B2B influencer marketing took a historic step in the summer of 2026, yet almost nobody in Europe is talking about it. On June 10, 2026, LinkedIn launched Creator Marketplace, the platform’s own influencer marketplace, built directly into Campaign Manager. It is the clearest sign yet that influencer marketing is now an official LinkedIn ad category. But when a European marketer opens the tool, the search results are empty. EU regulation under the Digital Markets Act keeps the entire region out.
In this article, we walk through what Creator Marketplace is, why it does not work in Europe, and what B2B brands should do about it.
What is LinkedIn Creator Marketplace?
Creator Marketplace is a tool inside LinkedIn’s Campaign Manager where brands can discover public posts by LinkedIn creators and sponsor them as Thought Leader Ads. The tool shows a creator’s audience data, performance, and fit, after which the advertiser requests sponsorship permission and builds an ad set from the post.
In practice, it means the discovery, evaluation, and buying of influencer collaborations would happen in the same place as all other LinkedIn advertising. No middlemen, no separate contract negotiations.
The tool launched on June 10, 2026 in the United States and Canada. LinkedIn has not announced a timeline for any other markets.
Why doesn’t Creator Marketplace work in Europe?
LinkedIn’s own help pages state the reason clearly. Due to privacy regulation in the EU, the Digital Markets Act or DMA, Creator Marketplace does not currently support content from creators located in DMA countries. In LinkedIn’s own words: content from these members will not appear in Creator Marketplace for discovery or sponsorship.
For a European company, this means two things:
- European creator posts cannot be bought through the tool, even though a US competitor could buy them.
- Influencer discovery, selection, contracts, coordination, and measurement are still done manually in Europe.
What does this mean for European marketers in the long run?
In the short term, the situation favors European marketing professionals. When automated buying is not possible, the success of an influencer campaign comes down to who actually knows the creator landscape: who answers the phone, who keeps deadlines, and whose audience includes real decision makers.
In the long run, regulation may change, and there is no promise that the tool will stay out forever. That is why the smart move is to build influencer marketing competence and relationships now. When changes come, a ready-built network is an asset, not a threat.
How do you build a LinkedIn influencer campaign without a tool?
When you cannot find an influencer with a click, campaign building comes back to the fundamentals that have always decided success:
- Select influencers by audience, not follower count. Follower numbers do not tell you whether the audience includes buying B2B decision makers. The right creator is identified by audience quality, not size.
- Relationships with creators. A curated network of creators you have actually met replaces the search tool.
- Contracts, coordination, and measurement. Without a tool, these are professional work, and they are exactly where B2B influencer marketing differs from consumer marketing.
Is Europe behind the rest of the world?
Not necessarily. In the US, the tool makes buying easier, but it does not make it better. A tool can find posts, but it cannot evaluate trust: which creator is credible in your specific industry, whose audience follows them for the right reasons, and whose recommendation actually moves decision makers.
When B2B influencer marketing runs on trust, the manual approach is not a disadvantage. It is a competitive edge for those who do it professionally.
What should companies do now?
- Start influencer marketing now, not when a tool opens. Experience and networks are built in months, not days.
- Invest in influencer selection and measurement, so you are ready for any change.
- Follow the situation. When LinkedIn opens the tool to new markets, the first to benefit are those who already have campaign competence in place.
If you want to see how a campaign is built and what it costs, the solutions page shows the options and a price estimate in minutes.
Frequently asked questions about Creator Marketplace
When will Creator Marketplace come to Europe?
LinkedIn has not announced a timeline for any market beyond the United States and Canada. The EU situation depends on how DMA regulation is interpreted, and no public timetable exists.
Can a European creator join Creator Marketplace?
Not currently. According to LinkedIn’s guidance, content from creators located in the EU is not discoverable or sponsorable in the tool.
What does DMA mean in this context?
The Digital Markets Act is the EU’s competition and data protection framework regulating large platforms. LinkedIn applies it to restrict the automated commercialization of creator content in the EU region.
Should influencer marketing be started even without the tool?
Yes. Precisely because buying is not automated, creator relationships and competence decide the outcome. They are built by hand, and they remain a competitive advantage no matter how tools evolve.