The traditional entertainment release sprint is no longer enough to sustain global brands. For movie studios and streaming services, the goal has evolved from securing a viewer’s immediate attention to winning their long-term affection.
In 2026, entertainment brands are locked in a battle where emotional loyalty is the primary currency of the community and the only reliable path to fan retention.
Marketing leaders face a collapsed funnel and today’s fans enter the brand ecosystem at any stage, whether through a trending awards season fan-edit on social media or an immersive in-person activation. To thrive, studios must transition from static campaigns to dynamic, creator-led strategies.
1. The Open Scorecard: Measuring Value, Velocity, and Voice
The modern entertainment marketer operates under an open scorecard. In a world of public feedback and immediate data, three digital metrics now define success:
- Value: What fans receive beyond the runtime like providing immersive story worlds versus a subscription or a ticket only.
- Velocity: The speed at which creators and fans spread content and feedback, requiring brands to move at the speed of culture.
- Voice: Leveraging the trusted authority of creators who own specific fan niches.
The urgency of this shift is reflected in the numbers: U.S. creator ad spend reached $37.1B in 2025, growing four times faster than the broader media industry according to the report from IAB. For the Media and Entertainment sector, this represents a move toward a culture-first approach, with spend in this vertical alone projected to grow 39% year-over-year.
“In 2026, chasing ‘impressions’ is a legacy mindset that no longer guarantees a return,” says Tori Perez, VP Sales at IZEA. “Measuring value, velocity, and voice is the new standard for proving true market impact. Marketing leaders must pivot from asking for reach to demanding residence. If your IP isn’t living rent-free in a fan’s mind, you aren’t building a brand; you’re just buying temporary noise.”
2. Experience Engineering: Turning Intellectual Property into Fandom
Marketers must use experience engineering to strategically design a fan journey that turns passive consumption into continuous advocacy.
- Surrounding the Moment: Sophisticated brands treat the awards season red carpet as a massive amplification zone. By building hype weeks before an event and using creators to humanize the narrative, studios ensure their IP lives rent-free in the public mind.
- IRL Participation: Extending IP into real-world touchpoints is critical for retention. Immersion moments, such as biometric fan lanes or shared reality venues, bridge the gap between digital discovery and real participation.
91% of consumers say participating in experiential marketing makes them more inclined to buy from a brand according to the report from Quad-Harris Poll, proving that immersive moments are the key to unlocking affection.
3. The New Fan Journey: Fandom Starts Here
In 2026, inactivity replaces brand equity. Because the fan journey is infinite, creators must play a role at every stage to meet consumers wherever they choose to enter the loop:
- Mega Creators drive global inspiration and share of voice during cultural tentpoles like the Oscars or Golden Globes.
- Mid-Tier Creators address curiosity by turning attention into intent through authentic, platform-native storytelling.
- Micro Creators finalize the path to purchase by providing peer-to-peer reassurance and driving foot traffic to theaters or retail.
Ultimately, the objective is to build an always-on engine. Driving sales remains a top priority, with 32% of brands ranking conversions as a major objective according to the report from IAB. By leveraging a tiered creator strategy and modular content libraries, brands can achieve personalization at scale, delivering content tailored to micro-segments of fans with surgical precision.
3 Major Takeaways
- Move Beyond Project-Based Silos: Integrate your creator strategy into your broader marketing organization early. Unified measurement across creative, PR, and media agencies is essential to avoid data gaps and prove ROI.
- Prioritize Affection Over Polish: Branded content can sometimes feel impersonal. Creator-led narratives humanize your IP, building trust through individuals who represent the concept of ‘people like me’.
- Own Your First-Party Data: Use scannable digital touchpoints at real-world events to capture identity data at the source. This ownership is the single most important lever for unlocking future-proof personalization and long-term fandom.
At IZEA, we ensure your brand isn’t just a spectator—it’s the pulse. Because in the 2026 Creator Economy, Fandom Starts Here. Talk to us!
Source: IAB 2025 Creator Economy Ad Spend & Strategy Report.
John Francis is the VP, Sales & Marketing Operations at IZEA, where he champions the alignment of sales and marketing to accelerate innovation and fuel strategic growth within the Creator Economy.