Half of marketing leaders in Western Europe see measuring ROI as their biggest problem. 82% of brands also plan to increase budgets in 2026. This combination is not a paradox. It is an accurate picture of a market growing faster than it can explain its own results.
Creator marketing spend in the US reached $37 billion in 2025, according to IAB data, growing four times faster than the media industry as a whole. In Western Europe, most brands plan to raise influencer budgets by 10% to 19% over the next twelve months. These numbers look like proof. In fact, they mask a problem.
79% of marketers say measuring ROI is their biggest problem in influencer marketing, according to a Linqia survey. In Western Europe, half of marketing leaders go even further and see accurate measurement of ROI and ROAS as the biggest challenge they face. In other words, the market is growing at a record pace while being unable to say reliably why it works.
Why brands invest without evidence
The answer is not irrational but structural. Creator marketing delivers results that are hard to measure but difficult to ignore. The problem is that the direct link between a specific post and a sale is hard to trace. Reach and engagement data sits with the platforms, while conversions live in Google Analytics or the CRM. And these worlds are often kept separate inside companies.
Brands that bring this data together into one overview are 65% more confident when proving ROI. The infrastructure therefore exists, but most companies are not using it yet.
Micro creators, clear numbers
Measuring ROI is much easier with micro creators who work with affiliate codes and tracked links than with macro campaigns focused on reach and brand awareness. Micro creators with 10,000 to 100,000 followers achieve on average 60% higher engagement than those with more than a million followers, at roughly a tenth of the cost. And their content is attributable. The creator gets a unique discount code or a tracked link. Sales are assigned to a specific partner. The CFO sees numbers that make sense.
92% of marketers plan to work with both macro and micro creators in 2026. The logic is straightforward: macro for reach and credibility signals, micro for conversions and measurability. But this combined strategy requires a different kind of reporting than most marketing departments are used to.
The specifics of the European market
The European context adds another layer. Campaigns across markets must respect different national regulations (from the ASA to the ARPP), so alongside measurement, companies also have to deal with compliance. When working with dozens of micro creators in several countries, attribution, the legal framework and language localisation all have to be handled in parallel.
This is exactly where room opens up for specialised technology platforms for creator marketing in Europe. In 2025, Europe accounted for almost 40% of acquisition targets in the creator economy, and interest in infrastructure for measurement, payments and compliance is growing alongside budgets.
The market therefore faces a choice: either continue investing driven by instinct and peer pressure, or build measurement infrastructure that connects creator activity with business results. Companies that manage this sooner will gain not only higher efficiency but also a key advantage: proof.
Comments