The doctrine that one model can accommodate all comers has been taking a beating in recent years, from electoral politics to streaming television to the apparently urgent question of how to persuade people on the internet to say nice things about your store.

Target, the Minneapolis-based retailer that has spent decades cultivating a reputation for being the discount chain where it is socially acceptable to browse, has now applied this lesson to its creator marketing efforts. In April, the company informed participants that it would retire its existing creator program, a commission-based arrangement that allowed influencers to build digital storefronts. In its place, Target has introduced two new programs with the sort of names that sound as if they were generated by a committee that had been in a conference room slightly too long: Club Target and Target Ambassadors.

The distinction, according to Sarah Travis, Target's executive vice president and chief digital and revenue officer, reflects a recognition that creators "don't all operate the same way." (What, you were expecting them to say the old program was working perfectly?)

Club Target is aimed at smaller creators — those with as few as 500 followers — who might be compensated with gift cards or the chance to be reshared on the retailer's social channels. Target Ambassadors, developed in partnership with the creator commerce platform LTK, is designed for larger influencers and offers commissions and monthly bonuses. The Ambassador program also integrates with Target's Roundel retail media network, creating what Ms. Travis described as "stronger storytelling" connecting "inspiration to performance."

Alessandro Bogliari, chief executive of the Influencer Marketing Factory, an agency with offices in New York and Miami, suggested that for smaller creators, the appeal of potentially appearing on Target's channels may exceed the lure of affiliate payments. "Sometimes people forget that if you're creating content, you want to be seen," Mr. Bogliari said, "and it's not just about the money."

Whether both programs can sustain participation over time remains, as it always does in these arrangements, to be demonstrated.

Original story published in Digiday: "Why Target killed its creator program, launched 2 new ones"