Audiencly vs The Digital Dept

Why brands look at different influencer agencies

When you start searching for an influencer partner, two names often come up together: Audiencly and The Digital Dept. Both are influencer marketing agencies, but they appeal to slightly different types of brands and needs.

Most marketers want clarity on four things: who each agency is right for, what they actually do day to day, how hands-on they are, and what to expect around budget and results.

The primary theme here is influencer marketing agency choice and how it affects your growth, brand safety, and workload.

Table of Contents

• What each agency is known for
• Audiencly in simple terms
• The Digital Dept in simple terms
• How the two agencies really differ
• Pricing approach and how work is structured
• Strengths and limitations of each agency
• Who each agency is best for
• When a platform like Flinque makes more sense
• FAQs
• Conclusion and how to choose
• Disclaimer

What each agency is known for

Both agencies live in the same broad space, but they have different reputations and focus areas. Understanding this helps you avoid a poor fit before you even jump on a call.

Audiencly is widely associated with gaming, esports, and youth focused brands. They are known for large creator networks and full service campaign management across Twitch, YouTube, TikTok, and more.

The Digital Dept tends to be seen as a creative and strategy heavy partner, often working with lifestyle, culture, and brand storytelling. They are less about volume and more about curated, idea driven collaborations.

In short, one feels like a scaled influencer engine, the other more like a creative studio that uses influencers as a core channel.

Audiencly in simple terms

Audiencly operates as a specialist influencer marketing agency with strong roots in gaming, entertainment, and creator led launches. They lean into scale, cross channel reach, and access to a wide pool of talent.

Core services you can expect

Most brands see Audiencly as a plug in team that can handle the heavy lifting of running large campaigns. Typical services include:

• Influencer discovery and vetting across YouTube, Twitch, TikTok, and Instagram
• Campaign planning and creative briefs for creators
• Negotiating fees, contracts, and usage rights
• Day to day creator management during campaigns
• Tracking performance and reporting on results
• Long term ambassador or sponsorship programs

Because of their gaming background, they are often used for game launches, app installs, and brand integrations targeting younger audiences.

How Audiencly usually runs campaigns

Campaigns are typically structured around clear performance or awareness goals, with a set roster of creators and timelines. You can expect a fairly process driven approach that is repeatable across markets.

They will usually help you define your audience, suggest platforms, source creators that align with your goals, and then handle outreach and coordination.

Content tends to center around gameplay, product integration in streams or videos, and social posts that fit naturally into a creator’s existing style.

Creator relationships and network style

Audiencly is known for having a sizable network of gaming and entertainment influencers, including streamers and video creators. This can be useful if you need high volume campaigns or multiple regions covered at once.

Their relationships are typically structured through repeat collaborations, talent management ties, and databases of previously vetted creators.

For a brand, this often means faster access to a list of ready to go influencers and smoother negotiations because the agency already knows how each creator likes to work.

Typical brands that fit Audiencly

The agency tends to suit brands that care strongly about reach in youth, gaming, and entertainment communities. This includes:

• PC and console game studios
• Mobile games and entertainment apps
• Gaming hardware and accessory brands
• Energy drinks and lifestyle brands targeting gamers
• Tech and digital services aimed at Gen Z and young millennials

If you need a lot of creators talking about your launch within a short window, this style of agency can be a strong match.

The Digital Dept in simple terms

The Digital Dept is better described as a creative first, influencer powered partner. They focus heavily on brand story, content quality, and tailored collaborations rather than raw volume.

Key services and focus areas

While they also run influencer campaigns, the flavor is a bit different. You can expect:

• Brand and campaign concept development
• Curated influencer casting with emphasis on fit and storytelling
• Content direction and creative oversight
• Social content production and editing support
• Campaign management and reporting
• Support around brand positioning and digital presence

Influencers are one piece of a bigger picture that often includes organic content, paid amplification, and sometimes other digital touchpoints.

How The Digital Dept tends to work

Instead of starting with a big list of creators, they usually start with the idea. What story should your brand tell, and how can creators bring that to life in a believable way?

From there, they cast a smaller, more curated group of talent and develop content plans that feel personal to each creator, rather than forcing a single script.

Timelines may be more flexible, with added focus on pre production and creative alignment before content goes live.

Creator relationships and style of collaboration

Their creator relationships often look more like partnerships than one off deals. Influencers may be brought into the creative process earlier, helping shape concepts and formats.

This can lead to more authentic content, but requires more planning and clear communication between your brand, the agency, and the talent.

Expect more back and forth around creative details, with a higher bar for aesthetic, narrative, and fit with your brand’s tone.

Typical brands that fit The Digital Dept

This agency is usually a better match for brands that care deeply about visual identity and storytelling. Common types of clients include:

• Lifestyle and fashion brands
• Beauty and skincare companies
• Design driven consumer products
• Culture and community focused startups
• Legacy brands trying to modernize their digital voice

If you want influencer content to feel like a natural extension of your brand world, this style of partner may feel more comfortable.

How the two agencies really differ

You only need to say the full phrase Audiencly vs The Digital Dept once to capture the match up. After that, it is better to focus on how they feel in practice.

The biggest difference lies in where they place their weight: one leans into scale and reach, the other leans into curated creative and storytelling.

Audiencly often emphasizes efficient campaign execution, high numbers of posts, and broad reach metrics. They are set up for launch spikes and performance driven flows.

The Digital Dept typically emphasizes brand depth, content craft, and tighter alignment with overall marketing. They are set up for campaigns that blend into your brand’s long term narrative.

Both can deliver results, but the nature of those results differs. One may deliver many smaller creator posts, the other fewer but more heavily produced collaborations.

Scale and structure

On scale, Audiencly is often better positioned for multi market pushes, especially in gaming and digital youth culture. Their systems support dozens or even hundreds of creators in one initiative.

The Digital Dept is more likely to run smaller, carefully chosen groups of talent, even when budgets are significant. Quality and fit over raw headcount is the theme.

This matters if you want to dominate a category quickly versus steadily building a rich brand presence in culture.

Creative control and flexibility

With Audiencly, creative is typically shaped by clear briefs and performance needs. There is room for creator freedom, but the framework is highly defined to support scale and tracking.

With The Digital Dept, creative direction is more central. They may push harder on concept, storytelling arcs, and cohesive visual language across creators.

Your own team’s appetite for collaboration and iteration should guide which approach feels most workable.

Pricing approach and how work is structured

Neither agency uses a simple menu of prices, because influencer costs vary widely by creator, platform, and market. Instead, both tend to offer custom quotes based on your goals and budget.

What usually influences pricing

Key drivers of cost for both partners include:

• Number of influencers involved
• Size and engagement of each influencer’s audience
• Platforms used and content formats
• Content rights, whitelisting, and paid usage
• Markets and languages covered
• Length and complexity of the campaign

On top of creator fees, you can expect an agency management or service fee that covers planning, communication, and reporting.

How Audiencly usually structures engagements

Audiencly often works on project based campaigns, sometimes combined with ongoing retainers for brands that run frequent launches. You share a budget range, they shape a plan within that envelope.

You may see a single bundled quote that includes creator fees and their management fee together, or a split breakdown depending on your finance needs.

Because of their scale, they might offer flexible tiers of creator sizes, mixing larger and smaller influencers to hit your goals.

How The Digital Dept usually structures engagements

The Digital Dept may structure engagements more like creative projects. You may see distinct lines for strategy, creative development, production, and influencer fees.

There is often more time built into pre production, so budgets can lean heavier on planning and content crafting compared to more standardized campaigns.

Retainers are common when they act as a broader digital partner, not only for isolated influencer pushes.

Strengths and limitations of each agency

Every agency has things it does very well and areas where it may not be the perfect fit. Understanding both sides helps you avoid mismatch.

Where Audiencly tends to shine

• Strong footprint in gaming, entertainment, and youth audiences
• Ability to run large scale, multi creator campaigns
• Efficient handling of logistics and coordination
• Clear structures for performance tracking and reporting

For a brand wanting quick, noticeable presence among gamers or digital natives, this is a major plus.

Possible limitations with Audiencly

• May feel less tailored for brands outside entertainment or gaming
• High volume campaigns can sometimes feel less intimate or niche
• Creative nuance may be constrained by scale and standardization

A common concern is whether big, scaled influencer pushes will still feel personal to each creator’s audience.

Where The Digital Dept tends to shine

• Strong focus on storytelling and creative direction
• Curated casting aligned with brand identity
• Content that feels cohesive with your other marketing
• Useful for rebranding or repositioning through influencer voices

For a brand that cares deeply about aesthetics and narrative, this can be more valuable than pure reach.

Possible limitations with The Digital Dept

• Less focused on huge creator rosters or mass reach
• Creative heavy process can require more time and involvement
• Campaigns may cost more per piece of content, due to production depth

Some marketers may feel the need for faster, more performance oriented loops than this style naturally offers.

Who each agency is best for

Choosing the right influencer marketing partner is really about fit. Think about your category, goals, and how you like to work internally.

When Audiencly is usually the better fit

• You are a gaming, tech, or entertainment brand targeting younger audiences.
• You need lots of creators posting in a short timeframe for a launch.
• You prefer a process driven, performance minded approach.
• Your team wants to outsource most of the daily campaign work.

Audiencly aligns well with brands that measure success in installs, signups, or traffic spikes, as much as brand lift.

When The Digital Dept is usually the better fit

• You are a lifestyle, fashion, beauty, or design driven brand.
• You care more about content quality than sheer volume.
• You want influencers to be part of your long term brand story.
• Your team is ready to spend time on creative feedback and collaboration.

This partner tends to appeal to marketers who treat social content as a core expression of brand identity, not just a channel.

When a platform like Flinque makes more sense

Not every brand needs a full service agency. If you have a capable in house team and want more control, a platform based option can be smarter.

Flinque, for example, is built as a platform where brands can discover influencers, manage outreach, and run campaigns themselves without long term agency retainers.

You get tools for finding creators, tracking performance, and managing collaborations, while keeping strategy and creative decisions closer to your team.

This can make sense if you already have social and creative resources, but just need better infrastructure and data to support your influencer work.

It can also be more cost efficient for ongoing, always on collaborations where hiring an agency for every campaign would be too heavy.

FAQs

How do I decide which influencer agency to contact first?

Start with your category and goals. If you are in gaming or want a big launch push, start with a scale oriented partner. If you are brand story focused or design heavy, start with a creative led agency first.

Can a single brand work with more than one influencer agency?

Yes, especially larger brands. Some use one partner for performance oriented launches and another for high end brand collaborations. Just make sure responsibilities are clear to avoid overlap or mixed messages.

Do these agencies only work with big brands and budgets?

Not necessarily. Many agencies take on growth stage brands if there is a clear fit and realistic budget. The key is being open about your range so they can propose something practical from the start.

How long does it take to launch an influencer campaign?

Simple campaigns can launch in a few weeks, while complex, creative heavy work can take several months. Creator selection, contract approvals, and content reviews are the main time factors.

What should I prepare before talking to an influencer agency?

Have clarity on your goals, target audience, key markets, timelines, and approximate budget range. It also helps to gather examples of creators or content styles you like to guide early conversations.

Conclusion and how to choose

Choosing between different influencer marketing agencies is less about which one is “better” and more about which one fits your brand, budget, and way of working.

If you prioritize reach among gamers and digital natives, and want strong operational support, a scale focused partner like Audiencly will likely feel right.

If you prioritize crafted storytelling, aesthetics, and a tight link between influencer content and brand identity, a creative centric partner like The Digital Dept is more natural.

And if your team prefers hands on control with lower ongoing fees, exploring a platform such as Flinque can give you the tools without full service retainers.

Start by writing down your top three goals, your realistic budget, and how involved your team wants to be. Use that as your filter when you speak with each option, and choose the partner whose strengths line up with those answers.

Disclaimer

All information on this page is collected from publicly available sources, third party search engines, AI powered tools and general online research. We do not claim ownership of any external data and accuracy may vary. This content is for informational purposes only.