Beyond the Influencer Debate: Finding Nuance in Creator Marketing

ENGINE ROOM NEWS & INSIGHTS | APRIL 2025

Engine Pop Reports from Ad Week: Unpacking the Creator Economy's Most Pressing Questions

Ad Week: Are Influencers Too Influential in Advertising?

The Great Influencer Debate

In a packed session at Ad Week, the question posed was simple yet provocative: "Are Influencers Too Influential in Advertising?" The answers, as we discovered, were anything but straightforward.

Expertly moderated by Omar Oakes from OOPH, the panel brought together voices from across the industry spectrum: Sabrina Francis (7Stars), Thomas Walters (Billion Dollar Boy), Suzy Barker (Amy BBDQ), and Rahul Titus (Ogilvy). What unfolded was not just a debate about influence, but a revealing look at how our industry frames—and often misframes—the entire creator ecosystem.

The Trust Deficit

Sabrina Francis opened with a compelling statistic: only 22% of consumers genuinely trust influencers. Her point cut to the heart of what makes marketing work—trust. "Trust builds brands, trust drives sales, trust creates impact," she emphasised, warning that brands are "throwing money at influencers like there's no tomorrow" despite this fundamental trust deficit.

The comparison she drew was stark: traditional advertising has built accountability systems over decades, with advertising standards authorities, legal teams, and compliance processes. Influencer marketing, by contrast, remains "like the Wild West" despite its growing budget allocations.

The Speed of Culture

Rahul Titus from Ogilvy presented the counterargument with equal conviction. "People trust people more than they trust brands," he stated, positioning this as the fundamental reason why brands are quadrupling their influencer marketing budgets.

He highlighted how creator partnerships allow brands to move at "the speed of culture"—citing Uber Eats' ability to go from brief to live engagement in 24 hours across multiple markets. "Can traditional advertising and production do that? Absolutely not," he argued.

His examples were compelling: Coca-Cola's "recipe for magic" campaign for Coke Meals (their largest revenue driver) leveraged thousands of creators to hyper-personalise messages across every market, from "Coca-Cola pasta in Italy to Coca-Cola biryani in India."

The Authenticity Problem

Suzy Barker acknowledged the power of influencers but highlighted what she called "the dark side" of these metrics. Her concerns centered on authenticity—or the lack thereof—in many influencer partnerships.

She referenced several examples including "The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives" on Hulu, where women claiming to represent Mormon values engaged in decidedly non-Mormon activities, and the "trad-wife" Valerie Pastiche promoting traditional living while married to the son of a major airline CEO.

Most concerning was her mention of the Netflix documentary "Apple Cider Vinegar," featuring a woman who falsely claimed to have cancer while selling products purporting to treat the disease.

"Authenticity with influencers can be a very slippery slope," Barker cautioned.

The Creator Distinction

Thomas Walters of Billion Dollar Boy rejected the reductive framing of the entire category. "The use of 'influencers' is often in an outdated and reductive fashion," he argued. "The space is incredibly broad."

To illustrate this, he highlighted Lucy Edwards, a blind creator who worked with Procter & Gamble to convince them to put braille codes on every bottle of shampoo and conditioner—"which is incredibly effective and would never have happened without Lucy's involvement."

Beyond The Binary Debate: A New Framework

What became clear throughout the discussion was that the industry is still using monolithic terminology for what is actually a nuanced spectrum of creator partnerships. The binary question of whether influencers are "too influential" misses the more important distinctions we should be making.

Our takeaway framework from the session:

1. INFLUENCERS aren't a monolith

2. MICRO-INFLUENCERS deliver niche authenticity with higher engagement

3. CREATORS bring craft and cultural understanding to brand partnerships

The Regulation Question

What's missing from the industry conversation is how we safeguard consumers while embracing innovation. Better regulation is essential, as Sabrina Francis argued, though increasingly challenging in today's fragmented distribution landscape where content crosses platforms in seconds.

Thomas Walters countered the regulation concern, stating that "influencer marketing is well-regulated in pretty much every market" and that creators are "often held to a higher standard than celebrities appearing in a print advert."

The Way Forward

Perhaps the real question isn't whether influencers are "too influential" but whether brands are sophisticated enough in how they evaluate, categorise, and deploy different types of creator partnerships.

As budgets continue to shift toward creator-led strategies—with Rahul Titus noting that some brands are allocating up to 50% of their marketing spend to influencer marketing—the need for strategic frameworks becomes even more critical.

At Engine Pop, we believe the answer lies not in rejecting influencer marketing nor in blindly embracing it, but in developing sophisticated approaches.

For more information on how we can help you navigate the creator economy, contact us at hello@enginepop.co

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Engine Pop specialises in global entertainment and fan-driven strategies, focusing on community building, IP development, licensing, monetisation frameworks, and comprehensive content strategies. As digital transformation specialists, we don't just solve problems—we reimagine possibilities, turning complex challenges into breakthrough opportunities.