Meet the Hot 30: Vitor Correia, Creator Digital Marketing Lead

Meet Vitor Correia, Creator Digital Marketing Lead at Monster Energy and one of our Pepper Hot 30 UK 2026 winners.

With 14 years of experience in creator marketing, Vitor has seen the industry evolve from its early days into an essential part of brand strategy. Today, he's leading creator operations across multiple brands and markets in the MEA region, combining his passion for community-led marketing with a strong focus on performance, data and measurable results.

We caught up with Vitor to talk about the growing importance of niche creator communities, why brands need to look beyond follower counts and engagement rates, the battle between TikTok and Instagram and how AI could completely reshape social media in 2027.

What's your role and what does you day to day look like?

I'm the Creator Digital Marketing Lead for Monster Energy, leading creator operations across four of our non-Monster brands across the MEA region.

Every market has its own brilliant local creator team, but my role is making sure everyone's aligned on brand strategy, campaign direction, briefs and the creators we're working with. I also spend a lot of time looking at performance. I'm a bit of a metrics geek, so my favourite part of the job is checking the numbers and making sure we're tracking against the right KPIs across every market.

What’s been your biggest win or proudest moment in your current role so far? x

I'm really proud of how we've grown the number of creators we work with across the brands, but also of seeing creator marketing become more valued by the people and teams around me.

Over the last few years, I've watched more brands embrace creators as a core part of their marketing strategy, and it's been rewarding to be part of that shift.

Which social platforms are you seeing the most success with right now, and what do you think is driving that?

TikTok is still the standout platform across the industry, but Instagram has started making a really strong comeback.

Instagram has introduced so many features that encourage engagement again — longer carousel posts, instant photo sharing, location features and better ways to tell stories. I'm also seeing benchmarks showing engagement increasing across both TikTok and Instagram over the past year. Looking ahead, I think Meta's AI integration will completely change how people use Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp.

What’s one piece of work you’ve been involved in recently that you’re particularly proud of?

One campaign I'll always be proud of was a 2022 Logitech G (GBL) Christmas campaign for the Quantum headset range.

We worked with 20 streamers over 20 consecutive days in December, with one creator going live every day. Each stream featured giveaways including headsets, PlayStations and discounts, all managed live in real time.

It was one of the biggest creator-led awareness campaigns the brand had ever run, and sales increased significantly during the campaign. It was also incredibly intense — I was managing creators across multiple countries, watching every stream and controlling the live giveaway mechanics behind the scenes. The client's feedback made every late night worth it

What’s something you’ve learnt in your current role that has changed the way you approach social?

The biggest lesson has been the importance of community.

Every platform has a different community, and every creator has a different audience. If you don't understand who you're talking to, you'll never write the right brief or create work that resonates.

The other lesson is that trends have a much shorter lifespan than people think. Everyone wants to chase trends, but a trend can disappear within minutes. I'd rather focus on understanding communities than chasing every viral moment.

What’s exciting you most about social media at the moment?

I'm fascinated by the battle between TikTok and Instagram.

They're constantly borrowing ideas from each other, improving features and pushing each other forward. What excites me most over the next 12 months is how AI will be integrated into social platforms — from editing photos and videos to giving creators deeper insights into what their communities engage with and why. I think that's where the biggest shift is coming.

What’s your biggest prediction for social media in 2027?

AI will completely reshape social media.

Meta is already investing heavily in AI across Instagram, and I think that integration will be a game changer. Every major platform will need to move quickly to build AI into the creator experience, because it's going to fundamentally change how we create content, discover content and use social platforms every day

What do you think brands and social teams will be talking about this time next year?

I think the conversation will move beyond follower counts and engagement rates.

Brands will be looking much deeper at metrics like saves, shares, reach, timing and audience behaviour. I also think we'll see a big shift away from relying on one macro creator or celebrity, towards building communities of micro and nano creators in highly specific niches. I'm already seeing brands invest in niche communities because the ROI is so much stronger.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give to someone looking to build a career in social?

Don't get into social because it looks fun or glamorous.

It's easy to be distracted by events, creators and famous people, but this industry is demanding. You have to genuinely love it.

Creator marketing has been part of my life for 14 years, and I still love it. If you're starting now, keep a close eye on AI in creator marketing and the rise of AI-native agencies, because that's where the industry is heading. Most importantly, understand social media inside out — if you don't understand the platforms, you'll struggle to build a career in them.

We know great social is always a team effort. Are there any members of your team you’d like to give a shout-out to by name in your Hot 30 article, and what would you like to recognise them for?

I'd love to give a shout-out to my boss, Rihanna.

When I joined Monster, she was actually my colleague before becoming my manager, and our paths crossed in a really positive way. She's a fantastic leader, a fantastic boss and someone I've learnt a lot from.

I'd also shout out Lawrence, who's my partner in crime on the team. The three of us work incredibly well together, and it's genuinely amazing to work with them.

Why Vitor Made the Hot 30

Vitor brings a combination of deep industry experience, commercial thinking and a genuine understanding of creator communities to his approach to social. Having spent 14 years working in creator marketing, he's seen how the industry has evolved and understands what it takes to build strategies that deliver results across different brands, audiences and markets.

We were particularly interested in his focus on moving beyond traditional influencer metrics and recognising the value of smaller, highly engaged communities. From leading creator operations across multiple markets to delivering ambitious creator-led campaigns, including a 20-day livestream activation for Logitech G, Vitor understands how to combine creativity with performance and turn creator partnerships into measurable business outcomes.

His perspective on the growing role of AI, the competition between social platforms and the shift towards micro and nano creators also reflects the forward-thinking approach we wanted the Hot 30 to recognise. Rather than chasing every viral moment, Vitor champions understanding audiences, building genuine relationships and using data to make smarter decisions.

It's that combination of experience, curiosity and commitment to making creator marketing more effective that makes Vitor exactly the kind of industry talent we wanted the Pepper Hot 30 to celebrate.

You can read more about the Pepper Hot 30 UK 2026, meet the full list of winners and find out more about the initiative here.

Instagram: @vitorcorreia05