Influencer contract template & practical tips!

Putting together an influencer contract doesn’t need to be scary! Influencer contracts have become an essential best practice for successful influencer campaigns, so it’s important that you understand why you need one, and more importantly, how to write one. Influencers will expect to have some kind of written agreement or contract that outlines the expectations and guidelines for their participation in your campaign, as well as the compensation offered. 

Influencer contracts put everything in black and white so there’s no confusion. But if you’re not used to creating these types of contracts it can be daunting. That’s why we’re going to examine what needs to be included in an influencer contract and give you an influencer contract template that you can copy and paste to use endlessly. It couldn’t be easier! 

What should I include in an influencer contract? 

The essential details:

• Names and addresses of the signatories (the creator and the brand and/or agency representing them. 
• Compensation/influencer fee. Include a timeline of when payment will be paid and under what conditions. 
• Social media channels. Be specific about which handle and which social media channel the creator should post on. 
• Content format. Share specific details about the format (e.g 15 second video, 1 product image plus a written review). List out the expected deliverables individually, i.e every piece of content you’re expecting to be shared as part of the campaign. 
• Publication date. Share if and when drafts should be submitted as well as the fixed dates or time frame for posts to be shared. Include time zones if applicable. Need some flexibility? State that you reserve the right to update these dates if needed.
• Publication guidelines. Depending on where your influencer is based, they’ll need to adhere to certain guidelines when posting sponsored content to their channel. For best practices and greater transparency, you should ask them to include #ad, #sponsored, or the ‘sponsored content’ tag on relevant posts. 

Additional requirements:

• Exclusivity. State whether you want the influencer to promote exclusively your brand’s products and not participate in any other campaigns for other brands for the duration of your campaign. You can decide how ‘strict’ you need to be and you may choose to only exclude campaigns from directly competing brands. 
• Performance tracking: Share how performance will be tracked and if the influencer will need to provide posts to links or access to certain performance data in order to measure the success of your campaign. 
• Usage rights: Will you want to share the content on your brand’s social media channels or repurpose it for paid campaigns? Say how long you will need to have the rights to reshare the influencer’s content on your own channels. 

What format should an influencer contract take? 

The influencer contract will need to be a written document so creating it as a word document or pdf would work well if it needs to be printed. If you will be sharing online to be signed consider using a program like Docusign which means contracts can be signed electronically. If you’re using Upfluence to manage your influencer campaigns you can upload contracts via our Workflow tool. 

You may like to create your own internal influencer contract template that can be edited and reused for each campaign so you don’t need to create a brand new contract each time. 

How to use this influencer contract template 

This influencer contract template is intended as a guide for you to personalize and adapt to your needs. It is not and is not intended to be legal advice and is for informational purposes only. The brackets {{}} signal when there is a detail that should be updated for every new contract. 

Make sure your campaigns are set up for success by using Upfluence’s influencer marketing templates! As well as contracts, you’ll find templates for collaboration emails, and influencer campaign briefs.

Influencer contract template

1. Introduction

The following Creator Agreement entered into on {{Date}} outlines the mutual agreement between {{Creator Name}} (the Creator) and  {{Brand Name}} (the Brand) registered at {{Address}} hereto agree to enter into in a partnership outlined as follows:

2. Compensation and Fee

The Brand will offer the Creator, {{Creator Name}} the following: 

[include as appropriate]

• A set price of {{Insert Price $}} as compensation for their work.

*Once an invoice is submitted the payment will be issued within {{Insert number of days}} days. 

• A monetary payment equal to {{Insert percentage value %}} of the profits generated from using this {{Insert personalized tracked link}} as compensation for their work. 
• A free product or coupon code worth the value of {{Insert price $}} as compensation for their work.  

3. Channel 

The Creator will publish using their creator handle {{insert creator handle}} on {{name of platform}} the following deliverables {{details of deliverables}} for the agreed-upon payment, which cannot be deleted until {{X amount of time}} after the publication date.

4. Deliverables 

The Creator will publish the deliverables as set out in the campaign brief {{Include link to campaign brief}} according to the publication schedule.

Each publication must include:

[Edit as needed]

• Brand social media handle
• Hashtags
• Affiliate links
• Promo code

5. Publication Schedule 

Draft Submission: {{Date}}

Post Publication: {{Date}}

Here you can state any late penalties e.g reduced influencer fee if content is not delivered on time. 

6. Publication Disclosure Requirements 

Here you can include a reminder of the FTC guidelines for influencer marketing, or the guidelines for influencer disclosure relevant to your country.

Include a disclosure such as #ad, #sponsored, or “includes a promotion” identifying the nature of the connection with {{Brand name}}.

• When such posts have been made in exchange for money or a cash equivalent (e.g., gift certificate), free or discounted gifts, special access privileges, or other incentives.
• When there exists a relationship between the influencer and the {{Brand name}} (such as a financial, familial, contractual, or employment relationship) or where the {{Brand name}} has significant control over the content of the Post. 

7. Draft Validation

The Creator will have to submit their content before publishing it. As long as the Creator respects the instructions provided in the campaign brief, the content won’t be declined. However, {{Brand name}} does reserve the right to decline any publications that they feel may jeopardize the integrity of their brand.

8. Usage rights 

{{Brand name}} will be able to use content created by {{Creator name}} for this campaign for marketing purposes with credit given to {{Creator name}} for {{X amount of time}} after publication.

9. Exclusivity

During the collaboration period and for {{X amount of time after}} the Creator agrees not to create any content (text, videos, or photo) on their social media channels for competing products and/ or services. If the Creator breaks this exclusivity, the Brand reserves the right to withhold the payment to this Creator. 

 10. Contact Person  

If the Creator has any questions regarding this agreement, they may reach out to {{Contact Name}} at {{Email Address}}. 

11. Payment Information 

At the end of the campaign, {{Brand Name}} will contact the Creator for payment settlement. The Creator will need to submit {{Payment Information, Invoice etc}} to {{Brand Name}} by {{Instructions for Submission}}. Payment will be processed within {{X days}} after the submission of the information required. Please reach out to  {{Contact Name}} at {{Email Address}} with any questions or concerns.

Creator {{Creator Name}} ________________________ Date ___________

Brand {{Contact Name}} _________________________  Date ___________

If you’ve still got questions, you can check out this blog to get responses to the most frequently asked questions about influencer contracts.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog article does not, and is not intended to constitute legal advice. The content and materials provided in this article are for general informational purposes only.