Trends in social media: The Motherhood, one of the top influencer marketing agencies, scours the headlines so you don’t have to. Check back throughout the month for more!
Influencer Marketing Industry Resources
TikTok Seeding Campaigns Favor Nano Creators, Balanced Reviews Over Scripted Enthusiasm, Data Shows – April 27, 2026
Brands running TikTok Influencer Marketing seeding campaigns in 2026 are achieving higher reach efficiency, measured as views per follower, by working with nano-tier creators, according to new research from Sonar Seed Intelligence covering 549 campaigns run by Shopify merchants across four quarters.
PR Meets Influence: The New Engine of Brand Growth – April 22, 2026
In this week’s episode of Adspeak by ADWEEK, Dana Paolucci, head of engagement marketing at Unilever’s Dove, joins Raven Walker, SVP of client partnerships at Collectively, to unpack how heritage brands can stay culturally relevant through creator-led strategies.
5 Influencer Marketing Tips Brands Use to Drive ROI – April 20, 2026
The problem with many influencer marketing tips is that they often focus on surface-level tactics. But brands that see consistent results treat influencer marketing as a structured, performance-driven channel. According to our benchmark data, the industry reached $32.55 billion last year, with 85% of marketers reporting it as an effective strategy. Growth for 2026 is expected, with 72% of marketers scaling their influencer marketing budgets by more than 50%.
More than a post: Turning influencers into content engines for your restaurant – April 2026
At the Restaurant Franchising and Innovation Summit, marketing experts discussed the evolution of influencer marketing from a secondary tactic into a core strategy that prioritizes authentic content creation, micro-influencer relationships and adaptation to the rising impact of AI on search visibility.
Meet the AI influencers taking over your Instagram feed – worth millions and replacing the real thing – April 20, 2026
Posing in front of Coachella Festival’s iconic Ferris wheel, Aitana Lopez looks like the epitome of California cool. Her long hair is expertly tousled and dyed a soft shade of pink. The Indio sunlight catches on her boho-style belt, and the fringing on her suede outfit seems to dance in the wind. She’s even managed to grab a branded cupholder from Hailey Bieber and Kendall Jenner’s rhode skin x 818 tequila collaboration, an influencer must-have at the first weekend of the festival.
Creator marketing now a ‘core media channel’ while search slows: IAB – April 20, 2026
Social commanded the largest share of the digital market last year at 40%, or $117.7 billion, pointing to larger strategy shifts among brands.
Are influencers building brands or renting attention? – April 14, 2026
Influencer marketing has become so prevalent, it seems like it’s a ‘no brainer’. Businesses like L’Oréal and Unilever have been so bold as to declare it is the way they approach brand building. These statements, and the intentional way the tech giants have created a profitable ecosystem around influencers, further normalise it.
Target ends creator affiliate program—what it means for influencer marketing – April 16, 2026
Target is scrapping its commission-based Creator Program for a new, game-like system built around challenges and rewards. It’s part of a broader shift among retailers replacing traditional affiliate structures with gamified programs as they look to scale creator marketing and mobilize brand advocates at lower commission costs.
Creator scandals have turned morality clauses into brands’ go-to exit strategy – April 13, 2026
Whether it was Edie Parker quietly scrubbing every trace of Summer House star Amanda Batula from its website days after she revealed a secret relationship with one of her cast mates, or ABC canceling an entire Bachelorette season after TMZ published footage of its star in a physical altercation with her then-boyfriend, the pattern is the same: when a creator becomes a liability, brands reach for the escape hatch. Experts believe that hatch has a name: the morality clause.
So You Want a Free Trip to Coachella? Get in Line. – April 12, 2026
Cedoni Francis had a goal: get invited to Coachella to see Justin Bieber. Ms. Francis, who is 27 and a graduate student at Columbia Business School, has been a die-hard fan of Mr. Bieber since she was a preteen in a purple bedroom — the singer’s signature color at the time — with a wall covered in posters of his swoopy-haired face.
Corporate Natalie’s advice for the AI era: Find what makes you “irreplaceable” – April 11, 2026
Natalie Marshall launched Corporate Natalie as a side project. Now she’s running a creator-led agency redefining influencer marketing. But she told Fortune the path isn’t for everyone—and urges people to focus on what makes them “irreplaceable” in the age of AI.
What Most Brands Get Wrong Measuring Influencer Marketing ROI – April 8, 2026
Influencer marketing ROI is measured by combining engagement, content output, consumer intent signals, and retail impact, not just impressions or reach. Many brands make the same mistake when they launch an influencer marketing campaign. They treat influencer marketing like awareness media, when it’s a behavior-driven channel.
Instagram Announces Huge Affiliate Link Update to Increase Earning Chances for Creators – April 8, 2026
Yesterday, Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri took to Instagram to announce a huge update to affiliate links on Reels. The move has great earning opportunities for creators on the app.
How Corporate Natalie turned a $500 brand deal into a creator empire—and her own agency – April 5, 2026
When Natalie Marshall, better known as Corporate Natalie, landed her first brand deal (a sponsored post for Twisted Tea), she made $500 and felt invincible.
Corporate Natalie launches creator-led influencer marketing agency Expand Co-Lab – April 5, 2026
Natalie Marshall, known as ‘Corporate Natalie,’ has built a successful content creation business over the past six years, amassing millions of followers across social media platforms by parodying office culture. Now, she’s launching a new creator-led influencer marketing agency called Expand Co-Lab, which she believes can fix the fundamental issues in the influencer marketing industry by facilitating direct conversations between brands and creators during the briefing process.
SOCIAL NEWS
Instagram brings simplified AI video to Edits – April 26, 2026
Instagram is making it easier to use its latest artificial intelligence tools to generate video clips, via a new integration with Edits that will enable users to generate video posts from text prompts in-stream.
LinkedIn adds option to filter replies by verified users – April 26, 2026
LinkedIn is looking to add another incentive to get people to verify their information, by enabling users to prioritize engagement from verified users. An updated page in LinkedIn’s Help Center outlines how users can sort comments by verified users, in order to focus on those who’ve confirmed their info.
TikTok lets users add relevant keywords to metadata – April 26, 2026
TikTok has added a new way to help creators manage how their videos are discovered in the app. The update enables creators to add and remove keywords assigned to their clips, which can help better align their content with user searches.
Meta expands Instagram management APIs – April 23, 2026
Meta announced updates for Instagram’s APIs, giving third party social media management platforms more capacity to facilitate platform posting and analysis.
A Guide to Trending Hashtags on TikTok, Instagram, and All Major Platforms (2026) – April 21, 2026
Be it #HotGirlSummer or #ThrowbackThursday, we have all used hashtags in our social media posts. While sometimes, they’re an indication of our participation in a trend, at other times, they’re simply a way to make our posts more discoverable.
Pinterest’s latest ad campaign encourages people to get off social media – April 15, 2026
Pinterest has launched a new ad campaign that frames the platform as the anti-social media app and encourages people to go live their lives instead of spending too much time on noisy social media streams.
Instagram adds comment editing – April 9, 2026
Instagram added the ability to edit comments, a much-requested feature update that will address a key frustration in the app. The new edit option will be accessible below published comments in-stream. Tapping on the “Edit” option will open a new pop-up that essentially re-opens a comment for revision.
Instagram chief debunks popular engagement hack – April 6, 2026
Bad news for those looking for an Instagram reach boost. In his weekly Q&A session on Instagram Stories last week, Instagram Chief Adam Mosseri said that reposting feed posts in Stories won’t increase post reach, debunking a common myth about engagement boosting that’s been presented as a platform hack.
Instagram allows creators to schedule Trial Reels – April 2, 2026
Instagram announced that creators will be able to schedule Trial Reels, which will give users more control over their Reels experiments. The move may also help to improve reach and response. Trial Reels, which Instagram launched December 2024, enabled creators to share their latest uploads with a selection of users who don’t follow them. This allowed creators to glean feedback on new ideas and concepts outside of their regular follower base.
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