When I solicited questions for this series in a blogger support group on Facebook, questions about how to deal with this situation arose more than any other. And I shouldn’t have been surprised – one of the most common posts I see in the group are influencers dealing with just this (second only to the question, “Does XYZ pay?” We’ll dive into that one in a later post).
Let’s break down where the perceived conflict arises from, through the lens of each of our parties here, before we talk about what to do about it.
For those who came to this post for a quick “magic answer”, sorry!
PART ONE: UNDERSTANDING WHAT YOU CARE ABOUT (YOUR INTERESTS)
You, as the influencer, want to get paid. Why? You want to make money.
That’s an acceptable, albeit surface-level, answer. But why do you want to make money? Knowing the answer to this question is at the heart of any good negotiation strategy.
You might want to make money to pay your bills. Maybe you’re trying to save up to buy a house. Fund the growth of your business. Leave your “day job” to run your blog full-time. Invest in a new web design. Make-up for the opportunity cost for your time (in other words, you could invest that time elsewhere, and reap other/different/similar benefits).
Pause here. Write down “My interests” on the top of a piece of paper and start listing WHY you want to earn money at this. Think deeply and be honest – no one will see this list but you. We’ll come back to what to do with it in a bit.
As a note, these lists you’ll be creating aren’t intended to be static. Keep them in a Google Doc or a note on your phone, open them up, and revise/add to them over time as what you care about changes.
Now, it’s not just about the money for most. It’s also about what the act of getting paid symbolizes. It could be about receiving acknowledgement of the brand you’ve built, or acknowledgement of your superior photography skills. It might be to show your husband/significant other/mother/self that you’re doing something worthwhile with your time.
Pause here. What does the act of getting paid mean to you? Why do you care so much? (Note, there is no wrong answer here!) Write this down.
The next question is a little tougher. Setting payment aside, what else do you care about? A few ideas to get you started (your list may include these items or not):
- Maintain, and ideally enhance, your brand image
- Increase your likelihood of landing other deals in the future, by:
- Building your list of brands you’ve worked with
- Demonstrating the value of your work
- Creating measurable returns for another company
- Building a relationship with a PR company, influencer agency, etc.
- Create increased legitimacy for your pricing with other companies
- Create compelling content that grows your follower base (to drive affiliate revenue on other posts, capture other deals, etc.)
- Provide value to your audience
Or maybe, you have a specific product need that this brand fits (I’m going on a trip and need to buy a new suitcase). Make sure those are on your list, too.
Pause. Add other things you care about to your list.
The last crucial item that almost always shows up on these lists of what we care about. You don’t want to set a risky precedent for the future. Most people don’t want to take less compensation than they “should” even once out of fear they’ll never be able to ask for more. We’ll address that soon, too.
Write down: “Don’t set risky future precedent.”
Look at your list. You have a lot more there than just “get paid”, right?
Knowing what you care about – and being able to articulate it – is one (huge) source of power in a negotiation. If all you care about is getting paid $1,000 for a post so you can match what someone else is getting paid, there’s only one way for a brand to meet that objective – and if they aren’t willing to pay that today, then no deal. But, when you broaden the lens of what you’re solving for, you can get really creative and come up with something that actually gets you more value (and in a lot of cases, more money).
In Part 2, we’ll focus on understanding what the brand wants. Add your email address below to subscribe to receive new posts in this series, direct to your inbox.
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