Creators aren't just making content anymore—they're getting pulled into the actual strategy conversation. Ad Age social and influencer marketing reporter Gillian Follett explains how creators are shaping product decisions and campaign direction with brands, not just showing up in the final cut. She also weighs in on the branded-series gold rush (and why most of it isn't landing), a friend-group content format quietly gaining traction, and the one question about AI companies and creator partnerships she's still trying to get answered.

Listen to the full conversation on your favorite podcast platform.

Viral videos of influencers disrupting US Open matches exposed how many brands still lack clear systems for briefing talent, picking the right creators or vetting whether an event even fits their brand. Plus, WPP is set to retain Coca-Cola's global media, data and technology business but won't compete for its North America media pitch; KFC's new Open House concept restaurant joins a wave of experimental formats as quick service chains test menu, pricing and design ideas before rolling them out at scale; Amazon Ads becomes ChatGPT's biggest ad tech partner, letting marketers reserve ad inventory inside the chatbot; and QuikTrip's Home Bun activation drew more than 230 million views.

Host Parker Herren breaks down what each story means for marketers navigating creator accountability, agency fragmentation, experimental innovation and the rise of conversational advertising. Subscribe for weekly industry news roundups, plus biweekly deep-dive conversations with Ad Age reporters.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~WPP is set to win Coca-Cola's global agency review

~Inside fast food's big bet on experimental restaurant concepts

~Amazon becomes a new funnel for buying ChatGPT ads

~3 creator event mistakes the US Open exposed—and how to avoid them

~How QuikTrip dreamed up its viral in-stadium MLB hot dog game

Gillian Follett, social marketing and influencer reporter at Ad Age, breaks down how brand-creator partnerships have evolved in 2026, from creators taking on strategic roles in product development and marketing decisions to equity deals reshaping the influencer economy. The conversation covers creator advisory boards at holding companies, the rise of creator-founded agencies producing social-first branded content and the growing use of livestreaming creators in brand campaigns. It also gets into an emerging trend: brands working with creators to optimize content for AI search tools.

Host Parker Herren digs into where traditional, one-off sponsored posts still fit, why influencer fatigue is pushing brands toward more selective partnerships, and what's overhyped in the scripted branded-content boom right now. Subscribe to Ad Age Insider for more conversations that turn Ad Age's reporting into strategy marketers can implement now.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~Subscribe to The Creator Brief by Ad Age!

~A new creator agency with an advisory board model gives talent a seat at the strategy table

~How four friends built a creator business—and landed 30 brand deals in four months

~OpenAI's creator trip fallout—what to do before signing an AI brand deal

~Inside the rise of creator-brand equity deals—and how they're reshaping creator marketing

~4 ways creator-brand partnerships are evolving

Planters named Martin, the agency behind the Geico Gecko, its creative agency of record without running a formal review, betting on character-driven branding to sharpen Mr. Peanut's point of view. Plus, Callaway ended its Good Good Golf partnership after a controversial ad, exposing gaps in how brands vet creator-made content; The Trade Desk overhauled Kokai with more visibility into automated ad buying OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, Microsoft and Google are marketing AI to two audiences at once, exposing a marketing dilemma; and new sunscreen brand Pasty Man is targeting men with a an elderly dancer's backside.

Host Parker Herren breaks down what each story means for marketers navigating agency hiring strategy, creator content oversight, ad tech transparency and AI trust building. Subscribe for weekly industry news roundups.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~Planters hires Martin to help Mr. Peanut win the protein wars

~Callaway controversy reveals gaps in how brands review creator ads

~The Trade Desk is overhauling its ad-buying platform—here's what marketers need to know

~Why AI CMOs have a problem that goes beyond advertising

~Pasty Man uses a 90-year-old butt to make its case for sunscreen

Catch the full conversation: https://adage.substack.com/p/ai-is-all-over-earnings-calls-ai

Ad Age's senior tech editor Garett Sloane joins Parker to answer the question everyone's asking: is the AI bubble about to pop, or are we still just getting started? They get into AI search (AEO), the OpenAI-vs-Google power struggle, and why Garett thinks holograms are the next big sleeper trend—plus a chatbot customer service story gone hilariously wrong.

YouTube is doubling the watch time and engagement thresholds creators need to qualify for its Partner Program starting February 2027, a shift that matters less than it sounds since brands are already striking direct deals with creators regardless of their eligibility status. Plus, The Variable acquired Gen Z and Gen Alpha-focused agency Carson+Doyle; Athleta launched "My World, My Rules," aiming to reverse a sales decline; Nielsen will begin applying Latency Adjusted DASH Universe Estimates to its Big Data Plus Panel currency, changing how TV and streaming viewing gets weighted; and Spotify and Uncommon New York turned real user playlist titles into outdoor ad headlines across New York, Miami, and Los Angeles.

Host Parker Herren breaks down what each story means for marketers navigating creator partnerships, agency M&A, TV measurement shifts and brand repositioning. Subscribe for weekly industry news roundups, plus biweekly deep-dive conversations with Ad Age reporters.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~The Variable acquires a Gen Z marketing agency—behind the move

~Athleta's first campaign with Invisible Dynamics underscores its female-first brand identity

~Nielsen announces latency tweaks for DASH universe estimates

~How YouTube monetization is changing for the platform's smaller creators

~Spotify features users' playlist titles as headlines in witty OOH campaign

Ad Age senior tech editor Garett Sloane unpacks why AI dominates earnings calls at companies from Meta and Google to Colgate-Palmolive, Amazon and Booking Holdings even if it's not yet moving the bottom line for most. The conversation covers AI search and chatbots reshaping consumer discovery, ChatGPT's ad business outlook, agentic commerce experiments and the slow, standards-limited rollout of agentic ad buying across PubMatic, Criteo and Magnite.

Sloane and host Parker Herren discuss where the AI hype-to-results gap is widest, and why even the companies racing forward are still working with incomplete data on what's actually working. They dig into why ChatGPT ad spend remains experimental, what a real agentic buying breakthrough would take and the state of the "AI bubble" conversation. Subscribe to Ad Age Insider for more conversations that turn Ad Age's reporting into what marketers actually need to know.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~AI is reshaping ad infrastructure but hasn't boosted company results just yet

~ChatGPT beefs up ad measurement, but gaps remain for buyers

~Amazon's AI shelf—what brands must do to compete for visibility

This week: PepsiCo is running a global agency review focused on building out AI marketing capabilities, with Omnicom, Accenture, Deloitte, and Publicis Sapient all vying for the assignment.

Plus, Google enlists creatives Susan Credle, Tiffany Rolfe and Jayanta Jenkins to make AI-generated ads using Flow and Gemini to shift industry sentiment on AI; OpenAI's CMO for business argues ChatGPT is letting non-marketers like engineers make ads; Kick launches Kick Ads with tiered brand suitability controls, betting advertisers will trust its content moderation despite past controversy; and Garage Beer and Liquid Death team up on a music video and pee-collection stunt urging fans to help cool AI data centers, with Jason Kelce starring.

Host Parker Herren breaks down what each story means for marketers navigating AI's shift from hype to operational strategy, creative trust in generative tools, platform brand safety and the culture war brewing around AI. Subscribe for weekly industry news roundups, plus biweekly deep-dive conversations with Ad Age reporters.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~PepsiCo is conducting an AI marketing transformation review

~3 top creatives made AI spots with Google—will they help ease the stigma?

~OpenAI's business CMO says with ChatGPT everyone's a marketer

~How Kick is addressing brand suitability for cautious buyers

~Garage Beer and Liquid Death want you to cool AI data centers—with your pee

Dollar Tree named independent agency Tombras its first-ever creative agency of record ahead of a September brand campaign—what it reveals about the shift from performance marketing to full-funnel brand building. Plus, Quality Meats co-founders launched cannabis beverage Herb Light, using retro beer nostalgia to help THC drinkers understand dosage before they try it; OpenAI expanded ChatGPT's ad infrastructure with new partners including Kochava, though brand safety and independent verification tools are still missing; creator economy veterans launched JERi, a new agency built to give creators a seat at strategy and planning instead of just execution; and Columbia Sportswear closed its eight-month flat earth campaign with adam&eve/TBWA, handing out consolation gift cards after no one could prove the earth is flat.

Host Parker Herren breaks down what each story means for marketers navigating full-funnel brand building, emerging ad measurement channels, and the creator economy's shift toward strategic partnership. Subscribe for weekly industry news roundups, plus biweekly deep-dive conversations with Ad Age reporters.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~Dollar Tree chooses Tombras as its first creative agency of record

~Quality Meats founders move into cannabis—inside their Herb Light launch

~ChatGPT beefs up ad measurement, but gaps remain for buyers

~A new creator agency with an advisory board model gives talent a seat at the strategy table

~Columbia Sportswear calls off 'Expedition Impossible' but has consolation prizes for Flat Earthers

Erika Wheless, consumer culture and brand behavior reporter at Ad Age, breaks down the consumer trends shaping the back half of 2026, and how they connect to the brands gaining the most ground with Gen Z. The conversation covers why credibility is starting to matter more than authenticity, with audiences favoring "frontline authority" voices—actual employees and experts—over traditional influencer marketing, plus AI's growing role in that shift. It also digs into Gen Z's renewed appetite for physical ownership, from DVDs and game cartridges to novelty popcorn buckets and dumb phones, and why that's less nostalgia than a response to rising costs.

Host Parker Herren presses Wheless on what's driving purchase decisions among older Gen Z shoppers now managing real budgets, and which brands—AliExpress, Aldi, Longhorn Steakhouse among them—are winning by leaning into affordability and collectible, shareable experiences. Subscribe to Ad Age Insider for more conversations translating Ad Age's reporting into insight you can actually use.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~4 consumer trends for brands to watch in the second half of the year

~20 brands catching Gen Z's attention right now and how they are doing it

~20 brands catching millennials' attention right now

~Movie marketing for the TikTok generation—how theater chains are trying to reach Gen Z

~Buy tickets to Ad Age's Business of Brands conference

~Listen to Ad Age's Marketer's Brief podcast

This week on Ad Age Insider's Weekly Report: McDonald's opens up about how an overloaded promotional calendar, stacking a K-pop Demon Hunters tie-in, value messaging, beverage launches, and a FIFA World Cup push, confused customers and dragged down second-quarter sales, and what it reveals about the real cost of promotional saturation and the discipline brands need to know what to cut. Plus, the Martin Agency wins Subway's creative account after pitching a single "brutally simple" idea in its final review; Yahoo Sports leans on Robert Griffin III and BBDO for a college fantasy football push as part of its broader brand revival; Japan Airlines starts running paid ads on ChatGPT and adopts "share of model" as a new visibility metric as AI search reshapes travel discovery; and Lemonade and Cash Studios reward safe drivers in Texas with a message board that only lights up for cars going the speed limit.

Host Parker Herren breaks down what each story means for marketers navigating promotional overload, long-term brand platforms versus campaign-by-campaign thinking, authentic talent partnerships, and the shift from clicks to AI visibility as a marketing metric. Subscribe for weekly industry news roundups, plus biweekly deep-dive conversations with Ad Age reporters.

Dig deeper on the topics mentioned in this week's episode:

~McDonald's rethinks crowded promotional calendar

~Martin wins Subway's creative account

~Inside Robert Griffin III's back-to-school Yahoo College Fantasy Football ad

~How Japan Airlines will track its new ChatGPT ad strategy

~Lemonade's 'Slow Sign' salutes the 10% of Texans who drive the speed limit

~Vote for the best campaign of July 2026