Group Black, a Black-owned media collective, is partnering with influencer marketing company Influential to connect Black creators with brands as companies look to uphold promises to diversify media spend.

The partnership means that brands will be able to set up influencer marketing campaigns that use Influential’s technology and analytics, alongside Group Black’s network, to create more diverse content and reach a wider audience.

The growth around creators is exciting, said Travis Montaque, co-founder and CEO of Group Black. “I was just at a conference where a CEO said they wanted to do less disruptive advertising, and creators are the perfect vehicle for that,” Montaque said. “We want to focus on Black creators being part of that transition.”

The partnership also looks to address pay disparities among creators of color. Influential works with creators on a CPM—or cost to reach 1,000 people—basis, according to Ryan Detert, CEO of Influential, which gives all creators an automatic floor when it comes to payment.

Since May 2021, brand behemoths like Target, Verizon, and McDonald’s have pledged to increase their minority media spend. WPP’s GroupM called on its clients to invest at least 2% of their marketing dollars in Black-owned media over the next year. That same month, IPG Mediabrands committed to invest a minimum of 5% in Black media across all of its clients in aggregate by 2023. At this year’s NewFronts, diverse media groups said they were starting to see an uptick in demand.

“Black creators drive culture in a big way,” Montaque said. “What’s been unfortunate is that the Black-owned media industry has delivered, but the level of investments hasn't been commensurate with the results.”

According to Influential’s data, Black and African American audiences are more receptive to diverse creators, whose content has the ability to generate a 45% increase in engagement and a 36% increase in purchase intent compared to non-diverse content.

Group Black was started in June 2021 by Travis Montaque, Bonin Bough, and Richelieu Dennis with an initial spend of $75 million from GroupM. The collective’s aim is to make it easier for brands to diversify their ad spend. Today, Group Black includes media brands Essence, Afropunk and Breakr. In March, Procter & Gamble made a nine-figure media investment in the collective. Most recently, Bough was named the group’s chief strategy officer. Group Black’s goal is to deploy $500 million in Black-owned media by the end of the year.

“We are seeing more activity,” Montaque said. “But I would like to see more brands lean in.”