Make Waves
Make Waves is a boutique, founder-led social media and influencer marketing agency that delivers retainer-based social management, community building, paid social, influencer programs, content creation, and email marketing to brands across beauty, cannabis, wellness, non-profit, and biotech verticals.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersHaleiwa, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Make Waves does
Make Waves is a private, founder-led social media and influencer marketing agency operating as Make Waves LLC, headquartered in Haleiwa, Hawaii. The firm delivers done-for-you social media management, community management, influencer programs (including product trade, gifting, and paid arrangements), paid social advertising, brand collaborations, content creation (lifestyle, e-commerce, digital, videography), and email marketing — sold as monthly retainer packages starting at $3,000/month with à la carte add-ons from $800/month. The agency's underlying technology stack consists of mainstream social platforms (Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Facebook), Klaviyo for email automation, and Slack for client communication, with no proprietary software platform or app product.
The company serves a diversified mix of startups, SMBs, enterprise brands, and non-profits across beauty, cannabis/CBD, CPG/food and beverage, fitness, hospitality, restaurant, spirits, wellness, non-profit, and biotech verticals. Make Waves has also extended into a small e-commerce line of digital products — notably the Influencer Product Trade Program ($499.99) and a 700+ influencer sourcing list ($45) — which package internal agency workflows and data into downloadable formats. Distribution is sales-led, with client acquisition driven by Instagram presence, a monthly email newsletter, case study content marketing, and Calendly discovery sessions. The agency emphasizes long-term client relationships (average tenure exceeding 2 years) and explicitly selects brands its team is personally passionate about, reflecting a boutique, relationship-driven GTM motion rather than a scaled acquisition model. The company is bootstrapped, with no institutional funding, acquisitions, or parent company relationships disclosed.
Make Waves firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Make Waves
- Legal name
- Make Waves LLC
- Website
- https://makewaves.social
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Make Waves is a boutique, founder-led social media and influencer marketing agency that delivers retainer-based social management, community building, paid social, influencer programs, content creation, and email marketing to brands across beauty, cannabis, wellness, non-profit, and biotech verticals.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Make Waves industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Social Media Marketing Agency Services
- NAICS
- Advertising Agencies (54181), Media Buying Agencies (54183)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Influencer Marketing Agencies (BPAFAHAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Influencer Campaign Operations & Managed Services (BPAFAHAF), Influencer Paid Amplification & Whitelisting (Spark Ads/Branded Content Ads) (MPAAAHAJ)
Keywords
Where Make Waves is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Haleiwa
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Make Waves business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Social Media Management Services: Monthly retainer packages for social media management including content calendars, Instastories, Reels, and ongoing growth tactics. Signature packages start at $3,000/month.
- Á la Carte Service Add-ons: Individual services including Community Management, Influencer Programs, Paid Social Advertising, Brand Collaborations, Content Creation, and Email Marketing. Á la carte add-ons begin at $800/month.
- Digital Product Sales: Sale of digital products including Influencer Product Trade Program ($499.99) and Micro & Mid-Tier Influencer Lists ($45.00).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Signature Package - Full-service social media management |
| Subscription | Monthly | Á la Carte Add-ons |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Micro & Mid-Tier Influencer Lists |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Influencer Product Trade Program |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Make Waves product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Make Waves is a social media and influencer marketing agency that delivers done-for-you social media management, community management, influencer programs, paid social advertising, brand collaborations, content creation, and email marketing on monthly retainers. The agency also sells two standalone downloadable digital products — the Influencer Product Trade Program ($499.99) and the Micro & Mid-Tier Influencer Lists ($45.00) — enabling brands and agencies to implement their own influencer workflows.
Product overview
Make Waves is a digital marketing agency offering a suite of social media services centered around seven core service offerings: Social Media Management, Community Management, Influencer Programs, Paid Social Advertising, Brand Collaborations, Content Creation, and Email Marketing. These services are delivered as a unified agency offering rather than a software platform, with signature packages starting at $3,000/month and add-on services starting at $800/month. The company also sells two downloadable digital products: the Micro & Mid-Tier Influencer Lists ($45.00) and the Influencer Product Trade Program ($499.99), which provide templates, tracking systems, and influencer sourcing data that complement the agency's managed services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Social Media Management Done-for-you content calendars, Instastories and Reels, plus ongoing growth and engagement tactics to grow account visibility. Delivered to brand clients across beauty, cannabis, CPG, fitness, wellness, non-profit, and biotech verticals.
- Influencer Product Trade Program A plug-and-play downloadable program for brands and agencies to implement and operate an influencer product trade collaboration program. Includes program workflow, influencer tracker template, outreach swipe files, analytics and reporting templates, campaign report template, tips and tricks, case study example, and bonus sourcing lists of 700+ micro and mid-tier influencers. Sold as a one-time purchase at $499.99.
- Micro & Mid-Tier Influencer Lists A downloadable digital product containing over 700 influencers across lifestyle, beauty, luxury, models, and blogger categories. Each entry includes direct URL, name, email, follower count, bio, posting location, average likes, comments, video views, and engagement rate. Sold as a one-time purchase at $45.00 for brands and agencies implementing DIY influencer programs.
Quantifiable outcome
- 388% increase in website traffic for clients over 3 months
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Make Waves
Customer profileNamed customers12 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Make Waves technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
Feature1 record
Make Waves partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators8 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Make Waves competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- The Shelf: Boutique influencer marketing agency offering campaign strategy, creator sourcing, and social content execution for consumer brands—directly comparable in service mix and mid-market positioning to Make Waves.
- HireInfluence: Full-service influencer marketing agency running end-to-end creator campaigns (strategy, sourcing, amplification) for consumer brands; overlaps with Make Waves on influencer program management and paid amplification.
- Obviously: Influencer marketing agency and platform serving global brands with creator campaigns and content production—comparable to Make Waves on the agency-services side, with a larger scale and tech-enabled operating model.
- Lyfe Marketing: Social media marketing agency providing management, content creation, and paid social for SMBs—directly comparable retainer-based social media services to Make Waves, though at lower price points.
- The Influencer Marketing Factory: Influencer marketing agency running TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube creator campaigns with strategy and analytics—close peer to Make Waves on channel mix and campaign-driven service offering.
Broad incumbents
- Statusphere: Tech-enabled influencer marketing platform handling product seeding, creator matching, and analytics at larger volume—overlaps with Make Waves' influencer program management but operates at greater scale via automation.
- Upfluence: Influencer marketing SaaS platform with discovery, outreach, and analytics; competes for the same brand budgets as Make Waves' influencer programs but sells software rather than managed services.
- Aspire: Influencer and creator marketing platform with marketplace, CRM, and analytics—broader incumbent offering overlapping capabilities with Make Waves' influencer program and content workflows.
Emerging players
- Carro: Influencer marketplace and product-seeding tool for SMB brands; partially overlaps with Make Waves' Influencer Product Trade Program, but delivers via self-serve software rather than managed services.
- Sculpt: Social media agency focused on B2B and life-sciences clients, including founder thought leadership on LinkedIn—comparable to Make Waves' LinkedIn ecosystem work for biotech clients such as AURA.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Make Waves social profiles
Digital presenceMake Waves financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Make Waves leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Make Waves funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Make Waves M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Make Waves
What does Make Waves do?
Make Waves is a social media and influencer marketing agency that delivers done-for-you social media management, community management, influencer programs, paid social advertising, brand collaborations, content creation, and email marketing on monthly retainers. The agency also sells two standalone downloadable digital products — the Influencer Product Trade Program ($499.99) and the Micro & Mid-Tier Influencer Lists ($45.00) — enabling brands and agencies to implement their own influencer workflows.
Is Make Waves a public or private company?
Make Waves is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Make Waves founded?
Make Waves was founded in 2018. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Make Waves based?
Make Waves is headquartered in Haleiwa, United States, in the North America region.
How does Make Waves make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Social Media Management Services are the primary driver. The others are Á la Carte Service Add-ons and digital Product Sales.
Who are Make Waves's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are The Shelf, HireInfluence, Obviously, Lyfe Marketing and The Influencer Marketing Factory. Broad incumbents are Statusphere, Upfluence and Aspire. Emerging players are Carro and Sculpt.
Does Make Waves have an API?
No public API is recorded for Make Waves.
What industry is Make Waves in?
Make Waves's product category is Social Media Marketing Agency Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAFAHAA, Influencer Marketing Agencies, with a secondary code of BPAFAHAF, Influencer Campaign Operations & Managed Services. Its NAICS code is 54181 and its SIC code is 7311.