ICYMI: 10 New Ways To Work With Creators In 2025
Put creators at the heart of everything you do
[via Rimmel London]
Note: This was a member exclusive issue of ICYMI — but I’m removing the paywall so I can share this article as part of the panel I’m speaking on at Social Media Week: Creator Content Only Belongs on Social... Or Does It?
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Sponsored content is still the top way brands partner with influencers, but is that really enough? With 2025 on the horizon, it’s time to explore new possibilities for working with creators that go beyond traditional partnerships.
According to Linquia’s State of Influencer Marketing 2025 report, 74% of marketers still rely on sponsored content as their primary collaboration with creators, followed by brand ambassadors at 48% and user-generated content at 40%.
While these methods remain effective, brands can do much more to tap into creators’ unique skills and insights.
As Paramount’s Vice President of Talent and Influencer Marketing, RJ Larese, recently said, “Creators are celebrities to our audience... we work with them everywhere.”
From voice acting in animation to collaborating on scripted projects, Larese recognizes the wide range of opportunities creators bring to the table. “The goal is to make creators dreams come true and then work with them in a variety of different ways across all of our portfolio.”
But you don’t have to work in Hollywood to take advantage of all the ways you could be collaborating with creators.
So, how can your brand work with influencers and creators in new ways to strengthen product market fit, build trust, and drive growth? Here are 10 additional methods to add to your toolbox.
1️⃣ Hire a creator as a writer for your brand
There’s an SEO benefit to leveraging creators as writers but also they’re often able to write in such a way that it’s content audiences actually want to consume.
Offball, a new sport culture media site, brought on creator Adam Faris as a guest curator. “We like to bring forward those whose commentary helps shape ours,” they wrote of the guest curator program. Faris, a sports creator, dissected college football and F1 for Offball’s newsletter and provided commentary on the brand’s Instagram account over a weekend in October.
2️⃣ Hire a creator to provide photography and/or video
Look past the Feed and contract a creator to produce content for your website and other digital touch points, like your newsletter, apps or digital ads.
“On the editorial side, we use creators as contributors for our video content and social content. A good example of this is Joe Holder. We brought him in and he works for GQ Sports, essentially as a contributing editor, but then we utilize him for branded partnerships as well,” Lloyd D'Souza, SVP Global Head of Central Video, Condé Nast, said during a panel at CreatorIQ Connect.
3️⃣ Hire a creator for custom music and sounds for social
Tap into creators, especially those with musical talent, to produce custom music and audio tracks or sound bumps for social content, especially as platforms like TikTok continue to prioritize audio-driven experiences.
Custom music not only adds a unique element to branded content but also avoids the copyright issues that brands struggle with around using unlicensed audio.
TikTok itself launched 18 custom voiceover audio templates that brands could use as part of its Sounds for Business library for advertisers. The company also extended its incubator program partnership with Sephora to help up-and-coming beauty brands craft custom music tracks that best capture the essence of the brands.
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4️⃣ Bring in a creator or influencer for an R&D session
They’ve got a good pulse on what audiences are talking about or looking for. And they can help inform a go-to-market or launch strategy.
Mariana Hewitt has said she used her creator background and a social-first approach to help develop Summer Fridays. She knew the packaging had to look good in flat lay photos and pop against Instagram’s at-the-time blush pink aesthetic.
“From being a creator so long, I could take all of that data that I was seeing in my comments and inform what Lauren [Ireland] and I created to be Summer Fridays,” Hewitt said recently.
5️⃣ Hire an influencer to QA a new or existing product or service
A digital star who works your industry will have valuable insights and expectations that reflect not just their needs and concerns but the very real feedback they get from their communities.
“One of my food media clients landed multiple successful consulting deals with companies after having a "not great experience" with their product for a brand deal,” said creator attorney Brittany Ratelle.
“My client wasn't willing to move forward with the proposed campaign and talking points, but she pivoted into a consulting gig so she could give critical feedback to the consumer product team about what they needed to change to their appliance product for her audience to be happy customers.”
6️⃣ Book a relevant influencer or creator for a lunch and learn with your team
They can provide valuable insights about the industry, your product or service, social media, and audiences in this space. It’s also a chance for the team to get their questions answered by someone uniquely qualified to provide feedback.
“I’ve run quite a few successful lunch & learns for our teams to understand the 360-value creators have. They’ve showed teams that don’t always interface with our vertical the chance to connect 1:1 directly with them as a mini-focus group,” said Digital Marketing Leader Megan Levy.
“Partner with Creators in front of the lens, behind the lens and BTS
Place Creators at the heart of everything you do and how you do it”
-Lindsay Calabrese, Brand Partnerships Director
7️⃣ Hire a creator to help craft an internal or external comms strategy
They’ve got unique insights and the language to translate your message in a way that truly resonates with audiences.
“I’ve hired in-house creators as full time content creators, put together a Board of Creators, and creator product review focus groups and even partnered with creators for internal cultural impact summits to educate C-Suite executives at Taco Bell, Google and PepsiCo,” said Brand Partnerships Director Lindsay Calabrese.
“There are so many reasons to partner with creators in front of and behind the lens and scenes!”
8️⃣ Book an influencer or creator as spoken word talent
Bring on a creator to represent you as on-air talent for press, to voice a branded podcast or as a keynote speaker at your next corporate event or industry conference.
Adobe excels at this, tapping into its employee advocates and creative community as well as more traditional influencers for its various events. Visual artists Devon Rodriguez — who counts 62.5M followers across multiple platforms — delivered a keynote at Adobe Max, and creators Goldie Chan and Lucas O’Keefe were each tapped for mini Ted-style talks.
9️⃣ Assemble a Creator Board of Directors or Council
Glassdoor recently launched “Worklife Pros.” This creator advisory board will contribute their knowledge and perspectives “on topics that matter most to today’s workforce,” said the company.
Beauty company, Rimmel London, assembled the Creator Crew, a collection of trailblazers in the industry. The company said the beauty pros will counsel them on everything from product naming and packaging insights to trialing and testing new products.
By bringing together a diverse group of creators, influencers and thought leaders, you'll gain invaluable insights into your target audience, be able to tap into new markets and develop collaborative content.
🔟 Hire a creator as in-house talent
Whether it’s to work on the social team creating lo-fi, relatable content that audiences want to watch or as part of the influencer marketing team, creators are uniquely qualified for in-house roles.
“I hired a creator as an Influencer Coordinator at Cashmere [marketing agency] and promoted her to Manager after a year,” said Brand Partnerships Director Lindsay Calabrese. “Having been on the receiving end of brand outreach, negotiations, contracting, creative briefing, content production and analytics, she was a huge asset. She also got creator features we could test out.”
Similarly, Creator Residency programs were all the rage last year when the Los Angeles Public Library and The Peabody Essex Museum recruited for Creators in Residence and beauty brand Too Faced announced it had appointed actor and TikTok star Sara Echeagaray as its first-ever Creative Director in Residence.
The possibilities are endless. If you’ve found success with an alternative way to use creators and influencers, let me know below!
🗓️ Please note: I didn’t want to bombard you with email this week so I published the ICYMI October’s Biggest Headlines recap without actually sending via email. You can see the review of the biggest headlines here:
You are a trove of knowledge, Lea 🫶