As the relationships between influential experts and brands continue to mature, it raises questions about how much these partnerships are worth. Recent studies have found that the B2B Influencer Marketing industry will grow to over $11B by the end of 2022, and a large part of that will include payments made by brands to influencers.
Whether you’re an influential expert who collaborates with brands intermittently or it’s your full-time gig, it’s important that you determine how to structure your rates for these engagements.
Why is it a good idea to tell people your rates?
Setting rates has benefits for both parties. Marketers are keen to know what you would charge in order to help them determine their budget. This doesn’t have to be an exact amount, just a rough ballpark figure will do initially as there will no doubt be some negotiation further down the line.
From your side, it is beneficial to tell people your rates as it avoids receiving offers below your range.
The question of how much to charge is a tricky one to answer. How can you measure how much you are worth, or more importantly how much a brand is willing to pay for your services?
The Digital Influencer and Consultant Paula Piccard, had this to say about it:
“The influencer rate subject is confusing because there are no set rules and/or guidelines in place to determine reasonable compensation. Is it based on engagement, followers, or topic of expertise? It’s unclear how these factors have a role in determining rates.”
Luckily we’re here to help! What follows is some tips on how to create your influencer rate card.
How much work is involved and how long will it take?
There are a number of factors that can help you determine how much to charge, one of the first things you need to look at is exactly what it is they are asking you to do and how long it will take you to complete (including the inevitable rounds of feedback). Antonio Grasso, Founder & CEO, Digital Business Innovation said this:
Usually, I calculate my fees based on the time I suppose is needed to deliver the activity.
Spiros Margaris founder of Margaris Ventures elaborated on that point:
“I take into consideration my accomplishments, the client’s brand and the work they ask from me. For instance, giving a keynote speech will take a lot of time to prepare, and I will need to be compensated appropriately. Since I don’t have much time due to all my investment and advisory commitments, I need to choose my partners wisely. All those points mentioned define the fees I charge for going into such a partnership. In the end, it is a partnership, as both parties want it to be a success.”
The scale of the project and the amount of work and time required is a big factor in determining rates. Chelsea Larson Andrews – Co-Founder at TechMode echoed those sentiments by saying:
“There are a lot of factors that determine costs for B2B influencer marketing campaigns. Some of the major considerations are team size (how many influencers do they want involved?); content creation (do they want influencer produced videos, articles, podcasts etc?); and the duration of the campaign (is this a two-week activation or an ongoing retainer?). The scale of the project directly impacts results.”
Different rates for different clients?
It is true that rates may fluctuate depending on who you work with. For example the size of the brand you are working with may affect what you charge. Sometimes if a brand is a large enterprise brand, there may be a larger budget available for you, but equally you may want to drop your rate when working with a large brand because you are getting more value by being promoted to a bigger audience. Similarly if the brand is a startup you may wish to apply a startup discount as their budget could be smaller.
“I would be willing to do work for less or for free if it helps to significantly grow my brand, is on a cause I’m passionate about, or if it’s for charity or for a start-up without a huge budget.” Independent FinTech Advisor, Futurist, Writer & Speaker Chris Gledhill
Debra Ruh, CEO, Ruh Global IMPACT, Thinktank on Disability Inclusion and Accessibility echoed those thoughts on Charity an Non-Profit work:
“Pricing is always an interesting exercise. My team does offer different rates/pricing for different clients. We charge our regular rates to large corporate clients but for non-profits, NGOs or smaller firms, we reduce our rates, because all accessibility and inclusion efforts are a win for my community and the world. We also choose to work with fixed prices as opposed to hourly or more open-ended pricing. We want our clients to focus on the end results not worry about us running up the clock.”
Other determining factors
If there is an opportunity that arises where you are really keen to take part because you love the brand or it’s for a good cause for example, then it’s easier to say you would reduce your rates or even waive your fee entirely for that 1st engagement to prove your worth because you would like a long-term relationship with the brand.
Whether you do these types of engagements full time, or whether you have another job and do influencer work on the side could also affect what you charge. Also if you are looking to promote something in particular, like a book or whitepaper for example, you may be able to use this as a PR opportunity, in which case there’s more in it for you so you may consider dropping your rates.
Theodora Lau Founder of Unconventional Ventures said:
“It depends on what you have to offer – are you a speaker with knowledge and subject matter expertise? Are you an author with a recent book out and you are eager to leverage speaking opportunities for marketing purposes?”
Helen Yu Founder & CEO of Tigon Advisory Corp also spoke about the value exchange:
“When a brand and influencer collaborate, they see the value and interest in each other. The value arises from the influencer’s breadth and intensity of social engagement, along with captivating content.”
In reality, most engagements do not consist of one single piece of content. They are multifaceted and you can do a package deal. Some deals may be simple, require less time and effort and so would be cheaper, some deals may be more complex and time consuming and so would warrant a higher fee.
Focusing on ROI by providing brands with evidence of the impact you’ve had on previous collaborations is really helpful. This can be as simple as creating a short PDF showcasing results and what they can expect by working with you. This small step can significantly increase the investment that brands want to make with you.
What does the research say?
We partnered up with Convince and Convert to produce a B2B Influencer Compensation Report to set the standard for how much influencers are charging and the different variables that may influence this. Through our marketplace, MyOnalytica, we gathered the data from what influencers list as their rates to produce this compensation report guide, answering questions and setting guidelines for both brands, and influencers.
If you’re interested in learning how much brands are paying influencers for specific activities, have a look at our Influencer Compensation Report to find out the rate breakdown for:
- Authoring eBooks & White Papers
- Consulting services
- Video creation services
- Podcast guest or hosting
- Writing Blogs & Articles
- Event Coverage Services
- Twitter Chats & LinkedIn Lives
- Speaking at events
MyOnalytica members are often the first people our success team would refer to partners, as we know they are open to collaborations and we know what services they offer, how much they charge and have examples of previous content they have produced.
Through our experience of helping brands run thousands of influencer campaigns over the past 10+ years, and conducting interviews with hundreds of influencers, Onalytica is perfectly poised to assist brands when it comes to introducing brands and influencers.
If you are an influencer looking to collaborate with some of the world’s top brands, click here to signup up for our B2B influencer marketplace, MyOnalytica where you can create your free profile which that will get your information in the hands of the brands you want to work with.