Ninety-eight percent of marketers now use AI. Only 15% of marketers can connect their AI-discovery spend to ROI. That gap is the story in Nielsen’s annual marketing report, which sets out priorities for marketers heading into 2027. If you run influencer programs, the data points to five signals, and each one changes how you budget, brief and measure.
What did Nielsen actually report?
A quick clarification first. This is Nielsen’s eighth Annual Marketing Report, and coverage of the release says it centers on AI and its impact on advertising. The headline priorities are brand awareness and customer acquisition. That framing matters. AI is not the strategy here. It is the machinery serving two old goals: get known, then get customers.
I have read the coverage and the figures it reports, not the full report PDF. Treat the numbers below as Nielsen’s, relayed by a trade outlet, and pull the original before you quote them in a board deck.
Signal 1: AI adoption is no longer a differentiator
According to the report, 98% of marketers are actively using AI in their workflows. Nearly 68% use it for measurement and analytics. More than three in five use it for creative production, and the same share for media planning and optimization. Another 57% use it for predictive forecasting.
So “we use AI” tells a buyer, a CFO or a competitor nothing. When everyone has the same tools, the edge moves to inputs and judgment: your first-party data, your creator relationships, your brand rules.
This is where creative output gets tricky. Volume is easy now, quality is not, which is the pattern we covered in AI content volume. If your AI use in creator programs stops at faster briefs and more variants, you have matched the market, not beaten it.
When nearly every marketer uses AI, the question is no longer whether you adopt it. It is whether you can prove it moves a number the business cares about.
Signal 2: The measurement gap is the real risk
Here is the number to circle: only 15% of marketers can tie AI-discovery spend to ROI. Everyone else is spending on faith.
Why does this hit influencer budgets hardest? Because creator spend already sits in the grey zone between awareness and sales. Add AI-driven discovery (assistants recommending products, search summaries citing creator content) and attribution gets murkier still. We have seen the same disconnect in influencer marketing confidence: sentiment runs ahead of proof.
What to do on Monday:
- Pick one AI-influenced channel and define a single outcome metric before spending another dollar on it.
- Run a holdout test. Dark a market or audience segment and compare.
- Separate “AI helped us make it” costs from “AI helped us sell it” results. They are different line items.
- Make agencies show their measurement method in the statement of work, not in a debrief.
Signal 3: Consumers discover through AI, then double-check it
Nielsen reports that 52% of US consumers use AI for content discovery at least once a month, outpacing the 50% who use it for brand discovery. Yet 75% say they verify the results AI gives them because they do not trust them.
That last figure is the opening for creators. People who fact-check an AI answer need somewhere to check it. A creator with a track record, a visible face and a comment section is a verification layer that a chatbot cannot be.
A separate NIQ release points the same direction, reporting that 55% of consumers report AI influence on CPG product discovery. Different survey, same trend line.
The practical read: your creator content is probably being read, summarized and cited by AI systems before a shopper ever sees it. Clear product claims, consistent naming and transparent disclosures help both humans and machines trust it. Vague, hype-heavy copy does neither.
Signal 4: Creators are the leading opportunity
Consumers aged 18-49 average more than 30 hours a week on smartphones, and half of that time goes to social media. Industry leaders agree: 75% agree on the channel’s effectiveness, and they see creator content as the leading opportunity inside it.
The loyalty data is the part I would put in front of a skeptical finance lead. Nearly half of US consumers say loyalty to a creator makes them more willing to consider or try a product the creator promotes, even without prior interest. That is persuasion, not just reach.
Nielsen’s earlier report already hinted at it. In its 2025 findings on AI and marketing, 47% of marketers expected authenticity and influencer content to be a significant trend. Expectation has now turned into budget conversations.
If creators are the opportunity, the scorecard has to evolve. Reach and views will not capture loyalty. Our piece on brand affinity lays out a workable alternative, and Nielsen’s own Creator Lift product is one of the tools named in the report’s data sources.
Signal 5: Budgets follow the phone, and “TV” is just video
Forty-one percent of US consumers consider video content to be “TV” regardless of platform. Ad money is following: digital channels took 53% of total US ad spend last year, and that share reached 56% in the first half of this year.
For brand teams, the implication is a turf war inside your own organization. Creator video now competes with linear and streaming for the same awareness dollars. If you cannot express creator results in the language of reach, frequency and lift that TV buyers use, you will lose that argument. Start by translating, not by defending.
It also means more eyes on how creator deals are written. As creator content gets reused in paid media, content licensing terms stop being legal fine print and become a pricing lever.
Where AI spending is heading, and why it matters to you
One more data point. Nielsen’s report says six leading AI companies spent nearly half a billion dollars in the market in the first half of 2026, a 2.6x increase year-over-year. Expect heavier ad competition, and expect AI brands themselves to court creators. Rates may follow, as they did in seasonal booking surges.
Governance cannot lag the spend. Automated agents that brief, buy or reply on your behalf will eventually misfire, which is why we argued for oversight roles before something breaks publicly.
A simple five-point action plan
- Audit AI use. List every place AI touches your creator workflow and mark which ones have a measured outcome.
- Close the gap. Assign a metric and a test design to each unmeasured use.
- Build the verification layer. Prioritize creators whose audiences already trust them and whose claims are checkable.
- Rewrite the scorecard. Add affinity and lift beside reach.
- Tighten contracts. Spell out AI use, content reuse and disclosure obligations.
FAQs
What is Nielsen’s Annual Marketing Report?
It is Nielsen’s yearly study of marketer priorities and consumer behavior. The eighth edition focuses on AI and names brand awareness and customer acquisition as the defining priorities heading into 2027.
How many marketers use AI, according to Nielsen?
Nielsen reports that 98% of marketers are actively incorporating AI into their workflows. Measurement and analytics leads the list of uses, with nearly 68% of marketers applying AI there.
Why can’t most marketers prove AI ROI?
Per Nielsen, only 15% of marketers can connect AI-discovery spend to ROI. Common causes are unclear outcome metrics, no holdout testing, and attribution models that were not built for AI-assisted discovery.
Do consumers trust AI recommendations?
Not fully. Nielsen found that 75% of people verify AI results because they do not trust them. That makes trusted creators a natural place for shoppers to confirm a recommendation.
What should influencer marketers do first?
Audit where AI touches your creator program, then attach a measurable outcome and a test to each use. Update contracts and scorecards at the same time.
Pick your single largest AI-assisted creator spend this quarter and set a holdout test before the next brief goes out. If you cannot show lift within one cycle, move that budget to creators with proven audience loyalty.
Top Influencer Marketing Agencies
The leading agencies shaping influencer marketing in 2026
Agencies ranked by campaign performance, client diversity, platform expertise, proven ROI, industry recognition, and client satisfaction. Assessed through verified case studies, reviews, and industry consultations.
Moburst
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2
The Shelf
Boutique Beauty & Lifestyle Influencer AgencyA data-driven boutique agency specializing exclusively in beauty, wellness, and lifestyle influencer campaigns on Instagram and TikTok. Best for brands already focused on the beauty/personal care space that need curated, aesthetic-driven content.Clients: Pepsi, The Honest Company, Hims, Elf Cosmetics, Pure LeafVisit The Shelf → -
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Audiencly
Niche Gaming & Esports Influencer AgencyA specialized agency focused exclusively on gaming and esports creators on YouTube, Twitch, and TikTok. Ideal if your campaign is 100% gaming-focused — from game launches to hardware and esports events.Clients: Epic Games, NordVPN, Ubisoft, Wargaming, Tencent GamesVisit Audiencly → -
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Viral Nation
Global Influencer Marketing & Talent AgencyA dual talent management and marketing agency with proprietary brand safety tools and a global creator network spanning nano-influencers to celebrities across all major platforms.Clients: Meta, Activision Blizzard, Energizer, Aston Martin, WalmartVisit Viral Nation → -
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The Influencer Marketing Factory
TikTok, Instagram & YouTube CampaignsA full-service agency with strong TikTok expertise, offering end-to-end campaign management from influencer discovery through performance reporting with a focus on platform-native content.Clients: Google, Snapchat, Universal Music, Bumble, YelpVisit TIMF → -
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NeoReach
Enterprise Analytics & Influencer CampaignsAn enterprise-focused agency combining managed campaigns with a powerful self-service data platform for influencer search, audience analytics, and attribution modeling.Clients: Amazon, Airbnb, Netflix, Honda, The New York TimesVisit NeoReach → -
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Ubiquitous
Creator-First Marketing PlatformA tech-driven platform combining self-service tools with managed campaign options, emphasizing speed and scalability for brands managing multiple influencer relationships.Clients: Lyft, Disney, Target, American Eagle, NetflixVisit Ubiquitous → -
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Obviously
Scalable Enterprise Influencer CampaignsA tech-enabled agency built for high-volume campaigns, coordinating hundreds of creators simultaneously with end-to-end logistics, content rights management, and product seeding.Clients: Google, Ulta Beauty, Converse, AmazonVisit Obviously →