Insider Tips: How to Optimize Paid Ads with Influencer Content

The era of polished brand ads is over. Today’s most effective paid strategies are powered by creators.

During our webinar last week, our in-house experts, Todd Mendlinger (Paid Media Lead), Katherine McDermott (Product Marketing Lead), and Magda Houalla (Marketing Strategy Lead), shared how brands can transform influencer content into a paid media powerhouse. From campaign structure to creative optimization, the team dove into practical steps every marketer needs to run influencer-led ads that actually convert.

Keep reading for the full recap, or watch the webinar on demand to get the discussion in full.

Why Influencer Content Belongs in Your Paid Strategy

Today’s consumers are more ad-savvy than ever. Traditional branded ads often get tuned out, but influencer content still cuts through. Why? Because it’s authentic, social-first, and made to resonate.

In fact, data shows that 60% of brands say influencer content outperforms brand-directed content. Plus, adding Partnership Ads to always-on campaigns boosts click-through rates by 53%. The proof is undeniable: people buy from people, and influencer-led creative delivers the kind of social proof that branded content can’t replicate on its own.

But brands often ask: what’s better for ads — user-generated content (UGC) or influencer-generated content (IGC)? While both have value, IGC often delivers more authenticity.

• IGC is made for an influencer’s audience first. It feels natural, but may need tweaks (like captions or pacing edits) to make it ad-ready.
• UGC is produced by everyday consumers or paid actors. It can scale quickly, but sometimes lacks credibility or relatability.

‍The winning formula: Start with influencer-generated content, then use smart post-production edits to make it more conversion-focused. That way, you get authenticity and performance.

4 Tried-and-True Tips to Optimize Ads

Having overseen hundreds of thousands in monthly ad spend, Todd shared a tactical blueprint for making influencer content perform in paid campaigns:

1. Stretch every piece of content.

Don’t just boost one creator post and call it a day. Instead:

• Pull stills from videos to test as static ads.
• Add captions, text overlays, or “Ask Me Anything” stickers to make the content feel native.
• Re-cut long videos into 15-second punchy versions for Reels or TikTok.

Think of each influencer post as just the starting point. Smart remixing can turn one asset into 10.

2. Keep creator campaigns always-on.

Campaigns that stop and start with seasonal pushes leave money on the table. 

Start running always-on campaigns to:

• Build a library of learnings on what creators, formats, and hooks resonate.
• Avoid creative fatigue by continuously testing and refreshing.
• Make sure your brand is always visible when your audience is ready to buy.

3. Avoid the most common mistakes. 

Even seasoned performance marketers can fall into avoidable traps that limit growth, waste budget, and hold campaigns back.

For example, many brands leave their best organic posts in the feed instead of boosting them into paid. Many marketers also treat their top-performing creators as “one-and-done” partnerships, instead of building long-term partnerships for repeated success. (For more information on this topic, download 5 Common Mistakes Performance Marketers Make When Running Ads).

4. Nail the creative basics.

Even the best content falls flat without strong execution. When running ads, make sure to follow these best practices:

• Hook in the first 3 seconds, leading with your most engaging moment.
• Show the product early — don’t wait until the end.
• Use captions and POV angles to keep users engaged and stop the scroll.

Measuring Success the Right Way

Too many brands focus only on bottom-of-funnel results. But it’s important to set KPIs that align with your campaign goals:

• Awareness campaigns: Measure incrementality lift, reach, and brand recall. Don’t just chase clicks. Measure whether new people are entering your funnel.
• Conversion campaigns: Focus on CPA, ROAS, and conversion rates, but also analyze performance across different briefs, creators, and formats.

Make sure not to shift KPIs mid-campaign. Pick your metrics upfront and stick to them to get clean, actionable learnings.

Additionally, remember not all products are created equal. High-margin items can sustain a higher CPA, while lower-margin items may need stricter efficiency targets.

How Aspire Helps You Scale Creator-Led Ads

Running creator ads used to be a headache. Content permissions, file sharing, and fragmented reporting slowed everything down. Aspire solves this by making the entire workflow seamless.

With Aspire’s CreatorAds Suite, you can:

• Instantly identify top-performing organic posts and boost them in a click.
• Launch ads directly within Aspire without the need to toggle between platforms.
• Manage briefs, creators, and approvals in one place.
• Track both organic and paid performance side by side.
• Attribute revenue down to the creator and post level to double down on what works.

With CreatorAds Suite, influencer and performance teams can finally work together in one system, driving measurable ROI without messy workflows.

The Future of Paid Advertising

The ad landscape has shifted. By combining creator-led authenticity with paid media scale, brands can drive real growth — and platforms like Aspire make it easier than ever.

Watch the full webinar on demand for more expert insights, or book a demo to see how Aspire can help you turn influencer content into your highest-performing ads.