If you’re a creator, influencer, or blogger, your career depends on closing more brand collaborations.
Easier said than done, because having a big enough following and great content is not enough. To get brand partnerships, you must first know how to package all your excellent skills and advantages into a professional presentation.
So, if you’ve been struggling with landing brand collaborations, or if you simply want to polish your pitch, this article is for you. By the end of it, you’ll know exactly how to research and select your brands, what materials to create, and how to put together a media kit nobody will want to say “no” to. We’ll close off with the most critical skill of all: how to craft that perfect pitch email, and you’ll be good to close another brand deal.
Ready? Let’s begin!
Things to cover before reaching out for brand collaborations
Before putting any effort into finding brand collaborations, there are a few things you must make sure of.
First, you must ensure your audience is formed of real followers that have shared interests. If you’ve been growing your following count utilizing the best practices in the industry, you have nothing to worry about.
Secondly, you must have enough followers to grab the attention of small, medium, and even big brands. As a general rule, know that you’re considered a micro-influencer if you have anywhere between 2 000 and 50 000 followers.
Thirdly, you must be ready to produce branded content authentically and stay true to who you are. If you’ve been creating content on Instagram for a while, then you probably already have a style. Make sure you keep up that same quality and spirit even when you’ll be creating promotional content.
Next, audit your gear and see if you have all the equipment needed to produce high-quality photos and videos. Consider whether or not you should be making any upgrades to deliver even better content.
Equally important, gather statistics that prove your content triggers engagement and can even convert followers into customers. The more proven data you have, the higher your chances to land brand collaborations will be.
Find and select the most suitable brands to pitch to
You probably have a brands’ bucket list. However, not all of your favourite brands will be suitable for collaborations. To make sure you’re not barking up the wrong tree, do your research before reaching out.
A good place to start is your favourite brands’ news feed. Carefully analyze their profiles and check to see whether or not they’ve collaborated with micro-influencers in the past. If they did, what type of content they shared? Would you be comfortable (or like) creating similar content?
These are important questions to ask yourself before posing the BIG question. Working with the wrong brand can do you more harm than good, so don’t choose collaborations on a whim.
Another way to go about finding and selecting brands for potential collaborations is to look at other micro-influencers from your niche. Are there any particular brands they’ve collaborated with that you also like? If the answer is yes, the prospects look bright, as a past micro-influencer collaboration means the brand is open to more.
Finally, if you want to discover new brands you could work with, don’t forget to look at your own followers. Yes, you might already have particular brands following you, so don’t miss out on this opportunity.
What is a media kit and why do you need one?
Once you’ve made a shortlist with the brands you’d like to pitch to, it’s time to prepare your media kit.
A media kit is a visual resume that contains essential statistics about your success as a micro-influencer, as well as specific examples of collaborations. You can think of it as a digital portfolio that tells brands why they should collaborate with you.
The goal of your media kit is to grab brands’ attention and offer deciding arguments to support your cause. Usually, here’s what an influencer media kit for brand collaborations should cover:
- Short intro, flavoured with your unique tone of voice
- Followers’ statistics including number, demographics, and growth rate
- Other relevant statistics (e.g. website)
- Examples of content you create
- Past brand collaborations
- Collaboration options
- Rate cards
- Contact details
Since this is your moment to shine, make sure you create a media kit that’s in line with your personality, and add a dash of creativity.
How to write an email that will get you more brand collaborations
With your influencer media kit polished and ready to be shared, it’s time to think about the packaging. Because simply dropping your portfolio in a brand’s inbox won’t be merely enough.
At this point, you need to think about a personalized approach that will show brands just how much you want to work with them. Essentially, you need to craft a message that proves that you approaching them is the result of a well-thought strategy, and not just a fluke.
Here’s what your message should cover:
- A short introduction about yourself and your background
- Why you’d love to work with them
- Values you have in common
- A creative collaboration proposal in line with their strategy
- Media kit
- Suggested timeline for exploratory talk
Make sure to check everything on the above list, but do so briefly. Remember that brand managers are short on time, so you should grab their attention your with a short, powerful message.
Whether you reach out on email, DM, or by sending a message on their brand’s website is up to you. Whatever you choose, make sure it increases your chances at getting noticed.
Ready to close more brand collaborations?
Closing brand collaborations as a micro-influencer is not impossible. In fact, if you play your card right, one successful deal can lead to many more. So, are you ready to have the first of many lucky strikes?
Remember that Preppr is by your side to plan and schedule your content. Try it for free for 10 days, and you’ll never want to go back.
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