Getting that first paid sponsorship is among the most rewarding moments you’ll ever expertise as a creator.
It’s additionally step one in your journey in the direction of monetary freedom and constructing a life that you simply’re excited to get up for.
Simply think about … you get to work with manufacturers you’re keen on, join your viewers with wonderful services and products, and make a ton of cash within the course of!
For those who’re a creator, an influencer, a podcast host, or a publication author — sponsorships can and ought to be a vital pillar that will help you construct your enterprise.
However the issue most creators face when arranging sponsorships is unpredictability.
Whether or not that’s getting lowball charges from manufacturers and even simply not figuring out with certainty the place the following partnership is coming from, determining your sponsorship technique may be form of arduous.
Most creators assume the method seems to be one thing like this:
However what if I instructed you that the method of working with manufacturers doesn’t have 3 steps — it really has 8?
For those who’re not acutely aware of those 8 steps, you’re by no means going to lock in long-term partnerships (which ought to be the objective)!
You might need landed a number of profitable offers over your creator profession, however you wish to be hitting these each month, proper?
However the excellent news is that this:
The one factor between you and constant, predictable sponsorships is the proper system.
Introducing the Sponsorship Wheel.
The Sponsorship Wheel is a confirmed 8-step, rinse-and-repeat system that if applied with a long-term mindset, will show you how to land constant, well-paying model offers permitting you to lastly go full-time along with your creator enterprise and construct the life you need.
At its core, the sponsorship wheel is a system for monitoring what stage your numerous partnerships are at. The primary mistake I see creators make is taking their foot off the gasoline too quickly.
Simply since you’ve signed the contract doesn’t imply you may relaxation in your laurels. Simply since you’ve submitted the property to the model doesn’t imply it’s time to place your toes up.
It’s on you as a creator to maintain the sponsorship wheel turning (particularly after you hit publish).
However to be able to do this, you first want to know the 8 steps, so let’s break it down.
Step 1: Pitch
That is the part the place you are reaching out to a model chilly to suggest a collaboration or a model has reached out to you inquiring a few partnership.
When reaching out to them, your pitch must comply with what I name the ROPE technique:
- Relevant (to any present campaigns they’re working or have run previously)
- Organic (may be tied again to work you’ve already printed)
- Proof (reveals the way you’ve helped one other model obtain outcomes)
- Easy to execute (after they say “sure”)
Maintain this in thoughts throughout your pitch. Don’t write three paragraphs telling them how a lot you’re keen on their model and have at all times dreamed of working with them. That gained’t reduce it as a result of it’s precisely what all people else is doing.
However what about when a model reaches out to you?
It’s vital to keep in mind that simply because they did doesn’t imply you may telephone it in and count on that they’re one hundred pc dedicated to working with you.
They most likely reached out to a bunch of different creators in your area of interest too.
So it’s as much as you to pitch them on why they made the correct name in emailing you, and why you might really go above and past for them, such that the model ought to pay you 2-3x what they initially had in thoughts.
However what about when a model ghosts you after your pitch?
If you wish to see precise outcomes, I like to recommend you do a minimum of 4 follow-ups.
- Comply with-up 1 (If no response, 5 days after the preliminary chilly pitch or preliminary response to their inbound inquiry)
- Comply with-up 2 (If no response, 6 days after Comply with-up 1)
- Comply with-up 3 (If no response, 7 days after Comply with-up 2)
- Comply with-up 4 (If no response, 14 days after Comply with-up 3)
Step 2: Negotiate
That is the part the place you have agreed in precept to collaborate with the model however you might be actively negotiating the deal phrases.
The length of this step ought to be 5 days, in any other case, comply with up with the model/company.
Inside the negotiation, there are a number of vital issues to recollect.
First, the individual on the model who you’re involved with initially doubtless gained’t be the one one who has enter on the deal. Be ready to barter with a number of folks.
Second, you should perceive what the model’s objective is. They might merely be seeking to create consciousness of their new services or products, or possibly they’re actively targeted on changing new clients to their enterprise. Or possibly they wish to use the deliverables you create on their very own social platforms.
Third, you should choose a pricing technique. This could primarily be based mostly on the worth you’re offering to the model, somewhat than simply asking your pal what they cost for, say, a publication integration, and copying that fee. Your pricing ought to change in relation to the model’s targets.
Fourth, you should study to beat model objections. For instance, when you attain an deadlock the place the model simply gained’t go increased on their provide, you need to discover ways to negotiate a compromise, or else be okay strolling away from that deal.
Lastly, take note you and the model are on the identical workforce. They’ve come to you as a result of they suppose you may assist get their marketing campaign throughout the end line — and so they’re gonna pay you for it!
One drawback creators face early on is manufacturers providing them free merchandise somewhat than precise fee. This may really feel good the primary time it occurs, but it surely rapidly turns into extremely irritating. In any case, a free packet of vegan beef jerky isn’t gonna pay your payments, proper?
Step 3: Contract
That is the part the place you have agreed to the deal phrases and now are both reviewing the contract the model/company has offered or drafting your individual settlement to ship to them.
The length of this step ought to be seven days, in any other case comply with up with the model/company.
Crucially, throughout this step you should align on the timeline of occasions transferring ahead.
For instance, when does the model want the property to go reside? And earlier than that, when can be splendid to ship your draft content material for evaluate? When you’ve despatched that draft, how lengthy must you count on to attend earlier than receiving suggestions and/or revision requests?
All of this issues. With out agreeing on these timelines you may’t work out whenever you’ll be integrating the sponsorship inside your content material, or when to put aside time to finish their revisions.
You’ve additionally obtained to align on some key expectations so they do not come again to chew you later. For instance, agreeing on what number of rounds of revisions you’ll do and what constitutes an affordable revision is paramount.
As a Sponsorship Coach who has remodeled $4,000,000 personally working with manufacturers and has helped different creators land over $3,000,000 in sponsorships, I’ll say that this step (if executed fallacious) could cause the largest complications down the street.
Step 4: Idea
That is the part the place you evaluate the artistic temporary and submit an idea to the model/company (even when they have not requested you!) for evaluate/approval previous to creating the content material.
The length of this step ought to be 5 days, in any other case, comply with up with the model/company.
First up, if the model hasn’t offered you with an idea, ask them immediately.
I’ve seen so many partnerships derail when the model says they belief the creator to create the property with out a temporary, however then finally ends up giving them a stack of revisions as a result of it “wasn’t actually what they’d in thoughts.”
Make them inform you what they bear in mind.
What are the primary speaking factors? What’s the call-to-action? Any do’s or don’ts?
Then, on a extra granular stage, how do they like to be launched in your content material? (“This week I’m partnering with…”? “This podcast is sponsored by…”?)
If the model offers you this info out the gate, you’ll save a lot time in a while.
And don’t fear, it might really feel like there are so many questions you might ask the model that it’s arduous to know the place to begin (and when you’re lacking something vital).
Step 5: Produce
That is the part the place you create the content material and ship it to the model/company.
The length of this step ought to be relative to your draft supply date.
When sending the deliverables to the model, I recommend placing all the things right into a single doc, like a Google Doc.
This makes it simpler for the model to see all the things in a single place and permits them to remark straight on, say, wording alternative on the advert learn or the phase of your publication the place you speak about them.
Step 6: Suggestions
That is the part the place the model/company critiques your content material and requests revisions, edits, or reshoots.
The length of this step ought to be seven days, in any other case, comply with up with the model/company.
That is the place the steps we took earlier save us a while. As a result of it’s now as much as you to resolve whether or not the revisions they’re asking for are affordable and whether or not you’ll do them free of charge or cost them extra.
Clearly, when you didn’t adhere to the authorized temporary and idea, you have to be open to free revisions.
You must also be open to minor revisions if it’s going to help your relationship-building with that model, as long as they’re not being completely unreasonable.
If it’s going to take you 5 minutes to make the modifications they requested, simply do it.
However this equally means you’ve obtained to place your foot down if they’re clearly not being affordable.
Perhaps they’ve gone well beyond the variety of agreed-upon revision rounds, or now they’re asking you to create some fully new content material not beforehand outlined within the temporary.
In instances like this, charging the model additional is likely to be warranted.
Step 7: Publish
That is the part the place you publish the content material and ship the reside hyperlinks to the model/company.
The length of this step ought to be relative to the go-live date.
For this, I’ve a guidelines that takes you all the way in which from the second you signal the contract proper via to the second you hit publish in your sponsored content material.
That’s out there as a useful resource to all Model Deal Wizard college students.
Step 8: Analyze
That is the part the place you bill the model/company and supply your tax and vendor paperwork. Inside this part, there are additionally some sub-steps. For instance, after you ship the bill and tax and vendor paperwork:
- Comply with-up 1 (If no response, 5 days after submission)
- Comply with-up 2 (If no response, name or e mail 3 days after Comply with-up 1)
- Comply with-up 3 (If no response is acquired, 7 days previous to bill due date)
You additionally wish to present the model with a post-campaign report summarizing the marketing campaign targets and key insights about its success.
It will look completely different relying on the marketing campaign targets.
You may share the variety of views/impressions your content material obtained relative to the model’s expectations.
If this was an consciousness marketing campaign, you might embody screenshots of feedback from folks saying they’d by no means beforehand heard of the model earlier than.
The goal of that is to point out the model that this marketing campaign was a hit, proper?
By the way in which, now that we’ve reached Step 8, hopefully, it’s clear why this method isn’t structured as a horizontal timeline, however somewhat as a wheel.
The second you full this partnership, you need to pitch them in your subsequent concept!
The worst potential factor you are able to do is to gather that verify after which by no means speak to the model once more.
Bizarrely, a big quantity of creators do that and find yourself again on the market hustling for the following partnership with a brand new model.
It’s so, so, a lot simpler to nurture the model relationships you have already got than it’s to continuously win over new shoppers … belief me.
Subsequent Steps for Creators
So now you understand how the Sponsorship Wheel works, I’ve obtained one thing actually thrilling for you…
The Sponsorship Wheel Snapshot is designed to generate a customized report that highlights your particular person areas of power in every of those 8 key areas and the place you may have probably the most room to enhance.
By figuring out these areas, you may work out precisely find out how to make extra profitable offers constantly.
You’ll be able to take the Sponsorship Wheel Snapshot for FREE right here.
Thanks for studying, and better of luck along with your subsequent sponsorship!
— Justin