Who they are
- Operators posting about the work, with an audience of peers.
- Podcast and YouTube hosts covering your category.
- Community leaders whose members ask them what to use.
How they earn
A mix: a flat fee for the placement, a commission on what it produces, or both.
What they need from you
Something true to say
Their credibility is the asset. They will not risk it on a product they have not used, and they should not be asked to.
Attribution that survives dark social
Their audience hears about you in a podcast and searches your name a week later. Cookie-only attribution will report zero and you will cancel a channel that was working.
Creative freedom
Scripted copy performs worse and reads as an ad, which is the one thing their audience is tuned to detect.
When to build this channel
Work with creators when your category is one people learn about from peers rather than from vendors, and when you can tolerate attribution being genuinely harder than a click.
When to be this kind of partner
Be a creator partner when you already recommend tools you use. Say so, get paid, and keep it honest enough that your audience stays.
The thing that kills it
Judging them on last-click
Creator impact shows up as branded search and direct traffic weeks later. Measure it on last-click and you will conclude it does not work, and be wrong.