It has been apparent lately that in our industry, the bloggers & influencers are starting to be taken advantage of. More and more I see brands paying creators very little or nothing at all. For our Grace Belle blog, we worked hard to get our audience up to 10k where we heard brands will start paying more for our ads. To my surprise, we still get emails almost daily with brands wanting to send us a product for us to take photos of and advertise. More often than not when we send over our prices we get the same response “we have no budget for this” but instead they want to give us their product as payment. This is wrong. The product, most of the time is worth little compared to how much a 2-hour photoshoot + advertising costs.
Enjoying your job and being creative shouldn’t be a sign to underpay someone.
This is happening more and more and I sat back and analyzed why it’s being accepted. Why is it that it’s now the norm in this industry to expect creatives to work for the trade of their product? Then I realized creatives are bearly getting by and they’re trying anything “to get their name out there” so they’ll take this free trade for recognition. STOP THAT! You ARE worthy and your work is VALUABLE! Please say no to free work and let’s take a stand by using the hashtag #MyWorkHasValue.
[bctt tweet=”#MyWorkHasValue” username=”blogger_studios”]
So how much should you charge for an Instagram post? There are many numbers and estimates out there, and you can calculate your own based on the time invested per ad but there’s an easy way to get started. If you signup for the creative community over at The Hub Influencers you can see an estimated value of your post based on your followers and engagement rate. Start with this number and then customize it based on what’s involved in the photoshoot. For example, if you have to shoot an ad in nature which you’ll have to drive too, include the gas in your cost. Another way to calculate your cost is by calculating how many hours it takes (all inclusive from setting up the photo, photo time, editing time, any transportation time, etc) and decide how much you want to get paid hourly. Then on top of that add your expenses such as props, gas, tools, etc. When you work with a brand and you list your price, break it down for them as well so they know exactly why you’re asking for that price.
Our suggested rate per post for @GraceBelle is at $111 which is our starting price. This helped us set a standard, we normally charge $100 for one Instagram post but we also include 2-3 extra photos which we sent to the company to use as they wish.
The only way we can make a difference in this industry is by standing together. Influencers + Micro Influencers, all should be charging for their work. We love nothing more than creating beautiful photos for brands that value us. These are the brands people will see as authentic and in turn, will value back.
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