By Phie McKenzie, founder of talent management agency, Creative Ally
The era of pristine grids, endless hauls and algorithm-chasing content is quietly losing its grip. Audiences are increasingly aware of when they are being sold to. What people want now is not louder content, but more meaningful content.
We’re craving substance, credibility and real connection.
This shift is cultural. Across platforms, people are making decisions with their values in mind, from what they buy to who they trust. Movements like de-influencing reflect a broader shift away from excess and towards the basics of human connection, self-sufficiency, and care. Learning, sharing skills, cooking from scratch, growing food, and slowing down.
In this landscape, purpose has become a form of power.
Trust is the new currency
In 2026 and beyond, influence is no longer defined by follower count alone. The creators shaping culture today are educators, advocates and community builders. Their impact is not measured solely in likes or views, but in trust.
Link: https://www.instagram.com/p/DNnqH4ViuxF
Creative Ally Talent – Hosanna Hali (The Tech Cornr)
These creators are actively growing communities that engage deeply, think critically and often take action. That depth is what gives their work longevity and what makes their partnerships genuinely impactful.
At Creative Ally, we brokered a partnership where illustrator and storyteller Teaday Blogs used her distinctive visual language to advocate for fairer pay and conditions for tea farmers worldwide with Fairtrade, for their Brew It Fair / Do It Fair campaign.
As the tea industry faces growing pressure from low wages, rising costs, and climate impacts, Fairtrade partnered with Tea to transform complex global issues into bold, engaging content that could raise awareness and inspire action.
Tea’s collaboration included a live mural activation at Glastonbury Festival, where she illustrated a tea farmer at the heart of the crisis across three days. Tea also created a vibrant hero graphic which featured on Glastonbury Festival’s Pyramid Stage screens, helping centre the people behind the supply chain and capture attention at scale. The artworks sparked conversations amongst festival goers and drove footfall to Fairtrade’s stand.
Alongside the live activation, Tea created digital campaign content reaching tens of thousands online. The campaign culminated in a visit to 10 Downing Street, where Tea joined Fairtrade to deliver a petition of over 20,000 signatures calling on the UK government to address systemic issues facing tea workers and introduce stronger human rights and environmental due diligence laws.
Impact doesn’t stop at social
Purpose-driven creators are not confined to their feeds. More and more, they are taking their ideas offline, hosting events, leading conversations and building spaces for people to gather and connect.
Link: https://www.instagram.com/p/DSp9G–isEu
Creative Ally Talent – Rory Bradshaw – partnership with On
This is where influence becomes tangible. It is also where brands have the opportunity to show up differently, by supporting creators who are already shifting culture rather than trying to manufacture it.
This December, Rory Bradshaw brought that to life with The Slow Down Salon – a community-led wellbeing experience created in partnership with On and hosted at SALT Salon.
Through movement, mindfulness sessions, music and a panel conversation, Rory offered his community an intentional alternative – one rooted in listening, balance and genuine connection.
This is what we’re going to see more of this year. As digital spaces become noisier, audiences are craving real-world experiences. And the most impactful brand partnerships are the ones that support those spaces – without centering themselves.
Rory’s Slow Down Salon is a perfect example of how creator-led communities can translate into meaningful IRL impact, when brands show up with trust, intention and respect, and when creators truly understand what their community needs.
Our perspective
At Creative Ally, we have championed purpose-driven creators from the start.
Since we launched in 2022, our mission has been to support and amplify the voices that matter – those who aren’t just creating content but shaping culture, breaking barriers, and sparking conversations that drive real change.
We believe social media is one of the most influential and democratic tools we have to inspire, educate, and challenge the status quo. Used well, it can shift narratives and ignite social change.
We represent digital storytellers, educators and changemakers working across sustainability, wellbeing, social justice and finance. Creators whose work resonates because it is rooted in something deeper than performance or trends. We’ve partnered talent with some incredible brands and purposeful organisations like Fairtrade, Canva, Ocean Bottle, Ecover, Who Gives A Crap, World Earth Day, the Department of Education, Tony’s Chocoloney, Pinterest, Lime and more.
We don’t just deliver campaigns. We prioritise meaningful storytelling over volume, and long-term trust over vanity metrics, because that is where real influence lives.
A note for brands
As purpose becomes central to influence, the questions for brands become simpler.
- Does this partnership align with our values or the creator’s values?
- Does it add value to the community rather than extract from it?
- Who is being heroed in this partnership? Is it us, the creator or the audience it serves?
- Is it contributing positively to culture right now?
Purpose isn’t a positioning. It is a practice. And in a crowded digital world, it’s becoming the most powerful one there is.
Head to our website to explore our impact stories and meet our roster of changemakers.
About Phie McKenzie
Phie is a BIMA100 creative strategist, the founder of purpose-first talent management agency Creative Ally and co-host of the Move Over Mother Theresa podcast.
Phie founded Creative Ally in 2022 to ignite meaningful conversations on social issues that matter through partnerships, collaborations and offline events. Together with a purposeful roster including Rory Bradshaw, Adeche Atelier, Real Housewives of Clapton, Lydia Bolton and Tea Day, Phie is dedicated to driving progression across climate change, gender equality, representation and mental health. Just two years after its launch, Phie led Creative Ally to be shortlisted for Boutique Talent Agency of the Year at the bCreator Awards 2024 & 2025.
Website: https://creativeally.online/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/creative.ally.talent/
LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/creative-ally-talent/
Substack: https://substack.com/@creativeally/notes
Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/38sMrKNv3y6JlWKEE1AsV2
