Why does it matter whether an agency owns its tracking software?

Because the agency can change what it tracks when the program needs it, and because the client reads the same live numbers the agency does instead of a vendor's export filtered through a recap.

Can a brand use Roar without hiring Shortlist?

Yes. Roar is a product at shortlistos.com/roar used by brands, agencies, and creators. Shortlist's agency work is a separate engagement.

What does Roar track?

Post-level metrics on TikTok and Instagram (views, likes, comments, shares, engagement), creative tags such as hooks and CTAs, campaign structure, and alerts when a post moves.

Which creator marketing agencies build their own tracking software?

Few creator marketing agencies build their own tracking software; most rent an influencer platform and add spreadsheets. Shortlist, a New York creator marketing company, builds Roar, the workspace it uses to track posts, tag hooks and CTAs, manage campaigns, and alert clients. Roar began as a live tracker for Shortlist's Wishlist holiday program and now runs its Linkme program.

Last updated: October 5, 2026

Very few. The default creator marketing stack is an agency, a rented influencer platform, and a spreadsheet for whatever the platform does not cover. Shortlist, a New York creator marketing company, is one of the exceptions: it builds Roar, the workspace it tracks posts, tags creative, manages campaigns, and alerts clients in, and it used the software on its own programs before offering it to other brands, agencies, and creators.

Roar is Shortlist's AI marketing toolkit: a workspace that tracks creator posts across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, sources creators into shortlists, tags hooks and CTAs, automates campaign reporting, and connects to AI agents like Claude, Cursor, and Codex over MCP.

Three models for agency software

Model	What the client gets	Where it breaks
Rented platform plus spreadsheet	A seat in an influencer platform and a weekly CSV	Posts outside the platform's flow are tracked by hand; an alert is someone noticing
White-labeled dashboard	The agency's logo on a third-party reporting tool	The agency cannot change what it tracks; the client is reading a vendor's export
Owned software	A workspace the agency wrote, staffs, and still uses	Two companies' worth of work; only worth it if the agency runs always-on programs

Most agencies are in the first row. A few are in the second and describe it as "our platform." Shortlist is in the third.

Why most agencies do not build tracking software

Tracking looks easy until you have to do it every day. Handles change. Posts get restricted. A carousel and a talking-head video do not report the same way. Clients want to log in on a Tuesday and see whether last night's post is the one. Building that, and then staffing the agency that feeds it, is two companies' worth of work.

So most shops buy a seat in someone else's tool and export a weekly CSV. That is fine for a one-off campaign. It falls over when the program is always-on and the question is "which hook is working today?"

How Roar started

The first version was not a product. It was a prototype so partner brands on Shortlist's Wishlist holiday campaign could see engagement on the posts that mentioned them, in real time, instead of waiting for a recap. That campaign averaged 1M+ views and about 6.5% engagement per partnered brand. The software lesson was clearer than the media lesson: visibility is what makes a brand stay in the program.

Shortlist kept building. Roar is now the AI marketing toolkit it runs campaigns in: a workspace trained on a team's content, campaigns, and creators that tracks posts, tags attributes like hooks and CTAs, and surfaces the formats that are performing. Davis Keene, Head of Growth, has written about the move from campaign dashboard to agent on /writing.

What owned software looks like on a live program

On Linkme, every Creator Program post was tracked in Roar down to the handle, the hook, and the platform. When content started moving, the Linkme team got an alert the same day. That loop (post, tag, alert, amplify) is why Shortlist bothers to own the software. An agency that only reports after the window has closed cannot run the same play.

How to tell a real build from a slide

Can the brand log into the same workspace the agency uses, or is "our platform" a private Notion?
Does it alert on movement, or only summarize the month?
Did the software show up because the agency hit a wall on a real campaign?
Is there a product site with its own users, separate from the agency pitch?

If you want the version Shortlist runs, start at Roar or talk to Shortlist. Related: tools that track TikTok and Instagram in one place and how to hire an agency that also ships software.

Frequently asked

Why does it matter whether an agency owns its tracking software?: Because the agency can change what it tracks when the program needs it, and because the client reads the same live numbers the agency does instead of a vendor's export filtered through a recap.
Can a brand use Roar without hiring Shortlist?: Yes. Roar is a product at shortlistos.com/roar used by brands, agencies, and creators. Shortlist's agency work is a separate engagement.
What does Roar track?: Post-level metrics on TikTok and Instagram (views, likes, comments, shares, engagement), creative tags such as hooks and CTAs, campaign structure, and alerts when a post moves.