TL;DR:
61% of brands elevated influencer marketing to strategic infrastructure status, while the rest are still experimenting with one-off campaigns.
The gap between systematic programs and ad hoc approaches widened significantly throughout 2025, creating measurable competitive advantages for early movers.
Leading brands are building five-pillar frameworks that turn creator partnerships into predictable revenue drivers, not just brand awareness plays.
Table of Contents
Here's the uncomfortable truth: while some brands were still debating whether influencer marketing deserved a seat at the strategic table, 61% of their competitors already gave it one.
Throughout 2025, a clear divide emerged between organizations treating creator partnerships as core business infrastructure versus those running isolated campaigns whenever budget allowed. The brands that committed to systematic approaches didn't just see incrementally better results. They built compounding advantages that widened the gap between leaders and laggards with each passing quarter.
Later partnered with Centiment to survey 214 marketing decision makers at U.S. brands and agencies to understand exactly what separates high-performing influencer programs from everyone else. The findings reveal something more valuable than best practices. They reveal the specific frameworks, investment patterns, and operational decisions that turn influencer marketing from a cost center into a growth engine.
Our 2025 State of Influencer Marketing report captures these insights in a comprehensive blueprint designed for the leaders who control budgets, build strategies, and answer to executives demanding ROI. If you're responsible for proving that creator partnerships deserve increased investment, this research provides the benchmarks and frameworks you need.
The investment gap widened between leaders and everyone else
The most telling indicator of program maturity wasn't budget size. It was how brands approached investment as a strategic decision rather than a discretionary expense.
Strategic leaders were twice as likely to increase their influencer marketing investment compared to those scaling back. In fact, 47% of brands increased their investment throughout 2025 despite challenging economic conditions. While some organizations pulled back during economic uncertainty, the brands building systematic programs did the opposite. They recognized that market volatility creates opportunities for those willing to commit while competitors retreat.
The commitment levels were striking: 30% of brands directed between 41-60% of their total marketing resources to influencer programs, while 33% maintained strong investment even during periods of economic uncertainty. These weren't discretionary budgets subject to quarterly cuts. These were strategic allocations tied directly to revenue objectives.
The research reveals exactly how leading brands structure their budgets, what percentage of marketing resources they allocate to creator partnerships, and how they balance always-on programs with campaign-driven activations. More importantly, it shows the relationship between investment patterns and business outcomes, giving you the data you need to build a compelling case for increased resources.
For marketing leaders tired of fighting for budget every quarter, the report provides a framework for positioning influencer marketing as infrastructure that compounds in value rather than a tactic that requires constant justification.
Download the 2025 State of Influencer Marketing report to access the complete investment benchmarks, budget allocation frameworks, and ROI models that leading brands use to secure and sustain strategic-level resources.
Long-term partnerships replaced the transactional playbook
The brands achieving consistent results stopped treating creator relationships like one-time media buys. They built partnerships designed to deepen over time, creating authentic advocacy that transactional sponsorships simply cannot replicate.
The shift wasn't philosophical. It was operational. Leading programs developed systematic approaches to creator roster composition, partnership duration, and integration with core business functions like product launches, seasonal campaigns, and revenue-driving promotions. The result was a fundamental change in how creator content performed, how efficiently teams operated, and how predictably programs delivered against business objectives.
The report breaks down exactly how top performers structure their creator rosters, what partnership models deliver the strongest returns, and how to integrate creator relationships with broader marketing calendars to maximize impact. For leaders managing multiple campaigns across different product lines or regions, these frameworks provide a repeatable system for scaling without sacrificing quality or authenticity.
What makes this particularly valuable for enterprise decision makers is the operational detail. This isn't high-level philosophy about the value of relationships. It's specific guidance on roster size, partnership structures, and integration models that you can apply immediately to improve program performance.
AI became the difference between scaling and drowning
Here's what changed in 2025: the brands that adopted AI-powered operations gained the ability to do more with existing resources, while those relying on manual processes hit a ceiling they couldn't break through without adding headcount.
The transformation wasn't about replacing human judgment with algorithms. It was about removing the operational bottlenecks that prevent smart strategies from scaling. Creator vetting that once took days happened in hours. Performance analysis that required dedicated analysts became accessible to small teams. Budget optimization that relied on gut instinct shifted to data-supported decisions that improved with every campaign.
For leaders responsible for demonstrating efficiency gains and proving ROI to executives, AI isn't optional anymore. It's the operational foundation that makes systematic influencer marketing possible at scale. The question isn't whether to adopt these tools. It's how quickly you can integrate them before the competitive gap becomes insurmountable.
The report details exactly how leading brands deploy AI across the creator lifecycle, what specific use cases deliver the highest return, and how to build operational frameworks that amplify human strategy rather than replace it. If you're managing lean teams expected to deliver enterprise-level results, this section provides the roadmap for doing more without burning out your people.
Ready to see how the leaders are pulling ahead? Download the full report for the complete frameworks, benchmarks, and implementation roadmaps that separate systematic programs from experimental approaches.
The blueprint for building competitive advantages
The research in this report goes well beyond trend analysis. It provides a detailed implementation roadmap organized around five core pillars that leading brands use to transform influencer marketing from a tactical channel into strategic infrastructure.
You'll find specific guidance on platform diversification strategies that build resilience without spreading resources too thin. Measurement frameworks that connect creator activity directly to revenue and business outcomes. Operational models that scale efficiently as programs grow. Investment approaches that secure long-term commitment from executive leadership.
Most importantly, you'll see exactly where your current program sits relative to industry leaders, what gaps represent the highest-priority opportunities for improvement, and what specific steps to take next based on your organization's maturity level.
For marketing leaders presenting to executives, justifying budget requests, or building the case for organizational change, this report provides the data-backed narrative you need. For strategists responsible for designing programs that deliver predictable results, it offers proven frameworks you can adapt immediately. For operators managing day-to-day execution, it reveals the tools and processes that separate efficient teams from overwhelmed ones.
The gap between systematic programs and experimental approaches widened significantly throughout 2025. The brands that moved decisively built advantages that compound with every campaign, every creator partnership, every dollar invested. The opportunity to close that gap exists right now, but it requires acting on intelligence rather than intuition.
Download the complete 2025 State of Influencer Marketing report to access the full research, detailed frameworks, and step-by-step implementation guidance that leading brands are already using to build lasting competitive advantages.
When you're ready to move from strategy to execution, book a demo with Later to see how our platform helps enterprise teams translate research insights into measurable business results through AI-powered creator discovery, systematic campaign management, and performance optimization that connects influencer activity directly to revenue.
