We have talked about how brands can bank on influencer marketing to help them grow their brand. And indeed, no matter the size and reach of your brand, if you are looking to boost consumer trust and brand recognition, you should consider investing in your brand’s influencer marketing strategy.
However, if you are a growing influencer in the nano to micro tier or already are among the famous influencers in Singapore, then today’s guide will tell you everything you must know, from working with brands to some of our best tips to help you land an ideal paid partnership.
How to work with brands or land a paid partnership?
Working with brands or landing a paid partnership can be a challenging affair. However, with the right templates and tools, you are able to protect your earnings while paving the way for success. Here are five steps to get you started on working with brands.
1. Creating the ideal media kit
As a content creator, KOL, or influencer, you should invest effort and time into crafting the ideal media kit.
Your media kit is a crucial resource that brands use to understand you – your experience, previous campaign results, or areas of expertise. Essentially, your media kit is your work portfolio, resume, and business card in a single document.
The stronger your media kit, the higher your chance of landing brand partnerships and also the ability to negotiate a higher rate. Typically, you would want your media kit to include your bio, social stats, platform overview, audience demographics, and examples of previous work and results, such as clicks, sales, and engagement insights.
One of the key challenges that brands face in their KOL marketing strategy is validating an influencer’s data. Hence, the more information your media kit can provide, the better your chance of landing the ideal paid partnership.
2. Pitching for paid partnerships
Once you have crafted your media kit, you can begin pitching to businesses and brands. It is always better to contact brands that have worked with influencers as that means they have the necessary resources, experience, and process set up for such campaigns. Another way to start is by working with smaller independent businesses and brands.
Dropping a direct message or sending an introduction email is often the best way to get on their radar. It is vital that no matter what method you use, you write professionally and properly. In your pitch, you may ask them about partnership opportunities, summarise your audience demographics and experience, and provide your media kit, as well as two to three campaign ideas for them to think through. This will be a great way for them to know what you can provide.
Alternatively, you may consider engaging an influencer marketing agency, such as Kobe, that helps match influencers to the right brand and vice versa. We help facilitate an introduction and manage outreach on your behalf.
3. Asking the right questions
Whether you are a brand looking for the right influencer to partner with or an influencer looking for a paid partnership, it is more than just being the right fit. Knowing your personal values and beliefs and whether the brands align with yours is vital.
Similarly, consider how natural the partnership will be. If the brand’s products or services are normally not what you would consider, then partnering with them in their marketing campaign might not be viewed as authentic to your followers.
On a practical note, you might also want to consider the fairness of the brand’s payment policies. Ask yourself if the brand relationship is worth it, including any non-financial benefits or if the potential of a long-term partnership could be worth a short-term loss.
4. Negotiating with the brand
Negotiating is a crucial skill in any brand partnership. It is about knowing your worth. For example, if a brand partnership offers you a lower-than-expected rate, you may want to negotiate a higher rate for what you can provide. Depending on the brand’s budget, they might or might not have the flexibility to meet your expectation. Some brands also offer gifts as payment alternatives or offer a lower payment for the initial trial campaign.
One way you can negotiate successfully is to provide an itemised breakdown for your expected rate, such as the time needed, equipment, and past campaign statistics. It is important you know the rate you are worth and how much you can trade for the brand before you negotiate.
5. Looking through your partnership contract
Influencer partnership contracts may vary in conditions, terms, and lengths. While there is no official template to refer to, there are a couple of things you can look out for when vetting the contract.
- Specific activities: This should outline the partnership requirement, including the posting dates. Ensuring all requirements are properly outlined so as to avoid any unnecessary miscommunication.
- Exclusivity: This clause should tell you whether you are allowed to partner with other brands during the partnership period.
- Content ownership and usage rights: Usage rights cover where and how long your content can be used, such as their website, paid social ads, and advertisements. Hence, take note of this to better tweak your payment fee according to itemised usage rights.
- Pre-approval: This should outline if your paid partnership content needs to be reviewed and approved before posting.
- Payment terms: This should cover the total payment fees, when you are paid, and any conditions that warrant revoking of payment.
- Endorsement disclosures: This should outline how you should disclose your paid partnership, and even if they do not include this, you should always disclose accordingly.
It may feel like you are demanding. However, ensuring that all the necessary disclosures and conditions are included properly is crucial in protecting your brand and preventing unnecessary misunderstanding and costs.
Conclusion
Partnering with a brand is a milestone for any social influencers and is one of the key avenues of their earnings. Hopefully, with this guide, you will get a clearer understanding of how to partner with brands or land a successful paid partnership. Nevertheless, Kobe is here to help. As mentioned in this article, we are an influencer marketing agency with many years of experience helping influencers and brands alike.
Whether you are a brand looking to grow its influencer marketing campaign or an influencer seeking paid partnerships, Kobe is the agency to help you achieve your goals. You may reach out to us at https://www.getkobe.com/ to get started on working with us today!
