How-to Pitch Brands

Many influencers believe if they build a great Instagram feed that brand collaborations will start flooding in. While it's true that great feeds will eventually attract attention, there is an ever-increasing number of competing influencers upping their game every day. In previous articles, we discussed how to passively attract opportunities but in reality, the best influencers are the ones that take matters into their own hands and reach out to brands they want to work with. So how do you do this?

First, make a shortlist of brands that you have already promoted on your account. Almost everyone has done this at some point because we all talk about products or experiences we love. When building a profile, it's okay to list promotions even if you have not been paid for them. Brands enjoy nothing more when receiving inbound requests than to see how an influencer has already thought about presenting their products to their audience.
Second, make a shortlist of brands you’d really love to work with that have a clear fit with your page’s aesthetic and audience. If your Instagram account is about the best dive bars in Chicago, you probably don’t want to approach Rolex for a collaboration. The biggest gripe that brands have about inbound inquiries is the number of requests that lack obvious fit with their brand, customers, or aesthetic. If you want to see examples of how people have promoted brands, you can use influence.co's collaborations search.
Third, look at other influencers in your similar category and follower count range to see who they are working with. Sometimes those campaigns are still open and reaching out to the brand will get you an opportunity.

Once you know how you will reach out, prepare a concise and useful outreach message with all the relevant information. We recommend including your handle, followers, engagement rate, a link to your media kit (preferably your influence.co profile), and a reason why you’d like to work with that brand. An example might be:

“Hi, Acme Swimwear Company. My name is Natasha and I have been eyeing (and loving) your swimsuits. I think my Instagram account (68K followers, 4.3% engagement) would be a great fit to collaborate with you given our similar aesthetic. My audience is primarily young females. You can take a look at some of the collaborations I have done at influence.co/natashaswims. I look forward to hearing from you. You can reach me here or at my email [email protected].”

The last thing we recommend is to make sure you send 10-15 brand inquiries. Not everyone will be running a campaign at the time you are looking or even have the time to reply. Keep sending inquiries until you get some responses and see what their feedback is and then adjust to it. Selling is not easy, especially if it's yourself. Remember that every no can be a learning experience and no business sells 100% of the clients they pitch. Just channel your lack of response or a few no’s into renewed energy to up your game.