Influencer & Creator Discovery Playbook

Find creators and influencers who already talk about your space — they're warmer than cold outreach targets because they've demonstrated genuine interest in your category.

What this playbook does

Shows you how to discover influencers through social listening, vet their relevance and reach, enrich their contact info, and engage them with personalized outreach.

Who it's for

Marketing teams, influencer managers, and agencies running influencer campaigns.

Step-by-step workflow

1. Scan for category content — Run scans on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter for your product category. "Social media management tutorial", "CRM review", "best [category] tools 2026".
2. Identify active creators — Look for authors who appear in multiple scan results — they regularly create content in your space.
3. Vet by engagement — Check each creator's follower count, engagement rate, and content quality. MentionFox shows engagement metrics on each mention card.
4. Enrich creator profiles — Click Enrich to find their email, other social platforms, website, and any management contacts.
5. Build dossiers for VIP creators — For high-value influencers, create a full dossier to understand their content style, audience, interests, and the best way to approach them.
6. Engage authentically first — Comment on their content, share their posts, or engage on social media before sending a cold pitch. Build familiarity.
7. Send personalized outreach — Reference their specific content: "I loved your video comparing social listening tools — your point about data freshness was spot on. We'd love to give you early access to..."
8. Track relationships — Add promising creators to your Contacts and track engagement history in the Dossier.

Pro tips

• Micro-influencers (5K-50K followers) often have better engagement rates and lower costs than mega-influencers
• Creators who already use or review competitor products are the most valuable targets
• Build long-term relationships, not one-off sponsored posts

Related resources

• Full case studies: Influencer Outreach Case Studies
• Creator scanning: How to Write Scan Queries
• Deep research: People Finder Guide

Quick steps

1. Run scans on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter for your product category
2. Identify creators who appear in multiple results — they consistently create category content
3. Check engagement metrics to vet quality vs. vanity follower counts
4. Enrich creator profiles to find email and management contacts
5. Build dossiers for VIP creators to understand their style and preferences
6. Engage on their content before sending outreach — build familiarity first
7. Send personalized pitches referencing their specific content