Recently, I was witness to a social media backlash involving a major brand that was accused of cultural appropriation because of a creator they hired to produce content for them. It all started with a video that went viral of some dancers doing an adaptation of a cultural dance from my state.
This was around the same time that the brand had been putting together a downhill mountain biking event (one of many such adrenaline-pumping events the brand is known for organizing) in my city. Since their version featured extreme alterations to the original, it stirred up a huge controversy, especially after claims came out that the performance was for the brand’s event.
With meme pages and local influencers further fanning the flames, the online community got riled up and began spamming the brand’s page with angry comments. I reached out to a friend who was hosting the event, and neither she nor the organizers knew about the performance.
They quickly got to the bottom of the issue, and it turned out that the dance was something that a content creator had put together. Although the creator was hired by the brand to produce content, she was given enough creative freedom to do whatever she wanted. This meant that the brand didn’t have to sign off on her idea, no matter how tone deaf it might be. And it ended up in a disaster.
My point is that although creative freedom in influencer campaigns is essential for authenticity, too much of it could put your brand reputation at risk. In this post, I discuss how to maintain the right balance, so you get the best of both worlds.
Every marketer knows the dilemma: you want content that’s on-brand, but not boring. You want creators to express themselves authentically, but also to hit the key messages. Too much control? The post feels like an ad. Too little? The brand disappears from the story.
This tug-of-war defines modern influencer marketing — especially in retail, where content lives everywhere from TikTok to in-store screens.
And unlike the early stages of influencer marketing, when it was all about how big an influencer’s following was, the landscape has evolved so much that reach plays a much less significant role. With the market being more saturated than ever, consumers are no longer listening to influencers just because they have a large following. Rather, it’s all about resonance.
Be it the crochet creator who shares content about her latest creations or the mom of four who shares her fun yet nutritious recipes – people are looking to creators whose content resonates with them.
That’s exactly why it’s more important than ever to put authenticity and creativity at the forefront. From advice based on real experiences to honest reviews, people want to see content that’s genuine and true to the influencer.
There’s also the fact that influencers hate when brands are too restrictive with their guidelines. Influencers typically avoid working with brands they don’t like or campaigns that don’t pay enough. But aside from these, lack of creative freedom is another major reason.
A survey of over 1,000 creators found that 24.6% would refuse to work with a brand that doesn’t give them creative freedom.
And this makes sense because when the brand guidelines are too strict, it stifles creativity and engagement. Influencers will end up creating content that feels forced and inauthentic, which their followers can sense from a mile away.
Yet brands still hesitate to give up the reins because they fear they’ll lose control of their message. That’s why they’ll dictate what influencers need to do and say instead of letting them take over creative direction. This is especially true in industries like retail, where consistency matters.
If you think about it, you can’t really blame brands eithe,r because when creators have full liberty to do what they want, it could end up in a PR crisis like the example I highlighted above.
So how do you strike the perfect balance? The solution isn’t full freedom or tight control – it’s creative parameters that guide, not dictate.
Few brands navigate this balance as well as Target, whose creator collaborations have redefined retail storytelling — blending corporate polish with the playful, human energy that creators bring. Whether it’s their viral TikTok “Target hauls” or seasonal influencer drops, Target’s approach shows one truth: creative freedom drives performance — when it’s structured right.
The retail giant has mastered the “controlled freedom” model through Future Collective — a co-branding initiative featuring a rotating roster of influencers. Past campaigns have featured names like Alani Noelle, Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, and Jeneé Naylor, to name a few.
With each partner, Target offers a range of new and on-trend choices unique to the influencer’s style. The influencer helps Target co-design a collection featuring items that reflect their personal fashion philosophy and truly speak to their audience.
Since they have full control over what to include in the collection, these creators feel genuinely involved in the campaign. It makes them feel like they’re truly part of the brand, which compels them to organically promote the collection with their respective audiences. At the same time, Target works closely with them to ensure that the collection is still on-brand.
You can even find organic content from other creators, who shared honest reviews and try-on hauls, not because Target asked them to, but because they’re fans of the influencer who helped design the collection.
Another excellent example of a creator-driven campaign that Target nailed involves back-to-school hauls. Several influencers put together their own version of a back-to-school haul, highlighting the wide range of back-to-school items available at Target.
These influencers had full creative freedom to make the content their own, with no rigid restrictions on which products to showcase. All they needed to do was show their viewers that Target is the go-to destination for all their back-to-school needs. They could get as creative as they needed to be and speak to their audience in their unique voice.
So, for instance, you’ll find someone doing an ASMR video with a whispered voiceover. This will better resonate with their audience because they’re tuning into the influencer’s channel because of their ASMR content.
Meanwhile, another influencer will turn the whole back-to-school shopping experience into a challenge. Amyy Woahh created a video in her signature style featuring exaggerated expressions and bold edits, featuring her and her llamas hunting down back-to-school items across Target aisles.Meanwhile, another influencer will turn the whole back-to-school shopping experience into a challenge. Amyy Woahh created a video in her signature style featuring exaggerated expressions and bold edits, featuring her and her llamas hunting down back-to-school items across Target aisles.
These influencers were mainly asked to highlight Target’s back-to-school supplies, with the creative freedom to give it any angle they want in their own unique style. This gave them plenty of breathing room to get creative and put together videos that appealed to their respective viewers. So there’s a balance because Target gave them a prompt while also letting them get as creative as they needed to be.
There’s a reason Target’s influencer marketing campaigns work so well. They rely on these three pillars:
All of this results in content that feels authentic — not “produced” — but still unmistakably Target. And that’s how Target strikes the perfect balance.
Most brands know that creative freedom is important, so they let influencers run loose and do whatever they want. But creative freedom doesn’t mean creative chaos. Agencies and brands should step in when:
Meanwhile, some brands may be too restrictive because they want to be in control of the campaign messaging. So they end up getting in the way of creators being their authentic selves, resulting in content that feels forced and rigid. It’s just as important for brands and agencies to step back and let influencers do their magic.
Ideally, you should step back:
Striking the right balance with creative freedom in influencer campaigns is more than just knowing when to step in and when to step back. Here are some pro tips to help you strategically manage creative freedom for agencies and brands.
Guardrails help you ensure that influencers have plenty of space to move about without going off-track. It gives them lots of breathing room but provides them with enough guidelines, so they still meet the basic requirements of your campaign.
Define the must-have elements, such as hashtags, messaging points, and tone. But give creators the flexibility to execute it in a way that reflects their individuality.
For instance, you could require them to highlight some key benefits of a skincare product (reducing blemishes, tackling acne, etc.) But whether they choose to put together a comedic skit or do an informative ingredient breakdown is up to them.
When Target wanted to showcase its vast selection of Ulta Beauty products, they got several beauty influencers to create content featuring items from the brand. This included an influencer duo creating a fun duet-style video where they put together unique makeup looks using Ulta Beauty’s Wicked collection.
Meanwhile, another creator put together a video tutorial, showing the audience how to create a festive look for the holidays. These creators got creative with unique makeup looks and content styles, but they all helped to promote Target’s Ulta Beauty product selection.
Briefs help to communicate content requirements and guidelines. But instead of using them as strict instructions, you should start using them as a playbook to drive inspiration. Replace the bulleted list of what to do with a list of creative possibilities to inspire creators.
For instance, instead of telling them:
You could do something like:
The insights from your influencer performance analysis can tell you a lot about what works with your target audience. So you can use them to guide the creative direction for your future influencer collaborations.
Track performance data to identify which creator voices convert best. Then build your next briefs around those formats. For instance, if sketches perform better than tutorials, you could encourage influencers to focus on storytelling instead of instructional content.
One of the best ways you can balance creative freedom without losing branding is by actually collaborating with influencers. This is more than just getting them to create content for you. Rather, it’s about involving them in the campaign ideation process so they’re actually a part of creative direction.
Invite them to co-ideate campaign angles, as they often predict trends before brands do and have a pretty good gauge of what the audience wants to see. This puts them in the perfect position to weigh in on how to approach the campaign so that it resonates.
When influencers infuse their authenticity and unique voice into your campaigns, they help to take your message to another level. And you end up with content that genuinely touches the audience while still staying on-brand.