How to Negotiate with Influencers Using Added Value
May 6, 2025
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7 mins
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You’ve found the ideal influencer for your next campaign – right audience, right tone of voice, right content style. There’s just one stumbling block: their rate is slightly too high.
At this point, you could give up and move on… or you could play around with the value you’re receiving to justify (or even reduce) the price, such as:
⏱️ Agreeing on a faster turnaround time
📝 Removing exclusivity rights
💴 Choosing cheaper deliverables
If you’re ready to find a deal that suits both parties, you’re in the right place. Below I share everything you need to know about negotiating with influencers using added value…
What does negotiating on added value actually look like?
Deliberating the value of a collaboration is one of the most popular influencer negotiation tactics. When Modash surveyed 38 pro influencer marketers, 75% said they have tried to negotiate the value of a proposed partnership because of the influencer’s pricing.
(What’s more, 66% would be discouraged from working with an influencer if they wouldn’t agree to a reduced rate for fewer deliverables.)
But what exactly can you negotiate?
As you can see, most of these approaches involve removing premium elements.
Influencer exclusivity rights sit at the top of the tree. Kat LaFata says influencers care a lot about exclusivity – so unbundling it from your collaboration package can lead to a significantly cheaper quote.
Influencers do not want to limit their work without guarantee that your brand is going to carry them through the exclusivity term with enough capital. So lowering your exclusivity expectations will likely have the biggest effect on reaching a better price
In a similar vein, plenty of influencer marketers negotiate cheaper deals by:
👉 Opting for a less expensive deliverable
👉 Reducing or removing content usage rights
👉 Cutting the length of a video or integration
Because usage rights can inflate the price of a deal, Greta Zacchetti recommends keeping them out of first-time collabs with new influencers.
Use the first few months of a new influencer relationship to evaluate the organic results and the influencer’s fit with your brand, making a future investment in full usage rights a safer decision.
However, negotiating on value doesn’t always mean removing elements from your collaboration: about 20% of respondents who negotiate on value say they ask influencers for a faster turnaround time.
Are influencers receptive to negotiating on added value?
In a word: yes!
Three-quarters of influencer marketers we surveyed said creators are open to reducing their price by renegotiating deliverables or “nice-to-haves,” while the remaining one-quarter said creators are only sometimes happy to negotiate on added value.
However, as with any negotiation, don’t be surprised if you encounter some pushback.
Laura Altdorffer notes that it’s hard to renegotiate if you’ve already agreed on a rate, while Nicole Ampo says larger influencers may be less receptive to changing the terms of the proposal.
When the influencer has a huge following, they usually have a set price and are not willing to negotiate.
On the flip side, Gabija Jankauskė says negotiating on added value is most likely to work when the influencer is already interested in partnering with you. So if you’re an aspirational brand and/or are looking for a long-term relationship with the influencer, you’ve got a higher chance of success.
What to do if the influencer pushes back
Even though most influencers are open to negotiating on added value, not every negotiation runs smoothly.
For more context, just under half of respondents to our survey said they had received pushback from an influencer when attempting to renegotiate deliverables or “nice-to-haves,” while one in three said negotiating in this way had totally turned an influencer off from working with their brand.
So what should you do if the influencer in question won’t play ball? ⚽
For Lucy Sergeeva, the smart move is to tempt the influencer with the promise of greater rewards down the line.
When the influencer has a huge following, they usually have a set price and are not willing to negotiate.
(⚠️Disclaimer: Bear in mind that you should only ever dangle the carrot of a longer collab with more attractive terms if you actually plan on following through. Don’t be a jerk.)
Additionally, Greta Zacchetti suggests focusing on positive outcomes for the influencer.
Highlight the mutual benefits of streamlining deliverables, such as prioritizing high-impact content. Also, show that you will ease their workload by providing clear briefings, dates, information, and anything else they need to be successful.
Another strategy, recommended by Valerija Somi, is to tempt influencers with the promise of free products – either for themselves or for a giveaway to engage their followers.
However, it’s important to remember that, like Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, some partnerships just aren’t meant to be 😢 If that’s the case, don’t be afraid to walk away, says Miroslava Petkova.
At the end of the day, if we can’t seem to find common ground, and negotiating isn’t helping, we just don’t proceed with that particular influencer.
6 Ways to make this negotiation tactic work for you
As Miroslava notes, there are no guarantees when it comes to negotiating on added value, and sometimes the only option is to look elsewhere. But before you do, here’s everything you can try first to increase your chances of saving the deal…
1. Be transparent and honest
For some people, negotiation is all about smoke and mirrors – they keep their cards close to their chest and hope to land the best deal.
Sure, that approach might work once in a while, but it usually delivers only short-term results. If however you want to build mutually beneficial relationships with influencers, honesty is the best policy.
Valerija Somi says she plays it straight about potential speed bumps like budget constraints. Greta Zacchetti agrees, noting that being transparent helps to get new influencer partnerships off on the right foot.
Highlight the mutual benefits of streamlining deliverables, such as prioritizing high-impact content. Also, show that you will ease their workload by providing clear briefings, dates, information, and anything else they need to be successful.
2. Make influencers feel valued
Unless you’re in an obscure niche with a tiny audience, there are likely thousands of influencers you could work with. Be sure to let the influencer you’re negotiating with know why you picked them.
This is one of Miroslava Petkova’s favorite tactics. She recommends telling the influencer how valuable they are to your brand, explaining why you’re keen to work with them, and generally “making them feel wanted and special.”
After all, a little flattery will get you anywhere 💅
3. Work with the influencer, not against them
The goal of your negotiations isn’t to force the influencer to submit to your will – it’s about reaching a deal that works for both parties.
With that in mind, Fernanda Marques says her #1 tip is to approach negotiations as a collaboration rather than a compromise.
Instead of framing it as ‘cutting back,’ I position it as finding the best fit for both sides, ensuring that the influencer is fairly compensated while keeping the partnership aligned with my company’s goals and budget.
For instance, if a high-cost deliverable is out of budget, try suggesting an alternative format that still offers value, such as:
👉 Shifting from a dedicated YouTube video to an integration
👉 Replacing a Reel with multiple Stories
Similarly, Joshita Dodani suggests putting the ball in the influencer’s court when it comes to figuring out a mutually beneficial agreement.
Always ask the influencer for suggestions to help set a package for the budget you had in mind. Don’t be pushy, and work with the influencer so they don’t feel low-balled.
Remember, you’re expecting the influencer to be flexible by bringing their quote in line with your budget. Chances are, they’ll be happier to do that if you’re willing to show some flexibility too.
Cheyanne Pettyjohn says if the influencer can’t deliver on the terms originally proposed, sharing some alternative options is a smart way to prove that you’re committed to making this work.
Offering a revised plan rather than just a ‘then we aren’t a good fit’ shows you’re focused on getting things worked out.
4. Offer your own added value
In addition to asking the influencer to add (or remove) nice-to-haves from the deal, don’t overlook the power of proposing your own added value.
For instance, Gabija Jankauskė advises brands to sweeten the deal – without blowing their budget – by pitching juicy extras like:
👉 Long-term influencer partnerships
👉 Follow-up campaigns with higher rates
👉 Commissions on sales generated from the influencer’s posts
👉 More generous discount codes for the influencer’s followers
5. Know your niche
You should be friendly and polite throughout any negotiation, but be prepared to put your foot down and say no if the influencer is giving you a bad deal.
Laura Altdorffer says you should always have a “final best offer” in mind before you start negotiating. If the influencer doesn’t go for it, no worries – there are plenty more fish in the sea.
Similarly, both Kat LaFata and Victor Wiśniowski recommend drawing on your experience and niche expertise to push back on influencers who aren’t prepared to compromise.
For instance, Kat says some influencers hold out for high rates that their followings and metrics simply can’t justify. In that case, she suggests being transparent about your dealings with similar influencers.
Be prepared to say, ‘On these terms, we’ve worked with creators whose audiences and engagement are similar to yours,’ and be even more prepared to share those creators’ names.
Victor, meanwhile, recommends bringing receipts – aka data – to your negotiations. After all, knowledge is power, and numbers don’t lie. Having them in front of you helps you know where you stand in a negotiation.
👉 Modash’s Influencer Analytics tool gives you all the data you need, from engagement rates and average views to audience demographics like location, age, and gender – all without having to reach out to the influencer.
6. Pitch your brand
Okay, so there are plenty of other influencers out there.
But, at the same time, you’re hardly the only brand in the world. And you’ll find it much easier to negotiate with influencers if you give them a compelling reason to collaborate with you.
To be clear, Matheus Ribeiro says this isn’t just about how much money you’re prepared to pay – you need to “sell” your brand to them. Because if they’re not excited to work with you, they’re not going to move heaven and earth to get this deal over the line.
You could approach this by highlighting your unique value proposition and the features and benefits of your product, or you could simply name some of the other relevant influencers you’ve partnered with.
After all, FOMO is a powerful motivator.
Final thoughts 🤔
The word “negotiation” conjures up images of corporate suits arguing around a boardroom table. In reality, negotiating with influencers is about building a relationship where both of you benefit – and it doesn’t have to be a battle.
Most influencers are actively looking for work – so they’re happy to remove usage rights or swap out deliverables in return for a lower rate.
As a general rule, your negotiations will be more effective if you start by identifying the right influencers. You’ll save so much time if you already know an influencer’s engagement rate, who they’ve worked with in the past, and how well previously sponsored posts performed for other brands.
This is where Modash can help:
- Use our influencer discovery tool to search every public profile with 1K+ followers on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok (that’s over 250 million profiles!).
- Narrow the results with granular filters, including location, follower range, engagement rate, growth rate, fake follower proportion, and more.
- Scale your campaign’s lookalike influencers based on your most successful collaborations to date.
- Rinse and repeat to easily scale your influencer program.
And that’s just for starters.
But don’t take my word for it. See for yourself with a 14-day free trial 🤓
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