Full transcript
0:00What will shape the world
0:01of influencer marketing in 2026?
0:03Will AI influencers take over?
0:05Or are we heading back
0:06to flash mobs, throwbacks and tins
0:09of beans going viral?
0:10Well, in this video, I'm breaking
0:11down the five influencer market
0:13trends you want to prepare
0:14for in order to cut through
0:15the noise and actually connect
0:17with creators and your community.
0:19Number one, AI is here to stay.
0:21Interestingly, when I went
0:23to Creator Fest this year and asked
0:24marketers whether they thought
0:26AI creators would take over,
0:27the answer was pretty clear.
0:29No.
0:30I don't think that a influencers
0:32of the future.
0:33No.
0:33No, I really, really don't.
0:34Ultimately, the answer is no.
0:36No, I don't.
0:36I actually don't think AI
0:38influencers are the future.
0:39No, people are going
0:40to win over robots.
0:41Come on.
0:42No, that's fake.
0:43And that sentiment doesn't
0:45just stop with marketers.
0:46It echoes very loudly around
0:48the creator community too.
0:50Just take a look at the comments
0:51under Sheer Lux's AI Content
0:53Creator Reembot on Instagram.
0:55People are really not happy
0:57about it, but that doesn't
0:58mean that AI has no place
1:00in influencer marketing at all.
1:02So familiar from Pretty Little
1:03Marketer puts it perfectly.
1:05But then I think in some
1:06senses it really can work.
1:08I don't know if you guys saw the AI
1:09Bigfoot, trend on you this year,
1:11but I was like vlogging.
1:13Hey everyone, and welcome
1:14back to the channel.
1:15I'm into AI when it's not
1:17replacing something I eat, and Chloe
1:19Perkins from the Creative
1:20Cupid shares a similar view.
1:22I don't think AI as
1:23influencers are the future AI
1:25in influence marketing.
1:27Behind the scenes
1:28reporting, finding influences.
1:29Yes.
1:30So the takeaway I
1:31think is pretty clear.
1:32Personally, I'm much more comfortable
1:34with AI in influence marketing
1:35when it supports creativity
1:37instead of replacing it.
1:39Especially when it helps me cut down
1:41on the long, tedious manual
1:42tasks that come with managing
1:44influencer marketing campaigns.
1:45We're already seeing this
1:47in practice too.
1:48Tools like Modash have launched AI
1:50creator search to make finding
1:52right creators faster and easier.
1:54You could also search by image.
1:56So let's say you like the aesthetic
1:58of one creator and want
1:59to find others with a similar vibe.
2:02You can do exactly that in modash.
2:04Or if you spot a creator promoting
2:05your product in a post and you want
2:07to find other creators doing the
2:09same, you can highlight the product,
2:10generate an entirely new search, and
2:12then refine it further using the
2:14filters.
2:15So AI isn't taking over an influencer
2:18marketing, it's quietly making
2:19it work better behind the scenes.
2:22Number two niche creators.
2:2480% of marketers are choosing niche
2:26creators over celebrities and around
2:286 60% reported better performance
2:30than in previous years.
2:32And to me that just
2:33makes total sense.
2:34Niche creators usually get higher
2:36engagement, stronger trust and have
2:38way more meaningful conversations
2:39with their audiences.
2:41People follow them for
2:42a very specific reason.
2:43So when they talk about a product it
2:45just feels natural and not forced.
2:47And they also tend to be much
2:48more cost effective than
2:49big creators or celebrities.
2:51Here's a real example from my own
2:52career as a full time creator.
2:54So my niche was beauty,
2:56specifically unboxing beauty
2:57advent calendars every year.
2:59Now this video here had over
3:00100,000 views and generated over
3:02140,000 in sales for the brand.
3:05Number three, long term partnerships.
3:07They aren't going anywhere.
3:0985% of marketers plan
3:10to maintain or even expand long
3:12term partnerships in 2026.
3:15And that mindset is showing
3:16up on LinkedIn too.
3:18Georgia Brandt put it perfectly when
3:20she said one and dones are done.
3:22The biggest winners will co create
3:24series that live on creators
3:25channels and build long term
3:26audience buy in not one off ads.
3:29And I get it.
3:30Committing long term is very
3:32scary but they are a fantastic way
3:34to build real trust.
3:35So for instance you get to show
3:37your product in everyday use
3:38and tell a story over time.
3:40They also give you more flexibility
3:42since you can test new creative
3:44angles and respond to community
3:46feedback and take few more risks.
3:48Plus last minute requests pop up.
3:50You've already got creators who
3:52are briefed and ready to go,
3:53which does save you a ton of time
3:55and stress in the long run.
3:57And from experience negotiating
3:58long term deals doesn't really
4:00actually take that that much
4:01time than when you do one offs.
4:03Also long term partnerships
4:04often mean better rates
4:05and more organic placements.
4:07We also heard this from Regila
4:09from Berger, in one
4:10of our latest webinars.
4:11Basically the result out of it is
4:13that you get a lot more organic,
4:16product placements and content that
4:18is not forced and is more authentic.
4:21And a great example is Stanley.
4:23They seed first, test a couple of
4:25collaborations and then they commit.
4:27Long term it's low
4:28risk, a smart approach.
4:30And long term partnerships
4:31pair incredibly well
4:33with affiliate programs too.
4:34Number four, affiliate
4:36programs are sticking around.
4:37I was even surprised
4:39by this, but nearly 85% said
4:41they're either maintaining or
4:42increasing their spend.
4:43Now with budgets getting tighter
4:45and the economy feeling
4:47a little shaky, affiliate programs
4:49are just a relatively low
4:50risk, high reward channel.
4:52Especially if you already
4:54got the setup in place.
4:55Now that said, creators are
4:57starting to push back a little
4:58and I'm not surprised.
4:59Definitely with the amount of
5:01affiliate only emails that I still
5:02get on a daily and I don't work
5:05as a full time influencer anymore.
5:06Now when we asked marketers
5:07whether influencers were becoming
5:09more open to affiliate only
5:10models, over 4% said no.
5:12Compared to 2024, this is a 29% drop.
5:16Creators like anyone, they are
5:18looking for a predictable income.
5:20Nearly a quarter of marketers
5:21said that in 2025 creators require
5:24some kind of guaranteed payment
5:26structure to move forward.
5:27And honestly, from experience,
5:29that's completely fair.
5:30When things feel uncertain, everyone,
5:33creators included, are naturally
5:35looking for more predictable.
5:37But you can get more creative
5:38to sweeten the deal without
5:39needing a bigger budget.
5:41When I worked as a full time
5:42influencer, I genuinely
5:44appreciated things like vi
5:45treatments, early access to
5:47products, invites to exclusive
5:49events and especially my
5:51favorite super personalized
5:53gifts or one of a kind product.
5:54These kinds of incentives
5:56really do make a difference.
5:57Cold affiliate only outreach
5:59just doesn't cut it anymore.
6:01And to be clear, this should not
6:02be a reason to underpay creators.
6:05It's about sweetening the deal
6:06whilst keeping compensation fair
6:09even with tighter budgets.
6:10And lastly community.
6:12Community was a huge buzzword in 2025
6:16and it's only getting bigger.
6:18In 2026 we saw more brands
6:20involve their most engaged
6:21customers and smaller creators
6:23in real brand moments.
6:24Like when Tyler in the UK
6:26invited only top customers
6:27to their Westfield store opening.
6:29And that's because community
6:30builds what reach can't trust,
6:32loyalty and genuine advocacy.
6:34Now when people feel included,
6:36they engage more, create organic
6:37content and influence others
6:39in a paid as never will.
6:42So throughout 2026 I reckon we'll
6:44see more brands leaning into real
6:46conversations, engaging with
6:47customers, working more closely
6:49with micro influencers and brand
6:51founders actually showing up in
6:53the comments.
6:53Just like when Zara McDormott did
6:55with her brand rise.
6:56Whilst those are the top five
6:58trends that we're going to see
6:59in 2026 for influencer
7:01marketing, that's what I think.
7:02Here are some other hot takes
7:04that we may see more of.
7:05Number one, reactive influencer
7:07marketing, meaning more
7:08brands moving fast like jumping
7:10on creator content in real
7:12to create viral moments with
7:13hyper personalized products.
7:15Number two, nostalgia is back after
7:19King Kylie's return and creator
7:20teaming up with the sidemen.
7:22Expect more brands to lean
7:23into why people fell in love with
7:25them in the first place
7:26rather than just chasing trends.
7:28And number three, more influencers
7:30launching their own brands
7:31or becoming co founders.
7:33Now I reckon it's going to be
7:34the year where we see more creators
7:36leveraging their own personal brands
7:38to build businesses and finally
7:40get a piece of that equity.
7:41Piece of so if there's one takeaway
7:43here, it's this influencer marketing
7:45in 2026 is less about hype and more
7:48about building real relationships.
7:50Also, using AI to work smarter,
7:52partnering with the right
7:53creators long term, and building
7:55genuine community.
7:56The brands that will win
7:58won't just shout louder.
7:59They'll show up better.
8:00Let me know which trends
8:01you're most excited about
8:02for 2026 down in the comments.
8:04And if you want more tips, tricks
8:06and skits on influencer
8:07marketing, be sure to follow Mo dash
8:09in your favorite places
8:10links down in the description.