Influencer Platforms 101

Hi crew! Last week, I shared an awesome influencer opportunity for a car brand with a budget of $8k-$10k.

Unfortunately, I had to delete it because not everyone had access to it. I found it on Popular Pays, an influencer platform.

On Tuesdays, I do in-depth 101 posts about the travel industry.

Today, let’s break down influencer platforms so you know exactly where to go to look for brand deals, press trips, paid campaigns and UGC deals.

What is an influencer platform?

An influencer platform is a third party that connects you (the influencer/creator/talent) with brands looking to work on paid campaigns and activations.

Since the platform takes a percentage of the campaign budget, or monetizes in other ways like memberships, this business model has been copied a lot.

That means there are a lot of influencer platforms and it’s hard to know which ones are legit. The names and players change often.

What does a campaign through an influencer platform entail?

A lot of people like these platforms because they’re a good place for finding UGC opportunities where you’re creating digital assets but not posting it to your profiles.

You’ll find both UGC and sponsored posts on there, as well as gifted opportunities, so make sure you read the fine print regarding compensation, rights, and deliverables.

How do you get work as an influencer or creator on these platforms?

It’s worth being on these platforms, at least having a profile on most all of them, so you can stay visible and come up in search results if they’re sourcing talent for a campaign.

Step one is to create a profile and link all your social media accounts, across platforms. If they have a mailing list, sign up so you’re the first to know about new campaigns.

Make sure you note any special qualifiers for campaigns, like if you have children, pets, are a student, etc.

Step two is to apply to campaigns that interest you. Some campaigns may only be visible if you meet certain requirements or your audience is a set demographic.

Step three, where applicable, is to negotiate. A lot of these campaigns have a pre-determined fee and a take it or leave it button when you apply since you can’t hit “submit” without agreeing to the terms. If you have the ability to message someone, however, you can always ask if there is flexibility in the budget.

Step four is to do good, timely work since these platforms rank and rate you, pushing your profile the more reliable and seasoned you are.

What influencer platforms should you join?

You should always be checking the platforms to see what opportunities come up.

Here are some to join:

• Popular Pays

• Cohley

• Insense

• Vidsy

• #Paid

• Hummingbird

• Creatively Squared

• MomSelect

• Sway Group

• Tribe Group

• JoinBrands

• Social Currant

• Fohr

• Jerne

Have questions? Drop them below, I do my best to answer every one!