Published by Sue Johns-Chapman
Published Date 07.07.2026 
By Sanna Ödmark, Chief Marketing Officer at Cure Media
One of the most fascinating parts of building the brand of a creator marketing agency is seeing how quickly the conversations around our industry change.
A few years ago, one of the biggest parts of my job was simply explaining what influencer marketing was. Conversations often started with the basics. Was it measurable? Could it drive business results? Was it anything more than paying creators to post on social media?
Today, those conversations look completely different. Creator marketing has become an established part of how modern brands build relevance, culture and long-term growth. Businesses talk about creator strategies, creator partnerships and the creator economy as naturally as they once talked about digital transformation or social media.
Looking back, I don’t think the biggest shift has happened within creator marketing itself. I think it’s happened in how the rest of the marketing industry views it.
At Cure Media, we’ve spent more than a decade helping brands grow through creator marketing. During that time, we’ve evolved from a specialist agency into a strategic partner for brands across Europe. Watching that journey unfold has given me a front-row seat to one of the fastest-moving shifts in modern marketing.
That became especially clear when we were shortlisted in four categories at this year’s European Agency Awards: Innovative Agency of the Year, Marketing Agency of the Year, Best Large Agency of the Year and Social Media Agency of the Year. Of course, seeing our team recognised is something I’m incredibly proud of. But what struck me most wasn’t the nominations themselves; it was the categories.
Only a few years ago, it would have been difficult to imagine a creator marketing agency being recognised alongside some of Europe’s leading creative, digital and integrated agencies in categories spanning innovation, marketing and overall agency excellence. To me, that’s one of the clearest signs that creator marketing is no longer viewed as a specialist discipline. It’s increasingly recognised as a strategic capability that sits at the heart of how modern brands grow.
Perhaps the clearest example of that shift is how we’ve had to market ourselves. Much of our communication used to focus on educating the market. We spent years explaining what creator marketing was, why it mattered and why brands should take it seriously.
Today, that’s rarely the conversation. Increasingly, brands, platforms and industry organisations approach us because they’re looking for perspectives on where creator marketing is heading. They’re no longer asking whether it works. They’re asking how it can strengthen brands, support innovation and create long-term business growth.
That’s perhaps the biggest change of all. We no longer spend our time explaining the discipline. Instead, we’re discussing what the next chapter of creator marketing looks like and helping shape it.
Watching that shift unfold has probably been one of the most rewarding parts of my role.
It also says something important about where our industry is today. For a long time, creator marketing was often treated as a specialist capability sitting alongside the rest of marketing. Today, it’s increasingly becoming part of broader conversations around brand strategy, business growth and competitive advantage.
That doesn’t mean the industry is finished evolving. Far from it. Many organisations are still adapting their structures, ways of working and internal capabilities to reflect this new reality. But the direction feels unmistakable.
Looking back, perhaps the biggest milestone isn’t that creator marketing now has its own awards, conferences or industry events. It’s that creator agencies are increasingly being recognised alongside the broader marketing industry.
For me, these nominations are another reflection of that broader shift. Not simply recognition for Cure Media, but another sign that creator marketing has earned its place as a strategic discipline within modern marketing.
After spending years explaining what influencer marketing was, I now spend my time having completely different conversations. We’re no longer proving that creator marketing deserves a seat at the table. Today’s conversations are about what’s next and how brands can evolve alongside it.
That’s exactly why I’m far more excited about the future than I am about looking back. If the conversations have changed this much in just a few years, I can’t wait to see where they take us next.
Connect With Cure Media
