I get asked how I work with brands veryyy frequently from people who are just starting a blog or Instagram account so I figured it was definitely due time to put up a post about it.
When asked how I land partnerships and collaborations, I always tell people that I do a little bit of everything. A little bit of everything meaning:
+ I reach out to brands and companies directly
+ I “apply” for collaboration opportunities through influencer marketing agencies
+ Influencer marketing agencies or brands reach out to me directly with an opportunity
SHOP THE POST
I try to set aside time to reach out out to brands and apply for potential partnerships through agencies at least 2 times a week for about 1-2 hours that day. Like I’ve said before, getting turned down is common and nothing to get down on yourself about! So if you want to reach out more than 2 times a week until you land what you want or need, go for it!
My process typically looks a little like this…
I’ll make a list of X, Y, Z brands that I’d love to work with. If I’ve exhausted my list or have gotten nos from those brands, I usually head to the Instagram or blog of an influencer who I think has a similar vibe/engagement as mine. From there, I do some research to see what companies they’re working with or have worked with in the past. If I think I’d be a good fit, I’ll usually shoot a simple direct message to that brand asking for a direct email address of someone in charge of collabs. Sometimes they’ll give me a general one (i.e. [email protected]) but occasionally I’ll get lucky with an actual human being’s address. I can sometimes find the email address I’m looking for on their website or with a google search (i.e. I will search something like *email address collaborations nordstrom*).
I like to handle all of my communications via email so I usually ask to take things outside of IG. My direct messages can get chaotic and/or pushed somewhere where I’ll never see them again.
I have a template that I came up with for contacting brands and pitching myself so it’s a pretty simple process. To give you guys an idea of my pitch email, it sounds like this:
*hi XXX, my name is Jenna, I am behind the blog XXX and here is my IG (with hyperlinks), I would love to discuss a mutually beneficial collaboration opportunity. My blog is about XXX, I’m interested in you because XXX. If you feel that my vibes are in line with yours, I’d love to chat more about this and send you my media kit*.
At the initial point of contact, I never include rates. Even in my second email (unless they ask) I typically just send my media kit with services but NO rates. I made my media kit on Canva.com by the way.
And then if I’m not reaching out directly, I’m applying to collab opps through an influencer marketing agency. Or they contact me to see if I’m interested – these networks all work a little different. Influencer marketing agencies typically act as the middle man between a brand and an influencer.
Here is a list of agencies I have worked with or am signed up for:
There are SO many of these networks but those are the ones that I personally know of from the last 5 years. I hope this was helpful and a good resource for you guys to work with brands yourself! As always, LMK if you have any questions!
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