11 Dec Why brands must embrace content creator platforms in 2026
It all started with smartphone entertainment, then trends, then a possibility of earning from making content becoming a reality and now content creators have become media companies. Some officially registered as media houses, or agencies. Others not yet registered as media but still occupy the media space and command a huge following.
As a global practice, brands would tap creators for messaging and creating narratives around them and their products and pay them to execute this complex creative process. But now the creators have earned a huge following and are now redefining themselves, they are now shaping their own conversations, developing their own editorial directions and owning their IP and creating communities as they affirm their creative independence.
The Kenyan creator landscape includes established journalists, other professionals, notable household media practitioners who initially worked with major media houses but have since opted to craft their own career paths. These individuals still retain, influence and command a huge following, their platforms produce different shows, and launch product lines targeting their subscribers.
Kenyan comedians, actors, commentators, journalists and former media practitioners, the likes of; Lynn Ngugi, Dr. King’ori, Oga Obinna among others have grown their podcast shows into platforms recognized and among Kenya’s most influential interview and storytelling media, they host politicians, businessmen, policy makers, actors, influencers registering individually, hundreds of thousands to millions of views on a single platform. These are figures that rival established media houses and, in some cases, supersede their reach and cannot be ignored by serious brands.
Actor and script writer Abel Mutua and his agency have crafted their own and in partnership with others niche as entrepreneurs, podcasters, storytellers, movie and comedy producers. Theirs are products that are powered by communities that feel part of their journey. In 2024, Africa Uncensored, report suggested that Abel Mutua with just 96 uploads views in 2024, outperformed Nation Media, a major media house in Kenya, which posted 3,749 videos in the same period. This proves that deeper engagement matters more than mass output and this in fact is what, many content creators are offering.
Creators are already working with major brands and co-producing products that are performing well and slowly brands are constantly looking to working with them more than the more expensive established media.
The Digital News Report 2025 reveals that established media houses are facing increasing competition from creators on other platforms, especially video-heavy networks. In explaining how traditional entertainment boundaries are blurring as digital creators gain unprecedented influence. American publisher, EMarketer predicted that in 2025, US based creator-led brands are projected to generate $1 billion in retail sales in 2025. This prediction is not far off when projected against Kenya’s creator landscape potential. They might not rake in that much but will definitely generate more in 2025 and beyond than the previous years.
This growth is an indication that brands have more in terms of media to work with, but also to rethink their relationship with content creators as a quid pro quo engagement. Brands have the opportunities to craft narratives tailored for the creator’s world and not appear as standalone and disruptive of a creator’s audience ecosystem. The creators with working operational structures can negotiate better payouts and also offer brands sustainable partnership opportunities.
For communicators pitching to well structured creator owned platforms would need a good understanding of the content creators’ audiences who in this case would be highly engaged and consistent. This, more like established media houses, means brands would be meeting possible consumers in areas where they are already connected, a community and not necessarily dependent on algorithms. It involves working together with creator owned platforms to build influence.
The coming year 2026 offers great opportunities for creators who think like the media and own their craft in the official sense and brands to think beyond one off engagements. There is an opportunity for sustainable and long term partnerships be it in storytelling and building influences, partnering to create franchises.
This would be easy to achieve because there exists structures that parties can work within, establish binding agreements and work together on projects that amplify both their voices.