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- Influence Weekly #403 - Accenture Acquires Influencer Agency Superdigital To Expand Social Media Marketing Capabilities
Influence Weekly #403 - Accenture Acquires Influencer Agency Superdigital To Expand Social Media Marketing Capabilities
McDonald’s Piles Into Influencers, Anime, Gaming, Launches New Burger With No Ads, Stops Sales Slide; Top Marketer Wades Into Attention-Brand-Reach Schism
Nii Ahene
August 22, 2025
Spotlight Stories
Accenture Acquires Influencer Agency Superdigital To Expand Social Media Marketing Capabilities
Whalar UK Appoints Dual Leadership After Brand Expansion
McDonald’s Piles Into Influencers, Anime, Gaming, Launches New Burger With No Ads, Stops Sales Slide; Top Marketer Wades Into Attention-Brand-Reach Schism
Perplexity Will Advertise on Theo Von's Podcast To Answer Questions in Real Time
Great Reads
Accenture acquired Superdigital, a U.S.-based social and influencer agency, to expand its social media marketing capabilities within Accenture Song. The acquisition added over 40 employees specializing in audience strategy, content creation, commerce, and measurement to Accenture's workforce. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Superdigital, founded in 2013, focuses on social strategies, community building, and content production with expertise in short-form video and platform-native creative. The agency brings capabilities in ideation, production, and cultural trend monitoring to Accenture's existing portfolio.
The move followed Accenture's August 14 announcement of its agreement to acquire cybersecurity firm CyberCX, which will add approximately 1,400 professionals. Accenture's stock closed at $255.88 on August 19, up 2.71% while the S&P 500 declined 0.59%.
Superdigital joins previous Accenture Song acquisitions including Unlimited, Work & Co, and SOKO as part of the consulting giant's strategy to build comprehensive digital marketing services for clients seeking to expand their social media presence.
Punchup Live, a digital platform for comedians launched in 2023 by former Facebook executive Danny Frenkel, released data showing Instagram drove nearly 15% more ticket sales from August 2024 to August 2025. The platform provides comedians tools to post content, list tour dates, and build fan email lists.
Facebook, also owned by Meta, saw its share of ticket sales decrease nearly 12% despite continued raw volume. TikTok increased ticket sales by 0.35% and YouTube by 0.56%. X, formerly Twitter, declined almost 4% in both share and raw volume, becoming the only platform to drop in both metrics.
The study analyzed ticket purchases made through Punchup after users arrived from various social platforms. Industry experts attributed Instagram's growth to its visual format suited for comedy clips and promotional tools like Stories and Reels. X's decline was linked to decreased user engagement and reduced link visibility since Elon Musk's 2023 acquisition and rebranding.
The data reflects organic marketing rather than paid advertising across Punchup's comedian client base.
AI search company Perplexity signed a sponsorship deal with comedian Theo Von's podcast "This Past Weekend" through The Roost network, running through the end of the year. Perplexity's technology will provide real-time answers to questions during episodes, replacing traditional 60-second ad breaks without carrying sponsored labels.
Von's podcast ranks fourth on Spotify's 2024 year-end ranking and reaches nearly 54,000 monthly listeners. His YouTube channel has 4.15 million subscribers with some episodes exceeding one million views.
This follows Perplexity's March partnership with the Ben Shapiro Show, which exceeded expectations with a 50% increase in lifts and recalls. The AI startup reportedly held $850 million at the end of December and recently made a $34.5 billion bid for Google Chrome. Dmitry Shevelenko, Perplexity's chief business officer, described the arrangement as part of the company's strategy to participate in cultural conversations.
Campaign Insights
McDonald's shifted its marketing strategy toward influencer partnerships and platform-specific content, reversing a sales decline according to VP Marketing Jennifer Healan. The company partnered with Twitch streamer Kai Cenat to launch its Chicken Big Mac through 3.5 hours of unscripted content instead of traditional advertising, generating hundreds of millions of views.
McDonald's collaborated with Minecraft, allowing gamers to unlock permanent McDonald's character skins when purchasing meals. The campaign created viral fan content reaching hundreds of millions of views. The company also partnered with manga artists to create 'WcDonald's' anime shorts and weekly manga content accessible through QR codes on purchases.
McDonald's embraced what Analytic Partners' Grace Kite calls "lots of littles" - multiple small attention bursts across channels rather than single large campaigns. Healan said the company no longer separates brand and performance marketing, calling their approach "brand-formance" work. McDonald's financial reports showed the company reversed a six-year revenue slide from 2014 to 2020, with post-pandemic revenue heading upward.
The US Army launched a new influencer marketing campaign to recruit Gen Z soldiers through partnerships with social media creators. Fitness influencer Steven Kelly, who has 1.3 million Instagram followers, posted sponsored content showing himself in military fatigues during basic training exercises. The Army partnered with lifestyle creators including chefs, extreme sports athletes, and travel influencers to showcase military experiences.
Army spokesperson Madison Bonzo said the partnerships increase visibility and reach untapped audiences. The campaign follows years of recruitment challenges, with the Army missing its annual goals from 2020 to 2023. Last year, the Army met its recruitment target and announced in June it reached its goal of enlisting 61,000 new recruits four months early.
The initiative targets Gen Z adults who had limited exposure to military programs like ROTC during pandemic remote schooling. Some social media users criticized the content as propaganda, while marketing experts compared it to standard celebrity endorsements for products and experiences.
StreamerDap, a Los Angeles-based company founded in February 2023, launched a platform that allows brands to place non-interruptive micro-sponsorships on live streams through overlay logos and automated chat links. The company addresses monetization challenges for smaller streamers who struggle with traditional advertising that drives away new viewers.
Co-founder Damon Harman, who previously worked with brands like Coca-Cola and McDonald's, created the platform to serve creators with 25-50 concurrent viewers alongside brands with budgets starting at $20,000. The platform facilitates 15-minute sponsorship campaigns without requiring custom content creation from streamers.
StreamerDap invested in artificial intelligence technology for real-time brand safety monitoring. The AI system can detect when streamers violate brand guidelines and automatically remove sponsor materials from streams. The company operates a two-way marketplace model that eliminates traditional intermediaries like agents and managers.
The platform plans to officially launch at TwitchCon in October 2025. StreamerDap aims to convert 10,000 part-time streamers into full-time streamers by 2026.
Vietnam held its first KOL Summit 2025 on Monday in Hanoi, bringing together more than 300 Vietnamese influencers with representatives from regulatory agencies and digital platforms including TikTok and Meta. The Ministry of Public Security's Department of Cybersecurity and High-Tech Crime Prevention organized the event with nearly 400 total delegates attending.
The summit launched two new programs targeting influencer accountability. The Digital Trust Alliance will connect key opinion leaders, state agencies, online platforms and businesses to promote responsible influence and transparency in digital activities. The Influencer Credibility Programme will assess influencers to help agencies and businesses select trusted partners while protecting consumers from misleading content.
Major General Lê Xuân Minh, who heads the cybersecurity department, said the initiatives aim to foster a safe creative cyberspace where influencers can contribute to national development. The summit focused on building social responsibility among Vietnam's creator economy participants and their role in cultural promotion.
VTuber marketing partnerships expanded across multiple industries in 2025 as brands capitalized on growing audience engagement with virtual creators. Cover Corporation, which manages talent agency Hololive Production's 88 VTubers with 80 million total followers, reported 30 percent year-over-year revenue growth from licensing and brand partnerships in 2025.
Major brand activations included McDonald's and Kura Sushi restaurant sponsorships, iBuyPower computer brand collaborations, and the Los Angeles Dodgers hosting an official VTuber game day event in June featuring creator Usada Pekora. Ballantine's whiskey launched its own corporate VTuber spokesperson on August 9, transforming founder George Ballantine's image into a Fortnite-playing Twitch streamer.
The VTuber market reached $2.86 billion in the United States, with Mordor Intelligence projecting growth to $4.5 billion by 2030. Q1 2025 livestreamed VTuber content consumption hit 523 million hours watched. Leading creators include Ironmouse with 2.3 million Twitch followers, Gawr Gura with 4.7 million YouTube subscribers, and Mori Calliope with 2.6 million subscribers.
Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen faced customer confusion after launching its Build Your Own Bundle promotion on August 12, featuring meal combinations associated with streamers including Brittany "Cinna," FaZe Lacy, Agent 00, and ExtraEmily. The $20 bundles, containing three proteins and two sides, were available exclusively through the Popeyes mobile app.
Confusion arose when customers attempted to order the streamer meals in restaurants. Twitch streamer Cinna posted on X that people were visiting Popeyes locations and messaging her about ordering difficulties. She clarified to content creator MrBeast that her collaboration "wasn't real."
FaZe Lacy experienced rejection firsthand during a live Twitch stream when a Popeyes employee stated "We never had this promotion," despite Lacy showing official promotional materials. The disconnect between the digital-only campaign and in-store awareness created operational challenges. As of publication, Popeyes had not issued a formal statement addressing the implementation issues with its influencer marketing campaign.
The UK government partnered with TikTok in August 2025 to launch a public health campaign warning British citizens about cosmetic surgery tourism risks. The initiative uses established medical creators Doc Tally and Midwife Marley, who have a combined following of over 278,000 on TikTok, to produce educational content about overseas medical procedures.
The campaign addresses growing concerns about Britons seeking treatments like hair transplants and dental work abroad, often motivated by lower costs and shorter waiting times than UK options. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office will provide enhanced travel advice through a pre-procedure checklist covering research requirements, clinic verification, cost understanding, and complication management.
The partnership forms part of broader government regulatory efforts announced this month. New regulations for England restrict high-risk procedures like non-surgical Brazilian butt lifts to qualified healthcare professionals registered with the Care Quality Commission. TikTok will promote the campaign content through its Clinician Creator Council, comprising NHS practitioners, aimed at reducing both patient harm and NHS costs from correcting overseas procedure complications.
Twitch streamer Kai Cenat revealed his Fortnite Icon Series skin through a two-minute video displayed on the Las Vegas Sphere on August 18. The skin becomes available in-game on September 12.
The reveal showcased cosmetic items including a Kai Cenat outfit with red cap and white shirt, a hamster cosmetic representing his pet, an "AMP" yellow pickaxe, and an Icon Series emote. The display confirmed a three-way collaboration between Fortnite, Cenat, and Mercedes AMG, featuring a Mercedes vehicle though specific integration details remain unconfirmed.
Cenat announced "Mafiathon 3," described as his final subathon, will launch the next time he streams on Twitch. His previous "Mafiathon 2" generated $3.6 million in Twitch subscription revenue alone, with total earnings potentially exceeding $20 million including sponsorships and advertising revenue.
The collaboration extends Cenat's existing relationship with Epic Games after appearing in Fortnite's "Reload" trailer in 2024. The Icon Series previously featured creators including Ninja, NickEh30, and Clix.
Netflix signed former NASA engineer and YouTube creator Mark Rober for a multi-project content partnership announced August 19, 2025. The deal includes bringing Rober's science experiments to Netflix later this year, followed by a Kids and Family competition series scheduled for 2026.
Rober's company CrunchLabs will produce the competition show alongside Jimmy Kimmel's production company Kimmelot. Rober and CrunchLabs Chief Content Officer Scott Lewers will executive produce with Kimmel and Kimmelot President Scott Lonker. Rober commands over 76 million followers across YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
The partnership expands Rober's recent collaborations, including a June partnership with children's creator Toys and Colors for a YouTube STEM series. Rober currently co-leads the TeamWater campaign with MrBeast, aiming to raise $40 million by August 31 for clean water projects. A charity livestream featuring MrBeast and others raised $12.02 million in under 16 hours on August 14.
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Interesting People
YouTube creator iShowSpeed, also known as Darren Watkins Jr., announced a 35-day continuous livestream tour across the United States called "SPEED DOES AMERICA." The tour launched August 28 at 12 p.m. EST and will run without breaks until October 2. The 19-year-old streamer, who has 41.4 million YouTube subscribers, will broadcast 24 hours daily while visiting 24 states and Washington, D.C.
The tour follows Speed's European livestream series, which achieved a career-high 437,000 simultaneous viewers across YouTube and Twitch platforms. The announcement generated immediate industry attention, with MrBeast inviting Speed to collaborate at his North Carolina facility.
Speed's planned activities include rodeo events, competitive eating, and fishing across states including California, Texas, New York, Florida, and Pennsylvania. This represents the longest continuous broadcast project in Speed's career and continues his pattern of international touring that has helped build his substantial following across multiple continents.
YouTube creator Topper Guild signed with William Morris Endeavor for representation across all areas on August 14, 2025. The 22-year-old creator has accumulated over 100 million followers across YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, with his YouTube channel reaching 73 million subscribers and generating over 25 billion views.
Guild produces high-concept scripted videos and premium production content targeting both children and adult audiences. His most popular videos include "$1 vs $10,000,000 House Tour!" and challenge-based content featuring elaborate stunts and hidden rooms.
WME will help Guild expand beyond digital platforms into brand partnerships, animated voiceover, film, and television opportunities. Guild has already established commercial relationships, recently serving as a promotional ambassador for Lotte Well Food's Pepero snack brand through their "Pepero Global Reporters" campaign, which included a trip to Korea and planned YouTube content featuring a "Pepero House."
Slow Ventures deployed $2 million from its $60 million Creator Fund to woodworking content creator Jonathan Katz-Moses, marking the fund's first investment since launching in February 2025. Katz-Moses operates a YouTube channel with nearly 600,000 subscribers and 75 million views, generating mid-seven figures in annual revenue through his woodworking tools business.
The venture firm evaluated 700 applicants before selecting Katz-Moses, citing his authority in woodworking and sustainable business model. Slow Ventures typically takes 10% stakes in creator holding companies with rights of first refusal on future ventures. The fund targets specialized creators rather than broad entertainment figures.
Katz-Moses began woodworking after surviving a violent assault in 2010 that required 80 stitches. His business operates without marketing spend from a 30,000-square-foot Santa Barbara facility. He has used the funding to hire product developers and file patent applications while expanding content distribution across platforms.
San Francisco chef Luke Sung left Kis Cafe in Hayes Valley after a viral TikTok dispute with influencer Karla Marcotte damaged his career and restaurant. Marcotte, who operates under @itskarlabb, visited the restaurant in July for a collaboration video but left after Sung questioned her knowledge of the establishment and told her to do her "research."
Marcotte posted about the incident to her TikTok followers, describing feeling disrespected by the James Beard-nominated chef. The post generated thousands of one-star Yelp reviews for Kis Cafe, which had been serving 100 covers nightly since opening in May.
Sung departed as chef and co-owner shortly after the incident. Kis Cafe stated his behavior was "unacceptable" and that he left of his own accord. Sung also stepped back from working at sushi restaurant Domo due to continued online harassment. Marcotte's follower count increased to more than 475,000 following her post about the encounter.
Alasdair Mann launched London-based Alementary Media in August 2021 after leaving his engineering job to create tech content full-time. Mann grew his channel from thousands to millions of views by May 2022, eventually reaching 100 million views per month by extending production time from two hours to 16 hours per video.
Alementary Media operates as a dual-service company. For tech brands, Mann creates sponsored content that has reached 40 million views per video. For creators, the company provides business education and support systems focused on monetization challenges.
The creator services address cash flow issues by securing upfront payments instead of the industry standard 30-to-60-day payment delays. Alementary teaches creators to negotiate multi-video campaign structures rather than single-video deals, explaining that viral content performance requires multiple attempts to succeed.
Mann attributes his growth to YouTube's analytics capabilities and direct human support, contrasting this with other platforms where creators cannot reach support representatives. The company focuses on helping creators develop independent business skills rather than relying on agencies, after Mann experienced financial losses with a previous agency partnership.
MrBeast raised $12.02 million for clean water access during a 15 hour, 40 minute charity livestream on platform Kick that concluded August 15th. The stream, watched by approximately 200,000 viewers in real time, featured creators including Adin Ross and xQc alongside MrBeast, who has 422 million YouTube subscribers.
Six donors contributed at least $1 million each, including Be LOVE Electrolyte, Kick.com's Ed Craven, influencer Sophie Rain, and Trainwreckstv. Music executive Scooter Braun called into the stream to help push donations past the $12 million mark. Additional contributors included UFC's Dana White, Fanatics' Michael Rubin, and Airbnb's Brian Chesky.
The funds will support MrBeast's TeamWater initiative, which converts $1 donations into one year of clean water access per person. MrBeast claimed the total broke a Guinness World Record for money raised during a livestream. The event included activities like lie detector tests and oil wrestling to maintain viewer engagement throughout the extended broadcast.
Andrew and Tristan Tate filed lawsuits against Meta and TikTok on August 13, seeking over $100 million in damages for their 2022 account bans. The identical suits were filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, each seeking at least $50 million in compensatory damages.
The brothers, who are dual U.S.-British citizens and former kickboxers, alleged the platforms violated contractual agreements when they removed their accounts from Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok for community guideline violations. At the time of their bans, they claimed to command an audience of tens of millions and generated revenue through online enterprises.
The lawsuits describe the removals as part of a coordinated campaign to suppress their reputations and livelihoods. Andrew Tate posted on X that he set aside $400 million in personal funds to battle the platforms, writing to his nearly 11 million followers.
Both brothers face ongoing legal challenges, including human trafficking charges in Romania and rape charges in the UK, though neither has been convicted.
Deported Mexican nationals created a new content creator economy after being expelled from the United States, with several influencers building audiences by documenting their experiences rebuilding lives in Mexico. More than 70,000 Mexican nationals were deported from the U.S. to Mexico in the first six months of 2025, down from 102,000 in the same period in 2024.
Annie Garcia accumulated over 500,000 social media followers sharing her post-deportation journey and now earns income from content creation. Francisco Hernández-Corona, a Harvard graduate, self-deported in June and began vlogging his experience on TikTok. Olga Mijangos posted a video about enrolling her U.S. citizen son in Mexican school that generated 14 million views and 2 million likes on TikTok.
At least a dozen deportees-turned-influencers settled in Puerto Vallarta and formed a content creation community. TikTok invited Mijangos to join its creators rewards program after her viral success, allowing these creators to monetize their deportation stories.
Industry News
Famous Birthdays launched German and Italian versions of its creator database platform in August 2025, expanding beyond its existing English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French sites. The company, which operates as a biographical database for social media personalities, serves millions of monthly visitors on its Spanish platform alone. Founded by Evan Britton, Famous Birthdays maintains a team of 70 people who manually write and translate creator profiles rather than using automated content generation.
The expansion includes native iOS and Android applications for both new languages, with app store optimization based on device language settings. Each platform operates independent rankings based on local user activity, creating region-specific trending lists. The company profiles creators with more than 100,000 followers who demonstrate growth momentum.
Meta's Threads reached 400 million monthly active users in August, adding 50 million users in recent months from 175 million reported at its first anniversary in summer 2024. The platform launched in July 2023 with 100 million signups in its first days.
Mobile usage data from Similarweb showed Threads reached 115.1 million daily active mobile users in June, up 128% year-over-year, closing the gap with X's 132 million daily mobile users, which declined 15% year-over-year. In the U.S. market, X maintained 22.9 million daily mobile users compared to Threads' 15.3 million, but web traffic remained a weakness for Threads with 6.9 million daily visits versus X's 145.8 million.
Meta expanded Threads advertising globally to all eligible advertisers in April when the platform had over 320 million monthly users. The company introduced improved creator analytics in July, offering detailed follower demographics and content performance tracking across Meta's ecosystem including Instagram and Facebook.
YouTube transformed into a comprehensive video platform that captured 12.8% of TV viewership in June, up from 6% in early 2021, while Netflix held 7.5%. The Google-owned platform generated $36 billion in advertising revenue and $54.5 billion in total revenue in 2024, according to Goldman Sachs estimates.
Major YouTube creators expanded into long-form content resembling traditional television. Dude Perfect, which reaches 61 million monthly viewers, completed a 21-city tour and plans a theatrical movie release in September. Dhar Mann Studios operates from a 125,000-square-foot production facility in Burbank and produces five 25-minute episodes weekly.
YouTube paid $70 billion to creators and media companies over three years, sharing 55% of ad revenue with content makers. The platform serves 2.5 billion monthly users globally, with YouTube Shorts generating 200 billion daily views. Goldman Sachs projects YouTube revenue will reach $107.5 billion by 2030, driven by subscription growth alongside advertising.
Famous Birthdays partnered with advertising technology company Pixability to integrate velocity data into Pixability's Super Signal Aggregation technology, the companies announced August 14. The collaboration allows advertisers to identify and target emerging YouTube creators before they reach mainstream popularity.
Famous Birthdays, launched in 2012, tracks creator popularity through internal search traffic from 25 million monthly unique visitors. The company's velocity metrics measure search frequency to identify trending creators, having previously identified Charli D'Amelio and Addison Rae before their mainstream success.
Early adopters using the integrated data saw conversions increase 31% and engagement rise 58% when incorporating high-velocity channels into Pixability-managed campaigns. Pixability specializes in AI-driven contextual targeting for YouTube advertising.
Famous Birthdays launched Famous Birthdays Pro in January 2024 to provide analytics on rising social media talent to brands and agencies. Pixability recently unveiled its GenAI Contextual Segments tool combining YouTube data with proprietary AI for enhanced audience targeting capabilities.
Tom Maynard runs Amplify, a 130-person self-funded agency founded in 2019 that manages hundreds of creators and executes influencer campaigns for brands including Nestlé, Unilever, and Estée Lauder across more than 20 markets. The Sydney-based company operates three business verticals: talent management, creator marketing, and content production across Asia-Pacific with offices in Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and the United States.
Amplify positioned itself against fragmented technology platforms by focusing on cultural expertise and localized services rather than software solutions. The company has produced reality TV shows for TikTok, including music shows sponsored by Samsung and e-sports programming across Indonesia and the Philippines.
Maynard targets creator economy consolidation modeled after WPP's advertising industry approach from decades past. The company plans multiple acquisitions over the next six months to accelerate U.S. expansion, where it currently employs about a dozen people. Amplify aims to build what Maynard calls a "holdco" encompassing talent businesses, influencer agencies, and creator payment platforms across the creator economy infrastructure.
Tubi hired Kudzi Chikumbu as VP of Creator Partnerships, marking a leadership expansion as the streaming platform reached over 5,000 episodes of creator content. Chikumbu previously served as Global Head of Creator Marketing at TikTok and will work with Rich Bloom, who joined Tubi in April as General Manager of Creator Programs.
The Fox Corporation-owned streaming service added new partnerships with MrBeast, Alan Chikin Chow, Jomboy Media, CelinaSpookyBoo, and Steven He. MrBeast will bring seasons 6-8 of his YouTube channel to complement his existing live channel on the platform.
Since launching in June, Tubi's creator program grew from six creators and several hundred videos to over 5,000 episodes. The platform operates on a non-exclusive basis, allowing creators to bring existing content while Tubi plans future exclusive productions with funding. Tubi reported reaching over 100 million monthly active users with a library of nearly 300,000 movies and TV episodes.
TheSoul Publishing partnered with mobile technology company Playkot to launch SHRT in August 2025, a mobile app featuring vertical drama content. The app offers over 30 English-language series with minute-long episodes designed for smartphones, with new content added weekly on iOS and Android platforms.
The vertical drama format, known as "duanjus" in China, consists of short episodes with cliffhangers that typically offer free content before requiring paid subscriptions. Apps like ReelShort overtook TikTok as the most downloaded entertainment app on Apple's U.S. store in November 2024, accumulating over 30 million downloads since 2022. The vertical drama market was projected to reach $14 billion by 2027.
The launch follows TheSoul Publishing's acquisition of a majority stake in Mediacube, a fintech company serving nearly 10,000 creators across 132 countries. Data showed 81% of Gen Z viewers watch vertical videos weekly, matching Netflix usage rates. Major platforms including Instagram, X, Bluesky, and Twitch expanded their vertical video capabilities in response to changing consumption patterns.
Celebrity-driven podcasts are creating massive monetization opportunities in digital media, exemplified by the Kelce brothers' "New Heights" podcast's $100 million Wondery deal. Travis and Jason Kelce's show skyrocketed after Taylor Swift's August 2025 appearance announcing her new album, generating 4.5 million Instagram likes in 12 hours and 145% engagement rates.
Amazon's Wondery platform leveraged this celebrity partnership to compete with Spotify in the podcast space, where advertising revenue is projected to reach $2.2 billion by 2026. The Swift-Kelce collaboration demonstrates how cross-promotion between celebrities with combined audiences of 380 million followers creates premium content worth nine-figure deals.
The success extends beyond podcasting into merchandise, live events, and brand integrations. Travis Kelce's vintage Chiefs gear saw 300% sales spikes, while Swift's album pre-orders exceeded 2 million units. This ecosystem approach mirrors traditional media strategies but operates through podcast-first platforms. Investment experts suggest targeting companies building infrastructure for celebrity-driven content, as the industry shifts toward video-integrated podcasting and influencer partnerships.
Podcast Movement acquired podcast trade association Sounds Profitable in a seven-figure deal announced August 20, 2025. Under the acquisition terms, Sounds Profitable will continue operating as a trade association while maintaining its research initiatives.
Sounds Profitable founder Bryan Barletta became President of Podcast Movement while remaining a shareholder alongside partner Tom Webster. Sounds Profitable serves over 200 industry partners through research and trade association services.
The combined entity plans to expand its presence at media industry events including Cannes Lions, SXSW, The Podcast Show London, and Advertising Week. Podcast Movement will hold its flagship event in New York City for the first time in September 2026, while its Podcast Movement Evolutions event will integrate with SXSW.
The acquisition coincided with record U.S. podcast consumption, with Edison Research reporting that 55% of Americans now listen monthly and 73% of those aged 12 and older have experienced podcast content. The merger occurred during industry restructuring, following Amazon's reorganization of its Wondery podcast network earlier in August, which cut approximately 110 jobs.
YouTuber Caspar Lee transitioned from content creation to venture investing through his fund Creator Ventures, which focuses on consumer internet companies. Lee, who built over six million YouTube subscribers over 10 years, co-founded influencer marketing company Influencer.com and talent management firm MVE, which represents clients including Olympic diver Tom Daley.
Lee launched Creator Ventures with his cousin after identifying opportunities to help creators become investors. The fund specializes in consumer internet investments and emerged after what Lee described as a successful early investment.
For beginning investors, Lee recommended starting with apps including Revolut, Freetrade, Trading 212, and Vanguard for those with as little as £100 to invest. He cautioned against property investment based on his London real estate experience, suggesting global index funds delivered better returns with less complexity. Lee emphasized early investing for compound growth and diversification across risk levels, particularly for younger investors who can absorb higher risk over longer time horizons.
Whalar Group promoted Jessica Womersley and Shannon Watkin to joint Co-Head of Client Accounts roles in the UK in August 2025. The appointments followed client wins including Virgin Atlantic naming Whalar as Agency of Record and expanded partnerships with Diageo and eBay.
Both executives previously served as Senior Directors, with Womersley at Whalar for six years and Watkin for three years. They now lead the agency's global client services function across more than 40 markets.
The promotions came after Whalar Group secured a $400 million valuation with backing from Salesforce founder Marc Benioff, Shopify, and producer Neal Moritz. The company operates seven businesses including creator agencies, The Lighthouse creator campuses with production facilities, and talent management services.
Whalar Group completed its seventh acquisition by purchasing The Business of Creativity for $20 million, the media company co-founded by advertising executive John Hegarty. The multi-faceted enterprise continues expanding its creator economy portfolio through strategic acquisitions and partnerships.
Tom Maynard runs Amplify, a 130-person self-funded agency founded in 2019 that manages hundreds of creators and executes influencer campaigns for brands including Nestlé, Unilever, and Estée Lauder across more than 20 markets. The Sydney-based company operates three business verticals: talent management, creator marketing, and content production across Asia-Pacific with offices in Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and the United States.
Amplify positioned itself against fragmented technology platforms by focusing on cultural expertise and localized services rather than software solutions. The company has produced reality TV shows for TikTok, including music shows sponsored by Samsung and e-sports programming across Indonesia and the Philippines.
Maynard targets creator economy consolidation modeled after WPP's advertising industry approach from decades past. The company plans multiple acquisitions over the next six months to accelerate U.S. expansion, where it currently employs about a dozen people. Amplify aims to build what Maynard calls a "holdco" encompassing talent businesses, influencer agencies, and creator payment platforms across the creator economy infrastructure.
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Business Insider interviewed nine former MrBeast employees and reviewed internal production documents to reveal the YouTube creator's video production process. Jimmy Donaldson's operation employed approximately 350 people as of April and generated $473 million in revenue last year across his businesses, with over 400 million subscribers on his main channel.
The production process begins with a dedicated ideation team that logs hundreds of concepts in a database, pitching the best to Donaldson and creative leads. Approved ideas move to feasibility planning, where creative producers calculate costs and logistics. Multiple production teams work simultaneously on different videos, labeled as Team A, Team B, and others.
MrBeast videos can require hundreds of cameras on set, particularly for challenge videos with multiple contestants. Some productions involve 100-day challenges with continuous filming. Up to eight editors handle each video, with footage cut in real time during longer shoots. The company focuses on retention editing, using YouTube analytics to identify exact moments when viewership drops. Videos undergo thumbnail A/B testing and are formatted for multiple languages and platforms before release.
E.l.f. Cosmetics faced significant backlash after partnering with controversial comedian Matt Rife for a campaign, despite 80% of his 19.7 million TikTok followers being female and 75% under 34. The brand apologized Wednesday after consumers and creators, including makeup artist Nikkie de Jager, condemned the collaboration due to Rife's history of domestic violence jokes and misogynistic comments.
Marketing experts say the controversy highlights flaws in influencer vetting processes. Brands often rely solely on audience demographics rather than conducting deeper research into creators' past content and consumer sentiment. The campaign's marketing agency Shadow also worked on American Eagle's polarizing Sydney Sweeney partnership, raising questions about creator selection strategies.
Industry professionals recommend examining multiple years of creator content, assessing cultural context, and understanding audience values beyond demographics. Rushed campaign timelines—now compressed from three months to one month—often prevent thorough vetting and focus group testing for high-value partnerships.
Rebecca Ma, known as Becca Bloom on TikTok, has become the "Queen of RichTok" by showcasing extreme wealth to 4 million followers since starting in January. The 27-year-old influencer posts videos featuring six-figure jewelry purchases, European shopping sprees, and elaborate lifestyle content, including feeding her cat caviar and sashimi from Versace dishes.
Ma, whose parents co-founded IT services company Camelot Information Systems, grew up in Atherton, California's most expensive zip code. Despite her opulent content, she maintains a full-time fintech job and blocks coworkers from her social media. She rarely does sponsored content, instead relying on family support and her fiancé for her lifestyle.
Her videos blend traditional influencer formats with extreme luxury, creating what some see as parody but resonates with followers who find her "calming and safe." Ma aims to make finance and STEM accessible to women while breaking down complex concepts. She signed with United Talent Agency this summer but plans to continue working in finance alongside her influencer career.
Business Insider highlighted 16 venture capital firms investing in creator economy startups. Creator economy companies raised an estimated $1.5 billion in 2024 according to Goldman Sachs analysis, with several large funding rounds in early 2025.
Live shopping platform Whatnot raised $265 million in Series E funding at a $4.9 billion valuation in January. Social shopping company ShopMy announced a $77.5 million Series B round, and newsletter platform Substack closed a $100 million Series C.
The featured VC firms include AlleyCorp, Bain Capital Ventures, Bond, Craft Ventures, Creator Ventures, FirstMark, Hustle Fund, Intuition, Menlo Ventures, Night, Patron, Point72 Ventures, Precursor Ventures, Slow Ventures, Spice Capital, and Upside Ventures. These firms backed companies including AI ad generator Creatify, peer-to-peer rental platform Pickle, comedy ticketing marketplace Punchup Live, and influencer marketing platform Agentio.
Goldman Sachs projected the creator economy will reach $480 billion by 2027. Many investors view creators as small businesses requiring B2B tools and infrastructure, with particular interest in AI-powered creative tools and platforms that help creators monetize their audiences through commerce and community features.
Vox Media has partnered with fashion designer Bella Freud to expand her "Fashion Neurosis" video podcast. Freud's show, launched in October, features celebrity guests like Kate Moss on a couch in her London home and has gained 125,000 YouTube subscribers. The deal will help secure sponsorships, explore live events, and develop paid subscriptions.
This partnership represents Vox Media's broader creator strategy, adding 15 new shows over two years while shifting from audio-only to video content. The company has expanded from two to five podcast studios in New York, with plans for more. Vox Media handles advertising sales, marketing, and distribution for creators, taking a revenue cut from ads, events, and subscriptions. The move reflects established media companies incorporating independent creators to compete for audience attention in the evolving podcast landscape.