Search strategies

Every good search follows the same shape. You start wide to gather plenty of candidates, then narrow with filters until you're left with strong matches.

Here are four ways to start wide, beginning with the one that gives the best hit-rate. You can use them one at a time or combine them.

Start with one creator who already fits your brand, or one who has tagged or mentioned a brand like yours. Ask the tool to find similar profiles, and it returns a wide set of creators with the same kind of audience and content.

This is the highest hit-rate search of all, because instead of guessing, you're cloning a profile that already works for you. Once you have that set, narrow it with filters for location, follower size, and engagement so only the closest matches remain. Every strong creator you find can become the seed for another similar search, so your list keeps compounding.

Search the words creators actually use in their bio and post captions, like "morning routine," "home espresso," or "gym coach." This surfaces people whose whole account is built around your topic, not someone who mentioned it once. Caption keywords are especially good for finding creators by what they make, rather than who they are. Narrow the results with the same audience and engagement filters to keep only the close fits.

Look up the creators who have already posted for your competitors. They understand how brand deals work, they already create in your category, and their audience is a strong match for what you sell. Drop in a competitor's social media handle, and the tool surfaces the creators who have mentioned or worked with them. Pay extra attention to anyone who shows up for more than one competitor, because they're active in your space right now.

Sometimes the audience matters more than the creator. Instead of starting from a person, start from the followers: filter directly by their location, age, gender, and interests. Every result that comes back already speaks to the customers you care about, so you spend far less time weeding out creators whose audience is in the wrong place. This is the surest way to make your reach land on people who can actually buy from you.

Whichever search you use, the rhythm is the same: start wide, then narrow.

• Every search starts wide, then narrows with filters.
• Similar-profile search has the highest hit-rate; keyword, competitor-mention, and audience-filter searches each start from a different angle.
• Combine them and let strong finds seed new searches.

Next: Analyse the profile →