How can you negotiate a fair revenue split with influencers?

1 Know your goals and budget

Before you approach any influencer, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and how much you can afford to spend. Do you want to increase your traffic, conversions, or retention? How will you measure the success of the campaign? How much revenue do you expect to generate from each influencer? These questions will help you set realistic expectations and avoid overpaying or underpaying.

2 Research the influencer's value and audience

Not all influencers are created equal. Some may have a large following, but low engagement or relevance. Others may have a loyal and niche audience, but charge a premium for their services. You need to research the influencer's value and audience to determine how well they align with your goals and budget. You can use tools like Social Blade, Influencer Marketing Hub, or BuzzSumo to get insights into their reach, engagement, demographics, and content.

3 Offer a fair and flexible revenue split

Once you have identified the influencers who match your criteria, you need to offer them a fair and flexible revenue split that reflects their value and your budget. A common way to do this is to use a commission-based model, where you pay the influencer a percentage of the sales they generate through their referral links or codes. This way, both parties have an incentive to maximize the results and share the risks and rewards. However, you can also consider other factors, such as the influencer's fixed costs, the duration and scope of the campaign, the exclusivity and frequency of the promotion, and the potential for long-term collaboration. You can use tools like Impact, PartnerStack, or Refersion to track and manage the revenue split.

4 Communicate clearly and respectfully

Negotiating a revenue split with influencers is not a one-time event, but an ongoing process that requires clear and respectful communication. You need to establish trust and rapport with the influencer, listen to their needs and concerns, and address any issues or questions they may have. You also need to communicate your expectations and guidelines, such as the tone, style, and timing of the content, the disclosure and compliance requirements, and the feedback and reporting mechanisms. You can use tools like Asana, Slack, or Loom to facilitate the communication.

5 Review and renegotiate the revenue split

Finally, you need to review and renegotiate the revenue split with the influencer on a regular basis, based on the performance and outcomes of the campaign. You can use tools like Google Analytics, Shopify, or Stripe to monitor and analyze the revenue data. You can also solicit feedback from the influencer and your audience to evaluate the satisfaction and loyalty levels. Based on the results, you can adjust the revenue split accordingly, or end the partnership if it is not working out. You can also explore new opportunities for scaling or expanding the collaboration, such as creating new products, launching new campaigns, or reaching new markets.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?