I’ve been getting more inquiries from US brands lately, which is amazing, but I’m also getting a lot of tire-kickers. People who reach out enthusiastically, ask for rates, rates are too high for them, they disappear. Or I do a whole discovery call and then… nothing.
I don’t want to be cynical, but I also don’t want to waste energy on deals that aren’t real. There’s a difference between a brand that’s serious about a partnership and one that’s just fishing around.
I’ve started screening inbound inquiries more rigorously, but I’m not sure I’m doing it right. What questions should I actually be asking upfront before I invest time writing a formal proposal? How do you spot the difference between a real opportunity and someone who’s just testing the market?
Also—and maybe this is naïve—but how do you vet the brand itself? Like, are they actually legitimate? Do they have the budget they’re claiming? Have they worked with creators before?
I’d rather have five solid conversations with real partners than fifty conversations with people who aren’t serious. What’s your actual vetting process?
I love this question because it shows you’re thinking strategically about your time—which is your most valuable asset.
Here’s my screening framework:
First message should tell you a lot. Are they personalized or generic? Do they mention specifics about your content, your audience, why you? Generic outreach usually means they’re mass-emailing 50 creators. Pass.
Ask about their previous partnerships. “Have you worked with creators before? Can you share an example?” This tells you if they know what they’re doing. New brands sometimes don’t realize what’s involved, and they’ll lowball you or have unrealistic expectations.
Ask about timeline and budget. Not the exact number—just ballpark. “What’s your budget range for this?” If they won’t even give a range, they’re not serious. Serious brands have budgets allocated.
Check their social presence. Do they have an active feed? Engaged community? Or is it dead? Dead social = red flag that they might not know how to do this.
Google them. Are they a real company? Any controversies? Sometimes I find stuff that makes me think, “Yeah, I don’t want to be associated with this.”
If they pass all that, then you have the conversation.
One more screening tool: ask them to fill out a brief creator collaboration form. Nothing crazy—just “What’s your brand story?” “What do you want the creator to focus on?” “What does success look like?”
This does two things. First, it filters out people who aren’t willing to put in minimal effort—if they won’t fill out a form, they won’t follow through on a deal. Second, it tells you if they’re thinking clearly about what they want.
People who are ready to move forward will do this. People who are just exploring will ghost.
Quick data check: look at their media spend. If they’re a real brand with a real product, they’re probably spending on ads. Check if they appear on competitor sites as sponsors, if they’re running paid campaigns, that kind of thing. You can often estimate budget pretty quickly.
Also, look at their past influencer hires. Do a quick search: “[Brand name] influencer partnership” or check if there are case studies. If they’ve done this before, you can see how they treat creators, what kind of budgets they’ve allocated.
The brands that vanish? Usually they either:
- Hit budget limits before they got to you
- Got decision approval rejected internally
- Never actually had budget—just exploring
This is why pre-call clarification saves everyone time.
From my side of things, I can tell you what makes a creator serious to us when we’re reaching out.
We look for people who ask good questions back. “What’s your timeline?” “Have you worked with creators before?” “What does success look like for you?” Those questions tell us they’re not desperate—they’re selective.
Creators who just say yes immediately? We sometimes worry they’ll just take money and not care about quality.
So: ask your screening questions, but make them smart. Make it clear you take partnerships seriously and you’re selective about who you work with. That actually increases their confidence in working with you.
Here’s an accelerated vetting checklist I use:
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Does the outreach mention specifics about my work? Yes = real. No = mass email.
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Do they have a website and active socials? No = sketch.
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When I ask, “Tell me about your previous creator partnerships,” is their answer detailed or vague? Detailed = experienced. Vague = first-timer.
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When I ask timeline, do they have one or are they “figuring it out”? Defined timeline = real project. “Figuring it out” = exploration phase.
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Do they respond quickly and professionally, or do emails take forever? Communication speed is everything in partnerships.
One more: ask to connect on a brief call. You don’t need a deep discovery—just 15 minutes. See if they’re articulate, professional, on time. Flakiness in the vetting phase = flakiness in execution.
If they won’t invest 15 minutes, they won’t invest in the partnership.
Okay so I used to take every opportunity that came in, and I burned out fast. Now I’m way more selective.
My quick vetting:
The DM check: How did they find me? Do they follow me? Do they engage with my content? If they don’t even follow me, why should I work with them?
The response rate check: Do they respond fast to questions or do emails sit for days? If they’re slow during courting, they’ll be worse after you sign.
The clarity check: Can they articulate what they want? If I ask, “What’s the deliverable?” and they’re like “uh, like, posts?” they haven’t thought it through.
The vibe check: This might sound soft, but do I actually want to work with these people? If something feels off, I pass. My energy is limited.
One thing I’ve started doing: I ask them, “Who else are you talking to?” If they’re talking to 20 creators, they’re just casting a wide net and I’m not special. If it’s a tight creator list, they’re being intentional.
Trust your gut. If it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t.
From a brand strategy perspective, here’s what makes a creator our top choice for outreach even before we talk about rates:
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Audience alignment. Not just follower count—actual audience demographic match to our product.
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Engagement authenticity. We run deep dives on engagement patterns. Are the interactions real? Is the audience responding to the creator’s content or are they just there?
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Historical partnership success. If we can see evidence of past collaborations they’ve done—case studies, tagged posts, that kind of thing—we know they know how to execute.
As a creator, when you’re evaluating us, you should ask similar questions in reverse:
- Can they articulate who their customer is?
- Do they have data on what works for them?
- Have they successfully hired creators before?
If they can’t answer these, it’s either a very new brand or they’re disorganized. Either way, higher risk for you.