10 Tips to Negotiate Brand Deals + Understand Your Worth As A Black Influencer
Right now, a shift is seemingly happening in the world. Though this influencer space is still fairly new, discrimination has been taking place for years. It’s obvious from looking at many of these brands’ feeds, that they do not partner with black creators as often as white creators. There has also been recent exposure of pay gaps between black influencers and white influencers. Majority of the blame for the pay discrepancies definitely fall on the influencer agencies and brands, but we as Black Content Creators, also have to do a better job at understanding our worth and negotiating.
As we are all witnessing the protests, and riots taking place in response to the murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and the countless other black people by the hands of police, brands and corporations are also being called OUT! Consumers and influencers who are all fed up with discrimination are also applying pressure to brands to speak out and acknowledge the racism and discrimination as well, or risk being criticized.
PR teams and Influencer agencies are now discussing ways brands can, and will need to become more diverse. Now is the time to make sure you really understand your value as a Black Influencer! Especially if your audience is predominately Black. The Black buying power is more than 1 trillion each year, so we have to charge brands accordingly for the access to our audiences.
Keep reading for 10 ways to understand you worth and, negotiate brand deals as an Influencer!
Be Confident- Confidence is key. If you feel you aren’t worth over a certain amount for your work, you will not receive more than that. It’s up to you to believe in yourself first, and know that you are talented and deserve to be compensated accordingly. Mindset is everything as a business owner, and will make or break you.
2. Research- When brands reach out to you, DO YOUR RESEARCH. Research the brand, review the website, see what other influencers they’ve partnered with and make sure the partnership will even be a good fit for your brand. When you reach the negotiation stage, you will more likely be able to negotiate a higher rate, if you have some knowledge about the brand.
3. Have clarity -Make sure you are clear on what the brand expects from you. Make sure you understand exactly how many posts they want, on which platforms they would like you to post, and due dates. All of this is very important information and will determine how much you charge the brand. Do not be afraid to ask questions if there’s something you don’t understand about the partnership or deliverables.
4. Offer deliverables/content in bundles- For example, instead of just offering 1 instagram post, you can offer 2 instagram posts and 4 stories and charge a higher/bundled rate. You can also throw in a blog post or YouTube video and charge extra for that content as well.
5. Deliver QUALITY content - Make sure you are creating and putting out content that is worth paying top $$ for. This will take investing in yourself first, and making sure your content is worth brands compensating you for.
6. Start high- When presenting the brand with your rates, always start high. It’s important to ask for more than what you actually expect to be paid. If a brand is serious about working with you, they won’t just ghost you if you present a rate outside of their budget. They may counter offer, which is fine, and it will be up to you to decide if you would like to accept the deal from that point.
7. Have a rate sheet- It’s important to have a rate sheet that shows the services (sponsored posts, brand ambassadorships, event hosting) you offer. Also include bundle deals/rate on your sheet.
8. Have patience- Do not be in a big rush to accept the first offer that comes your way, without taking your times to read over and understand the fine print. You do not want to lock yourself into a deal that isn’t worth your time, or come off as desperate.
9. Don’t accept every opportunity- Every brand that approaches you will not be a good fit, and that is fine. This makes more room for opportunities that will be a good fit for you.
10. Add value- Make sure you clearly define how you will help the brand solve some type of problem and add value their brand. Do not make the partnership all about yourself.
Socialbluebook.com is the website I use to help me figure out what to charge brands. Keep in mind clothes, photography and any other expenses is not factored into the rate that Social Blue Book provides, so be sure to add any extra expenses in.
If you decide to register for Social Blue book use the below link to receive a special introduction offer.
