Observed Signal · Aug 19, 2026 · Partnership · Source: The Drum · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
CMOs Using Creators Only for Reach Are Missing Out
Kantar’s Jane Ostler argues brands must stop treating all creator partnerships the same and instead decide whether they are buying reach, creative firepower, or cultural cachet — then measure accordingly. Kantar analysed 15,000 creator assets and warns that relying on simple engagement metrics (views, likes, comments) can select the wrong creators and scale activity that doesn’t deliver business impact. The piece contrasts approaches: using creators as a media channel for audience reach (example: Tate McRae with Neutrogena), leveraging creators for creative execution under brand strategic control (example: CeraVe with Anwar Jibawi), and treating creators as cultural assets where the partnership itself is the campaign (common in fashion and luxury). The key recommendation is to match creator strategy to campaign goals and brief creators differently depending on the desired outcome.
Opinion/strategy piece with Kantar analysis (15,000 assets) offering measurement and strategy guidance for creator marketing; informative for practitioners but not a platform policy or industry-shifting announcement.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Kantar analysed 15,000 creator assets in its creative effectiveness database.
- A net 61% of marketers told Kantar they are boosting their creator budget this year.
- The article contrasts three creator roles: buying reach, buying creative firepower, or buying cultural cachet.
- Examples cited: Tate McRae’s collab with Neutrogena (reach-focused) and CeraVe’s partnership with Anwar Jibawi (creative-led).
- CeraVe’s campaign with Anwar Jibawi won first place in the social and digital category in Kantar’s Advertising Effectiveness Awards this year.
Connected Companies & Entities
2 Entities mapped“Kantar’s Jane Ostler argues the real discipline is deciding whether you’re buying reach, creative firepower or cultural cachet – and measuri...”
“Linked reference: How creator content is fueling Microsoft’s retail media strategy with 3x higher click rates...”
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CMOs Must Stop Mistaking Creator Engagement for Impact
Kantar Chief Insights Officer Jane Ostler argues that brands are rapidly increasing creator marketing spend while lacking the measurement to prove commercial or brand outcomes. Kantar’s Creator Game Plan study analysed 15,000 branded creator assets across TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram and found only 6% of creator content delivers both strong platform engagement and strong brand-building potential (27% reach medium-to-high on both when thresholds are relaxed). Ostler warns engagement metrics are a poor proxy for brand impact and urges CMOs to manage creator marketing as a strategic capability with brand-specific measurement, long-term creative platforms, and calibrated creative control. Kantar has added creator-specific benchmarking into its LINK AI model to evaluate creator content on its own terms.
Engagement Alone Insufficient to Judge Creator Campaigns
A Kantar whitepaper, “The Creator Game Plan”, analyzed more than 15,000 branded creator posts across TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram and finds that platform engagement rarely maps directly to brand impact or ROI. Only 6% of evaluated posts delivered both high platform engagement and strong brand effectiveness; even in the mid-range engagement band the match rate was only about 27%. Kantar warns marketers that likes and interaction metrics alone are an unreliable success signal and recommends combined KPI sets and deeper brand- and sales-focused measures. The study notes 61% of marketing leaders plan to increase spending on creator content but stresses strategy, audience fit and long-term brand integration are required for lasting effect. Kantar and quoted marketers provide a ten-point checklist for better creator-campaign measurement and execution.
Kantar's Creator Game Plan: 4 Key Takeaways
Kantar's 2026 report, The Creator Game Plan, analyses over 15,000 pieces of creator-led content across 19 countries on major short- and long-form social platforms and highlights how marketers must shift from simple engagement metrics to effectiveness-focused strategies. The study finds 61% of marketers plan to increase creator spend in 2026, with some brands allocating 30–40% of ad budgets to creator content. Kantar identifies three strategic creator roles (media channel, creative partner, cultural asset), shows that verbally naming the brand in creator narration boosts brand linkage by an average 22 percentile points, and warns that platform engagement aligns with brand-building or short-term sales outcomes only about one in three times. The report also calls for longer-term partnerships and transparent feedback between brands and creators.
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