Since the rise of user-generated content (UGC), marketers have been creating ads that replicate that authentic, organic feeling (or working with creators to produce this type of content).
Now, platforms like TikTok and Instagram have made it even easier for companies to collaborate with creators through creator marketplaces. Dive in to learn how they work and what marketers need to keep in mind as they navigate these new spaces.
What Is a Creator Marketplace?
A creator marketplace is where brands can search for content creators they want to work with on marketing campaigns or product promotions. Marketers can search by key demographics like age, location, engagement, and topic to find creators that align with their target audience and campaign goals. Some creator marketplaces also allow marketers to see creators that have expressed interest in working with, have tagged, or follow their company.
There are two major creator marketplaces that B2B marketers can tap into: TikTok Creator Marketplace and Instagram Creator Marketplace. Here’s a breakdown of each.
TikTok Creator Marketplace
How to Use the TikTok Creator Marketplace
To access the TikTok Creator Marketplace, you’ll need to log into or create a TikTok advertising account if your company doesn’t already have one. Then, you can search for creators by region, topic, reach, views, audience location, and more. If you already have a creator in mind, you can search for them directly.
Once you identify potential creators for your campaign, you can invite them to collaborate. This is when you negotiate deliverables, budget, and timeline as well as send a proposal.
Once your creator is in, you can manage the campaign directly from the creator marketplace — everything from reviewing scripts and videos to tracking engagement with live posts.
Is the TikTok Creator Marketplace Worth It?
TikTok has more than 1 billion monthly active users — and in March, the company announced 150 million Americans are active on its app. In other words, the potential reach of TikTok content is HUGE.
Plus, according to Nielsen, 92% of consumers trust recommendations from friends and family more than any form of advertising. This rings true for TikTok creators who recommend products and services to the followers they’ve built a strong connection with.
TikTok has also changed content preferences, so audiences now tend to engage with authentic, user-generated videos over highly produced content. If that’s what audiences want, who better to create it for your brand than the creators who do it every day and have a history of success?
Instagram Creator Marketplace
How to Use the Instagram Creator Marketplace
Right now, companies need to request to join the Instagram Creator Marketplace and get approved to access it. If your business account is approved, you can search for creators by their key demographics, interests, and follower count. You can also search for creators based on their audience’s age, interests, and location.
Just like the TikTok Creator Marketplace, marketers can contact creators about collaborating on campaigns, sharing details about the deliverables and compensation. For brands, any messages with creators go to a partnerships inbox so you can track that communication separately from your account’s direct messages.
Is the Instagram Creator Marketplace Worth It?
Similar to TikTok, Instagram content has the potential to reach many people (there are over 2 billion monthly active users on the app) and Instagram creators help their followers discover new brands through authentic content.
According to Meta, consumers are also 1.5X more likely to want to see branded creator content on Instagram than on other platforms (YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat). While this stat needs to be taken with a grain of salt, people may be more likely to interact with creator-generated ads on Instagram because they expect and actually want that type of content on that platform.
What to Keep In Mind When Using a Creator Marketplace
Choose Your Creator Carefully
At the end of the day, the creator is central to the success of your campaign. You need to work with creators who have followers that align with your company’s target audience, discuss topics that relate to your company’s industry or product, and create content with a style and tone that makes sense for your company’s brand.
The creator with the biggest following or highest engagement might not be the best fit for your company or campaign goals. Or you might have to collaborate with a few creators before you find the best fit.
Go Where Your Audience Is
You know your audience, the content they consume, and where they consume it. So, keep that in mind when choosing which creator marketplace to explore and which creator to work with.
Use the performance of past ad campaigns to help inform where you’ve seen success historically. If your Instagram ads tend to perform well, you will likely see success working with a creator on that platform — and it might even help the ads you already have running perform even better.
Focus on Awareness
If you collaborate on a campaign with a creator, focus on awareness metrics like views and engagement (maybe traffic). This type of content will not generate tons of leads or new business directly, but it will boost your brand awareness, which impacts the success of your marketing efforts overall.
If you’re seeing lots of engagement, that means people are watching your content (and likely finding it valuable). When they see your brand pop up again either on social or another channel, they’ll be more likely to engage or even sign up for your product or service.
Creator-generated content is a great way for companies to reach new people within their target audience — and creator marketplaces make it easy for marketers to find creators that align with their brand, produce content, and track campaign performance. If your audience is on TikTok or Instagram, try out a creator marketplace yourself or reach out to First Page Strategy for a bespoke paid marketing strategy.
