CHAPTER 7 GUIDE
Sponsor Emails and Brand Deals
In short
The first time a company emails asking to sponsor your channel, it feels great. The fifth time, you start to notice that two of them were scams, one wanted you to work for free and one never replied after you sent your rates.
The kinds of email you'll get
Once a channel has some audience, the business inbox fills with a mix of things:
- Real sponsor offers from companies that fit your channel.
- Offers from companies that don't fit at all.
- Agencies working on behalf of a brand.
- Requests for free promotion in exchange for a free product.
The deals bot
Connect it to the email account you use for business. If you don't have a separate business email, this is a good time to make one.
Spotting scams
Creators are a common target for scams. Some of the patterns people report include:
- An email asking you to download a file, often called a contract or a brief, that turns out to be harmful.
- A login page that looks like YouTube or a brand's portal, built to steal your password.
- An offer that pays far more than seems normal for your channel's size.
- A request to pay a fee before the deal starts.
Your rates and your rules
Before the bot can draft replies, you need to decide a few things. These are yours to decide.
A sorted inbox
Here's what Patch and Mend's business inbox might look like after a week, as reported by the deals bot. These are made-up examples:
- Likely sponsor. A woodworking tool company wants a 60-second segment in one video next month. Mentions a budget range. Asks for your rates and audience details.
- Poor fit. A mobile game wants a segment. Doesn't fit the channel.
- Free product. A finishing-oil brand offers free product for an "honest review", no payment.
- Collaboration. Another restoration channel suggests a joint video.
Keeping track of deals
Once a few deals are underway, it's easy to lose track. Who did you reply to?
Reading agreements
Some sponsors send a contract. A bot can read it and give you a plain-English summary.
Disclosure
When you're paid to promote something, most places require you to tell viewers. YouTube Studio has a paid promotion box you tick on any video with paid product placement, sponsorship or endorsement.
Writing the sponsored segment
Some sponsors give you talking points. A bot can help turn those into a script that sounds like you, using your voice guide.
Walkthrough: a sponsor email, start to finish
Here's how a typical sponsor inquiry moves through the deals bot at Patch and Mend. The company is made up.
What went wrong: the very good offer
One email offered several times the channel's usual rate for a 30-second mention of a "productivity app". The deals bot flagged it as a possible scam: the sender used a free email account, the app's website was only a few weeks old and the email included a file called "brief.exe".