#paid CMO: Hire Creators for Brand Fit Before Audience Size
Brands should choose creators based on genuine affinity with the brand before looking at follower counts, according to Roger Figueiredo, Chief Marketing Officer of creator marketplace #paid. In an interview-style piece, he laid out how the company approaches creator selection, briefs and measurement.
TELUS campaign results
For TELUS’s Black Friday 2025 YouTube Shorts campaign, #paid matched the brand with creators who were already customers. According to #paid, the videos delivered a 9.5% relative lift in ad recall, compared with a 6.6% benchmark for telecom and tech.
Fit through a hand-raise
Figueiredo says audience size, views and demographics became default hiring criteria because they mirror how marketers have traditionally bought media. #paid, which runs hubs in Toronto and New York, instead screens for whether a creator likes a brand, has used it and can talk about it naturally.
The main tool is a hand-raise, in which creators send a short pitch explaining why they fit. Creators who have switched providers can say so, and that information keeps them off the shortlist. Figueiredo acknowledges AI could be used to fake a pitch, but says a creator who does so risks losing the trust of brands, agencies and partners such as #paid.
He also says a famous name does not override a poor match. When brands are attached to a particular creator who is not right for the objective, #paid explains why and helps find better options. Follower count, he says, is “one data point among many” and “not irrelevant, but not ultimate either.”
Guardrails and co-creation
On briefs, Figueiredo says the best programs spell out what is mandatory and what is unacceptable, then leave the rest to the creator. An overly prescriptive brief can stifle creativity, while a thin one can lead to reshoots. #paid reviews briefs and advises brands where to loosen or tighten, which matters for clients in regulated categories.
The company launched its Co-Creator Program in June 2025 to bring creators in from the ideation stage. Sessions have included 10 to 15 creators, others just two, and have been held virtually or over a full day in person. Briefs can be finalized the same day or within a couple of days. Participants go through the same fit filter and hand-raise as any #paid campaign.
Ad recall is only part of the picture
Brands typically come to #paid with a launch or tentpole moment and a KPI, ranging from ad recall and brand lift to sales lift and test drives. Figueiredo notes that ad recall shows whether people remember an ad but does not answer a CFO’s questions about revenue or sales, so brands needing that answer should set the metric from the start.
Looking ahead, he wants brands to involve creators in company events, consumer events, conferences and product collaborations. His longer-term hope is that brands will trust creators with their creative, with #paid acting as a broker of that trust.
The details come from a Q&A-style article on the agency’s approach published by the source outlet.
Source: netinfluencer.com
Image: netinfluencer.com
