Influencer Discovery

Discover and analyze influencers across multiple platforms using Apify Actors.

Prerequisites

(No need to check it upfront)

• .env file with APIFY_TOKEN
• Node.js 20.6+ (for native --env-file support)

Workflow

Copy this checklist and track progress:

Task Progress:
- [ ] Step 1: Determine discovery source (select Actor)
- [ ] Step 2: Fetch Actor schema
- [ ] Step 3: Ask user preferences (format, filename)
- [ ] Step 4: Run the discovery script
- [ ] Step 5: Summarize results

Step 1: Determine Discovery Source

Select the appropriate Actor based on user needs:

User Need	Actor ID	Best For
Influencer profiles	apify/instagram-profile-scraper	Profile metrics, bio, follower counts
Find by hashtag	apify/instagram-hashtag-scraper	Discover influencers using specific hashtags
Reel engagement	apify/instagram-reel-scraper	Analyze reel performance and engagement
Discovery by niche	apify/instagram-search-scraper	Search for influencers by keyword/niche
Brand mentions	apify/instagram-tagged-scraper	Track who tags brands/products
Comprehensive data	apify/instagram-scraper	Full profile, posts, comments analysis
API-based discovery	apify/instagram-api-scraper	Fast API-based data extraction
Engagement analysis	apify/export-instagram-comments-posts	Export comments for sentiment analysis
Facebook content	apify/facebook-posts-scraper	Analyze Facebook post performance
Micro-influencers	apify/facebook-groups-scraper	Find influencers in niche groups
Influential pages	apify/facebook-search-scraper	Search for influential pages
YouTube creators	streamers/youtube-channel-scraper	Channel metrics and subscriber data
TikTok influencers	clockworks/tiktok-scraper	Comprehensive TikTok data extraction
TikTok (free)	clockworks/free-tiktok-scraper	Free TikTok data extractor
Live streamers	clockworks/tiktok-live-scraper	Discover live streaming influencers

Step 2: Fetch Actor Schema

Fetch the Actor's input schema and details:

node --env-file=.env ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/scripts/fetch_actor_details.js --actor "ACTOR_ID"

Replace ACTOR_ID with the selected Actor (e.g., apify/instagram-profile-scraper).

This returns:

• Actor info (title, description, URL, categories, stats, rating)
• README summary
• Input schema (required and optional parameters)

Step 3: Ask User Preferences

Skip this step for simple lookups (e.g., "what's Nike's follower count?", "find me 5 coffee shops in Prague") — just use quick answer mode and move to Step 4.

For larger scraping tasks, ask:

1. Output format:
   • Quick answer - Display top few results in chat (no file saved)
   • CSV - Full export with all fields
   • JSON - Full export in JSON format
2. Number of results: Based on character of use case

Cost safety: Always set a sensible result limit in the Actor input (e.g., maxResults, resultsLimit, maxCrawledPages, or equivalent field from the input schema). Default to 100 results unless the user explicitly asks for more. Warn the user before running large scrapes (1000+ results) as they consume more Apify credits.

Step 4: Run the Script

Quick answer (display in chat, no file):

node --env-file=.env ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/scripts/run_actor.js \
  --actor "ACTOR_ID" \
  --input 'JSON_INPUT'

CSV:

node --env-file=.env ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/scripts/run_actor.js \
  --actor "ACTOR_ID" \
  --input 'JSON_INPUT' \
  --output YYYY-MM-DD_OUTPUT_FILE.csv \
  --format csv

JSON:

node --env-file=.env ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/scripts/run_actor.js \
  --actor "ACTOR_ID" \
  --input 'JSON_INPUT' \
  --output YYYY-MM-DD_OUTPUT_FILE.json \
  --format json

Step 5: Summarize Results

After completion, report:

• Number of influencers found
• File location and name
• Key metrics available (followers, engagement rate, etc.)
• Suggested next steps (filtering, outreach, deeper analysis)

Error Handling

APIFY_TOKEN not found - Ask user to create .env with APIFY_TOKEN=your_token Actor not found - Check Actor ID spelling Run FAILED - Ask user to check Apify console link in error output Timeout - Reduce input size or increase --timeout