Are brands asking you to create content for exposure? It can be exhausting working for free, and being paid in exposure certainly doesn’t pay the bills.
As an influencer, you have to wear many different hats: graphic designer, social media manager, videographer, the list goes on. Brands see your value, and that is why they reach out to you. So, why aren’t they willing to pay for it?
Read on to understand how settling for exposure affects industry standards and learn to establish your worth when communicating with brands.
Paid in Exposure Lowers the Bar for Influencers
The reason that a brand believes influencers get paid in exposure is that other influencers have done it. Every time an influencer gets paid in exposure, it’s harder for other influencers to get paid for their work. The influencer industry takes a hit when people are no longer paying for the work and simply offering exposure.
These brands have paid employees. They are offering you unpaid internships to do your job. Instead of hiring a graphic designer or social media expert, they are trying to get those services for free.
Influencer Marketing Is a Widely Accepted Marketing Technique
According to a study conducted by Tomoson, influencer marketing yields a $6.50 return on investment for every dollar spent. There is a big range of impact an influencer can achieve with a brand. Of course, every influencer doesn’t get paid the same amount. A celebrity can get six figures for one post, while an influencer with a small following may earn $10 per post.
Some factors that determine what an influencer can do for a brand are account size, engagement levels and niche. Brands look to influencers to connect with their audience and relate to them so they can help make a sale, boost ratings and reach other marketing goals.
There is a wide range of earnings for influencers. This IZEA report examines the earnings equality among social media influencers. Diversity and inclusion have become a priority for many brands in recent years, but there are many influencers who are not getting paid fairly.
These people are getting paid though, so stop worrying about whether or not you should get paid, and start learning about whether or not you are being paid enough.
Social media contracts help you to keep your gigs honest. This is crucial to making sure you and the client are in agreement over all aspects of the work you’ll do.
The Cost of Being Paid in Exposure
Agreeing not to be paid in exposure does more than just help the industry. You are an entrepreneur who needs to run their business smart. When you agree to work for exposure, you are going to spend hours getting to know the brand. You are going to jump on a call or two. You are going to discuss ideas. All of this happens before you even start filming and editing.
You could’ve used this time to improve your own business. You could’ve been making yourself more marketable to actual paying clients. In a day you can take a course, read a book, or find a new client. You could’ve been earning money, but instead, your business lost money while you were working for free. You lost all of the money you could’ve made during that time.
A brand that wants you to work for exposure is either taking advantage of you or doesn’t value your work. They put a value of zero dollars on your time. This is not a brand you want to work with.
Know Your Worth
When brands reach out to you asking you to work for exposure, having a ready response makes the situation easier to navigate.
Know what is fair for you to charge and what your services are worth. Think about different media types, and set your rates. Research your competition and find out what they charge. Make sure to determine how much time each type of content takes to create. Remember, you are a business and you should know how much you need to make per hour to keep your income sustainable.
Create a media kit that showcases your results. The best way to convince someone of your worth is to show what you’ve achieved. If you have any case studies where your content created sales, that is perfect. Also, know your account demographics, and analytics will show your reach and engagement levels.
Now you just need the direct response. Send an email that clearly states that you only consider paid collaborations. You can then link to your media kit. This tells them upfront that you know your worth and you aren’t interested in collaborating if they don’t value your work the same way.
When looking for influencers, it’s important to be aware of the best practices for compensating influencers.
Make Money Instead of Being Paid in Exposure
There are many platforms where you can sell your services without reaching out directly to the brands or waiting around to be discovered on Instagram.
Shake provides a platform for you to take control of your creative partnerships. You set the price for your digital service and display your talents. Brands see your price before they reach out so you don’t have people devaluing you.
You could set up your Shake account instead of spending the day working for exposure. Finding new ways to monetize is better than finding another way to work for free.
IZEAx is a platform that helps influencers monetize their content too. Create a free profile and discover opportunities to partner with brands from a whole range of industries including food, fashion, beauty, and lifestyle brands.
At the end of the day, this is your business. You are both the boss and the employee. How the business is run is up to you. Allowing your employee to work for free has never been a good business practice. A business is only successful if it has a valuable service, so don’t devalue yourself.
