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Ranking methodology
This page explains how we put together our influencer marketing, UGC, and paid social "best of" lists: how agencies get considered, what we score them on, and how inBeat is treated on the rare list where we are a genuine fit ourselves.
01
This methodology applies to listicle and comparison formats such as "best influencer marketing agencies," "top AI tools for UGC," and similar rankings. It does not apply to our strategy or how-to content, which is not ranking anyone.
02
Candidates are agencies actively working in influencer, creator, or UGC marketing. We source them from market research, creator and brand conversations, and campaigns we have seen firsthand, never from a paid-inclusion list.
To be considered at all, an agency needs a public, checkable track record: campaigns, creator rosters, or client references we can verify.
Lists are kept to a length that is genuinely decision-useful for a brand or marketer, not padded for the appearance of thoroughness.
03
Every candidate, including inBeat, is measured against the same five factors.
The depth and relevance of the creator relationships an agency can actually activate, not just a claimed database size.
Whether the agency can produce UGC and creator content at the volume and quality a campaign needs, and how fast.
Real capability to run creator content through paid social, including licensing and rights handling, not just organic posting.
Verifiable results across more than one brand, not a single flagship case study doing all the work.
How clearly the agency's pricing model and reporting are explained to a prospective client before signing.
Price alone does not move the score. A low-cost agency with a thin creator network is not ranked above a stronger one for being cheaper, and a pricier option is not ranked above a stronger one because of who owns it.
04
inBeat appears on some of our own lists. This is exactly how that is handled.
On the lists where inBeat is a genuine candidate, we score it against the exact criteria above, using our own real creator network, campaign results, and process, not a version written to look better than it performs.
Any list that includes inBeat says so directly in the piece. We do not let a reader mistake it for a fully independent third-party ranking.
inBeat's position follows its score against the same factors as every other agency on the list. It is not placed at the top by default, and it is left off entirely when it is not the right fit for that reader's brief.
If a sibling agency in the Fieldtrip network (9AM, Creative Milkshake, Bluethings, Web Tonic) shows up on one of our lists, it is held to the same bar and disclosed the same way.
05
Lists covering fast-moving areas (creator rates, platform policy shifts, agency capabilities) are reviewed on a recurring basis.
We revisit a ranking early if an agency on it shuts down, changes focus, has a public issue, or a new agency clearly earns a spot.
Any change to a company's position, ours included, is noted at the bottom of the article with the date, in line with our editorial corrections policy.
06
If you think an agency is missing, a score looks wrong, or you have information that should change a ranking, reach our editorial team and we will review it.
Get in touch
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