25 Red Flags to Avoid When You Collab with Brands (Part 2)

Creators
Written By Selene Snippe

Are you going to collab with brands? I’m sharing exactly what red flags every content creator or influencer must avoid when working with brands to keep their personal brand and money safe.

It’s a dream come true to collab with brands to earn your income, but if you’re anything like me, you don’t want to run the risk of not getting paid, losing money, or even hurting your personal brand. As a lawyer myself who helps content creators and influencers like you, I am sharing all the key red flags you must look out for and how to safeguard against them.

You will learn about the major red flags when you collab with brands, regardless of whether you collab with brands on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and any other SM platform, and how to protect yourself in any influencer collaboration with brands.

After learning all about how to protect yourself against the crucial red flags, your business and bottom line will be fully protected.

This post is all about the key red flags to look out for when you collab with brands so that you’ll earn and keep your money.

Successful Collab with Brands

The major red flags to avoid in any influencer collaboration with brands

The first 5 red flags

This blog post is Part 2 of the 5-part series on red flags to watch out for when you collab with brands.  

If you haven’t yet, make sure to read about the first 5 red flags discussed in Part 1, which are the following:

  1. Unwilling to sign a contract

  2. No room for negotiation

  3. Unclear deliverables

  4. No creative freedom

  5. Brand alignment

Read Part 1 here: 25 Red Flags to Avoid When Collaborating with Brands (Part 1).

Red flag #6: Vague approval rights

The issue

One of the major red flags when you collab with brands is when the approval rights of the brand are not clearly defined and limited.

There may be ambiguity on either of the following issues:

  • The contract may state that the content is subject to approval, but it does not state when the content must be approved. Thus, it could take the brand weeks to finally get back to you.

  • The brand may have been so nice to set a deadline, but the contract does not state what happens when you haven’t received an email from the brand. Thus, you’re still in limbo on whether to post the content or share the final version with the brand.

  • The contract does not put a limit on the brand’s rejection rights. That means that the brand can just withhold approval for any reason, even if your content fully complies with the brief.

These are all red flags that could become major issues you definitely want to avoid.

The solution

There are a few things you need to clearly define in your contract to protect against these red flags:

  • Approval deadline: Specify a deadline for when the brand must approve your content (for example, within 5 business days after submission).

  • Automatic approval: State that the content will be deemed approved if the brand gives no response before the deadline. The brand will just have to accept that that is the final product.

  • Limit rejection rights: Limit rejection rights by including at least the following disclaimers in your contract:

    • Creative freedom disclaimer

    • Authenticity disclaimer

    • Content quality disclaimer

    • Information accuracy disclaimer

    • Influencer appearance disclaimer

    • Product appearance disclaimer

    • Colour accuracy disclaimer

Want to know what all these disclaimers are and what they say?

Read these blog posts in which I explain each of these disclaimers:

Red flag #7: No limit on revisions

The issue

Another bright red flag when you collab with brands is when there are no limits on revision rounds. Let’s say all these questions are not answered in the contract:

  • What happens when the brand does not approve the content but requests revisions to it?

  • Are revision rounds included in the price? If so, how many?

  • How much must the brand pay you when you’ve reached the maximum free revision rounds?

If all that is not specified in the contract, you could end up in endless revision rounds without fair compensation.

The solution

Clearly state the following in your contract:

  • Limit revisions: Clearly define the number of revision rounds that are included in the price.

  • Revision fee: Clearly state that any extra revisions will be charged at an additional fee, and make sure the fee is specified.

  • No obligations: Although you may perform extra revision at an additional fee, you should never be forced to. You have a busy life, and sometimes, you can’t keep making revisions forever, even if you get paid for it. Thus, you should include a clause stating that you have the sole discretion to decide whether you’ll do any extra work or not. If you do not and the maximum number of revision rounds has been reached, the content will be deemed approved, and you will get paid the fee already agreed upon.

Red flag #8: No approval process

The issue

Another red flag that you’ll likely run into when you collab with brands is that there is no structured approval process.

Maybe there’s a deadline for when the brand needs to give its approval, but what if the brand asks for revisions?

Within how many days are you expected to deliver a new version?

And once you have delivered that new version, when does the brand have to approve it?

And what if the brand asks for more revisions?

The brand could be silent for weeks and then suddenly come back with feedback and expect you to provide a new version tomorrow because the content is scheduled to be posted in 2 days...

The solution

Create a simple step-by-step approval process in your contract with the following steps and deadlines:

  • (Optional) consultation: If you provide for a consultation before you start your work, specify within how many days after (1) the agreement is signed and (2) the deposit is received (if you ask for a deposit), you will have the consultation.

  • First drafts: State within how many days after (1) the consultation or (2) (if no consultation is held) the agreement is signed and the deposit is received, you will deliver the first draft(s) of the content.

  • Feedback: State within how many days the brand must provide feedback and any additional information you need to amend or finalise the content.

  • New drafts: State within how many days after you have received (1) the feedback and (2) any additional information you need; you will provide the brand with new drafts. That is, if the brand provides any feedback.

  • Additional revision rounds: Your contract should then state that the previous 2 steps will be repeated for any additional revision round included in the price (or agreed in writing between you and the brand for an additional revision fee).

  • Final content & posting: After the last round (whether that’s just one revision round or three), the contract should state that you will finalise the content and you will post the content in accordance with the posting schedule agreed (regardless of whether the brand is happy or not).

That’s how you ensure both parties know exactly what to expect and when, and both you and the brand will be stress-free and happy!

Red flag #9: No deadlines for you

The issue

And that brings me to another common red flag you’ll likely experience when you collab with brands: the contract does not state any deadlines for you. This may sound great, as you are not under the pressure of a deadline, but it has an adverse effect in practice.

When the brand does not know when to expect your next draft, for example, the brand is likely to chase you with calls and emails every day to see if you’re on track and constantly ask when they can expect it.

It could also result in you dragging the project on if you have no deadlines for drafts, feedback, approval, or posting. This will ultimately affect your workflow and the brand’s campaign, leaving both parties stressed and unsatisfied.

The solution

You should set deadlines for any actions you should take, such as the following:

  • Consultations: If you and the brand agree on having a consultation, state on which date or within how many days after signing the contract a consultation should take place.

  • First draft: Just like I specified in the step-by-step approval process, set a deadline for within how many days after a certain event you will deliver the first draft. Is that after signing the agreement? Is that after receipt of the deposit? Is that after the consultation?

  • Consecutive drafts: Then, set a deadline for within how many days after you have received (1) the brand’s feedback and (2) all the information you need from the brand, you will deliver the next draft(s).

  • Final content: Set a deadline for when you will finalise the content, which should be x number of days after you have either (1) received the last feedback during the last revision rounds or (2) the period for the brand to provide feedback has expired.

  • Posting schedule: Set the date(s) on which you will post the content.

  • Email response: Specify within how many hours after receiving an email from the brand (24, 48, 72 hours?) you will respond (so the brand won’t keep sending you follow-up emails or expect you to respond within seconds).

  • Metrics reporting: If the brand asks for metrics or analytical information to see how the content is performing, within how many days after such request will you provide that information?

Anything that you can think of that requires you to do something when you collab with brands, you should set a deadline for it.

Red flag #10: No deadlines for the brand

The issue

The brand needs to adhere to deadlines, too, for a brand collaboration to work. It takes two! When you collab with brands, you don’t want to deal with waiting forever on their feedback or wondering when they will finally pay you, if ever...

The solution

Set deadlines for any actions that the brand should take, such as the following:

  • Feedback & approval: As stated earlier, set deadlines for within how many days after the brand receives drafts; the brand must provide feedback and any necessary additional information or approval.

  • Deposit: State within how many days after the contract is signed the brand must pay you a deposit.

  • (Remaining) fee: If the brand does not pay a 100% deposit, state within how many days after the content has been posted the brand should pay you the (remaining) fee.

  • Commission: If you have agreed on a commission, state within how many days after each calendar month/quarter the brand must pay you the commission.

  • Royalties: If you have agreed on royalties (also called usage fees) because the brand receives usage rights to post the content on its own platforms, state on which days of each week/month the brand must pay your royalties.

  • Success fee: If you have agreed on a success fee with the brand, which is a fee you could charge if a certain metric is reached, state within what number of days after that milestone is reached the brand must pay you that fee.

  • Other fees and costs: If there are any additional fees or costs the brand should pay you that you may not have agreed on yet, you should also set within how many days after you invoice the brand the brand must pay you.

If you’re interested in learning more about the different fees you could charge a brand, make sure to read this blog post: Turn a $5,000 Brand Deal into $7,500 with Your Brand Sponsorship Contract (7 Essential Money Terms).

The other 20 red flags

In this blog post (Part 2 of the 5-part series), I only discussed 5 of the 25 red flags in brand collaborations.

If you haven’t yet, make sure to read about the first 5 red flags discussed in Part 1, which are the following:

  • Unwilling to sign a contract

  • No room for negotiation

  • Unclear deliverables

  • No creative freedom

  • Brand alignment

Read Part 1 here: 25 Red Flags to Avoid When Collaborating with Brands (Part 1).

And we haven’t even touched upon the other 15 red flags of this 5-part series yet, which are the following:

  • Crippling exclusivity clause

  • Content Ownership

  • Perpetual licenses

  • No usage rights fees

  • Third-party use

  • (Shipping) costs are not covered

  • Product returns

  • Unclear compensation

  • Conditional compensation

  • No fees for additional work

  • Unclear payment schedule

  • No (partial) upfront payment/deposit

  • No termination rights for you

  • Consequences upon termination

  • Penalties

Read about the next red flags in Part 3: 25 Red Flags to Avoid When Working with Brands (Part 3).

The ultimate contract templates to use when you collab with brands on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and podcasts

As discussed in this blog post (and in Parts 1 and 3 through 5), all you need is a solid creator-friendly contract with clauses to protect against these common red flags.

In my contract shop, I sell creator-friendly contract templates for any type of collab with brands to protect creators like you with the legal armour you need.

Get all the necessary protections with these contract templates for any collab with brands:

What to charge for collaborations with brands

Want to know what you should charge when you collab with brands? Read these blog posts to get the most out of your collaborations with brands:

This post was all about red flags to avoid when you collab with brands to safeguard your personal brand and bottom line.

Get all the legal armour you need against the major red flags with these contract templates for any collab with brands:

Selene Snippe
Next

25 Red Flags to Avoid When Collaborating with Brands (Part 1)