Influence Hunter vs IMA: What Happened to IMA
One of these is not a live option. IMA stopped being a hireable brand in 2019, when MediaMonks merged with it. Influence Hunter is the side you can actually brief.
Which one is right for you
Three buyers, three picks. Find the column that sounds like your team.
Choose Influence Hunter if
- You are a smaller brand watching budget
- You want micro and nano creators at scale
- You like gifting, sponsored or whitelisting packages
Look up IMA if
- You arrived on this name and meant Monks
- You need the history rather than a supplier
- You need to rule IMA in or out
Choose Flinque if
- You want to find and vet creators yourself with no sales call
- You want flat published pricing you can start free
- You want to run discovery in-house, not hire an agency
Influence Hunter vs IMA vs Flinque
The factors below are set out for both. Only Influence Hunter is a live option. IMA no longer trades under its own name; the 2019 merger put the work inside Monks. Flinque is the flat-price software option on the right.
| Factor | Influence Hunter | IMA | Best valueFlinque |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Smaller brands watching budget | Not available, brand retired | Teams running discovery in-house |
| Agency type | Affordable full-service influencer agency | Full-service agency, part of Monks | Self-serve software, not an agency |
| Engagement model | Managed, package based | Managed, retainer or project | Flat monthly subscription |
| Typical minimum | Affordable, package pricing | Not established (Monks page checked Sep 2026) | Free, then $49/mo |
| Published pricing | No | None, nor any at Monks | $0 to $150/mo, public |
| Creator network | Micro and nano creators at scale | Network of around 40,000 influencers | 10M+ verified, 200 data points each |
| Platforms covered | Instagram, TikTok, YouTube | Multi-platform, global | Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, X |
| Services | Gifting, sponsored, whitelisting packages | Influencer strategy plus global production | Discovery, vetting and audience data |
| Campaign management | fully managed | fully managed | You run it, software assists |
| Content and usage rights | Per package | Per campaign | You negotiate directly with creators |
| Paid amplification | Whitelisting for ad ROI | Part of integrated campaigns | Run your own whitelisting |
| Measurement and reporting | CPM-optimised, data-driven | Not available | Audience and fake-follower data built in |
| Team and locations | Los Angeles | Amsterdam, until 2019 | Software with support included |
| Time to launch | After package selection | After scoping | Shortlist in minutes on the free plan |
How we compared: Engagement models and minimums come from each agency's own site plus public reporting and client reviews, cross-checked and dated June 2026. Where an agency hides its pricing we say undisclosed rather than guess a number. The verdicts are ours, not the agencies'.
What each agency actually does
What is Influence Hunter
Influence Hunter is built for the brand that cannot stomach a six-figure retainer. The Los Angeles agency runs full-service influencer marketing on affordable rates and a data-led method, zeroing in on micro and nano creators at scale. Work comes in three package shapes: gifting, where products land with many small creators in bulk to spin up UGC, sponsored, where a managed budget chases the best-performing creators in a niche, plus whitelisting, where the agency runs through creator accounts to push ad ROI on a CPM basis.
The whole proposition is reach and measurable results without an enterprise invoice, tied to a client's growth plan rather than vanity follower counts. Rates lean affordable and package-shaped, though exact numbers are quoted per client. Against a giant like IMA, Influence Hunter is the lean, budget-friendly choice for smaller brands. That is not a comparison IMA can be part of any more. A brand that would rather find and vet creators itself has a third route.
What Influence Hunter does well
- Affordable, built for smaller budgets
- Micro and nano at scale
- Clear gifting, sponsored and whitelisting packages
- Data-driven and CPM-minded
Where it falls short
- Smaller-scale than enterprise agencies
- No fully public rate card
- Managed only, no self-serve search
- Less global production muscle
What IMA was
The merger with S4 Capital's MediaMonks was announced in August 2019. Today IMA is a closed chapter: imagency.com redirects to the Monks influencer marketing page and monks.com/ima returns a 404.
Eight client names carry a first-party source: Pernod Ricard, Under Armour, Beiersdorf, Diesel, Microsoft, Heineken, Samsonite and Booking.com. Pricing was looked for on the Monks influencer solution page and was not found there. Emilie Tabor and Maddie Raedts founded it in Amsterdam in 2010. Anneke Schogt joined as chief executive in 2016.
A brand that wanted IMA should be talking to Monks. Treat any IMA figure as a 2019 snapshot rather than a live number.
What IMA was known for
- Fashion and beauty campaign work
- A matchmaking platform of its own
- A team of 85 digital experts at the 2019 merger
- Clients S4 Capital named including Heineken and Diesel
Why it is not a live option
- No current client list exists under it
- monks.com/ima returns a 404
- Nothing first-party survives at the old domain
- The brand no longer exists to hire
Head to head
The two sides of this are not equivalent. IMA cannot be hired. Two checks settle it: the old domain now lands on Monks, while monks.com/ima is a 404. MediaMonks, part of S4 Capital, merged with it in August 2019. Since Influence Hunter is the one still trading, what follows is mostly an account of IMA.
Which should you actually pick
Forget the pitch decks for a second. Match the partner to the situation you are in.
You arrived looking for IMA
Arrived looking for IMA? Monks is what to look at instead.
→ Read the historyYou want to run discovery yourself
No packages, no scoping call. You want to search 10M+ verified creators with a fake-follower check on each. Start free on Flinque and pay $49 only if you keep using it.
→ Pick FlinqueYou are new to influencer marketing
No current position exists for IMA on this. Flinque free plan lets you find and vet verified creators with no card, then scales at a flat $49 a month.
→ Start with FlinqueFlinque: verified discovery at a flat price
If both feel like too much retainer and too little control, Flinque does one job and does it well. Find and vet real creators yourself, fast, then run the campaign in-house. No pitch deck, no monthly retainer, no discovery call to learn the price.
- 10M+ verified creators
- 4 platforms: IG, YouTube, TikTok, X
- 200 data points per creator
- 12 search filters
- Fake-follower check on every profile
- Free, $49, $150, published
See Flinque in action
Short walkthroughs on pricing, discovery and vetting from the Flinque team.
What Are Influencer Networks? Why Most Brands Pick the Wrong Creators
Influencer Discovery Platforms That We Made Easy and Affordable
Common questions about Influence Hunter and IMA
What is the difference between Influence Hunter and IMA?
Which is cheaper?
Is IMA still independent?
What does Influence Hunter specialise in?
How big is IMA?
Do they publish pricing?
Can either help me find creators myself?
Is there a software alternative to both?
Written & reviewed by Flinque Research Team
Influencer Marketing Research · View team →
Our research team specialises in influencer marketing strategy, creator analytics and platform comparisons. Details on this page were verified against agency sites, public reporting and client review platforms in June 2026.
Disclaimer: Information here is collected from publicly available sources, third-party review sites and vendor pages. Pricing and features change, so confirm current details with each provider before buying. This content is for informational purposes only.
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