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The information contained in “7 Easy Tips to Prevent Late Payments as an Influencer or Content Creator” is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice. Reading this article or relying on information from this article does not ever create an attorney-client relationship between you and Katherine Jaquith (aka Kate Cooper). Please speak with a licensed attorney for personalized business and legal advice.

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Do you want to learn how you can prevent late payments as an influencer or content creator when you work with brands? Then you came to the right place!

If you’ve spent any time in the influencer or content creator space you may have encountered brands who don’t pay on time. This red flag is one of the unfortunate realities of the influencer marketing industry, but don’t despair! There are a few things you can do to help get paid on time (and earn more when you’re not!).

This article includes 7 easy tips to help prevent late payments as an influencer or content creator. You may have to negotiate and advocate for yourself to implement some of these tips when working with a brand, but remember no one is going to advocate for you better than you can!

7 Tips to Navigate & Prevent Late Payments as an Influencer or Content Creator

1. Make Sure Your Contract Includes Payment Terms

If you want to get paid on time for a brand partnership, then it’s important to have clear payment terms in your contract. Otherwise how do you know when you’re supposed to get paid?! 

It’s important to always have a contract when working with a brand, whether as an influencer, content creator, or UGC creator. One of the most important provisions to include in your contract are detailed payment terms. A brand partnership contract should include: how much you’re getting paid; when you will be paid; how you will be paid; and any special considerations regarding the payment, including late fees.

Hot Tip: The exact language in your contract is going to be important in the event of a dispute, so be as detailed as possible!

During most brand partnerships you are going to be paid a flat rate based on the deliverables and services you’re providing. Oftentimes brand deal contracts will contain net-15, 30, 45+ payment terms in a brand deal contract. This means that the brand doesn’t pay you until 15, 30, 45 days after you send them an invoice.

It’s common to see such a delay in payment is because your invoice is essentially a bill for the brand. As with most bills, the payment isn’t due as soon as the brand receives it. They have a period of time to make the payment before it’s considered late.

2. Require Partial Payment Upfront

Another strategy you can use to prevent late payments as an influencer is to negotiate a partial payment upfront. This means that the brand will pay a certain percentage or amount of your rate upfront. This can be at any point in time you and the brand agree to. For instance, upon signing the contract or when the brand provides initial approval of your content. 

Requiring partial payment upfront allows you to get paid sooner rather than later. It also provides greater assurance that the brand is going to follow through with paying the balance upon completion of the campaign. 

3. Complete Your Deliverables On Time

If you want to get paid on time, you need to make sure that you’re completing your obligations under the contract on time. As a creator you should be aware of the deadlines to submit content and deliverables for review. You should also know how long the brand has to provide approval or request revisions, and when you need to share the content on social media (if applicable).

It’s important to include a timeline for the partnership that outlines when things need to happen. This ensures that you and the brand are on the same page, which can help prevent late payments and conflicts.

4. Send Your Invoice ASAP

If you want to prevent late payments as an influencer or content creator you need to make sure that you send an invoice to the brand as soon as the campaign is completed. You want to get the clock ticking on the net-15, 30, 45, etc. pay period that is outlined in your brand deal contract so you can get paid as soon as possible.

Make note of the date that you send your invoice so you know when you can expect to be paid. Also make sure to follow up and verify that the actually brand received your invoice after sending it. Sometimes things end up in junk folders, so watch out! 

5. Make Sure the Brand Has Your Tax Information (W-9), If Applicable

One reason why a brand may be late in paying you is because they don’t have the tax information they need. When you work with a brand as an influencer or content creator you are typically working as an independent contractor. The exception to this would be content creators who work in-house as employees for a company.

In the United States, if a company pays an independent contractor more than $600 within a year then the company is required to provide a 1099-NEC. In order to provide the 1099-NEC, the company needs to have a W-9 from the independent contractor. If you’re making more than $600, make sure you include a W-9 with your invoice (if the brand doesn’t ask for one first). 

6. Make it Easy to Get Paid

If you want to prevent late payments as an influencer or content creator you need to make it easy for a brand to pay you. Your invoice should provide clear instructions about how to pay you, including the method of payment and any additional information they may need (like account numbers).

There are a variety of ways that you can get paid as an influencer or content creator. My personal preference as a creator is to get paid via ACH deposit directly into my bank account. I bank with Novo, which has an invoice feature that I use when working with brands. The invoice includes a link to pay directly, which makes it super easy for brands to use. It also doesn’t show my account information, which is amazing for privacy purposes.

Paypal is a popular payment method in the influencer industry. Many influencer marketing platforms use Paypal as their default payment method. It gets the job done, but it comes with additional fees and potential security concerns. Ultimately, you don’t need a middleman holding your money! 

Hot Tip: If Paypal or another payment processor that charges fees is the preferred payment method then include a provision in your contract that the brand is responsible for paying any additional fees!

Checks are an old school way to get paid. They’re generally not convenient for the brand or the creator (especially if you’re a nomad or travel frequently). It takes time to send a check in the mail. There’s also a risk it will get lost. But some brands may insist on cutting a check. Make sure you’re aware of that upfront so you have a secure place to send it–.

7. Include a Late Fee In Your Brand Deal Contract

One of the best ways to protect yourself against late payments as an influencer or content creator is to include a late fee provision in your brand deal contract. This is going to be something that you have to proactively ask for and negotiate. The terms of the late fee should be clearly laid out.

A late fee can either be a flat rate (ex. $100/month or $5/day) or a percentage of the brand deal rate (ex. 10%/month). The balance of the late fee will accrue until the brand pays your complete rate, plus the outstanding late fee.

Having a late fee in your contract means that the brand has agreed to compensate you for missing the payment deadline. Because brands are not responsible for paying creators until after all of the work has been completed, it’s easy for them to take advantage of creators and delay making payments. 

A late fee provision is ultimately a risk that the brand assumes. If they pay on time it’s a nonissue. It benefits you to have a late fee provision included in your contracts because it offsets the risk of late payments.

Without a late fee provision in your contract you don’t have any real teeth to enforce a late fee against a brand. You can always send the brand an updated invoice with a late fee included without one. However, the brand isn’t going to be obligated to pay it. 

Want to Know What to Do If a Brand Doesn’t Pay You On Time?

Check out Episode 002 of The Legal Influence Podcast!

Conclusion

I hope these tips will help you avoid the stressful situation of working hard on a brand deal only to have the brand not pay you on time. Here’s a recap of the 7 tips to prevent late payments as an influencer or content creator:

1. Make Sure Your Contract Includes Payment Terms

2. Require Partial Payment Upfront

3. Complete Your Deliverables On Time

4. Send Your Invoice ASAP

5. Make Sure the Brand Has Your Tax Information (W-9), If Applicable

6. Make it Easy to Get Paid

7. Include a Late Fee In Your Brand Deal Contract

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