<div class="gn-article"><div class="gn-hero gn-reveal"> <div class="gn-hero__image"><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/687a235da6861294eec73166/691f07537a74ab43a4eca3f5_Playback%20-%20Banner%2020-11.png" alt=""></div> <div class="gn-hero__head"> <span class="gn-kicker"><span class="dot"></span>Expression</span> <h1 class="gn-title"><em>Playback:</em> Rebuilding Trust in Influencer Marketing</h1> <div class="gn-meta"> <strong>The GO Network</strong> <span class="pip"></span> <span>20 November 2025</span> <span class="pip"></span> <span>1 min read</span> </div> </div> </div> <div class="gn-body"> <figure class="gn-fig gn-reveal"> <div class="gn-fig__media"> <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-video w-richtext-align-fullwidth" style="padding-bottom:56.33802816901409%" data-rt-type="video" data-rt-align="fullwidth" data-rt-max-width="" data-rt-max-height="56.33802816901409%" data-rt-dimensions="426:240" data-page-url="https://vimeo.com/1138892203?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci"><div id=""><iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/1138892203" title="Rebuilding Trust in Influencer Marketing - 20th November" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></div></figure> <h2>Influencer Marketing Has a Trust Problem. Here Is How Agencies Are Fixing It.</h2> <p>The influencer marketing landscape has changed significantly since 2020. What began as a relatively straightforward channel, placing brand messages in front of engaged audiences through relatable creators, has become far more complex. Audiences are more sceptical, disclosure regulations have tightened, and brands are asking harder questions about what their investment is actually delivering. For agencies running influencer programmes, the pressure to demonstrate genuine value, not just reach and impressions, has never been higher.</p> <p>At a session hosted by <strong>The GO Network</strong> on 20th November, three agency leaders came together to work through how the industry is responding. <strong>Anastasios Moiras</strong>, Managing Director at <strong>Technē Agency</strong>, <strong>Sheridan Okey</strong>, Head of PR at <strong>Tribera | Creative Content Agency</strong>, and <strong>Mike Craddock</strong>, CEO and Co-Founder of <strong>NewGen</strong>, shared how their agencies are rebuilding credibility into influencer work from the ground up. What follows are the core arguments and practical approaches that came out of that conversation.</p> <h2>Authenticity Is No Longer a Differentiator. It Is the Baseline.</h2> <p>One of the clearest shifts since 2020 is that audiences have become significantly better at detecting inauthenticity. Creators who post obviously scripted content, endorse products they have no visible connection to, or cycle through too many brand partnerships in quick succession have seen their engagement quality drop. For agencies, this matters because it affects campaign performance directly.</p> <p>The panel made the case that authenticity has moved from being a strategic advantage to being a minimum requirement. Brands are no longer willing to pay for reach alone if the creator relationship feels forced. The question agencies now have to answer for clients is not just "how many people will see this?" but "will those people believe it?"</p> <p>This shifts the selection criteria for creator partnerships considerably. Agencies that are winning this argument are doing more upfront work to match creators to campaigns based on genuine alignment, not just audience size. That means reviewing a creator's existing content history, understanding their community's expectations, and making honest assessments about whether the brand fit is credible before a brief is even written.</p> <h2>Transparency and Disclosure Are Agency Responsibilities, Not Creator Afterthoughts.</h2> <p>Disclosure rules in the UK have become more consistently enforced, and the consequences of non-compliance fall on agencies and brands as much as on individual creators. The ASA's guidelines on paid partnerships require clear and upfront labelling, and vague or buried disclosures are no longer acceptable. Beyond legal compliance, the panel discussed how transparency itself has become a brand-building tool.</p> <p>Audiences increasingly respect creators who are open about commercial relationships, provided the relationship makes sense. A poorly disclosed ad erodes trust twice: once when the audience feels deceived, and again when the creator's credibility takes the hit. Agencies that brief creators properly, provide disclosure guidance as a standard part of their process, and check content before it goes live are protecting the campaign and the client relationship simultaneously.</p> <p>Ethical practice also extends to how agencies negotiate with creators. Paying fairly, being clear about usage rights, and treating creators as professional partners rather than a media buy produces better creative output and more sustainable working relationships.</p> <h2>One-Off Campaigns Are the Wrong Model. Long-Term Partnerships Deliver Better Results.</h2> <p>A consistent theme across the session was the shift away from transactional, one-off collaborations towards longer-term ambassador relationships. The logic is straightforward: a creator who has worked with a brand over time, used its products, and integrated it into their content organically is far more convincing than one who appears to endorse it for a single post and then moves on.</p> <p>For agencies, this requires a different commercial conversation with clients. Long-term partnerships require bigger upfront commitments, more careful creator selection, and a willingness to give creators more creative autonomy. They also require patience, because the trust signals that make these partnerships effective build over time rather than delivering an immediate spike.</p> <p>The panel's view was that agencies which can make this case compellingly and then manage long-term creator relationships well are in a strong position. The short-term transactional model is increasingly commoditised. Sustainable influencer strategy is where the margin and the differentiation sit.</p> <h2>Measuring Real Impact Means Going Beyond Surface Engagement.</h2> <p>Likes, views, and follower counts remain easy metrics to report, but the panel challenged agencies to push measurement frameworks further. The question clients should be asking, and that agencies should be helping them answer, is whether influencer activity is moving meaningful business metrics: brand sentiment, purchase intent, website traffic with commercial intent, and actual conversions.</p> <p>This requires setting measurement frameworks before a campaign launches, not after. Agencies need to agree with clients on what success looks like in concrete terms, connect influencer activity to trackable outcomes where possible, and build reporting that tells a story beyond the vanity numbers. UTM parameters, promo codes, and brand lift studies are all standard tools that can be used to build a more honest picture of performance.</p> <p>Reporting surface engagement as the primary measure of success is a short-term approach that erodes client confidence over time. Agencies that invest in better measurement are building a stronger case for the channel and for their own expertise.</p> <h2>Where to Start</h2> <p>If your agency runs influencer programmes, the most immediate audit to run is on your creator briefing and disclosure process. Tightening that up protects your clients and sets a professional standard that better creators will respond to. The second step is to have an honest conversation internally about whether your measurement approach is actually demonstrating campaign value, or just reporting what is easy to pull. Both conversations are worth having before the next campaign brief lands.</p> <p>You can watch the full session with Anastasios Moiras, Sheridan Okey, and Mike Craddock via The GO Network on demand.</p> </div></div> <aside class="gn-related gn-reveal" data-auto="related-reading"> <div class="gn-related__label">Related reading</div> <ul class="gn-related__list"> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/playback-rebuilding-trust-in-influencer-marketing-what-modern-brands-need-to-know" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">Playback: Rebuilding Trust in Influencer Marketing: What Modern Brands Need to Know</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Vanity metrics are eroding creator partnerships. 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