The influencer economy is having its ChatGPT moment. Google's latest AI announcements have officially made creators the new kingmakers of search visibility, while YouTube celebrates two decades of proving that authentic voices beat algorithm hacks every time. Duh, when search results become personalised AI conversations instead of blue links, guess whose authentic content gets featured? Not the keyword-stuffers, that's for sure. Buckle up, we're witnessing the birth of Influence o3.
— Sophie & Jeanette
GOOGLE FLEXES ITS AI MUSCLE: INFLUENCE MARKETING SET TO WIN BIG
Google just dropped some serious AI firepower. We're talking multimodal search, personalised shopping experiences, and brand-new ad formats that are set to flip digital marketing on its head. There’s so much going on that my head's still spinning, but here’s the gist for Influence:
Google's AI Mode essentially renders traditional keyword optimisation obsolete. Instead of ten blue links, you get one contextualised answer that's personal, visual and actionable. Visibility now comes from being relevant in the user's specific context, not from ranking #1.
For influencer campaigns, this means your content needs to play nicely with AI conversations. Think clear use cases, visual inspiration, and authentic experiences. You need to understand how Google thinks and what data it's pulling from to make your content part of the AI answer.
Bottom line: Relevance beats ranking. Creative, structured, contextual content is the ticket to the new visibility game.
With virtual try-ons, autonomous checkout, and personalised product panels, creators are evolving into interactive shopping guides whose content directly influences AI-powered purchase decisions. Influencers should craft content that seamlessly fits into Google's new shopping logic – think visual variety, detailed insights, and situational recommendations.
Don't forget: Authenticity still rules. AI handles the tech – humans build the trust.
New creative AI tools, such as Image-to-Video and Outpainting, make it incredibly easy to convert a few assets into multiple formats for different platforms. For brands working with creators, this means squeezing more value from every shoot, leveraging AI to extend your assets, and building relevance across multiple channels without exceeding your budget.
In short: Creators are becoming the SEO of social. More than ever, brands will need creators to reach their target audience. And it's all going down on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, & co. 🙂 — Jeanette
TWITCH GOES MOBILE
Recent years have seen Twitch’s biggest streamers pioneer cross-over livestream/IRL events like GP Explorer or La Velada del Ano, attracting mainstream broadcasting and celebrity participation while millions of fans stream concurrently.
But while the Twitch hype is real, behind the scenes, Amazon-owned Twitch hasplateaued, failing to drive up revenue, streamer and viewer numbers since the dizzying heights achieved during the pandemic.
Hoping to turn that around, Twitch used its annual TwitchCon Europe event in Rotterdam last week to unveil a host of new features designed to reinvent the livestream experience, support creators and boost brand collabs.
Amongst the major announcements: vertical video and dual-format streaming for mobile, 2K resolution rollout, live rewind (is this the end of buffering, lagging and missed live?), and new tools to facilitate clipping and posting short-form content.
Meanwhile, Twitch Creator Sponsorships and Creator Matchmaking Tool by Amazon Ads introduce new creator sponsorship formats, streamline brand collabs, and facilitate discovery of niche streamers and their communities.
Whether all this action is enough to entice more brands and users to Twitch — and enable the platform to finally turn a profit — remains to be seen. For influence, however, one thing is certain: Twitch is a haven of young, engaged and loyal communities. Opportunities abound.
— Sophie
LOOKING GOOD AT 20:
YOUTUBE'S MULTI-FORMAT PLAY PAYS OFF
YouTube isn't just surviving the social media war — it's dominating. With 2.5 billion active users spending 27h/month on the platform, YouTube has become a multi-format powerhouse combining TikTok's viral potential, Google's search authority, and Netflix's premium viewing experience.
What smart marketers can capitalise on:
Multi-format strategies: YouTube's hybrid ecosystem enables you to capture audiences with Shorts, and then convert them through long-form content. It's the only platform where a 15-second teaser seamlessly funnels viewers into a 20-minute product demo.
The TV revolution: With over 1 billion hours watched on TVs daily, influencer partnerships now have cinematic reach with living room intimacy. Gen Z and Gen Alpha consume YouTube like traditional TV but with digital targeting precision.
Micro-influencer opportunities: While mega-creators grab the headlines, nano-influencers generate $2K in EMV per content piece on YouTube (compared to $57 EMV on Instagram), and micro-influencers average $8.9K EMV. Impressive, eh?
The evergreen advantage: Unlike ephemeral platforms, YouTube content has staying power. Your influencer collaborations drive conversions months or years after publication, making campaign investments work harder and longer.
Want more insights? Download the full report here.
— Jeanette
57%
of UK influencer ads on Instagram and TikTok correctly label posts as ads,
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ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Jeanette Okwu is Founder and CEO of influence & brand ambassador marketing agency BEYONDinfluence. Jeanette has long championed social and emerging technologies, including AI, and has a track record of building and implementing effective integrated marketing and communication initiatives by putting data and storytelling front and center. She is an Executive Board Member of the German Influencer Marketing Council BVIM e.V. and host of the successful German podcast Influence By Design.
Sophie Douezis a journalist at Kolsquare covering the European Influencer Marketing Industry. She has extensive experience in B2B, news and political reporting in France, Switzerland and Australia, and is confused as to why she gets transfixed by carpet cleaning videos on Instagram.
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