Yes, automated influencer agencies or platforms can indeed work, although the effectiveness varies depending on the objectives, tactics, and quality of the algorithms within these platforms.

Key strengths of automated platforms include scalability, efficiency, and data-driven decisions. They enable you to manage large numbers of influencers, automate repetitive tasks, and use comprehensive analytics to inform your decisions. Particularly, platforms like Flinque provide data-driven insights that can identify influencers with the right audience match and measure campaign results objectively.

However, it’s important to recognize that there’s a trade-off between automation and individualized attention. While an automated platform can efficiently manage influencer relationships at scale, it may not be as capable at building deeper, more personalized relationships as a manual approach.

For instance, some agencies may offer a more personalized, hands-on approach where they personally vet each influencer and build relationships with them over time. This can lead to more tailored collaborations that often result in content that aligns more authentically with your brand.

The other trade-off is the learning curve. Automated platforms have many features and require time to learn how to use them effectively.

So, are automated influencer platforms or agencies the right choice? It depends on your needs, resources, and marketing strategy. If you require scalability, data-driven decision making, and efforts at an industrial scale, a platform might be the right choice. But if your strategy is about building long-term, deep relationships with influencers, a more traditional agency model may be more suitable.

Either way, automation does open up new possibilities for scale and efficiency in influencer marketing, but brands need to be thoughtful about how they implement it to ensure the quality of interactions is not sacrificed for quantity.