AI Is Changing Creator Discovery for Campaigns

Hey friend hey!

Remember when brands would just check your bio for relevant keywords and filter for your audience demographics?

Those days are gone, just like loop giveaways and engagement pods.

With AI revolutionizing how brands find creator partners, your captions have become the new battleground for visibility. Platforms are now analyzing your actual content - not just your follower count or audience demographics - to determine if you're the right fit for specific campaigns.

Here's a recent example: I was working with a sunscreen brand searching for adventure influencers who also talked about family vacations and spent significant time at public parks and sports stadiums.

But here's the problem: Creators who were ideal for this campaign were being completely overlooked because their captions were things like "lovely day with the fam" at the Grand Canyon, Dodger Stadium, and Central Park.

The AI couldn't connect them to the specific keywords the brand was searching for.

This isn't just about using hashtags (which definitely still matter, sometimes, I think?) It's about making sure your actual caption text includes the keywords relevant to your content and niche.

In 2025 create your cpations in three steps:

1. Use a compelling hook to get your audience to tap "more" (this hasn't changed)

2. Tell your authentic story in the middle (this keeps your human audience engaged)

3. Add your strategic keywords at the bottom in plain text - not coded or hashtagged

For example, after your heartfelt caption about your family day at the Grand Canyon, add: "adventure travel, family vacation, Grand Canyon, national parks, outdoor activities, family creators"

This strategy is particularly crucial because AI doesn't just analyze one viral post - it examines your entire content history to determine if you're a genuine fit for a brand's campaign.

Think about it: A food influencer might go viral for showing off her wedding dress (which happened to a friend of mine). That sudden influx of followers? Completely irrelevant to McCormick & Company looking for recipe creators. But if her regular captions consistently include keywords like "home cooking," "spice blends," and "weeknight recipes," the AI can recognize her as a genuine food content creator despite that viral wedding post.

Brands want to see not just the specific posts where you mention their product category, but what else you consistently talk about across your content. They're looking for authentic alignment, not one-off viral moments.

Not hidden in hashtags. Not disguised with special characters. Just straightforward text that both AI and humans can understand.

You're now writing for two audiences - your human followers AND the increasingly sophisticated AI tools that brands use to find creators.

The creators who understand this shift will have a significant advantage in landing the right partnerships in 2025.

Is your caption strategy still stuck in 2018? Time to evolve.

Here's to building something bigger,
Brittany

P.S. Want me to check your captions? Book a Strategy Sprint and get personalized feedback on your caption strategy. [Book]

P.P.S. We'll be diving deeper into advanced caption strategies during Thursday's Fireside Chat. This exclusive session is available to community members at the Founder and Icon levels only. [Join The Suite Society]