---
name: influencer-discovery
description: Find creators and influencers in a niche on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, filter by follower range and real engagement, and export a shortlist. Use when the user wants micro-influencers, UGC creators, brand ambassadors or a creator list for a campaign. Uses the ScrapeIO API.
---

# Influencer discovery

Turn "find creators for X" into a vetted shortlist with numbers and links.

## Ask first (only if missing)

Niche or keywords, platforms, follower range (default 10k to 100k), how many creators (default 20), country or language if it matters.

## Steps

1. **Search** with 2 or 3 phrasings of the niche (for "espresso": "espresso", "home barista", "latte art").
   - TikTok: `tiktok_search_users` (`/v1/tiktok/search/users`, `query`)
   - Instagram: `instagram_search_profiles` (`/v1/instagram/search/profiles`, `query`)
   - YouTube: `youtube_search` (`/v1/youtube/search`, `query`, 2 credits), then take the channels
2. **Profile** each candidate: `tiktok_profile`, `instagram_profile` or `youtube_channel` (`handle`). Drop accounts outside the follower range and private accounts.
3. **Recent posts**: `tiktok_profile_videos`, `instagram_user_reels` or `youtube_channel_videos` (`handle`). One page is enough.
4. **Score** each creator from the last 12 posts:
   - median `plays`
   - view rate = median plays / followers
   - engagement rate = (likes + comments) / plays, median
   - days since last post
5. **Expand** from the best 3: `instagram_similar_accounts` (`/v1/instagram/user/similar`, `handle`) finds lookalikes for 1 credit.
6. **Drop** anyone with view rate under 5%, no post in 30 days, or engagement that looks bought (see the creator-vetting skill).

## Output

A table sorted by engagement rate: handle, platform, followers, median plays, view rate, engagement rate, last post date, link to the best recent post (`url`). Offer a CSV. State the credits spent.

## Cost

About 3 credits per creator checked (profile, posts, sometimes search). 20 kept creators usually costs 50 to 80 credits including the ones filtered out.

## How to call ScrapeIO

Needs `SCRAPEIO_API_KEY`. If it is missing, ask the user to get a free key at https://scrapeio.com/login (100 credits, no card). Never print the key.

- **With the `scrapeio` MCP server:** use the named tool when it exists (for example `tiktok_profile`). For any other path, use `call_endpoint` with `{ "path": "/v1/...", "params": { ... } }`.
- **Without MCP:** `curl -s "https://scrapeio.com<path>?<params>" -H "x-api-key: $SCRAPEIO_API_KEY"`.
- Answers are in `data`; lists are `data.items` with `data.cursor` and `data.has_more`. Fields are the same on every platform: `handle`, `followers`, `plays`, `likes`, `comments`, `shares`, `created_at`, `url`.
- 403 (private) and 404 (not found) are free: skip and move on. Retry 502 once. 402 means the user needs credits (https://scrapeio.com/pricing).
- Watch `credits_remaining` and tell the user before a step would spend more than they expect.