HSN and Impact Team to Launch Influencer Platform

HSN is delving deeper into the creator economy.

The shopping network is teaming with impact.com to launch HSNfluencer, a platform aimed at creators, according to a Tuesday (July 9) press release.

“The technology allows HSN to streamline direct relationships with creators and influencers to build its own network with more visibility,” the release said. “Within the platform, influencers and content creators can collaborate with HSN and use carefully curated product collections to inspire their next content story and generate affiliate product links for their posts.”

Creators can access the resources, tools and support to achieve consumer momentum, per the release. HSN will also use on-air personalities as creators within the platform, giving them their own storefronts and letting customers interact with their favorite HSN hosts and shop curated collections.

“The influencer marketing industry is driven by creators building rapport with today’s discerning consumers,” HSN Chief Digital Officer Rebecca Kerper said in the release. “With HSNfluencer, we’ll be able to grow our ambassador program and showcase the mutually beneficial relationship between creator impact and customer engagement. The new creator platform enables us to improve the experience for creators who work with us, while also providing an engaging and convenient way for our customers to shop and discover HSN products.”

HSN is trying to win over influencers and its audience as parent company Qurate — which also owns QVC — has been dealing with declining revenues.

“Consumers remain selective in their spending due to inflation and interest rate uncertainty,” Qurate CEO and President David Rawlinson said during an earnings call in May.

Revenues for “Cornerstone” — the umbrella term for the company’s various lifestyle brands — dropped 11% during the quarter.

The company’s new platform comes as many influencers are having trouble making ends meet. Few are making it big, or even earning enough money to live on. Last year, 48% of creator-earners made $15,000 or less, while 13% earned more than $100,000.

Meanwhile, it’s more difficult for digital creators to gain access to financial resources than it is for other business owners.

“Access to business loans and lines of credit are virtually non-existent,” Bump founder and CEO James Jones told PYMNTS in April. “Most creators are denied access because they don’t have paystubs or W2s, or because their income is just too unpredictable for traditional institutions with very little appetite for risk.”

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