12 Ways to Find Micro-Influencers for Your Brand

Stuck on how to find micro-influencers?

Unlike "big" creators with millions of followers, finding micro-influencers in the wild is tricky.

Because their profiles don't scream "Hey, I'm an influencer!" Small creators' unpolished accounts with a few thousand followers resemble everyday consumers, not social media superstars.

Micro-influencers' authenticity is exactly what makes them so valuable.

But it also makes them difficult to find if you don't know where to look.

Having powered thousands of campaigns with smaller creators, we've tested just about every method of finding influencers. Below are a dozen ways to find micro-influencers for your brand.

How to Find Micro-Influencers for Your Brand: 12 Ways to Search (Free & Paid)

The good news? There’s no shortage of creators to support your micro-influencer strategy.

The catch? Finding those creators is overwhelming without knowing the best ways to search.

That's exactly why we put together this post! From paid and free, here are 12 ways to find the best micro-influencers for your brand on Instagram and TikTok based on your bandwidth.

1. Look at Your Current Customers & Earned Media

If you already get UGC and earned media from creators organically, chances are you can find micro-influencers directly from those posts without any digging. 

Think about it. What better starting point for your search than your own satisfied customers?

Comb through your brand's @tags, mentions and branded #hashtag uses on TikTok and Instagram.  Even if you don't see organic viral posts, you could be surprised at how many relevant micro-influencers you find.

These creators already know and trust your brand. They require less hand-holding and naturally excel at promoting your products. That means better content and more time saved for you. 

All of the above also means that they'll be more receptive to your outreach emails and DMs.

Check out this creator who made a video about Refy mascara simply because she wanted to share how the product made her lashes longer and fuller. Not sponsored, not an endorsement.

This organic post earned a staggering 36.4M views despite the creator having just 7,000 followers. 

Source

These are the types of posts and creators that make natural brand advocates your brand can build long-term relationships with. Again, the creators you need to kickstart your micro-influencer campaigns might be right under your nose.

2. Use a Micro-Influencer Platform to Match with Creators

Influencer search tools can be one of the time-efficient methods to find potential influencers for your brand. Specifically, micro-influencer platforms that specialize in matching brands with smaller creators.

Many influencer discovery tools overemphasize follower count or arbitrary metrics to define influencers. Your search results end up limited, meaning you could miss out on the best creators for your brand.

For example, a micro-influencer platform like Statusphere is ideal for brands that want to match and collaborate with smaller creators with no manual research or outreach. We match brands with creators based on 250+ first-party data points for pre-negotiated collabs.

Contrast this with micro-influencer tools like Skeepers and Insense that help brands find creators but still require outreach, vetting and negotiating on brands.

Brands are investing in influencer platforms that support scalability. With so many creators out there, anything that can speed up the matchmaking and targeting process is a plus.

3. Search TikTok Micro-Influencer Hashtags & Keywords

A fast way to run a targeted search and find micro-influencers who align with your target audience is by using relevant hashtags and social media keywords.

Creators frequently apply hashtags such as #ad, #gifted, #PR, #unboxing to disclose new partnerships and boost engagement. This applies to both TikTok and Instagram.

Below is a snapshot of how to find micro-influencers on TikTok with this approach:

Through hashtags and search phrases, you can niche down your search and find TikTok influencers based on your industry and target audience. This includes previous customers posting to your hashtag or using your competitors' products. 

Below are some terms that can help you find micro-influencers on TikTok:

Let's say you're trying to find affiliates on TikTok Shop with a specific skin condition or hair type. 

A combination of niche keywords and hashtags can help you uncover those creators faster. how to find micro-influencers. For example, consider how these combos:

• "dry skin" + #affiliate
• "flaky scalp" + #review
• "best foundation" + "#gifted or #tiktokshop

These types of phrases serve as a solid starting point and will uncover creators faster than generic hashtag searches (like #beauetyinfluencer). The key is mixing and matching terms!

4. Search Instagram Micro-Influencer Hashtags & Keywords

This is nearly identical to the process of how to find micro-influencers on TikTok except that Instagram's search features aren't quite as refined. 

The short of it? Mix and match keywords and hashtags that are specific to your industry and signal that a creator is open to collabs. 

The challenge? Finding Instagram influencers without using a platform typically requires a lot of legwork because of the way the algorithm handles search results. That said, you can still uncover niche creators if you're willing to dig.

5. Browse an Influencer Database (with Follower Count Filters)

We've often discussed the downsides of using an influencer database. That said, they're a straightforward way to find micro-influencers. Granted they have the right search filters.

For example, an influencer database like Aspire allows brands to comb through millions of influencers based on their real-time follower counts.

If you want to find a micro-influencer with 10k followers or a nano-influencer with less than that, you can. Granted there will be countless profiles to vet for authenticity and engagement rates.

The caveat with influencer databases is that your searches are limited to basic demographic, location and industry data. That means you can find creators that meet your follower count requirements but beyond that, your results are pretty much a free-for-all.

For example, a skincare brand promoting an eczema product would still need to vet and research creators to partner with. Especially if all you have to go off of is a list of millions of general "beauty" influencers.

This illustrates yet again the benefits of using a micro-influencer marketing platform like Statusphere that specializes in smaller creators and lets brands search for niche creators based on niche data points. This includes highly targeted search filters that go far deeper than basic follower count, audience demographics and industry data.

6. Find Micro-Influencers on the TikTok & Instagram Creator Marketplaces

Both the TikTok Creator Marketplace and Instagram Creator Marketplace are platform-native tools for finding micro-influencers.

Some brands may prefer these tools because they're "official" and there's a certain level of quality control.  You can also filter your influencer search by follower count, like in this example from the Instagram Creator Marketplace below.

However, these marketplaces often fall short for brands looking to work with micro- or nano-influencers at scale. If you spend a few minutes looking at either marketplace, chances are you'll primarily see macro-influencers. That's not a coincidence. 

Strict platform requirements tend to favor larger creators, limiting the visibility and opportunities for smaller influencers to be discovered.

Sure, these tools can work for one-off or highly personalized collaborations. They just aren’t well-suited for managing large-scale influencer marketing campaigns involving many smaller, niche creators.

7. Try Searching YouTube & YouTube Shorts

YouTube can be a prime place to find micro-influencers who are active on TikTok and Instagram.

Consider that many creators use YouTube Shorts to share content similar to what they post on TikTok, but with the added advantage of keyword-rich titles and descriptions that make their videos more discoverable through search engines.

For example, searching for phrases like "lipgloss review" from the past year can uncover recent product reviews from creators. If they're active on YouTube or YouTube Shorts, chances are they're active elsewhere.

And once you identify a creator, you can visit their profiles to check if they are micro-influencers and open to collaborations on TikTok or Instagram.

This method can highlight highly active creators based on their most recent posts. That said, the process can be time-consuming and requires thorough research. 

8. When in Doubt, Look at Your Competitors' Creators

Looking at your competitors’ followers and brand advocates across social media can be a smart way to identify potential micro-influencers:

• Start by visiting your competitors’ profiles and scrolling through the list of accounts that frequently comment, like or share their posts.
  
  
• Look for users who consistently engage and have a follower count that fits your criteria.
  
  
• Check if competitors tag influencers in their collaborations, as this can help you find creators already working in your niche.

However, keep in mind that these creators may be loyal to your competitor and unwilling to post for a competing brand based on their influencer contracts. 

9. Invite Influencers to Your Brand's PR List

Wouldn't it be nice for creators to approach you instead of having to scramble for them yourself? 

All collaborations between creators and brands involve two sides and you shouldn't always be the hunter! Turn the tables and encourage creators to make the first move with an opt-in list.

Many brands use content creator programs to speed up the process of building their list of micro-influencers. After all, influencers who initiate contact are more eager to commit to collaborations with brands by default. 

There are plenty of relevant micro-influencers out there eager to get your product in their hands. For example, MakeUp Eraser collaborates with influencers of all sizes, even those with small follower counts.

Note how the brand offers various perks for its creators. This includes gifts in exchange for sharing content on social media about their positive experiences. This is a great example of how to find micro-influencers without putting the burden on your team.

However, keep in mind that there can be a few caveats to this approach.

Although you're free of having to source as many influencers, you still need to audit their profiles.  Not to mention handling shipping and the process of physically getting products into their hands.

This process alone is time-consuming, especially if you plan on collaborating with more than a handful of creators. The bigger your list of micro-influencers gets, the more work required DIY.

10. Add  Follower Count Filters to Your Influencer Application

Piggybacking on the point above, you can specifically find micro-influencers by using a follower count filter on your PR list or brand ambassador applications. Simple as. 

This helps you identify candidates within the micro-influencer range at a glance.

If you were only looking for micro-influencers and nano-influencers, you could set a minimum and maximum follower count requirement to streamline the process. 

While this approach simplifies finding relevant creators, it works best when paired with a strategy to actively promote your influencer application form. 

11. Put Out an All-Call for New Creators & Collabs

Not every method of finding micro-influencers has to be rocket science.

Brands can attract influencers by putting out an open call or hosting a giveaway for creators interested in sampling their products. This approach allows influencers to express interest directly and gives brands the chance to connect with creators who genuinely want to engage.

For example, you can post an announcement on your social media channels or website inviting influencers to sign up for a chance to receive free products in exchange for content. This is exactly what Milk Makeup did recently and got an overwhelmingly positive response.

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Managing this process without a product seeding platform can be challenging. After all, this approach requires tracking applications, shipping and following through on content creation.

Still, this method can help brands discover passionate and active creators quickly.

12. Hold an In-Person Event for Aspiring Micro-Influencers

Hosting in-person influencer events is a big ask but also a great way for brands to attract micro-influencers, especially if you have a brick-and-mortar retail presence.

Product launches, store openings and special product drops are perfect opportunities to invite local creators to engage with your brand in-person.

For example, check out this recent influencer event from r.e.m. beauty which featured micro-influencers like the one below with less than 20,000 followers.

These events allow influencers to engage with your products in a memorable way and create authentic content for their niche audiences. To make the event impactful, consider offering interactive elements like product demonstrations, photo opportunities, or exclusive discounts.

Keep in mind that planning and putting together an influencer event is no small feat. From coordinating a location to promoting the event and managing guest lists, it's a lot to juggle.

How to Find Micro-Influencers for Your Brand Faster

Finding small creators on your own can be challenging and daunting but it's definitely doable.

Either way, brands that want to run more than a few collabs quickly realize that the DIY way won't yield the results or the right types of creators. Not in a timely manner, anyway!

Because the process of finding and onboarding micro-influencers involves so many moving pieces:

• Communicating with and negotiating with creators
• Influencer relations and management
• Tracking results
• Fulfillment and shipping products

This is where Statusphere's micro-influencer marketing platform comes in.

While you focus on the big picture of your influencer marketing campaigns, Statusphere's software handles getting your brand high volumes of influencer content with guaranteed delivery to creators.

Instead of manually finding micro-influencers, our platform automatically connects you with vetted creators to generate UGC at scale to hit your campaign goals.

Want to learn more about how our platform works? Get in touch with our team to see how we can match you with the right creators and scale your influencer marketing efforts in a fraction of the time.

This article was first published in May 2024. It was last updated December 12, 2024.