Creator & Influencer Marketing
The creator partnership playbook we use with every client
Our creator partnership playbook has seven rules: start with a questionnaire and not a creator list, write the strategy before anyone is contacted, decide the niche and follower range up front, vet creators on paper with written reasoning, write every outreach message by hand, settle usage rights and contracts before content exists, and keep the whole program visible in one shared hub with a check-in after the first month. Each rule is there because skipping it is where creator programs usually go wrong.
We run this with every client, whether it is a program for a single brand or a creator pipeline that runs for a year. A creator campaign is the visible part, and this playbook is the thinking that sits underneath it. It is also written so that you can borrow it and run it yourself.
Rule one: start with the questionnaire, not the creator list
Every client begins with an initial questionnaire in a shared hub, and nobody looks at a single creator until it is filled in. It has three parts, one on your brand and audience, one on creators, and one on competitors and the brands you would like to be compared with. The brand part is the usual ground, such as what you stand for and who you are talking to. The creator part is where the real decisions are made, and we have put those questions in full at the end of this post, because they are useful whoever runs your program. The reason for starting here is simple. A creator program for awareness, one for leads and one for a product launch look nothing alike, and choosing creators before you know which one you are running is how budgets get spent on the wrong people.
Rule two: write the strategy before anyone is contacted
From the answers we write an audit and strategy for your creator partnership program. It sets out the opportunity, what the data tells us and who to look for, and it is what everything else is checked against. This step feels slow, and it is the one that saves the most time later, because every outreach message, every vetting decision and every report is measured against something written down.
Rule three: decide the niche, the keywords and the follower range up front
Before sourcing starts we agree a short document of niches and keywords, together with the follower range we are targeting. This keeps the search focused and stops the list drifting toward whoever is easiest to find. For tech brands it usually points toward practitioners and educators instead of general-audience personalities, which we cover in how to find creators for your tech brand.
Rule four: vet on paper, and show your reasoning
Every creator goes into a shared influencer tracker with their follower count, engagement rate, average views, content examples and a note on why they fit. You see the reasoning and not only the numbers, and you approve the list before outreach begins. It also gives you something to point to later when you want to know why a creator was chosen.
Rule five: write every message by hand
Each creator gets a personal message that shows we watched their work and says why their audience fits. We never send a template. For Eraser we sourced up to 30 YouTube creators a month with about an 80% response rate on outreach, and we put that down to this habit more than to anything else.
Rule six: settle usage rights, contracts and tracking before content exists
The questionnaire asks how you plan to reuse the content, whether in ads, a newsletter, press or on your own channels, because that decides the usage rights you need to agree with each creator. We also ask whether you need help with contracts, whitelisting, UTM tracking or discount codes, and set them up before the first piece is made. Getting this wrong later means either awkward renegotiation or content you cannot use, and it is far easier to write down at the start. A contract template is not legal advice, so have your own counsel review anything that matters.
Rule seven: keep the whole program visible
The client hub holds the campaign calendar, the creator pipeline, the performance reports and updates from the team, so you never have to ask what is happening. We send a weekly digest while campaigns run, report monthly, and hold a check-in at the end of the first month to look at what is working and adjust. The team on our side is a project lead, a creator manager and a sourcing assistant, so there is always one person who owns the relationship.
Partnerships, not one-offs
The questionnaire also asks whether you want one-off partnerships, long-term ambassadors or a mix, and we nudge brands toward a mix. A one-off post can test a creator, and an ongoing relationship tends to produce content that feels more natural to the creator's audience and is easier to manage, since the briefing and the contract already exist. This is also why we think of the work as a partnership program and not as a series of campaigns, in the same way a content engine beats a one-off push.
What it has looked like in practice
For Tango we sourced 10 to 15 creators a week in the HR and career space. For Eraser we sourced up to 30 YouTube creators a month. For Remento we ran a creator program over a year and a half and eight campaigns, which came with a 150% increase in sales. The brands and the platforms were different each time, and the playbook was the same.
Nine questions to answer before you contact a single creator
If you want to run this yourself, these are the creator questions from our questionnaire. Write down your answers before you open a spreadsheet of names.
What experience have you had with influencer partnerships and creators, in as much detail as you can give?
What is the usual goal when you hire creators: awareness, lead generation, a product launch, social proof or affiliate sales?
What will creators promote, and what should they highlight or avoid?
What type of creator would be a great fit, by niche, location, follower count, tone and values?
How will the content be used or reused later, in ads, a newsletter, press or UGC?
Which platforms and content formats do you want?
Are you looking for one-off partnerships, long-term ambassadors or a mix?
What is your budget, per creator or in total, even as a rough range?
Do you need help with contracts, whitelisting, UTM tracking or discount codes?
Frequently asked questions
What is a creator partnership program? A creator partnership program is an ongoing set of relationships between a brand and a group of creators, planned around a goal and run with a consistent process for sourcing, briefing, contracts, content approval, payment and reporting. It differs from a one-off campaign in that the relationships and process continue over time.
What is the difference between a creator campaign and a creator partnership program? A campaign is a single push with a start and end date. A partnership program is the system behind it, including the strategy, the creator pipeline and the relationships, so that each campaign starts from something already built.
What should you decide before contacting creators? Your goal, what creators will promote, what kind of creator fits, how the content will be reused, which platforms and formats you want, whether you want one-off or long-term partnerships, your budget and whether you need help with contracts and tracking.
How do you choose creators for a partnership program? Start with your goal and audience, set a niche and follower range, then vet each creator on engagement, content quality and audience fit, and write down why each one suits the brand before anyone is contacted.
Who manages creators during a program? At Land it, a project lead, a creator manager and a sourcing assistant handle the program, and the client approves the creator list and the content. Brands running it themselves need someone with time to own the relationships.
Can I run a creator partnership program myself? Yes. The questions above are a good place to start, and a platform such as Conecta+ can handle discovery, contracts and protected payments for Spanish-speaking creators.
Want us to run the playbook for you?
If you would like a team to run your creator program from the first questionnaire to the month one check-in, tell us a little about your brand and what you want it to achieve.