How do I check if an influencer marketing agency is real?

Fake agencies are a well-documented pattern — an entity presents itself as representing real brands, recruits creators with attractive-sounding campaigns, then either disappears after collecting upfront costs or simply never pays. A genuine agency can usually withstand a few basic checks; a fake one typically can’t.

• Look up the agency’s registered business details — a GST number, CIN, or company registration — and confirm they match the name being used to contact you.
• Check whether the agency has a real, verifiable office presence, website, and team — not just a single Instagram page created recently.
• Search the agency’s name alongside "review," "scam," or "payment" to see if other creators have reported problems.
• Ask which brands they currently represent, then verify independently (via the brand’s own channels) that the relationship is real, rather than taking the agency’s word for it.

• They rush you toward payment or product purchase before providing any written brief or contract.
• Communication happens entirely over personal WhatsApp or Instagram DM, with no company email domain involved.
• They can’t or won’t provide a point of contact at the brand they claim to represent.

Any agency or brand willing to pay creators reliably should also be comfortable with creators checking their reputation first — a verified review history from other creators is a far stronger signal than anything the agency says about itself.