Speaker 1: 0:23

I hope you're doing well. This episode is an excerpt of my email newsletter, so if you're listening to this and, like Dylan, sounds kind of different, yes, it is because I've adapted my email newsletter for this particular podcast episode, because I really wanted to drive home the points of brand deals and if they're right for you. In a way, this episode is about me trying to talk you out of brand deals so that they're right for you. In a way, this episode is about me trying to talk you out of brand deals so that you make a stronger decision whether or not they are for you. They might absolutely be for you, but listen to this episode and then decide for yourself. All right, here we go. This is not AI, by the way. This is really Dylan. All right, let's go to the episode.

Speaker 1: 1:05

Let's talk about the hidden cost of brand deals. I've created and sold many different types of digital products and services, but I'm hesitant to do any brand partnerships. That's why you don't see me promoting products, and often I promote products that I have no affiliate link for, I just enjoy using, but I have rarely done brand partnerships. But aren't brand partnerships for creators a great way to monetize your content? And surely it has to take less work than creating a whole entire online course service or community right. Well, when you zoom out, brand partnerships are not always more lucrative, time-saving or beneficial. Long-term, you may want to rethink only securing brand deals as a way to monetize your content, and in this episode, I'm going to break down the hidden costs associated with doing brand deals. By the end, you should have a clear idea of the true value for both you and your audiences.

Speaker 1: 1:58

Starting with brand deals, take time Now. One of the biggest things I hear, especially for new members in the creator club. They'll say you know, once I hit a certain number or once I get bigger, or once time goes on, I'll do a brand deal and that's how I'll monetize my content. But you don't need a large audience to strike a lucrative brand deal. You just need the right audience. It's a common misconception that you need a thousand podcast downloads per episode or a hundred thousand Instagram followers or 10,000 YouTube subscribers in order to start making a thousand dollars or more per month for brand deals.

Speaker 1: 2:33

Companies don't care to work with only larger creators. They want to work with creators who they trust can make their brand look good and ultimately market and sell more of what they're offering, and sometimes your stats are irrelevant. They just want to use your content to publish on their platforms, whether that's through organic or paid avenues. When you're just starting out, building and finding those relationships can take a lot of time. For example, a niche tech reviewer with only 5,000 subscribers might land a $5,000 sponsorship deal with a software company because their audience is highly targeted or because they want to work more one on one with that niche tech reviewer, creating content for their channel. But finding that targeted deal is going to take time and because you have less choices early on in your creator career, you run the risk of compromising your content.

Speaker 1: 3:27

If you're a value driven creator like myself, it's absolutely vitally important to you that the companies you work with align with what you walk and talk about. You don't want to be trying to sell beauty makeup that could harm somebody. You don't want to be hawking some cheap gear that you know people aren't going to find value in and when they buy it based on your word and then it doesn't work out, the brand's reputation is harmed, but your reputation is harmed too, and people are just going to have less trust, and it's easier to build trust than it is to rebuild trust. Not having control over how a company presents themselves or assures the quality of their product can be stressful and it's completely out of your hands as a creator, and the things you promote today might not be popular tomorrow, which can have long-term negative impacts. Associating with the wrong brands can have long-lasting effects good or bad on your personal brand and future opportunities. Remember when everyone just a couple years ago was hopping on the whole crypto and NFT bandwagons? There's still creators trying to pivot away from that. Some creators who heavily promoted certain crypto projects are now facing legal and credibility issues.

Speaker 1: 4:36

Everything comes at a cost and for creators, one of the biggest things we have to consider are our opportunity costs. Focusing on brand deals might divert our attention away from our own products, services or content that could offer higher long-term value. As the saying goes, when you confuse, you lose. So if you're offering too many things, how will your audience understand the exact problem you're gonna solve for them? Some creators don't have anything to offer other than the sponsorships they work with, but for others, they might be better off taking that time and attention to really hammer out the details on delivering an exceptional, valuable product or service, continuing to increase their audience's trust in playing the long game.

Speaker 1: 5:14

And before you say, dylan, can I do brand deals and sell my own products or services? Absolutely. It's not chocolate or vanilla, it's not. You can only choose one. But it's a matter of energy.

Speaker 1: 5:24

It's an incredible amount of work in the beginning to just create content that your audience wants, let alone incorporate multiple monetization strategies. Very few people, especially in the beginning, can even handle one of the monetization opportunities, let alone doing it successfully. And if you only chose one and that's what you double down on how much farther could you go? So if you're still listening to this and you feel good about pursuing brand deals, they might be absolutely a great fit for you. I highly recommend going for that. But if you deep down know that you have some other type of service or offer something that has a higher long-term potential, absolutely follow your gut and double down on that. Instead. There's a lot of people out there selling this get-rich-quick idea of sponsorship money. Don't let that distract you from the bigger vision that you know is there. The best monetization strategy is the one that aligns with your values and serves your audience. Choose wisely.