Influencer cooperations are a central marketing component for German companies today. 59 percent of all German companies operate influencer marketing – and not without reason: the investments are worthwhile. The recommendations of the influencers ensure more reach, brand awareness, and sales. However, the pricing remains a big mystery, because each contact person quotes different prices. This confuses. For this reason, many decision-makers from the marketing departments ask themselves the question: What are the appropriate influencer prices?
There is no universal answer to that. Rather, the price depends on several factors and your negotiating skills. In the following, you will find out how to form an opinion on the appropriate influencer price.
Influencers’ prices at a glance
You run an online fashion shop and want to market your new t-shirt. You immediately notice Maximilian Meyer. His profile convinces you, so you contact him directly. The feedback is prompt. The student is interested in working together. Therefore, he asks you what price you imagine for the cooperation.
You have to react quickly – waiting too long can lead to the failure of the cooperation. you are unsure How much money should you offer him?
The four key factors in determining the price are:
- platform
- range
- interaction rate
- number and type of advertising contributions
These four aspects have a significant impact on the price. In addition, there are three other price-influencing elements. However, these factors have less of an impact on the price. These are:
- Rights of Use
- Branch of Influencers
- Duration or effort of the cooperation
Social media platform
The type of platform significantly affects the price of the influencer. Influencers get more money on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram than on Twitter and Facebook. The social network is closely linked to the reach. 10,000 Instagram followers can be worth more than 50,000 Twitter subscribers.
You should expect the following price per thousand contacts (= CPM ) on the platforms:
- Twitter: 1–3 €
- Facebook: 6–12 €
- Instagram: 7–15 €
- LinkedIn: 15–30 €
- TikTok: 7–15 €
- YouTube: 12–25 €
- Own blog: €30-90
The numbers mentioned can serve as a first guideline. The exact pricing depends on the quality of the profile and thus on the interaction rate (more on this topic below). An influencer with an interaction rate of 1% receives a lower price than a user with a 10% interaction rate. This applies on the condition that the number of followers in both profiles is the same.
The reach of the influencer
An influencer is not just an influencer. Nano, micro, macro, and mega influencers shape the image of the social media landscape. These creator types have different reach and awareness levels.
| Category | Follower count |
|---|---|
| Nano-Influencer | 1.000 to 10.000 |
| Micro-Influencer | 10.000 to 100.000 |
| Macro Influencer | 100.000 to 1.000.000 |
| Mega Influencer | over 1,000,000 |
As a rule, the more followers an influencer has, the more money the creator receives. But that’s not always like this. The number of likes, link clicks and comments affects the Influencer price. As a result, an influencer with 10,000 followers can charge higher prices than a user with 20,000 followers if the influencer’s interaction rate is significantly better.
The interaction rate and audience of the influencer
Some social media profiles have hundreds of thousands of subscribers, but caution is advised. If profiles only get 100 likes per post, alarm bells should be ringing for you. A low interaction rate can indicate fake followers.
The interaction rate is calculated based on the number of comments, likes, link clicks (if any), and flags. You divide the sum of these interactions by the reach. Then you get the interaction rate. If there are 2,000 interactions with a reach of 200,000, the interaction rate is one percent.
Also, the audience matters. Many foreign subscribers lower influencer prices, since this target group is insignificant for German-speaking companies.
Number and type of advertising contributions
IGTV, TikTok videos, and Facebook Stories: there are several collaboration formats. These types of content differ in terms of reach and production effort. In addition, the number of contributions is decisive in determining the Influencer price.
If the company works with the influencer in the long term, this leads to higher costs. After all, every contribution means additional remuneration. Nevertheless, this approach can be advantageous if the influencer has a loyal community.
The keyword exclusivity is decisive. Companies have to pay a higher price if they want to work exclusively with influencers. Furthermore, exclusivity only applies to long-term cooperation.
Rights of Use
Would you like to secure the rights to use the influencer’s images and/or video material? Then you may have to pay an extra charge. It is interesting for companies to secure the rights of use under the following circumstances:
- The company wants to use the influencer’s images on the website.
- An offline campaign (such as billboard advertising) is planned. The company wants to use the influencer’s level of awareness to advertise the products.
- The company wants to sell products with the image of the influencer and secure the rights.
The influencer’s niche
Fashion, fitness, travel: Most users are familiar with the standard influencer industries. Supply and demand are different depending on the niche.
As a general rule, a fashion influencer gets more requests than a story-focused brand ambassador. For example, if your company launches an online course on the history of the USA, the circle of your cooperation partners is limited. In this case, the historical influencer can demand a higher fee. After all, there are only a few influencers with a wide reach in this area.
Most influencers do not have a top target group. The demand for this type of influencer is low, the supply is large. That makes for a low Influencer price.
Duration/effort of cooperation
Every collaboration is different. While some collaboration formats take less than an hour, some collaborations take days or even weeks. Of course, this has an impact on the price. Some travel partnerships require stays abroad. This expenditure of time is reflected in the production costs.
There are also face-to-face events and/or industry meetings that are part of cooperation. If your cooperation partner is to give a speech at the event, this involves a lot of effort. Then daily rates may apply due to attendance.
The type of content also affects the effort. A YouTube video is generally more complex to produce than a TikTok video.
Negotiating influencer prices: 6 tips on how to negotiate better prices
The price models of the influencers are subject to large fluctuations. Therefore, your negotiation skills are the most important tool to get a good price.
The following tips will help you:
- Draw a red line.
- Name the first prize.
- Always get offers from many influencers.
- Never accept the first suggestion.
- Offer combinations.
- Avoid influencers with management.
Redline
Your job is to keep marketing costs down. You can do this by setting a red line. It describes the maximum price that you are willing to pay. You must not exceed this price under any circumstances.
Name the first price
The first price determines the negotiation process. Start with a deliberately low price. These pricing models make it easier for you to steer the negotiation in the desired direction.
Get multiple bids
How do you manage that? Very easily. Always get offers from a variety of influencers. This way you avoid accepting an overpriced offer.
Alternative suggestions
You should also seize the opportunity to submit an alternative proposal. This allows you to lower the price. If an influencer offers you a price of 250 euros, suggest 195 euros instead.
Combination offers
Consider adding value to the influencer in a different way. For example, you can lower the price with a combo offer. Offer a bundle of free products and money. If the product is worth 50 euros, the price can be reduced by 50 euros. Your company only pays the purchase price. This value is usually well below the selling price. This is especially true for products with high sales figures.
Warning: Influencer prices with management
Discount foxes should avoid influencers with management. Influencer management charges money for the service, influencers cover these costs with higher offers. In addition, the management usually has the industry knowledge, so the contact persons know about the prices that are customary in the industry. This limits the scope for negotiations. Therefore, cooperation with management is only recommended for selected marketing campaigns.
Influencer prices: a conclusion
Determining the exact prices for influencers is difficult. The negotiating skills of both sides have a significant impact on the price. The price also depends on the target group of the influencer and his reasons for the job: Is he only looking for money or does he see his creative work as a balance to the stressful everyday life?
Therefore, depending on the profile and interests, there can be considerable price fluctuations. Nevertheless, companies should not accept excessive prices. The following applies: Basically, companies are in a stronger negotiating position. You usually have the choice between a large number of influencers. It is important to use this advantage.
Heed the tips to improve your negotiation skills. This allows you to reduce the costs of your influencer marketing in no time.