How to find YouTubers to promote your product as affiliates
Jimi Barkway · 20 October 2026 · 7 min read
To find YouTubers who will promote your product, search YouTube for the videos your buyers already watch, such as "[competitor] review". Then check who has recent views and affiliate links in the description, and email the business address on their About tab.
An affiliate is someone with an audience who sends buyers your way for a cut of each sale. A YouTuber who reviews your competitors is the best kind, because their viewers are already shopping. This post shows the manual method, which needs no tool. Expect about two hours for a list of 20.
What should I search for on YouTube?
Search for the videos a buyer watches just before they buy. Those are reviews, comparisons and "best of" lists in your category. Whoever made them already has your audience.
Let's say you sell invoicing software. Try these:
| Search string | What it finds |
|---|---|
| "[competitor] review" | People who already assess tools like yours |
| "[competitor] vs [competitor]" | Comparison makers, who are often open to a new entry |
| "best [category] 2026" | Roundup creators who add tools often |
| "[competitor] alternatives" | Viewers ready to switch |
| "[category] for [audience]" | Niche channels, such as invoicing for freelancers |
| "how I run my [job] with [tool]" | Workflow channels that show real use |
Run each string for your three or four biggest competitors. Write down every channel that appears more than once. Those are your first picks.
How do I filter out old videos?
Open the Filters menu on the search results page and sort by upload date. Set it to this year. YouTube's own help page lists the filters, such as result type (YouTube Help, checked 20 October 2026).
Old videos tell you little. Skip them. A channel that reviewed tools in 2021 and stopped is not a lead. You want channels that posted in the last three months.
Also use the "Channel" result type. It lists channels, not videos, and it helps when you search for a niche, such as "bookkeeping for freelancers".
How can I tell if a YouTuber already does affiliate deals?
Open the video and read the description. Look for these signs:
- Links with
?ref=,?via=or?aff=on the end. - Short links that go through a tracking site.
- A line like "use code NAME for 20% off".
- A line that says "affiliate links" or "I earn a commission".
A tracking link is a web address with a code in it, so the company can tell which creator sent the visitor. A discount code does the same job at checkout.
Some channels also promote a competitor with a code. That's a good sign for you. They already know how affiliate deals work, and they already say yes to them. They also might drop a rival for a better offer. Keep it fair, and don't name another company in your pitch.
Channels with no links at all can still work. They might be new to it. But expect more questions from them.
How do I know if a channel is big enough?
Look at views on recent videos, not subscribers. A big channel whose videos get a few hundred views has a quiet audience. A small channel whose videos get thousands has a live one.
Check these four things on each channel:
| Check | Where to look | What good looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Recent views | The last 10 videos | Steady, not one hit and then nothing |
| Posting rhythm | Upload dates | A new video in the last month |
| Topic fit | Video titles | At least a few about your category |
| Comments | Under a review video | Real questions from viewers |
These are my own rules of thumb, not an industry standard. Change them to suit your market. A small channel in a narrow niche can beat a large general one, because every viewer is a buyer.
Aim for fit. Pick channels where a review of your product would fit the next video they'd make.
How do I find a YouTuber's business email?
Go to the channel, open the About tab and click View email address. YouTube says you can only see it if the owner added one (YouTube Help, checked 20 October 2026). You may need to solve a reCAPTCHA, and it works best on a desktop.
If there's no button, try these in order:
- The links on the About tab. Many creators link a personal site with a contact page.
- The video descriptions. Business contact lines often sit near the bottom.
- The creator's other profiles, such as X or Instagram bios.
- The website itself. Look for a contact page or an address like partnerships@.
Don't pitch in the comments. It's public, and a creator sees it as spam. Email is where business deals happen.
What do YouTubers expect from a deal?
Most want money up front, not just a commission. A flat fee is that up-front money: one fixed payment for the video, whether anyone buys or not. A survey by URLgenius and impact.com found 51% of creators prefer a flat fee plus commission as their main pay model (URLgenius, checked 20 October 2026). The same survey ranked pay first among what creators want from brands, at 45%.
A separate survey of creators found only 17.2% would work on commission alone (The Motherhood, checked 20 October 2026). That one came from parent influencers, so treat it as a hint, not a rule.
What does that mean for you?
- A commission-only deal works best with smaller channels. They are more likely to say yes to a good percentage, a free account and a long cookie window.
- Larger channels often want a flat fee. Flat rates can run from a few hundred to several thousand dollars a video, depending on reach, according to a sponsorship guide from Vling (checked 20 October 2026).
- A hybrid deal is the middle road. A small fee plus a percentage means they earn something for sure, and more if your product sells.
- Free access matters. Give a free account, because nobody can review a tool they haven't used.
Read what to offer affiliates before you set your numbers.
What should I say in the first email?
Keep it under 100 words. Name a video, say what you built, state the deal and ask one small thing.
Subject: your video on invoicing tools
Hi Sam,
Your comparison of three invoicing tools was clear on one point: chasing late payers is the worst part. That's the problem I built Ledgerline to fix.
I run an affiliate program. It's 30% of every payment for 12 months, and I'd send you a free account to try first.
Would you like the details?
Alex
The full method is in how to write an affiliate recruitment email. If they don't reply, send two short follow-ups over ten days, then stop.
Where else do YouTubers' fans find tools?
Many YouTube reviewers also run a blog, a newsletter or a podcast, and they use the same affiliate deals there. A video review can lead to a written review that ranks well in search. Ask whether they'd cover you on more than one channel. That is one email for several reach points.
Other places to look are in where to find affiliates and how to find your competitors' affiliates.
How RecruitAffiliates.ai fits in
RecruitAffiliates.ai reads your website, suggests your competitors, then finds the YouTube channels already promoting them. It finds Instagram and TikTok creators too, plus websites, blogs, review sites, newsletters and podcasts. Each one comes with the page that shows it, and the best fits sit at the top. It finds their email, with the page each address came from. Then it writes a personal first email for each one and sends it from your own inbox after you approve.
The manual method above works for any size of list. The tool does the same job for the whole set, so you spend your time on replies.
In short
How many YouTubers should I contact?
Start with 20. Send ten a day from your own inbox, with a personal first line. Twenty good emails beat a hundred copied ones.
Do I need a lot of subscribers to qualify?
Subscriber count matters less than recent views and topic fit. A small channel with steady views on your category can sell more than a large channel with a mixed audience.
Should I pay a flat fee or commission only?
Offer commission and a free account to smaller channels. Be ready to add a flat fee for bigger ones. Surveys show creators like some money for certain, though most data is from agencies and vendors, so check it against the replies you get.
What if I can't find an email?
Check the About tab links, the video descriptions and the creator's website. If there's no address anywhere, skip them. A channel that hides contact details isn't looking for deals.
Start with one search
Pick your biggest competitor. Search "[name] review", filter to this year, and open the top five channels. Check their descriptions for affiliate links. You'll have your first leads in ten minutes.
Want the creators and sites found for you, with emails? We find your first 20 emails free. It's 14 days free, no card.
Sources
- YouTube Help, search filters: https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/111997 (checked 20 October 2026)
- YouTube Help, business inquiry emails: https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/57955 (checked 20 October 2026)
- URLgenius and impact.com, Commerce Creator Lightning Survey: https://app.urlgeni.us/blog/what-influencers-and-creators-want-from-brands-compensation-product-details (checked 20 October 2026)
- The Motherhood, influencer affiliate programs report: https://www.themotherhood.com/?p=45287 (checked 20 October 2026)
- Vling, sponsoring YouTube creators: https://blog-en.vling.net/sponsoring-youtube-creators-in-2025 (checked 20 October 2026)