Today, influencers and bloggers are indispensable for promoting companies' products and services on the Internet. The digital advertising faces are opinion leaders and trendsetters on social networks such as Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and TikTok. Through their authentic and creative presentation, they can effectively showcase your products and thus inspire their target group. But how do you find the right digital creatives for your brand and how do you convince them to work together? In this article, I'll show you how to submit a cooperation request to influencers and bloggers - and what you definitely need to keep in mind.

The message pops up in my inbox - a company found me on Google, they found mine Travel Blog great and would like to work with me. I'm happy because the travel industry company suits me. We could start a successful cooperation for everyone involved.

But that's not the case: the company casually mentions that their budget isn't huge. Influencer marketing is new territory for them. And whether we would like to work together on a trial basis without a fee. You can guess how things turned out – there was no cooperation. A number of bloggers and influencers tell me similar things - companies that cooperate but don't want to pay anything or almost nothing for it.

This is how it works between companies and digital creators

I can tell you this much in advance - without money, nothing works for quality influencers and bloggers. Newbies with no reach and no experience may still get involved in such deals. Experienced creators certainly don’t have a wide reach. A well-known influencer recently wrote to me what he says to cooperation partners without a budget: “My fee does not depend on your budget, but on my skills.”

Where he's right, he's right. Conversely, a person in charge at the company recently reported to me that the influencers all wanted so much money and that she would therefore not be able to find anyone for the project based on her budget. If you would like to find the right influencers and bloggers for your project, please feel free to contact me for a free initial consultation or individual coaching.

But that doesn't have to deter you. If you, as the person responsible in the company, would like to contact a digital creator - simply make an offer that they cannot refuse. You can also negotiate to find the perfect balance in terms of pay that makes everyone involved happy.

In this blog post we will show you how to make the perfect initial contact with influencers and bloggers. We share with you the most important do's and don'ts and give you lots of practical tips that will increase your chances of a successful collaboration. I'll show you how to find the right influencers and bloggers for your brand, how to contact them and get them excited about your brand.

Video – Find influencers and bloggers for your products

Below I have selected an explanatory video that describes very well what companies should consider when contacting bloggers and influencers.

By downloading the video you accept the privacy policy of YouTube.
Read more

Load video

Always unlock YouTube

Grab attention with a request

As is often the case in life, the first impression is the be-all and end-all when it comes to asking digital creators. In order to send a successful collaboration request, it is important to keep a few things in mind so that the influencer or blogger doesn't respond to the email or message right away deleted again or ignored. Accordingly, the subject line of your email is the most important element. When I read the word “collaboration request,” my interest is immediately piqued.

I will at least read the email - and if the message is written respectfully and explains the relevance of the collaboration and makes an attractive offer, I will return the contact. Then we'll have a conversation - and can negotiate the exact conditions.

A common problem is so-called ghosting, when an influencer or blogger simply stops responding after an unsatisfactory initial contact. To avoid this, companies should ensure that their request and offer are attractive enough to pique the interest of the digital creative. Put yourself in the creator's shoes and ask yourself: Would I be interested in this offer if I received it from a company?

Some fluctuation is part of the business

Not every influencer will respond – and some will ghost you after the initial contact. Unfortunately, that is certain. Companies have to live with that. And influencers also have to live with it if they make absurdly high demands on the company in email correspondence that it simply cannot meet.

Although there will be some fluctuation in inquiries, companies should aim to have at least a third to a quarter of those contacted Influencers and Blogger build a successful working relationship. However, there are some valuable tips to improve the first impression of potential cooperation partners and increase the success rate of cooperation requests.

If you want to get in touch with influencers and bloggers in the future, we have put together some valuable tips for a successful pitch below. This can be a valuable addition to ensure your collaboration requests to influencers and bloggers are successful and long-term partnerships are formed.

Related Articles

My experiences with cooperation requests to influencers and bloggers

As a Content Marketing Manager, blogger and influencer, I know both sides of influencer marketing. I receive requests for cooperation almost every day and can therefore say from experience that some requests are really exciting and appealing, while others are just bad and unprofessional - loveless. The latter are often so hair-raising that cooperation is not even considered and an answer seems like a waste of time.

But I also know that it is a time-consuming task for companies to research and write an individual pitch for the cooperation before each cooperation request to influencers and bloggers. Therefore, I would like to give you some practical tips that will help you increase your success rate when contacting potential cooperation partners.

Some companies believe professional influencers work for free

One of the biggest misconceptions companies have is that influencers and bloggers always work for free. From my own experience I can say: No successful digital creative today works without a fee or at least a really high-quality product in return for the collaboration.

Only newcomers to the industry with a limited reach could get involved in a collaboration without having a budget to pay the respective influencer. If you want to work successfully with an influencer or blogger, you must be prepared to pay the digital creative appropriately. Otherwise it won't work anymore today.

Find suitable digital creators

There are also other aspects to consider when it comes to establishing successful collaborations with influencers and bloggers. This includes researching and selecting the right digital creatives for your brand, creating an individual collaboration request and building a long-term partnership.

You can use expensive analysis tools and calculate engagement rates to several decimal places - but I'm sure you'll get the best results by looking at the influencer's publications and subscribers. What does the creator post and how do users react to it? And how does the influencer react to the users? Social networks are just social – look at what’s going on there. This is a good way to tell whether a blogger or influencer is right for you – or not.

Video – 5 ways to find the right influencers and bloggers

By downloading the video you accept the privacy policy of YouTube.
Read more

Load video

Always unlock YouTube

How to make an Instagram collaboration request as a business?

Once you have found the right digital creative to work with, you can ask a collaboration question. Basically, all influencer networks have their own characteristics - and yet they are similar.

Since Instagram is currently the most important social network, I have put together the most helpful tips for inquiries specifically on this channel below. The tips generally also apply to TikTok, Facebook and the other platforms.

1. Define goals and target group

You know the target group. But who exactly do you want to reach within your company's target group? To help you, create buyer personas that you define in as much detail as possible - if you haven't already done so. If you are looking for the perfect influencer for your task,

Or to put it simply: Before you submit a cooperation request, you should define your goals and your target group. What do you want to achieve with the cooperation? Do you want to increase your reach, promote your products or services or generate more traffic to your website? Who exactly is your target group?

Which social media channels is she most active on? If you think deeply about these questions and define your goals and your target group, you will be able to better assess which influencers are best suited to your brand.

2. Find the right influencers

Finding the right influencers for your brand is crucial. The best way to do this is to observe the influencer for a while. As mentioned above, it makes sense to look at the posts and interactions on the channel. Take a look at older posts as examples. Make sure the influencer’s values ​​and interests align with your brand.

Look at his content, how many followers he has, who his followers are, and how active he is on Instagram. I prefer manual analysis to statistical data collection. Social media is a business of and with people - and that's exactly how you should analyze it. Once you have found potential influencers this way, create a list with their contact information.

3. Inquire personally

Contact each influencer with a personal cover letter. I know this means more work than writing a standardized letter once. Write an email in which you address the influencer by name and provide a few details to express your appreciation for their work.

Be as specific as possible in explaining why you are interested in working with us and what you can offer, such as a high-value, free product or financial compensation. You have a sales conversation with the influencer. They sell the opportunity to work with you.

4. Be specific in your requirements

Once those you want have agreed to cooperate, the cooperation can begin. The briefing for influencers and bloggers is so important – it cannot be emphasized enough. Write down as precisely as possible what you expect from the collaboration. Make sure to specifically formulate your expectations of the influencer. Tell them what to post and which hashtags to use. At the same time, give him enough freedom to express his creativity, but make sure that he meets your needs.

5. Plan enough time

You should allow enough time at all points in the process. In principle, it can take some time until a cooperation really comes into being. Give the influencer enough time to respond to your request. You can also try to convey urgency to the creator and give them a deadline to get back to you. It is also important to set a reasonable deadline later for the implementation of the collaboration.

The article must be online no later than two weeks after the press trip - something like this would be a deadline, for example. Whatever your deadlines are, make sure the influencer has enough time to produce quality content.

6. Review results

I could write my own article about the appropriate goals of a collaboration, expectations and the corresponding successes or failures. At the end of the collaboration, you should review the results and evaluate the collaboration. How many people from your target group did the cooperation reach via organic and paid means? How many followers did the influencer gain for you? How many likes, comments, sends and saves did his post generate? How many sales were generated through the cooperation? You can use this data to evaluate the success of the cooperation and adapt your strategy for the future.

Find out everything about good influencer marketing in your industry - learn the essentials to reach your target group, define goals, find personalities and become more present on social networks. I would be happy to support you with this.

• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• Facebook
• YouTube
• TikTok

Follow me too Xing, TripAdvisor and Threads!

Follow me on Instagram now

stick with Travel Blog Just-Wanderlust.com and @strandkind_co always up to date and just follow me on Instagram!

Do's with a cooperation request to influencers and bloggers

If you want to work with influencers and bloggers, there are some golden rules you should keep in mind. I once wrote down these rules from my own experience. But they also contain what I have learned from other bloggers and influencers. Basically, there seem to be patterns that keep repeating themselves.

1. Be authentic

Present your company as it is – be authentic. Avoid impersonal standard emails or text messages. Make it clear from the start that you are creating an individual offer and not sending a general inquiry. Most influencers and bloggers see themselves as artists and creatives – and they generally want to be treated as such.

2. Establish personal contact

Take the time to carefully research the blog or social media profile of the digital creative you want to contact. And by carefully I mean, above all, looking at the details. Use this information to make your own assessment of whether the influencer is suitable for you and to write an individual and personalized message. Before you contact us, you should know the content and target group of the blog or social media channel in order to decide whether collaboration makes sense for both parties.

3. Make your offer clear

Make sure your collaboration request to the influencer or blogger is clear and concise. The more specific the creative is about what they are doing, the more likely they are to receive positive feedback. Avoid vague requests, but make it clear what type of collaboration you are looking for and what added value you can offer the digital creator - and what you expect in return.

4. Be specific and concise

Bloggers and influencers are frequently contacted by a variety of companies, so it's important that your request is concise and to the point. A short and concise request has a better chance of catching the digital creator's attention.

Don'ts with a cooperation request to influencers and bloggers

However, in addition to the do's, you should also consider numerous don'ts if you want to make a request to influencers and bloggers. I have experienced many of these don'ts myself over time. It's a big deal with what you should avoid - some of it can also be useful in individual cases.

1. Copy and Paste

You can easily tell when a message has been copied and pasted - and for most bloggers and influencers, it will significantly reduce the need to respond. A copy-and-paste request is okay if the offer is so good that the way it is presented doesn't matter. If you want to invite me on a press trip to Hawaii, I don't care how you do it. To give just one example.

But basically, if you need to sell your offer: Don't use generic emails or texts. Every digital creative deserves a personalized message tailored to their personality and blog or social media channel.

2. Be personable and attractive

I recently received a request from a tourism board to do a paid job. You got a surprising number of things wrong with your request. But what made me decide to cancel the cooperation was a simple thing: the tourism association came across as friendly in its contact as a district military replacement office - nothing against district military replacement offices - you know what I mean. The provider simply did everything from the outset to appear as unlikable and attractive as possible. That put me off.

3. Don't be pushy

Reaching out to an influencer or blogger shouldn't be pushy or salesy, or at least shouldn't seem like it. Ultimately, the contact is sales-oriented. You want to sell the creator the opportunity to collaborate. Focus on collaboration that delivers interesting and valuable content to the digital creative's audience. On the one hand, emphasize the financial added value, but also the ideal value that the creative person gains through the cooperation.

4. Make no demands

Don’t make demands, instead focus on the value you can create for the digital creator and their readers. A win-win situation is the best way to a successful collaboration. Anyone who - like my unsympathetic tourism board recently spoke of correction loops in their first email - shouldn't be surprised if they don't get any feedback.

Write your cooperation request to influencers and bloggers as an elevator pitch

Pitch your ideas precisely, briefly and succinctly

The term elevator pitch comes from English and can be translated as “elevator talk”. The name says it all: Just as you only have a short time to get to your destination in the elevator, you also only have a few seconds to present your cooperation proposal to influencers and bloggers.

When I, as a blogger or influencer, send a cooperation question to a company, I always try to formulate my pitch as short, precise and concise as possible - but without leaving out important content. You can also attach more detailed information about your company separately as a PDF to a cover letter - this gives the blogger or influencer the opportunity to find out more comprehensive information if he or she wants.

In other words, an elevator pitch is a type of presentation intended to pique the interest of listeners, or in this case email readers, and get them to learn more about your company and cooperate with you. The elevator pitch is therefore the ideal way to send a cooperation request to bloggers and influencers.

1. Why is an elevator pitch important?

An elevator pitch is important because it allows you to quickly and easily explain what your company does and what goals you are pursuing in a collaboration. This way you are always well prepared when you meet someone who wants to find out more about your company. In addition, a well-crafted elevator pitch can help you interest potential customers or partners in your company. And an elevator pitch is interesting if you write a cooperation request to influencers and bloggers and want to quickly get the digital creators excited about your idea.

2. What should be included in an elevator pitch?

A good elevator pitch should be short, clear and to the point - but without leaving out essential information. It should answer the following questions quickly and at a glance:

1. Who are you?
2. Was machen Sie?
3. What do you want to achieve in influencer marketing?
4. How does the influencer or blogger being courted benefit from this?

It is also important that your elevator pitch reads naturally, addresses the creative directly and individually and does not sound like a copied message. Ultimately, you don't want to bore the recipients - often successful and high-reach bloggers and influencers - with a long list of facts, but rather encourage them to get involved in your project.

3. How to Write an Elevator Pitch – Step by Step Guide

Writing an elevator pitch is actually quite easy – if you know what you want to write. Write everything with reference and relevance to the person you are talking to. So you basically say who they are, what they do, what they want and why that should interest the blogger or influencer who receives your cooperation request.

a. Imagine

The first step is to introduce yourself. This sounds obvious, but it's easy to forget in the heat of the moment. So start your elevator pitch by writing who you are. Say who you are – and why that is meaningful to the influencer.

b. Explain what your company does

The next step is to explain what your company does. This part of your elevator pitch should be clear and concise - after all, you only have a few seconds to make an impression. Try to use simple language that everyone can understand and avoid industry-specific terms. Here, too, make it clear why your work matches that of the creator.

c. Describe your goals

Finally, briefly describe your goals. What do you want to achieve with your application? How can the influencer or blogger help you? This part of your elevator pitch is particularly important because it shows the core of the collaboration request - namely that your project and its benefits are so attractive to the digital creative that he or she absolutely has to work with you.

d. Try makes you smart

The last step is: practice, practice, practice! The more you practice, formulate, and perfect your elevator pitch, the more natural it will sound and read when you actually use it. If you are unsure, you can also ask a colleague or some influencers and bloggers for feedback. Or let me advise you – I will be happy to help you with your influencer relations and support you in having even better and more valuable collaborations in the future.

Cooperation request to influencers & bloggers

Sample cover letter

Below I have a short sample cover letter for a cooperation request to a digital creative for you. This is just a very rough template that you can follow. You should of course customize the sections for your individual case and also specifically for the influencer or blogger you want to contact. You should therefore see it more as a basic framework and guide that you can use as a guide. The more individual you make your writing, the more likely it is to be successful.

Dear XYZ,

My name is ZXY and as online marketing manager at ZXY Company I am responsible for influencer collaborations. During my research I came across your blog/Instagram account and think your content is really great / unique / suitable for our campaign because you... express ABC. We think you're a perfect fit for our brand and would love to work with you.

We are looking for someone to publish a sponsored post on their blog/Instagram account to promote our new product. In return, we offer you a free product, reasonable compensation and a discount code that you can share with your followers.

If you are interested in this possibility, please let us know. We will be happy to provide you with further information. We thank you in advance for your time and look forward to your feedback!

With kind regards,

Your Name

Sascha Tegtmeyer, content marketing expert

Related Articles

Cooperation request to influencers and bloggers – my tips & experiences

My conclusion

My conclusion is clear: In order for a cooperation request to influencers and bloggers to be successful, companies have to put some effort into contacting them. This is often the case in practice, but unfortunately not always the case. Contacting us using standard, unloving emails will rarely work and be successful. In order to successfully collaborate with an influencer or blogger, it is important that you find out about the person in advance.

You should take the time to craft a personal message and focus on what you can offer the influencer or blogger - not what they can do for you. You can stake this out once you're interested. Be clear, concise and specific in your email and ensure that both parties can benefit from it.

I now have more than ten years of experience in dealing with cooperation requests - both as a recipient and in a large publishing house as well as a sender of such messages. By following these tips, you'll increase your chances of successfully collaborating with a digital creative. A cooperation with a creator can be very sustainable for a company, increase sales of a product and have a positive impact on the brand image. However, the cooperation request to influencers and bloggers must be well thought out.

What experiences have you had with cooperation requests from influencers and bloggers? Do you have any other tips? Feel free to share them with us in the comments.