What is a creator marketplace?
A creator marketplace is a brand-deal platform run by a content platform itself, where brands find creators, place orders, pay and see the results. An agency that wants to take deals for creators usually has to qualify on each platform separately.
Also known as: Brand-deal platform, Influencer marketplace, 达人商业合作平台
A creator marketplace is run by the content platform itself and connects brands, creators and agencies; each content platform has its own, with its own rules. This entry explains what these marketplaces are and what each platform calls its own; fees, settlement rules and agency requirements are not covered here. Each platform’s rules, with the date they were checked: brand-deal platforms and agency rules.
What are the creator marketplaces of China’s content platforms called?
| Content platform | Official marketplace | Roles on it |
|---|---|---|
| Douyin | Xingtu (巨量星图) | Clients, creators, MCNs, service providers1 |
| Xiaohongshu (RedNote) | Pugongying (蒲公英) | Brands, agencies, MCNs, creators2 |
| WeChat Channels and Official Accounts | Tencent Huxuan (腾讯营销互选) | Clients, creators, agencies3 |
| Weirenwu (微任务) | Advertisers, creators4 | |
| Bilibili | Huahuo (花火) | Uploaders, service providers5 |
What does a creator marketplace do?
From what the platforms publish, these marketplaces usually do three things: let brands find creators by criteria, take orders and payment inside the platform, and produce or share the data on each collaboration. In YouTube Creator Partnerships, for example, creators answer a brand’s inquiry in YouTube Studio with “Interested” or “Not interested”, and can turn on insights sharing so advertisers see more of the channel’s data;6 the Instagram creator marketplace lets brands filter by creator and audience attributes, send a project to several creators and run the resulting content as partnership ads;7 and Xingtu sets separate fees and settlement terms for clients, individual creators and creators with an MCN.1
What are the North American equivalents?
TikTok’s is TikTok One: for creators, a platform to find business opportunities, work with advertisers through TikTok and get paid;8 creators must be at least 18 and in a country or region where it has launched, and can join through their agency’s invitation link.9 YouTube’s is Creator Partnerships, formerly BrandConnect.10 Instagram’s creator marketplace is now reached through Meta’s Creator Marketing Hub, where brands discover and evaluate creators and manage partnership ads permissions.11
Further reading
- How brand deals are sourced and priced: Partnerships & opportunities
- How established creators work with a management firm: Creators & influencers
Notes
- 《巨量星图结算管理规则》 (Xingtu Settlement Management Rules)
- 《欢迎入驻小红书蒲公英》 (Joining Xiaohongshu Pugongying)
- 《机构入驻互选指引》 (Tencent Huxuan help: how WeChat Channels agencies join)
- 《广告主功能简介》 (Weirenwu help: features for advertisers)
- 《bilibili花火功能详解》 (Bilibili Huahuo: features explained)
- Get started with YouTube Creator Partnerships
- Making it Easier for Brands and Creators to Collaborate on Instagram
- About TikTok One for creators
- How creators can sign up for TikTok One
- Discover a new era of brand and creator partnerships on YouTube
- About Meta Creator Marketing Hub