You do not need a huge following to get paid — engaged, trusted small creators are exactly what many brands want. What you need is to look professional, price from reality, and keep track. Here's how.
A media kit is just a one-pager that answers a brand's questions before they ask. It doesn't need to be fancy — it needs to be honest and current. Include who your audience is, your real reach and engagement, a few examples of your best work, and how to contact you. The goal is to make saying yes easy.
There's no fixed rate card in the world you can copy, because pricing depends on your reach, your engagement, your niche, and the amount of work. What you can do is build your own rate card grounded in your actual numbers, and adjust as they grow. Charge for the work involved — a scripted reel with revisions is worth more than a single story frame. Value the extras brands often ask for: usage rights, exclusivity, and rush timelines all cost you something, so they should cost them something too.
Most first offers are a starting point, and it's normal — expected, even — to respond with your rate. Be warm, be specific, and anchor to the value and the work, not to apology. If the budget genuinely won't move, you can trade scope instead of dropping your price: fewer deliverables, shorter usage rights, no exclusivity. Getting it in writing — deliverables, timeline, payment terms, and usage — protects both sides and marks you as someone who does this properly.
The unglamorous part is where the money actually gets kept. Keep one place that tracks every deal's status, every gifted product (PR), and every invoice — what's agreed, what's delivered, what's paid, and what's overdue. Chasing a late payment is far easier when you have the dates and terms in front of you, and knowing your yearly income makes tax season humane instead of terrifying.
All of this works best on top of a clear content strategy — brands are drawn to creators who obviously know who they're for.
Tracking deals, PR, and money is exactly the admin her bestie keeps for you, so it doesn't live in a scattered notes app. daisy tracks brand deals, gifting, and invoices in one place and uses your real numbers to help you price and pitch. You can start free and stop leaving money on the table.