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In this episode of the Creator Economy Live podcast, Keith Bendes and Brendan Gahan are joined by Moritz Bartsch, Head of Creative Product Strategy and Operations at TikTok, to explore how brands can turn employees, customers, and existing advocates into powerful creator communities.

Moritz takes us behind the scenes of TikTok’s Custom Creator Networks, exploring the launch with Starbucks, the rise of employee-generated content, and how brands can build scalable creator programmes beyond traditional influencer partnerships. The conversation also covers employee compensation, brand advocacy, and what the future creator mix could look like.

Plus, Keith and Brendan unpack the latest creator economy headlines, including LinkedIn’s new creator features, Substack’s expansion into sponsorships, and the Kelly Clarkson mechanical bird controversy, before sharing their Creators and Brands of the Week.

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How do you manage 500 influencer partnerships a year while keeping performance and creativity at the forefront?

This week, Keith and Brendan are joined by Sarah Adam, Head of Partnerships, Social & AI at Wix, to explore how B2B influencer marketing is evolving. From identifying the right creators and measuring ROI to structuring payments and building successful influencer teams, Sarah shares practical insights from over six years at Wix.

Plus, the trio discuss the latest creator economy news, including YouTube's crackdown on clipping, OpenAI's growing creator ambitions, and their picks for Creator and Brand of the Week.

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Lowe’s has been pushing its creator strategy well beyond the traditional sponsored post. This week, Keith sits down with Jonathan Stanley, Head of Social Media and Influencer Marketing at Lowe’s, to unpack how the retailer is building long-term creator relationships, bringing creators into product innovation, and deciding where creators fit alongside sports partnerships, paid social and traditional media.

Jonathan takes us inside the Lowe’s Creator Program and its latest Into the Blue initiative, shares how physical stores are becoming part of the creator strategy, and discusses what could come next as creators move from media partners and sales drivers to having a real influence on the products brands sell.

Plus, Keith breaks down the latest creator economy news, including VidCon’s major overhaul, Meta One’s new subscription tiers, and new data showing shoppers increasingly want creator perspectives incorporated into AI-powered recommendations.

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Keith and Brendan welcome Jason Y. Lee, founder and CEO of Jubilee Media, the company behind viral series including Middle Ground, Surrounded, and Spectrum. What started as a nonprofit focused on human connection has grown into one of YouTube's most recognizable media brands, generating billions of views and nearly 11 million subscribers.

Jason shares the story behind Jubilee's rise, the key moments that fueled its growth, and why the company has succeeded by leaning into conversations most brands would rather avoid. The discussion also explores the blurred lines between creators and media companies, what brands can learn from great long-form content, the power of episodic storytelling, and how to balance provocative content with meaningful conversation.

Elsewhere, Keith and Brendan break down the growing creator presence at the US Open, Sephora's move into TikTok Shop, Amazon joining YouTube's affiliate program, TikTok's expanded comment features, and what the latest developments in Meta's youth safety settlement could mean for the creator economy.

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Keith and Brendan sit down with Pamela Stephens, who's spent over a decade shaping influencer and content strategy at 3M — the $25 billion company behind everyday staples like Post-it, Scotch, Command, and Scotch-Brite. Pamela shares how influencer marketing has evolved inside a massive, multi-brand organization and what it takes to get executives to invest in creator partnerships.

News catchup covers Meta's landmark $12.2 billion youth safety settlement (with new age verification, screen time caps, and curfew rules for under-18 users on Instagram and Facebook), YouTube's shift to counting a view the instant a video starts playing, and the platform's push to lock in top creators with exclusive deals.

Plus this week's Creator of the Week and Brand of the Week picks — including Germany's "Opa Werner," the ongoing Bricks & Minifigs LEGO drama, and a trio of brands (Lovesac, Callaway/Good Good Golf, and Neutrogena) that all learned the hard way what happens when you lose control of the narrative around your marketing.

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Keith and Brendan celebrate the 100th episode of the Creator Economy Live Podcast, looking back at some of the standout moments and conversations from the past 100 episodes.

They reflect on how the creator economy has evolved along the way - from changing brand-creator relationships and the professionalisation of influencer marketing to the trends shaping where the industry goes next.

The conversation also dives into how CPG brands are structuring their influencer teams, the rise of employee-generated content, and what both tell us about the next phase of the creator economy.

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Live from CEL East in New York, Keith and Brendan sit down with Sam Friedman, the NFL's Senior Director of Global Social & Creator Strategy, to unpack how the league builds its creator ecosystem — from player social support to platform partnerships and of course a nod to the Taylor Swift strategy. Sam breaks down last season's global activations, how creators complement broadcasts World Cup-style, and what's ahead for a record nine international games including Australia, Paris, and Rio.

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Keith and Brendan welcome Michael Kaye, global brand comms lead at Match Group, for a wide-ranging talk on dating apps and creator culture.

News catchup covers C3/Live Nation's new creator festival For You Fest (a TanaCon callback), Google Search Console's new "platform properties" tracking, and creators dominating World Cup coverage.

Guest discussion dives into Kaye's path into comms, how Match Group brands build creator partnerships, AI's impact on storytelling, and where brand comms is headed — plus some Taylor Swift wedding hot takes.