It’s that time of year when I find myself constantly flipping between opposite ends of the sartorial spectrum.
I was in sequins and lipstick by 11am the other day shooting a Christmas campaign only to rub it all off and crawl back into my joggers to piece together the content, scrabbling to make those increasingly short deadlines. Sound familiar?
Welcome to the “Christmas rush” [ie: brands discovering they have thousands left in the Q4 marketing kitty and need it gone fast – queue the flurry of brand deals landing in your inbox.
Q4 is the most lucrative and busy period for influencers everywhere and it can often be a struggle knowing when to stop and how to manage crazy short deadlines from pushy marketeers.
Here are my tips for you to implement to help you manage your time, mental health and earnings Christmas rush:
Up your rates
If someone wants something “yesterday” then increase your fee for prioritising their project ahead of others. Increase the fee by 20-30|% if they want something rushed.
Give a hard lead time
One thing I’ve learnt after 7 years as a freelancer when it comes to these “short deadlines” 99% of them are negotiable. It can feel like Brands are asking you to pull a brand campaign out your a**hole. I especially love it when they ask for the content on Tuesday and they’ve still not even dispatched the product on the Friday 🙄
One boundary I laid down quite early on in my creator career was that I require 7 days to turn around any project from (this is important) receipt of countersigned contracts and products. The amount of brands that expect me to deliver work and they’ve not even sent a contract is alarming.
Plus if you get it to them early Love a caveat. Always caveat.
Cherry pick your brand deals
Brands start thinking about their Christmas campaigns as early as November time. Don’t jump at the first person who comes knocking on November 1st. Think about who you want to collaborate with and pitch to them early, say you’ve got other brand deals on the table but you want to work with them give them first refusal. they have first refusals. There’s often exclusivity clauses in Q4 which could mean if you work with one brand you can’t work with their competitor.
I have a Pitching Cheat Sheet to help you monetise Q4 effectively. Check it out here.
No Exclusivity
Speaking of exclusivity, you should be wary about agreeing to this during Q4. I often remove it or shorten the period in contracts this time of year because it’s never a good idea to lock yourself into anything when there’s so much work about. You are a Christmas ho! Don’t let anyone cuff you and if they do make sure they pay for it handsomely to cover all those earnings lost.
Check in with yourself
Have you reached your financial goal for this month? Then maybe don’t take on those extra two campaigns that will eat into your precious time off. December comes once a year and whilst from a business perspective it feels great to be doubling your earnings I dont think it should be at the risk of not enjoying yourself, becoming overwhelmed and missing out on important family time. I like to give myself a cut off date for work in December and stick to it. If a brand comes knocking, ask to work with them next quarter. If they want you they’ll come back.
Want to learn more about how to implement these types of negotiation and strategy when dealing with brand offers?
Watch out for the a link to JOIN THE WAITLIST for my new, 8-week digital course (official name pending!) building your own wildly successful influencer business. There’s a limited number of VIP group coaching spots available to but its first come first served so make sure you’re on the list to be the first to know when enrolment begins.
Want more creator economy advice? Go here.