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Since our last Top 10 Influencer Marketing Agencies list in 2019, much has changed, especially with the pandemic accelerating digital trends. As brands rebound, the influencer marketing industry continues to grow, with over 320 new agencies added in the past year alone. People turned to social media during quarantine, making now an ideal time to launch a campaign. Still wondering if influencer marketing is right for your brand? Ask yourself: Do you want to maximize your social media presence and drive real business results? If yes, partnering with a top influencer marketing agency could be the move.
According to Statista, 64% of 18- to 29-year-old internet users in the United States used Instagram during January 2018. Per day, users post about 95 million photos and videos, and see around 400 million stories posted. With numbers like this, it’s no surprise the industry has begun to take off, and businesses are quickly learning how to utilize the highly visual medium of product promotion.
The influencer marketing agencies help brands find influencers that would fit the target audience they’re seeking, saving companies lots of time/money, something that is so valuable in today’s world. Many of these influencer marketing agencies run unique, tailored campaigns for brands that are too busy to run them in-house. They help with influencer discovery, influencer management, content creation, and analysis of a campaign’s success.
The following list includes the top ten of the best influencer marketing agencies that can help take your next influencer campaign to the next level!
How to Utilize Social Media as A Marketing Tool
With more and more brands making the switch from traditional marketing to online marketing, it is important to stay on top of what would better your brand! Social platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok are the three most popular sites that brands use to market their products. Here, you will find influencers promoting their brand and product or giving reviews on their latest releases! Typically, brands give free products or monetary compensation to influencers as a way to promote their brand/products online. Oftentimes, the more popular an influencer, the more money you will receive for your contribution. For more on influencer pricing, click here.
How Can NeoReach Help Your Brand?
As one of the leading agencies in the influencer marketing industry, NeoReach offers managed services that are great for brands of all sizes! Over the years, NeoReach has helped companies like Walmart, DraftKings, TikTok, Netflix, and Airbnb create and manage successful influencer campaigns.
All of our campaigns are run by our experienced in-house team, who will find the perfect influencers to reach your target demographic and determine a creative strategy that fits your company’s goals. We offer campaigns starting from $25,000 up to 7-figures. Aside from their in-house services, NeoReach offers access to their SaaS platform for just $1,500/month, which gives you and your brand access to over 2 million influencers ranging from just about every niche topic imaginable.
Get started with NeoReach today and let our team handle influencer sourcing, performance reporting, and everything in between.
Top 10 Best Influencer Marketing Agencies
1. Viral Nation
Widely considered one of the top agencies in the world, Viral Nation doubles as both a hub for influencer marketing as well as a talent agency that serves influencers. Having experience with brands like Apple, Crayola, GoPro, Disney, Coca-Cola, Nestle, and more, it’s no surprise that they’re one of the leading companies in the industry. They have offices in New York and Toronto but work for brands across the world.
Viral Nation offers everything a successful campaign needs, including creator contracting, creative development, content creation and paid amplification. They claim to have reached over 400 million engagements across all of their campaigns and platforms. At the 2019 AVA Digital Awards, they took home gold and platinum awards. They’ve also been recognized by Chief Marketer as one of the top 200 marketing agencies of 2019.
Because they represent influencers, they have a ready supply that they easily match with brands to reach desired audiences. This is what helps Viral Nation be so successful. They also use powerful analytics tools to help companies keep track of their campaign’s success. With all of these resources, using Viral Nation as your brand’s influencer marketing agency is nothing short of spectacular.
2. Carusele
Launched in 2015, Carusele provides a unique approach towards influencer marketing by combining the powers of influencer marketing, content marketing, and media buying to pair messages with the right audiences. They are the sister company of Ignite Social Media, one of the leading social media agencies in the world.
They also track, test, and score their influencers’ content in real time, syndicate the best content to the proper audiences, and provide their clients a license, in perpetuity, to influencer-produced content.
Their offices are in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Birmingham, Michigan. They have worked with top brands like Hallmark, Revlon, Walgreens, Pepsi, and Starbucks. They have also been featured in AdWeek, Forbes, and MediaPost.
3. HireInfluence
This full-service influencer marketing company was established in 2011. Since then, they’ve worked alongside numerous Fortune 100 brands. They have offices in New York, Los Angeles, and Houston, but provide service globally.
With a team of influencers across 12 countries and seven industry verticals, their services are fully customized to their clients’ objectives and needs. They cover the industries of entertainment, fashion, beauty, food, travel, and lifestyle.
Their influencer criteria are based on engagement ratios, audience insights, responsiveness, follower authenticity and niche, and quality of content. Their most famous campaign involved a group of Instagram influencers who promoted ABC’s TV drama American Crime. The influencers attending a screening event used Instagram to share highlights and create interest in the series.
Looking for an engaging influencer to partner with for your next campaign? Check out some of our favorite Gen Z creators here.
4. Influencer Marketing Agency (IMA)
Considered one of the most prominent agencies in the influencer industry, IMA has been in business since 2013. In 2010, two of their founders created a fashion inspirations platform and eventually began to understand the power of digital influencers alongside the growth of social media. They have offices in New York and Amsterdam but serve companies around the world.
They match you with suitable, niche influencers and even help your company find long-term ambassadors who match your brand’s character. With over 35,000 influencers and 9.5 billion social followers, IMA has a total reach of 10 billion. They’ve worked alongside brands like Under Armour, Nivea, Samsung, Starbucks, Calvin Klein, Timex, and Tommy Hilfiger.
5. Mediakix
Another one of the best influencer marketing agencies in the world, Mediakix is also a top producer of influencer marketing content. They have offices in California but work globally. Mediakix has worked on successful campaigns with companies like Nordstrom, Hallmark, Uber, Old Navy, Sony Pictures, Fossil, and more.
They develop influencer marketing strategies alongside companies and arrange campaigns that include well-known bloggers, popular YouTubers, and famous social media talent. Founded in 2011, Mediakix runs campaigns across blogs, Facebook, Snapchat, YouTube, and Instagram and has an estimated reach of over 25 million.
Looking to run an epic influencer marketing campaign? NeoReach has the best experience in creating viral campaigns that convert on social media. Sign up here!
6. Pulse Advertising
Pulse advertising was founded in Hamburg, Germany, in 2014. Today, they have offices in Milan, London, New York, and Los Angeles. They even have satellite teams in Spain, France, and the Asia Pacific, so they provide companies a the ability to target larger markets.
They take a holistic approach to influencer marketing and tailor their process to the objectives of each individual client. With an influencer base of over 20,000, they’re able to reach an audience of over 1 billion. Their Longines campaign promoted the Master Collection Blue. The campaign received over 680,000 total engagements with an average engagement rate of 4.8%. They’ve also worked alongside brands like Adidas, H&M, Gucci, Cartier, Swatch, and Uber.
7. August United
August United was founded in 2015 by executives of the digital advertising agency Sitewire. They saw the potential in influencer marketing and wanted to build an agency that focused on the authentic, people-centered marketing that outperformed ads. They offer a wide range of services, including talent management, conference planning, content creation, and campaign integration.
They’ve worked with companies like PetSmart, Persil, and grocery giant Ralphs. For Persil, August United created campaigns that targeted the 2017 and 2018 Super Bowls. In 2018, the campaign used high-tier celebrity influencers with strong engagement rates who shared Persil’s story. They created short-form video content about “stainable moments” that could be removed with Persil’s product. Across all of the influencers’ posts, the campaign reached an estimated audience of over 20 million.
8. HelloSociety
Founded in 2011, HelloSociety is a veteran in the influencer marketing industry. In 2016, they were acquired by The New York Times and continue to help brands find top-notch influencers and content creators to work alongside in campaigns. Putting human connections first, they refer to themselves as a “full-service social storytelling agency” where influencers share the brand’s stories with their audiences.
Their campaigns deliver an engagement rate that’s 54 percent higher than the industry’s average. On average, influencers’ engagement rates with HelloSociety are 25 percent higher than other sponsored posts. Their influencers also provide an engagement rate that’s 24% higher than regular brand content across social media. These numbers prove why HelloSociety is one of the top influencer marketing agencies in the game, and it comes as no surprise that they’ve worked with brands like American Express, Airbnb, Coca-Cola, Buick, CoverGirl, and Chevrolet.
9. Red Pill
Red Pill is London’s leading agency for branded content and influencer marketing. This agency defines itself as a company that “specializes in creating branded content that people want to share. By delivering strategy, creative, production, and distribution under one roof, we’ve earned a track record for exceptional visibility, engagement, and ROI.” They have over 70,000 macro- and micro-influencers across YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat.
They pride themselves on their unrivaled selection of influencers, data-driven selection, end-to-end production, and certified distribution strategies. They’ve worked with top brands such as Coca-Cola, Jaguar, Hugo Boss, Samsung, Getty Images, Bacardi, Heineken, and 20th Century Fox.
10. Top Rank Marketing
TopRank Marketing is special because of its focus on business-to-business (B2B) clients. The full-service agency also offers other aspects of marketing such as content marketing, design, conversion optimization, SEO, and social media marketing.
TopRank Marketing was established in 2001 by B2B marketing experts like Susan Misukani and Lee Odden. They value real influence over large social followings for B2B marketing. This agency also helps companies create mutually beneficial relationships with rising stars, subject matter experts, and industry leaders. They generate B2B engagement through content development and amplification as well as always-on integrated programs.
One of their noteworthy partnerships with Cherwell Software helped the company successfully drive engagement and brand awareness. They also saw a 437% increase in content shares each year and had an influencer amplification rate of 100%.
Not sure what a successful campaign looks like? Get inspired with this blog on social media campaigns that really worked.
All of these influencer marketing agencies are awesome and offer slightly different products. It is up to you and your brand to decide what agency to work with, depending on your budget, target audience, and what variables you would like to know about your future campaign!
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the best time to contact influencer marketing agencies?
- Anytime! It’s never too late to start. That said, many brands plan campaigns by quarters (Q1, Q2, etc.), so if you want to launch in Q2, start researching agencies in Q1. The earlier, the better.
How much do influencer campaigns usually cost?
- This question is tricky to answer. There are numerous factors that contribute to the price of an influencer marketing campaign. First, these agencies above all take a percentage (usually 10%-15%) of the overall budget. Then, many influencers and brands sign release forms, NDA’s, etc., which are all part of a legal fee. And finally, you have to pay the influencers individually for a certain number of posts, which differs per platform… Most campaigns run from $20,000, with big-name brands spending upwards of one million dollars.
How do I choose the best agency?
- It is all up to what you and your team are looking for in a campaign. No one agency offers exactly the same product. They might be very similar, but other agencies might offer more in-depth tracking on posts. Just like in personal life, it is best to shop around for what best suits your needs.
What are influencers?
- An influencer is someone who has a loyal following that often shares interests and ideas, while also holding the power to persuade their audience to buy products or services. Influencers often occupy a specific niche (travel, photography, food, lifestyle) and have a highly engaged audience. Typically, in order to be considered an influencer, one must have a minimum of 10,000 followers on their social media platforms.
Can influencer marketing increase sales?
- Definitely! Influencer marketing has shown us time and time again that you can get a better ROI than traditional marketing techniques. Since newspaper and television views have drastically increased in recent years, social media influencers using personable qualities to promote products and services make followers want to buy these products.
