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How to Win Influencers and Friend People

With a $2 billion valuation and first-mover advantage, LTK has long been the gold standard in influencer affiliate marketing. But as competition from ShopMy and others heats up, the O.G. company has had to do more to attract and retain users—like sharing some of its previously well-guarded data.

Amber Venz Box
In this primordial social media stew, Venz Box’s LTK platform offered a critical piece of infrastructure in the pursuit of getting paid to post and connecting brands with emerging influencers Photo: Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for LTK
Sarah Shapiro
January 20, 2026

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When fashion blogger Amber Venz Box founded LiketoKnow (LTK), the brand marketing platform formerly known as RewardStyle, back in 2011, the idea of making a living from social media wasn’t even really a thing. Instagram was in its infancy; TikTok and Substack were years away from incubation. In this primordial social media stew, Venz Box’s platform offered a critical piece of infrastructure in the pursuit of getting paid to post and connecting brands with emerging influencers. Scores of bloggers like Danielle Bernstein, Arielle Charnas, Kristal Heredia, Remi Bader, and Jen Adams have since built their businesses on LTK, which depends on a cohort of influencers who command massive, established audiences to drive traffic, resulting in a $2 billion valuation in 2021.