Adrian Kotowski is a 24-year-old gaming enthusiast-turned-marketing entrepreneur.

While at school, he met friends who did YouTube videos. Through them, he witnessed firsthand the influence this content had on the gaming world, which sparked a realization: influencers wield untapped power to engage audiences in ways traditional advertising cannot match

This insight led to the founding of Audiencly, an influencer marketing agency that offers comprehensive management for influencers and helps companies create sustainable marketing strategies. 

The launch coincided fortuitously with the 2018 Fortnite phenomenon that catapulted gaming influencers into the mainstream.

Today, Audiencly boasts a team of nearly 50 professionals and a network of over 10,000 creators worldwide. 

The German-based agency has expanded beyond its gaming roots to encompass lifestyle brands, e-commerce, and fast-moving consumer goods. It leverages data from over 2,000 campaigns to craft strategies that resonate across diverse markets and platforms.

The company’s strategy centers on creating “win-win solutions” and meaningful partnerships between brands and influencers while targeting the right audience.

Through the lens of his experience, Adrian breaks down the nuances of influencer selection, the importance of campaign optimization, and his vision for the future of influencer marketing.

Full-Spectrum Services

For brands, Audiencly provides end-to-end solutions, from strategy development to performance tracking. 

“We provide everything from A to Z, from the strategy to finding the right influencers, over to the planning phase and executing the campaign, and at the end, providing a full performance tracking and report,” Adrian explains.

The company’s services extend beyond basic campaign management, including creator programs, influencer concepts, and event organization. 

For influencers, Audiencly focuses on securing valuable brand partnerships that align with their image and audience, enabling them to have a “regular income stream.”

The agency has also developed a creator program targeting micro-influencers, recognizing the potential of niche content creators and connecting brands with thousands of smaller influencers.

Adrian stresses the importance of balancing creativity and performance in campaigns. 

“We want to have a very meaningful and authentic promotion, which isn’t limiting the influencer in its creative ability but also works well for the brand,” he says. “In the end, it’s about return on investment.”

Balancing Scale and Niche

Audiencly employs a nuanced approach to influencer selection, balancing the benefits of large-scale influencers with those of niche creators. 

For mega-influencers, Adrian notes, “This can spread into news and into PR. So those are very positive side effects and benefits we see when brands collaborate with big names.”

However, while mega-influencers bring awareness, they may not always deliver optimal performance. Conversely, micro-influencers offer targeted reach and better performance within specific niches, although at a “smaller scale.” 

To achieve a significant impact with micro-influencers, campaigns require hundreds or thousands of them. Audiencly addresses this through its proprietary platform, enabling efficient management of large-scale micro-influencer campaigns.

Adrian sees value in nurturing emerging talent. 

“The market is huge. Some upcoming new content creators obviously will grow over time, and we want to be quite close to them in the early stages,” he says.

Influencer Marketing Across Social Media Platforms 

Adrian gives his take on the differences in influencer marketing performance across major social platforms. 

YouTube emerges as the primary platform for Audiencly’s campaigns, offering the best value in terms of ROI. 

“The CPM is not cheap, but relative to what you get in the performance, it is a very good CPM on average, especially for the U.S. market,” Adrian notes.

Instagram proves particularly effective for fast-moving consumer goods and awareness campaigns. It also drives conversions for beauty, lifestyle, and e-commerce brands. When combined with Instagram, TikTok can create powerful multi-platform campaigns.

However, the platform selection ultimately depends on client goals and product type. 

“Most of the time, we recommend the client to either go with YouTube or a combination of Instagram and TikTok campaigns,” he says. 

Audiencly’s extensive network allows the agency to tailor strategies across these platforms, considering factors such as pricing, community engagement, and influencer demographics.

Campaign Optimization

Data plays a key role in dictating and refining Audiencly’s influencer marketing campaigns. 

“We track every aspect of the campaign, from impressions over engagement rates to conversion metrics,” Adrian explains.

Audiencly employs advanced analytics tools to monitor campaign performance in real time. Each influencer receives a unique tracking link, enabling the agency to assess individual performance and adjust strategies accordingly.

While sales and ROI are paramount for brands, Adrian highlights a different priority for Audiencly. 

“If we could only focus on one metric, it would be conversion,” he states, explaining that it gives the agency the best leverage to optimize campaigns effectively.

Reporting is customized to each client’s needs and encompasses a wide range of KPIs, including impressions, engagements, conversions, overall reach, cost metrics, and CPM breakdowns.

While Audiencly recognizes the potential value of providing performance reports to creators, it is not currently a standard practice.

The Rising Tide of Influence

Adrian observes that influencer marketing has become increasingly prominent lately. He believes that every brand should include influencer marketing in its overall marketing strategy.

Audiencly aims to help clients transition from traditional to influencer marketing methodically with data. 

Adrian explains, “We start with the strategy; we define goals. We have a very detailed checklist which every brand should actually go through step by step.” 

The longevity of influencer campaigns is a key selling point for Audiencly.

“We still see results or sales coming in from campaigns that we did two years ago,” Adrian reveals, highlighting the enduring impact of well-executed influencer partnerships.

Despite the growing recognition of influencer marketing’s potential, Adrian acknowledges that skepticism persists. 

“There are still many people tapping into the influencer marketing space, burning cash because they don’t know how to do it properly,” he says. However, he firmly believes that “Influencer marketing does work if you do it right.”

To illustrate Audiencly’s effectiveness, Adrian shares a success story involving a major e-commerce brand’s expansion into the U.S. market. 

The campaign, involving over 100 influencers, generated over 400 million organic impressions without paid media support. 

Adrian attributes this success to careful influencer selection and alignment between creative approaches and brand goals, stating, “That shows, again, if done properly, influencer marketing works well.”

Looking to the future, Adrian sees creator programs as an emerging trend, where Audiencly aims to stay ahead of the market.

Professionalization of Creation

Adrian points out that people use social media not as it was intentionally developed but for entertainment, noting the increasing demand for engaging, short-form content.

This trend, the entrepreneur believes, bodes well for influencer marketing. 

“People want to be entertained by someone they like and not see a generic paid media ad,” he explains, highlighting the growing preference for authentic, creator-driven content over traditional advertising.

Audiencly is adapting to these changes through innovations like its creator program, which enables efficient management of micro-influencer campaigns at scale. Adrian sees this as a powerful tool “to receive great content, but also tap into a lot of different niches and communities on social media.”

Adrian recommends personal connections with creators for brands looking to succeed in the creator economy. 

“You should trust your gut feeling and talk to the creator,” he advises, stressing that a genuine understanding between brands and influencers leads to more successful promotions.

On the creator side, Adrian advocates partnering with agencies or management to handle business aspects, allowing creators to focus on content production. 

“It’s become a business, and creators should see that as one,” he concludes.