# Influencer Brief Template: What to Include (Copy It)

Source: https://recruitaffiliates.ai/blog/influencer-brief-template

# Influencer brief: what to put in it, with a template to copy

By the RecruitAffiliates.ai team · 9 November 2026 · 10 min read

Facts about other tools come from their own sites, with the date we checked. [Our editorial policy](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/editorial-policy) · [About us](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/about).

In short

An influencer brief is a short page that tells a creator what to make, by when and how to label it, after you have agreed the deal. It holds the facts and leaves the voice to the creator. A copy-ready template covers deliverables, claims, disclosure, approval and reuse.

An **influencer brief** is a short page that tells a creator what to make, by when and how to label it. You send it after they have said yes to your offer. A **creator** is anyone with an audience, such as a video maker or blogger.

A good brief fixes the facts and leaves the voice to the creator. This guide lists what goes in and gives a template to copy. It also covers the section the law cares about most, which is disclosure.

**On this page 10 sections**

1. [How is a brief different from a proposal or a contract?]
2. [What goes in an influencer brief?]
3. [Script the facts, not the voice]
4. [The disclosure section: tell them exactly how]
5. [Dates and approval]
6. [A template you can copy]
7. [What mistakes make a brief fail?]
8. [Where RecruitAffiliates.ai fits]
9. [Frequently asked questions]
10. [Sources]

## How is a brief different from a proposal or a contract?

Three documents do three jobs. Keep them apart and each stays short.

|  | Proposal | Contract | Brief |
|---|---|---|---|
| Job | The offer | The legal terms | The how-to for the work |
| Sent | Before the yes | After the yes | After the yes |
| Holds | What you send and pay | Payment, rights, liability | Deliverables, facts, dates, disclosure words |

- The **proposal** is the offer: what you send and what you pay. See [how to write an influencer collaboration proposal](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/blog/influencer-collaboration-proposal).
- The **contract** holds the legal terms: payment, rights and liability. Use the [influencer contract template](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/blog/influencer-contract-template).
- The **brief** is about doing the work: what to make, what to say and when.

One guide puts it this way: the contract owns the rights and the pay, and the brief owns the doing. It also says not to hide **usage rights**, the permission to reuse the creator's work, in the brief. Name the intended use and point to the signed agreement instead ([ContentGrip](https://www.contentgrip.com/influencer-brief-template/), 7 July 2026, a marketing publication). If you buy UGC, see [what UGC is](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/blog/what-is-ugc-for-brands) for what a brand is paying for.

## What goes in an influencer brief?

Two guides list eight or nine sections, and they overlap a lot. One vendor blog lists eight: brand overview, goal, deliverables, key messages, what to avoid, disclosure, usage rights and approval ([Influee](https://influee.co/blog/influencer-brief), 4 June 2026). ContentGrip lists nine. It has audience and reporting sections that Influee lacks, and "creative guardrails" where Influee has "what to avoid".

For a small Shopify brand, eight parts are enough. Put them on one page. The template below splits do and don't in two and adds a line for questions.

1. **About us.** One line on the brand and the product.
2. **Goal.** One result you want, such as sales through the creator's code.
3. **Deliverables.** What they make, how many, and on which platform.
4. **Key messages.** Up to three points. Influee suggests three at most.
5. **Do and don't.** Claims you can back up, and words to avoid.
6. **Disclosure.** The exact words and where they go.
7. **Dates and approval.** When a draft is due, who reviews it and when it goes live.
8. **Reuse.** Where you plan to use the work, with a pointer to the contract.

Shopify's own influencer guide, dated 25 September 2026, tells brands to outline what they want produced. It says to state the deadline and the usage rights they want ([Shopify](https://www.shopify.com/blog/influencer-marketing)). It also suggests sharing two or three of the creator's own best posts as a model. It does not cover an approval process, so that part comes from the vendor guides.

## Script the facts, not the voice

ContentGrip's advice is to script facts and leave the voice alone. Facts are claims, dates and prices, plus the disclosure wording. Voice is the hook, the humor and the pacing. It suggests "approved territories" in place of approved copy.

ContentGrip advises avoiding dictated wording, camera angles, music or cuts unless the law requires it. Leave room for the creator to make the post in their own way.

Give three kinds of fact:

- **Must say.** The product name, the price and any code. Example: "The care kit is $38."
- **Can say.** Claims you can prove. Example: "The wax is made from plant oils."
- **Never say.** Claims you cannot back up. Example: "It cures cracked leather."

## The disclosure section: tell them exactly how

This is the section to get right. The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says a company "is ultimately responsible for what others do on your behalf". Its Q&A page says to train and monitor your network. Its list starts with what they can and cannot say. Next comes "exactly how you want them to make the disclosures" ([FTC Endorsement Guides Q&A](https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking), checked 9 November 2026).

For creators who only get free product, the FTC calls training material "important, but insufficient". Ask them to disclose the gift, tell them how, and check the posts.

The rule itself is in the US Code of Federal Regulations, title 16, section 255.5. It requires a clear and conspicuous disclosure of a connection that might change how much weight people give the endorsement. Free or discounted product counts as a connection ([16 CFR 255.5](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/255.5), checked 9 November 2026). The advertiser's duty is in 16 CFR 255.1(d). It says brands should guide endorsers, monitor them and act on problems. The text adds that these steps are "not a safe harbor" ([16 CFR 255.1](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/255.1), checked 9 November 2026).

The FTC's guide for creators ([Disclosures 101](https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/disclosures-101-social-media-influencers), November 2019, checked 9 November 2026) adds the details a brief should repeat:

- Put the disclosure with the endorsement. A profile page, the end of a post or a "MORE" link is likely to be missed.
- In a video, show it in the video itself, not only in the description.
- On a live stream, repeat it so late joiners see it.
- "Ad", "advertisement" and "sponsored" are acceptable. Words such as "collab", "thanks" or "ambassador" on their own are not.
- Do not lean only on a platform's tool.
- A plain sentence works, such as "Thanks to Acme brand for the free product."
- The page calls the #ad hashtag optional. The words matter more than the tag.

TikTok has its own setting. Its help page says a creator promoting a brand "must turn on" the commercial content disclosure setting. A post without it "may be removed or restricted". When a creator tags a brand partner, the time the brand may use the post, called the authorization period, defaults to 60 days ([TikTok Ads Help](https://ads.tiktok.com/resources/help/article/how-to-turn-on-the-commercial-content-disclosure-setting-in-tiktok?lang=en), checked 9 November 2026). Add "turn on the platform's paid partnership or commercial content setting" to the brief, alongside your own words.

This is US guidance, not legal advice. Other countries have their own rules.

## Dates and approval

Put real dates in the brief, not only "two rounds of edits". Influee suggests one review of the first rough version and one of the final one. It says to answer within 48 hours and allow two revision rounds at most. That is one vendor's view. No law sets these numbers. We use them as starting defaults, so change them to fit your deal.

ContentGrip says to review "only against the brief", the contract and the facts. Anything outside those is a scope change, and it can cost time and goodwill.

The FTC makes approval more than a courtesy. For paid posts, it says to review before they go up, because "it's much easier to review posts before they're posted than to search for them afterwards".

## A template you can copy

Fill in the brackets. This is a made-up example for a leather-care brand called Fieldwork.

**Brief: Fieldwork x [Creator name]**

**About us.** Fieldwork sells leather care kits for bags, boots and jackets.

**Goal.** Show the kit in use on a worn item. Sales through your code are how we track it.

**What you make.** One video of 30 to 90 seconds on [platform] and three story frames. Show a real before and after of your own item. Commission is in the agreement.

**Key messages (up to three).** 1. The kit works on bags, boots and jackets. 2. The wax is made from plant oils. 3. The kit is $38 and your code is [CODE].

**Please do.** Use your own voice, your own item and your own light. Show the kit in use.

**Please don't.** Promise results we have not tested, such as "cures cracked leather". Compare us to another brand by name.

**Disclosure.** Say you got the kit free and earn a commission on your code. Say it in the video itself and on each story frame. A caption alone is not enough. Say something like "Thanks to Fieldwork for the free kit. I earn a commission on sales with my code", or use "ad" or "sponsored". Do not use "collab" or "ambassador" on their own. Turn on [platform]'s paid partnership or commercial content setting as well.

**Dates and approval.** Draft to [reviewer name] by [date]. We reply within 48 hours. Up to two rounds of changes. Post between [date] and [date].

**Reuse.** We plan to share your video on our site and organic social. The signed agreement sets the terms. If you tag us with TikTok's brand partnership tool, the default authorization period is 60 days.

**Questions.** Reply to this email.

Before you send it, read the page as the creator would. Ask which line they could misread. Our [gifting note examples](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/blog/influencer-gifting-note-examples) show the tone to use in the cover message.

## What mistakes make a brief fail?

- **Too long.** Our view: a creator who cannot read it in one sitting will skim it. ContentGrip says a strong brief is not longer than a weak one.
- **No disclosure wording.** "Disclose appropriately" leaves the choice to the creator. The FTC wants you to say exactly how.
- **Rights hidden in the brief.** Put terms in the contract, and only point to them in the brief.
- **Scripted voice.** Fix the facts, then let the creator talk.
- **No date for feedback.** If you take a week to answer, the post slips.

## Where RecruitAffiliates.ai fits

RecruitAffiliates.ai finds the people already covering shops like yours and drafts the first email. That is the step before any brief. For the wording of that email, see the [influencer outreach email template](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/blog/influencer-outreach-email-template).

You enter your website. It finds websites, blogs, review sites, newsletters, podcasts, YouTube channels, and Instagram and TikTok creators. Each one comes with the page that shows it, so you can judge the fit. It looks for each person's email and checks what it finds, so you get a [verified email](https://docs.recruitaffiliates.ai/credits#what-each-result-means).

AI drafts a personal first email. You approve it, and it sends from your own inbox. It does not write the brief, pay anyone or track sales. See the [Shopify page](https://recruitaffiliates.ai/for/shopify) for the five steps.

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