In my course this week, I listened to an episode of the Creator Club. Katie Steckly discussed her brand deals and how she negotiated with consideration to her time and experiences.
In 2023, Katie earned over $200,000 in brand partnerships alone. However, to get to a solid six figures took time and skill, requiring her to not only receive deals but to understand how to negotiate and what to charge. Negotiation is a learning curve, requiring experimentation. As Jayde mentioned in the Social Pros Podcast which I listened to in Week 1, Katie emphasizes that growth requires risk and for the marketer to not be afraid of failure.
From 2500 subscribers in 2018 when she received her first brand deal to today, Katie quoted a rate, using her freelancer experience. She included time to make the video, equipment needed, and an additional rate for putting the video on her personal channel. Like Jayde, Katie also included rush fees in her media pricing kit. Prices vary depending on platform and audience size.
An immediate agreement without negotiation suggests that the pricing is too low, and adjustments should be made moving forward until some mild pushback is received. Longer term contracts with repeat customers with a fixed rate allows predictability in income, and it sets up a trackable period of data to argue for an increase when it comes time to renegotiate. Brands may ask for insights, and inversely, influencers/content creators reasonably should ask for metrics collected on their side.
For every brand deal where the partner immediately agrees to your original price, the next deal should be increased by 20%. If this happens 3-5 times, the next step should be to double your rate. Negotiating and some resistance is a sign of a good deal. Brands expect to negotiate. If pushback comes at lowers rates, there is a chance that the audiences of the brand and content creator / influencer don’t perfectly align. Walking away from those deals may make sense as to maintain and grow an audience, the influencer / creator needs to cater to that audience.
Featured Image: Creator Club
Additional Readings:
- Lang, K. (2024, April 23). How to Create Your Own Influencer Media Kit (+ Examples from Creators). Buffer. https://buffer.com/resources/influencer-media-kit/
- Lemin, D. and Tooker, H. (2024, July 19). How Brands, Creators, and Communities Can Face the New Social Era. [Audio Podcast]. Social Pros Podcast. https://open.spotify.com/show/7BVoYJwPbMKtp3NBBtHmHO
- Seiter, C. (2016, December 12). Most People Don’t Have Transparent Salaries, So Here’s The Research on Talking About Pay. Buffer. https://buffer.com/resources/how-to-talk-pay/#tips-for-better-negotiating
- West, C. (2023, October 26). How To Earn Money From Instagram Reels: Brands + Creators. Hootsuite. https://blog.hootsuite.com/how-to-earn-money-from-instagram-reels/
Eli Celata 
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