CALCULATING COLLAB RATES: Are You Charging Enough?

Among the many questions we get from new bloggers, how to calculate their rate is one of the most commonly asked. We usually go into a whole explanation on how and why but we recently discovered a tool that details everything out much more efficiently!

Currō allows you to connect your social accounts and create rates based on factors specific to your actual engagement. As a new influencer, this is a great tool to help you identify what you should be charging per your engagement, time, work load and deductions.

However, no matter how experienced you are, we’ve found that many influencers are undercharging for campaign work without even knowing it! Especially in cases where contracts contain exclusivity clauses. Most influencers don’t realize they should be charging for potential jobs they would have to decline based on their contract.

Here are the ways Currō calculates:

• By connecting you social accounts Currō is going to consider your estimated engagement for posts and stories

• You can enter a number of posts or stories you’ll need to create for the campaign and it will tally the cost of each item as well as the total cost. (If you are looking to create a generalized rate for your media kit, you can create an estimate based on what you may expect your work load, costs and requirements to include and write “starting at” next the price.)

• You can enter the amount of hours you believe it will take to create the content. You’ll need to add in your hourly rate to complete this calculation. This can be confusing but you can read up on how we suggest to determine your hourly rate from this post. Identifying how much your time is worth is one the most important things you can do to streamline your business, create budgets and develop realistic goals.

• You’ll need to include deductions for Photographer, Stylists, Makeup Artists etc. You want to make sure you include ALL the out of pocket expenses it will take to create the material.

• Don’t forget deductions for Travel & other miscellaneous costs! A subway ride, cab, gas in your car, props, tools, products etc.

• The Exclusivity Rate Calculation is VERY IMPORTANT TO INCLUDE as this is your lost wages for collaborations you won’t be able to take. This will change depending on what the product is and what the details of the contract are. Be honest, if you are working with a brand that has competitors you rarely work with, the rate should be minimal. However, if the contract disables you from working with common competitors and brands you have a likelihood of working with, be sure to add in a suitable amount. Also, giving this type of breakdown to a client will help them understand your rate better. Pay attention to your contract, this may not be included and you can avoid this all together.

• Don’t forget about Usage Rights for your content on digital & print. Many times a brand will hire influencers, not because of their social influence, because they want to repurpose your content. It is actually way more expensive to hire and manage a photoshoot for content. If your contract states a certain amount of time they want full rights to use your media, you need to charge for it! Trust me, they are getting a deal if you’re just letting them use it. Only include this if it is mentioned in your contract, however if it’s not, be sure to mention that usage rights are not implied.

The Currō program is completely free and one of our new favorite tools! Check it out below.