The creator economy is red hot; currently worth $250 billion globally, that figure’s set to double in the next few years. For a discipline that’s still relatively immature, constantly colliding and reinventing itself, it’s a powerful force, already reshaping industries, most noticeably the worlds of entertainment, marketing and talent, fusing them together and delivering innovative new propositions. Gymshark’s success, arguably down to a creator-centric approach, shows how a community-first strategy can take on global heavyweights like Nike and Adidas.
Against that backdrop, social and influencer has emerged as one of the most dynamic and investable areas – no longer side notes in the creator economy story – but becoming the centre of gravity. By the end of 2025, spend on influencer marketing is predicted to exceed $32bn globally, up nearly 40% in just two years. Nearly 7,000 influencer agencies and platforms compete for brand budgets, compared with around 1,000 in 2019. Publicis’ $500m acquisition of Influential back in 2024, still the single biggest statement of intent from a leading holdco, shows just how serious buyers are about building capability and scale in the discipline. Unilever’s announcement that it planned to hire 20x its current influencer numbers finally silenced any cynics.
For ambitious entrepreneurs, this makes social and influencer an incredibly exciting space to scale an agency today, with investors and buyers never far behind.
To explore what this means for agencies and potential investors and buyers, Waypoint brought together a panel of agency leaders running some of the most exciting businesses in and around the social and influencer sector: Ben Tyson (CEO, Born Social), Alex Hill (Chief Strategy Officer, SAMY) and James Townsend (CEO, Stagwell EMEA + Global CEO Stagwell Brand X Performance Network). Acting as host and firing the questions was Waypoint Partner Matt Lacey.
Some of the highlights from the evening follow:
From Execution to Strategy
Social/influencer marketing has outgrown its tactical roots. If it started out as mainly tactical execution, today it sits at the heart of brand strategy.
As Matt put it: “You can no longer talk about social or influencer as a bolt-on. For many brands, it is now the starting point of strategy, not the end.”
James Townsend underlined the link to brand building: “Brand is built on perception. Perception is driven by word of mouth… and that’s what a creator is essentially being paid to do.”
Alex Hill stressed that brands creating impact are those connecting with experts, communities or cultures that matter to their audiences. For him, relevance is the ultimate measure of effectiveness.
The agencies who can guide clients into having authentic conversations that are built on a deep understanding of culture, are best placed to be strategic partners. For acquirers, capabilities around this kind of cultural intelligence, whether built around technology platforms or creative and strategic skillsets, are where value resides.
Measurement That Reaches the C-Suite
Not surprisingly accountability figured large. With mass take-up comes maturity and that involves getting serious about measurement and ROI if agencies are to unlock bigger budgets.
James Townsend put it directly: “What’s exciting is the commercialisation of it; marketing metrics are now complemented by business metrics. You can sell through a creator in a measurable way.” Increasingly this also drives opportunities to integrate ecommerce, collapsing the gap between content and conversion.
Ben Tyson talked about a client brand that moved early: “They didn’t get dizzy with celebrity. They got serious about effectiveness, measured impact and invested ahead of competitors.”
Alex Hill commented that if a brand is built on how people talk about you, then the ability to track those conversations at scale is critical. Social listening, he argued, is no longer a nice-to-have but essential.
For agencies, this is about being able to speak the language of the C-suite. The CFO doesn’t care about likes or reach; they care about ROI and business impact. Agencies that can point to commercial outcomes not only win bigger mandates but attract higher valuations.
Technology as a Valuation Driver
Technology was another focus. For years, building proprietary tools was beyond most agencies. Today, for some, that’s changing fast and driving deal multiples. But approaches vary.
James Townsend explained Stagwell’s stance: “We’re all in on finding the next best tech platform; something that provides scale, discipline, and reach for enterprise clients.”
Ben Tyson described Born Social’s very different approach: “We chose not to go big on owned tech… instead we curated the best tools to keep up with client need.”
Alex Hill talked about how SAMY is deliberately pursuing a hybrid path: “We’re trying to build a creative company and a technology company in equal measure. Tech gets you scale, structure and reach, and that’s a competitive advantage in the market today.”
From an M&A perspective, the keyword is clarity. Agencies that can demonstrate how tech underpins their offer, whether built, bought, or curated, are the ones who will have the best conversations with potential acquirers.
AI and the Future of Business Models
Few sector gatherings manage to sidestep AI and this evening was no exception. Months spent thinking hard about the topic means many in the industry agree on its impact.
James Townsend predicted: “AI is going to take up a lot of that middle work… getting to an outcome-based model is going to be the nirvana we’ve probably all been looking for.”
Alex Hill emphasised that perception and word of mouth remain central to how brands are built, and that’s precisely what creators have influence. Tracking conversations at scale, he argued (via AI tools), is essential to understand how those perceptions are formed.
Ben Tyson reminded everyone that despite the rise of automation, human creativity remains a key differentiator. Witness how creators are not only disrupting media distribution but also how content is produced. But because of how quickly social and influencer assets can be made and distributed, brands can move in hours or days rather than weeks or months, responding to culture and consumer behaviour almost in real time.
Agencies that adapt fastest, redeploying talent into strategy, creativity and measurable outcomes, will be the ones that win the big client briefs, sustain growth, protect margins, and attract stronger buyer interest.
Final takeaways
Today’s CMO understands the strategic capabilities of social and influencer.
For agency leaders, this represents both a growth engine and an exit opportunity later down the line. Buyers are racing to shore up their capabilities across creative, strategy and the growing tech stack that supports the industry. Investors are setting their sights on agencies that can prove ROI to the C-suite and demonstrate clarity around their model, whether tech-led, creative, or a hybrid of both.
The opportunity for ambitious entrepreneurs operating in a space that is one of the most dynamic to build in recent years, is incredibly exciting. The evening’s discussion shed plenty of light on how best to structure an agency business to grab a share of that opportunity and how to drive value hard.
But despite plenty of talk about AI and technology, all agreed that deal success often comes down to culture. Ben Tyson reflecting on Born Social’s acquisition by Croud, noted that both sides needed to share enough of a vision of the world and enough of the same values to make it work post-deal. James Townsend added that where deals fail, it’s often down to a lack of shared understanding about performance expectations or the role of a business within a group.
Culture may not grab headlines, but buyers always do their diligence, and alignment between both parties matters. Get it right and the value will follow.
