Looking back at the first six months of the year, it's clear that influencer marketing hasn't changed overnight. Instead, we've seen several shifts continuing to gain momentum, changing the way brands and creators work together. Conversations at Cannes Lions, insights from South Africa's Social Media Landscape Report and the campaigns we've seen unfold across the industry all point towards the same conclusion. Successful influencer marketing is becoming less about reach and more about relationships.
For brands, this is the perfect time to take stock. What's working? What’s changed? But more importantly, what lessons from the first half of the year should shape your marketing strategies for the months ahead?
For years, authenticity has been one of the biggest buzzwords in influencer marketing. However, in 2026, it's no longer something that gives brands a competitive advantage, it’s what consumers expect.
Over time, audiences have become incredibly good at recognising when content feels overly scripted or created purely to fulfil a campaign brief. While polished production still has its place, consumers continue to gravitate towards creators who share genuine experiences, honest opinions and content that reflects their everyday lives
This shift has been encouraging brands to rethink how they approach influencer collaborations. Rather than controlling every aspect of a campaign, many are giving creators more creative freedom to tell stories in ways that feel natural to their audiences. After all, creators do understand their communities better than anyone else. When they're trusted to communicate in their own voice, the result is often content that feels more believable and performs more effectively. Today, authenticity isn't defined by how polished content looks but by how genuine it feels to consumers .
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from Cannes Lions 2026 was that creator marketing is no longer sitting on the sidelines of marketing conversations, it has become a strategic business priority.
While AI dominated many discussions throughout the week, the creator economy emerged as another defining theme. Conversations focused on how creators are driving cultural relevance, building consumer trust and influencing purchasing decisions in ways that traditional advertising often cannot. Rather than treating creators as campaign amplifiers, brands are increasingly viewing them as long-term partners who can shape brand perception and deliver value across the customer journey.
For brands, this signals an important shift moving forward. . Creator marketing should no longer be considered a standalone tactic, but an integrated part of broader marketing and business strategies. Brands that invest in strategic creator partnerships, rather than once off, will be better positioned to build trust, remain culturally relevant and create lasting impact.
Expanding on the topic of renewed creator roles, another one of the biggest things we've noticed during the first half of the year is the growing investment in long-term creator partnerships.
Not too long ago, influencer marketing was often built around once off collaborations. A creator would post once, perhaps twice, and the relationship would end when the campaign concluded. While that approach can still generate awareness, brands are increasingly recognising that trust isn't built through a single piece of content.
Long-term partnerships allow creators to become genuine advocates for the brands they work with. Instead of introducing a product once, they integrate it naturally into their content over time, giving audiences multiple opportunities to engage with the brand in an authentic way. The consistency creates familiarity, strengthens credibility and often leads to stronger business results than isolated campaign bursts. It also allows creators to develop a deeper understanding of a brand, resulting in content that feels more natural with every collaboration.
For brands, the takeaway is simple: whether through ambassador programmes or recurring partnerships, investing in a smaller group of well-aligned creators can strengthen audience trust and deliver more sustainable results. It's no surprise that more brands are shifting budget towards creator relationships that last months, or even years, rather than weeks. We speak more to these growing relationships and why long term creator investments are important for every and any brand in our previous blog here.
Perhaps the biggest shift we've seen in the first half of 2026 is that brands are no longer building influencer campaigns. They're building creator ecosystems.
Rather than viewing creators as temporary campaign partners, brands are investing in long-term ecosystems built around shared values and ongoing collaboration.
Initiatives such as Dove's Creator Collective, L'Oréalistar Community and South Africa's first derm-led skincare creator standard launched by The Throne demonstrate how brands are building communities of creators who genuinely believe in what they represent.
Rather than recruiting creators for a once-off campaign, Dove has created a platform that discovers and supports emerging South African creators through mentorship, training, personal brand development and exclusive experiences. It's designed to help creators grow while giving them the opportunity to build a genuine relationship with the brand. In doing so, Dove is investing in people first, with the understanding that stronger creators ultimately become stronger brand advocates. The lesson for brands is clear: investing in creator growth can be just as valuable as investing in campaign execution.
L'Oréalistar is L'Oréal's always-on creator community, offering ongoing collaborations, rewards and upskilling opportunities. Instead of activating creators only when campaigns arise, the brand is fostering continuous engagement. It's a strong example of how long-term creator relationships can build loyalty and consistency over time.
Skin Certified SA, launched with Neutrogena and the Dermatology Society of South Africa, equips skincare creators with dermatologist-backed education before they create content. The initiative highlights that investing in creator credibility is just as important as investing in content, helping build greater trust with audiences.
These types of approaches create stronger advocacy, encourages stronger collaboration and allows brands to build lasting relationships with creators who become true ambassadors.
One of the biggest takeaways from the South African Social Media Landscape Report 2026 was the importance of "The Human Edge." In a digital world where content is more accessible than ever before and technology continues to evolve, the report highlights that genuine human connection is becoming a brand's greatest differentiator. It's changing the way brands evaluate creators. Today's marketers are asking more strategic questions speaking to points such as; engaged audience, if followers genuinely value their recommendations, and if conversations are taking place in the comments. The answers to these questions are proving to be far more valuable than audience size alone.
This shift is also opening more opportunities for micro and niche creators, whose communities are often highly engaged and built around shared interests. In many ways, this human edge reflects what we've seen throughout the first half of 2026. As influencer marketing continues to evolve, success is becoming less about how many people you can reach and more about the quality of the relationships you build along the way.
If the first six months of 2026 have taught us anything, it's that influencer marketing is becoming more intentional.
Long-term partnerships are replacing what were previously transactional campaigns. Communities are becoming more valuable than follower counts, and AI is making marketing more efficient without replacing the importance of human connection.
For brand managers, these aren't simply trends to watch, these are shifts that should influence how campaigns are planned, how creators are selected and how success is measured throughout the rest of this year and beyond. The brands that will thrive in the future won't be the ones trying to keep up with every trend.Rather they'll be the ones investing in authentic relationships, building engaged communities and creating campaigns that people genuinely want to be part of.
At People Have Influence, we've always believed that the strongest campaigns begin with the right strategy and the right partnerships. By combining strategic campaign ideation, expert creator matching, long-term brand collaborations, seamless campaign execution and real-time performance reporting, we help brands turn industry insights into campaigns that deliver meaningful business results.
If it involves people, we are your people. Looking to collaborate with us? Join us here
Found this blog interesting? Then, you may want to read these as well.
References
Looking back at the first six months of the year, it's clear that influencer marketing hasn't changed overnight. Instead, we've seen several shifts continuing to gain momentum, changing the way brands and creators work together. Conversations at Cannes Lions, insights from South Africa's Social Media Landscape Report and the campaigns we've seen unfold across the industry all point towards the same conclusion. Successful influencer marketing is becoming less about reach and more about relationships.
For brands, this is the perfect time to take stock. What's working? What’s changed? But more importantly, what lessons from the first half of the year should shape your marketing strategies for the months ahead?
For years, authenticity has been one of the biggest buzzwords in influencer marketing. However, in 2026, it's no longer something that gives brands a competitive advantage, it’s what consumers expect.
Over time, audiences have become incredibly good at recognising when content feels overly scripted or created purely to fulfil a campaign brief. While polished production still has its place, consumers continue to gravitate towards creators who share genuine experiences, honest opinions and content that reflects their everyday lives
This shift has been encouraging brands to rethink how they approach influencer collaborations. Rather than controlling every aspect of a campaign, many are giving creators more creative freedom to tell stories in ways that feel natural to their audiences. After all, creators do understand their communities better than anyone else. When they're trusted to communicate in their own voice, the result is often content that feels more believable and performs more effectively. Today, authenticity isn't defined by how polished content looks but by how genuine it feels to consumers .
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from Cannes Lions 2026 was that creator marketing is no longer sitting on the sidelines of marketing conversations, it has become a strategic business priority.
While AI dominated many discussions throughout the week, the creator economy emerged as another defining theme. Conversations focused on how creators are driving cultural relevance, building consumer trust and influencing purchasing decisions in ways that traditional advertising often cannot. Rather than treating creators as campaign amplifiers, brands are increasingly viewing them as long-term partners who can shape brand perception and deliver value across the customer journey.
For brands, this signals an important shift moving forward. . Creator marketing should no longer be considered a standalone tactic, but an integrated part of broader marketing and business strategies. Brands that invest in strategic creator partnerships, rather than once off, will be better positioned to build trust, remain culturally relevant and create lasting impact.
Expanding on the topic of renewed creator roles, another one of the biggest things we've noticed during the first half of the year is the growing investment in long-term creator partnerships.
Not too long ago, influencer marketing was often built around once off collaborations. A creator would post once, perhaps twice, and the relationship would end when the campaign concluded. While that approach can still generate awareness, brands are increasingly recognising that trust isn't built through a single piece of content.
Long-term partnerships allow creators to become genuine advocates for the brands they work with. Instead of introducing a product once, they integrate it naturally into their content over time, giving audiences multiple opportunities to engage with the brand in an authentic way. The consistency creates familiarity, strengthens credibility and often leads to stronger business results than isolated campaign bursts. It also allows creators to develop a deeper understanding of a brand, resulting in content that feels more natural with every collaboration.
For brands, the takeaway is simple: whether through ambassador programmes or recurring partnerships, investing in a smaller group of well-aligned creators can strengthen audience trust and deliver more sustainable results. It's no surprise that more brands are shifting budget towards creator relationships that last months, or even years, rather than weeks. We speak more to these growing relationships and why long term creator investments are important for every and any brand in our previous blog here.
Perhaps the biggest shift we've seen in the first half of 2026 is that brands are no longer building influencer campaigns. They're building creator ecosystems.
Rather than viewing creators as temporary campaign partners, brands are investing in long-term ecosystems built around shared values and ongoing collaboration.
Initiatives such as Dove's Creator Collective, L'Oréalistar Community and South Africa's first derm-led skincare creator standard launched by The Throne demonstrate how brands are building communities of creators who genuinely believe in what they represent.
Rather than recruiting creators for a once-off campaign, Dove has created a platform that discovers and supports emerging South African creators through mentorship, training, personal brand development and exclusive experiences. It's designed to help creators grow while giving them the opportunity to build a genuine relationship with the brand. In doing so, Dove is investing in people first, with the understanding that stronger creators ultimately become stronger brand advocates. The lesson for brands is clear: investing in creator growth can be just as valuable as investing in campaign execution.
L'Oréalistar is L'Oréal's always-on creator community, offering ongoing collaborations, rewards and upskilling opportunities. Instead of activating creators only when campaigns arise, the brand is fostering continuous engagement. It's a strong example of how long-term creator relationships can build loyalty and consistency over time.
Skin Certified SA, launched with Neutrogena and the Dermatology Society of South Africa, equips skincare creators with dermatologist-backed education before they create content. The initiative highlights that investing in creator credibility is just as important as investing in content, helping build greater trust with audiences.
These types of approaches create stronger advocacy, encourages stronger collaboration and allows brands to build lasting relationships with creators who become true ambassadors.
One of the biggest takeaways from the South African Social Media Landscape Report 2026 was the importance of "The Human Edge." In a digital world where content is more accessible than ever before and technology continues to evolve, the report highlights that genuine human connection is becoming a brand's greatest differentiator. It's changing the way brands evaluate creators. Today's marketers are asking more strategic questions speaking to points such as; engaged audience, if followers genuinely value their recommendations, and if conversations are taking place in the comments. The answers to these questions are proving to be far more valuable than audience size alone.
This shift is also opening more opportunities for micro and niche creators, whose communities are often highly engaged and built around shared interests. In many ways, this human edge reflects what we've seen throughout the first half of 2026. As influencer marketing continues to evolve, success is becoming less about how many people you can reach and more about the quality of the relationships you build along the way.
If the first six months of 2026 have taught us anything, it's that influencer marketing is becoming more intentional.
Long-term partnerships are replacing what were previously transactional campaigns. Communities are becoming more valuable than follower counts, and AI is making marketing more efficient without replacing the importance of human connection.
For brand managers, these aren't simply trends to watch, these are shifts that should influence how campaigns are planned, how creators are selected and how success is measured throughout the rest of this year and beyond. The brands that will thrive in the future won't be the ones trying to keep up with every trend.Rather they'll be the ones investing in authentic relationships, building engaged communities and creating campaigns that people genuinely want to be part of.
At People Have Influence, we've always believed that the strongest campaigns begin with the right strategy and the right partnerships. By combining strategic campaign ideation, expert creator matching, long-term brand collaborations, seamless campaign execution and real-time performance reporting, we help brands turn industry insights into campaigns that deliver meaningful business results.
If it involves people, we are your people. Looking to collaborate with us? Join us here
Found this blog interesting? Then, you may want to read these as well.
References
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