marketers now deploy creator content across multiple channels, including display advertising (46%), content marketing (44%), user-generated content (41%), affiliate marketing (38%), and connected TV (35%). On social media, creator content has become the backbone of advertising strategies, with 92% of brands using it in ads and allocating 20% of budgets to media boosting creator content. Within retail media networks, creator marketing has risen in importance, ranking as the second highest investment priority, up from third in 2024.

Across all channels, CMOs report awareness and brand perception as the greatest value creators can deliver, with awareness alone increasing 27% year-over-year. However, CMOs want full funnel reporting, citing generating sales, driving loyalty and retention, producing content, strengthening brand perception, and creating awareness as their top creator campaign goals.

“What we’re seeing in this year’s study is a significant shift toward scale. Marketers are no longer experimenting with creators in isolated campaigns; they are bringing creator marketing together into one unified, full-funnel strategy,” said Frank Dudley, Professor, Marketing Strategy, Influencer Marketing, Digital Marketing, Media and Innovation, Northwestern University. “Going into 2026, creators are becoming the connective tissue across channels, delivering impact from awareness all the way through conversion and loyalty.”

The Shift to Always-On Creator Communities

As brands aim to scale their impact and reach, marketers are increasingly building creator communities to support always-on engagement. According to the study, 65% of CMOs report their teams are working with more than 50 creators and 41% with more than 100 creators. And, within these brand creator communities, lifestyle creators are ranked most important by 60% of CMOs.

Streamlining Creator Strategy at Scale

Creator strategies are deeply embedded across marketing organizations, with 7+ departments (including social, media, PR, shopper marketing, and brand) leveraging creator partnerships. This expansion has increased demand for streamlined platforms and workflows. CMOs report their preference for a hybrid approach - a mix of managed and self-service tools in one platform - for their teams to manage all creator activities.

In addition, creative control is shifting. 62% of CMOs leave interpretation to creators, providing only general brand guidelines, while almost 40% now give creators full creative control.

"Creator content is number one in marketing investment growth and is now full-funnel, used across all marketing departments,” said Rodney Mason, Head of Marketing, Brand Platform at LTK. “The hyper growth is creating demand to bring creator marketing together all-in-one place to scale impact faster and more efficiently."

Next month, LTK will expand its brand platform into a full creator management platform and, for the first time, making it free for brands to access, with advanced paid features available. What was once focused on campaign management, LTK has now evolved into an all-in-one, full-funnel platform, designed to power every stage of creator marketing. Brands will also be able to create and curate their own profile on the LTK app, leveraging LTK Creator content to tell their brand story and showcase their products in an authentic, trusted way. Driving nearly $6B in annual sales, LTK is the trusted place where millions of consumers turn to find, follow and connect with creators, reaching 40 million monthly users, including nearly 40% of U.S. Gen Z and Millennial women.

The reported data summarizes key findings conducted by LTK in collaboration with Northwestern University in July 2025. It surveyed 204 marketing leaders and decision-makers who have invested in creator marketing within the past 12 months, representing organizations with $10M+ in revenue, the majority of which exceed $100M+.

To learn more about the LTK & Northwestern University’s 2026 Creator Marketing Study, please visit LTK Brand Central.

About LTK

LTK is the global creator commerce platform that turned creator influence into a worldwide economy. Founded in 2011 by Amber Venz Box and Baxter Box, LTK is a three-sided marketplace with dedicated platforms for creators, brands, and consumers.

LTK empowers creators to retain, nurture and grow direct relationships with their audiences through their LTK profiles, creating lasting businesses. For brands, LTK is a full-funnel, performance channel that scales globally, and turns creators into a retailer’s tech-enabled power partner. Today, LTK powers $6B in annual retail sales, supports 60,000 creator-brand collaborations each year, has 7,000 retailers actively investing in creators, and is used by more than 40M monthly users. LTK’s mission to empower creator success has led to nearly $3B invested in creators and helped nearly 400 women become self-made millionaires.

Headquartered in Dallas, TX, LTK operates across five continents. Download the LTK app in the App Store or Google Play. For updates, follow @ltk.hq on Instagram and @shopltk on X and LTK on LinkedIn.

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For 2026, creators lead the list of marketing channels where CMOs plan to increase spending. Creators rank above AI-driven search, paid social, and paid search for increased investment, with 97% of CMOs reporting they will expand creator marketing budgets.