Five major trends in Internet celebrity marketing in 2026: Brands overseas are no longer "looking for people to post", but are building a creator growth system

过去几年，网红营销的核心问题是：「找谁发？」

By 2026, truly leading brands are already asking another question: "How to turn creators into part of the brand growth system?"

The creator economy is still expanding rapidly. Goldman Sachs has predicted that the total addressable market for creators 'economies is expected to grow from approximately US$250 billion to US$480 billion in 2027. This means that creators are no longer just the "traffic portal" of the brand, but are becoming an important force influencing consumer perception, search decisions, content consumption and purchase conversion.

For overseas brands, Internet celebrity marketing in 2026 is no longer the logic of a single exposure, a single hit, and a single platform, but long-term content assets, AI search visibility, offline scenarios, hotspot response and global reuse. Comprehensive capabilities. In other words, Internet celebrity marketing has moved from "budget-based investment" to "business-based growth."

1. The creator's episodic content has become mainstream: the brand must shift from "single hit" to "serial-style grass planting"

In the past, when many brands were doing Internet celebrity marketing, they were used to betting on a video: Can this one be popular? Can the playback volume increase? Is there any discussion in the comment area? But by 2026, more and more creators are abandoning isolated single content and turning to episodic content forms such as fixed columns, series of short dramas, continuous evaluations, monthly challenges, and long-term theme plans.

这种变化背后有两层原因。第一，系列化内容更容易形成用户期待。当用户习惯了创作者每周固定更新某个栏目，品牌就不再只是偶然出现一次，而是能持续进入用户的内容消费路径。第二，系列化内容更适合平台算法识别账号定位。稳定的内容形式、清晰的主题标签和持续的互动数据，能帮助创作者建立更明确的内容资产，也能帮助品牌获得更稳定的传播效果。对品牌来说，这意味着网红合作不应该只停留在「买一条视频」，而应该和创作者共同设计「可持续更新的内容栏目」。

Case: DJI / SkyPixel uses the creator competition of the year to turn content into long-term brand assets

DJI and SkyPixel have held global photography and video competitions for many years in a row. The 11th SkyPixel Photo & Video Contest attracted nearly 95,000 submissions from 96 countries and regions, forming a long-term content ecosystem around aerial photography, imaging, travel and creative skills. DJI does not just rely on "a certain talent to shoot a product video", but turns product usage scenarios into continuous content through continuous competitions, creator display, user submissions and official dissemination.

What can brands do?

For overseas brands, there are many ways to implement episodic content: beauty brands can create a "30-day skin improvement record" with the creator; clothing brands can create "one commuting wearing scene every week";3C brands can do "Real users 'one-week use challenge"; home brands can do "rental transformation serials"; outdoor brands can do "city hiking routes series". The truly valuable collaboration between creators does not allow consumers to see the brand once, but allows the brand to appear repeatedly in the user's content context.

2. Creators drive AEO: Future planting of grass will not only happen in social media, but also in AI answers

SEO时代，品牌争夺的是搜索结果首页。AEO时代，品牌争夺的是AI给出的答案里有没有你。随着Google AI Overviews、Perplexity、ChatGPT Search等AI搜索工具普及，消费者的搜索行为正在发生变化。用户不再只输入关键词、点击网页，而是直接向AI提问：「最适合旅行拍摄的相机是哪款？」「哪款充电宝适合长途飞行？」「这个品牌值得买吗？」

This means that creator videos, evaluation content, subtitles, titles, and product descriptions may all become important materials for AI to understand the brand. In particular, long-term video platforms such as YouTube are becoming an important entry point for brand content assets. Compared with short, plain and fast-exposed content, long video evaluations, tutorials, comparisons and real-life experiences are easier to carry complete information and answer key questions users have before purchasing.

Case: Anker accumulates content assets that can be searched and reused through technology creator evaluations

Anker is a typical China's 3C brand going overseas. Its growth in overseas markets has largely benefited from the continued spread of content from technology creators, review accounts and real users. YouTube videos, long-term reviews, product comparisons and usage scenarios published by professional creators are often more likely to be trusted than brands telling themselves. The value of such content is not just short-term exposure-they will continue to exist in search results, recommendation streams and AI information grabbing logic, becoming a long-term discoverable content asset for the brand.

What can brands do?

In the AEO era, brand screening creators cannot just look at the number of fans, but should focus on three dimensions: first, whether the creator has domain authority; second, whether the content has "AI-readable" text information, including titles, subtitles, video descriptions, chapter catalogs, FAQ, product keywords; third, whether the content answers real consumer questions, such as "Who is it suitable for?" Not suitable for whom? What is the difference compared with competing products? How do you really feel after using it for a week?" In the future, creator content will not only be social media material, but also the brand's "answer asset" in AI search.

3. Creators move from URL to IRL: Offline content will become a new fuel for online communication

In the past few years, a lot of creator content has occurred in home scenes: bedroom unpacking, living room evaluation, bathroom skin care, kitchen tasting, desk work. But by 2026, creator content is moving from URLs to IRL, that is, from online platforms to real-life scenarios. Street interviews, brand flash packs, offline activities, exhibition experiences, store check-ins, music festivals, sports events, and city roaming are becoming scenes where more and more brands and creators jointly produce content. The reason is not complicated: as online content becomes more and more homogeneous, real space becomes scarce. Offline scenes can bring non-replicable atmosphere, crowds, interactions and emotions, and these are the most easily amplified content elements on Short Video platforms.

Case: SHEIN uses offline activities to strengthen the global creator community

SHEIN's overseas online celebrity marketing has always relied heavily on creator content and community communication. For example, SHEIN once held a #SHEINXObeachIbiza summer pool party in Ibiza, inviting creators from multiple countries to participate and publish content. Brands put products, scenes, social atmosphere and relationships among people in the same space, allowing offline activities to naturally transform into online content.

What can brands do?

出海品牌做线下创作者营销时，有效的思路是：先设计内容场景，再设计活动流程；先考虑创作者怎么拍，再考虑品牌怎么露出；先制造真实互动，再追求传播数据。一个快闪空间、一个主题展位、一场小型派对，都可以成为创作者拍摄素材、用户打卡和品牌破圈的起点。线下不是线上营销的补充，而是线上内容的新燃料。

4. Creators help brands respond quickly to social hotspots: The victory or defeat of hotspot marketing depends on the speed of the organization

In 2026, the life cycle of social hotspots is getting shorter and shorter. A stalk, an audio clip, a comment, a burst of discussion, may erupt within 24 hours, or may be forgotten by users 48 hours later. This poses a real problem for brands: if they have to re-screen talent, re-communicate offers, and re-review scripts for every collaboration, brands are almost impossible to catch up with. Brands that can really take advantage of hot spots are often not the brands that will be the most "rubbing", but the brands with the fastest organizational process, the most mature creator relationship and the clearest internal approval mechanism.

Case: CeraVe uses social listening to turn netizens 'jokes into super communication events

CeraVe's "Michael CeraVe" is a very typical hot case in recent years. This idea stems from a long-term joke among netizens: Michael Cera and CeraVe have similar names, so is he the founder of the brand? CeraVe captured this online discussion and eventually developed it into Super Bowl-level integrated marketing involving Michael Cera. Hot spots are not accidentally created through inspiration, but are accomplished through social listening, creator networks, rapid approval and content packaging capabilities.

What can overseas brands do?

品牌需要提前建立「热点响应机制」：第一，建立预审核创作者白名单，把已经合作过、了解品牌调性的创作者提前纳入快反名单；第二，搭建分层创作者池，快反型创作者负责24–48小时内的meme、短评、reaction等轻量内容，专业型创作者负责解释、测评和拆解；第三，提前准备品牌内容边界文档，明确可用卖点、禁用表达、法律风险和地区传播边界；第四，出海品牌尤其要注意只参与与品牌相关的热点，避免强行蹭社会争议、政治议题或高文化敏感事件。热点营销的核心竞争力不是速度最快，而是反应更快、更准、更稳。

5. Global reuse of creator content: A good piece of content should not only live on TikTok

In the past, Internet celebrity content was often only used for publishing on celebrity accounts. Content launch, data recovery, and project completion are what many brands understand about Internet celebrity marketing. But now, more and more brands are beginning to pay attention to content reuse. Creator materials can be entered into advertising, official website landing pages, e-commerce details pages, email marketing, retail media, outdoor large screens, and even TV advertisements. The logic behind this is ROI: if you post it only once and end it, the value of the material will be seriously wasted.

Case: Cider brings Gen Z insights to outdoor advertising

Cider launched its first outdoor advertising campaign for Gen Z. This fashion brand, which has become popular since TikTok, focuses on the concept of "fashion is a feeling" in outdoor advertising and uses visual creativity that is closer to Gen Z's emotional expression. This shows that content assets don't have to stay on social platforms-as long as the idea is close enough to the target audience, it can be migrated to OOH, retail space, official website vision, e-commerce material and advertising.

What can brands do?

品牌在签约创作者前，就应该谈清楚内容使用权，至少要明确：

First, the platform can be used, and whether the content can be used for TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, official website, e-commerce platform, advertising and offline materials;

Second, the use cycle, whether the authorization is 30 days, 90 days, half a year, or permanent;

Third, the scope of use, whether the brand can repost, place advertisements, enter whitelist advertisements or outdoor large screens; fourth, the regional scope, whether the authorization is in a single country, regional market or global market; fifth, whether secondary editing is allowed, whether the brand can edit, translate, add subtitles, and change size. Really mature Internet celebrity marketing is not "buying a video", but "purchasing a set of growth-capable content assets."

Summary: In 2026, what overseas brands need is the creator marketing system, not the talent list

Internet celebrity marketing in 2026 is undergoing essential changes. Creators are no longer just communication channels for the brand, but content planners, search asset contributors, offline experience participants, hot response partners and global material producers.

对出海品牌来说，未来的竞争不只是「谁找到更大的达人」，而是：谁能和创作者建立长期关系；谁能把内容做成系列资产；谁能让创作者内容进入AI搜索答案；谁能快速响应海外社交热点；谁能把一条内容复用到更多渠道。

Whale Eating Technology believes that the keyword for Internet celebrity marketing in 2026 is not "launch", but "systematic operation"-selecting the right people, telling the right content, using the right scenarios, running links, and depositing assets. The next stage of Internet celebrity marketing will not be more lively, but more efficient.