Quick answer
An influencer brief (or content creator brief) is a one- to two-page document that tells a creator what the campaign is trying to achieve, the target audience, the key message, the deliverables, the deadlines and the rules, including disclosure and usage rights. The best briefs are specific about goals and requirements but flexible about how the creator tells the story. Below is a template you can copy and four influencer brief examples for common campaign types.
What is an influencer brief?
An influencer campaign brief is the shared reference between a brand and a creator. It prevents the most common problems in creator partnerships: off-message content, missed deadlines, wrong formats, missing disclosures and disputes about where the content can be used.
A creative brief focuses on the idea and message. A campaign brief adds logistics, payment and legal terms. In practice, most brands combine both in one influencer marketing brief.
What to include in an influencer brief
- Brand and product overview: two or three sentences, plus a link to the product page.
- Campaign goal: one primary objective, such as awareness, launch, sales or ad creative. Say how it will be measured.
- Target audience: the people the content should speak to and the problem they have.
- Key message: the single idea viewers should remember, plus two or three supporting points.
- Mandatories: claims that must or must not be made, product shots, links, codes and hashtags.
- Creative direction: suggested hooks or angles, tone, and examples of content you like, while leaving room for the creator's own style.
- Deliverables and specs: number of videos or posts, platforms, length, aspect ratio (usually vertical 9:16) and whether you need raw footage.
- Timeline: product shipping, draft due date, feedback rounds and go-live dates.
- Disclosure: how the partnership must be disclosed on each platform.
- Usage rights and payment: where and how long the brand can use the content, including paid ads, plus fees and payment terms.
Disclosure rules every brief should cover
In the US, the FTC's Endorsement Guides, updated in June 2023, require disclosures to be clear and conspicuous, meaning hard to miss and easy to understand. The FTC says creators cannot rely only on a platform's built-in disclosure tool, and a disclosure hidden behind a "more" link or only on a profile page is not enough. Disclosures should match the format of the endorsement, so a spoken endorsement in a video should include a spoken disclosure.
Platforms have their own rules too. TikTok asks creators to turn on its commercial content disclosure setting for posts that promote a brand, product or service, and undisclosed commercial content may not be eligible for the For You feed. If you plan to run creator posts as ads, also mention the ad tools you will use, such as Meta partnership ads or TikTok Spark Ads, so the creator knows to share access codes or permissions.
Influencer brief template
Copy this structure into a doc and fill in each line:
- Campaign name and dates
- About the brand: [2-3 sentences]
- Goal and KPI: [e.g., drive first purchases; tracked by code clicks]
- Audience: [who, and their main problem]
- Key message: [one sentence]
- Must include: [product shown in first 3 seconds, code, link]
- Avoid: [claims, competitors, sensitive topics]
- Deliverables: [quantity, platform, length, format]
- Timeline: [draft date, review rounds, live date]
- Disclosure: [platform label plus spoken or on-screen disclosure]
- Usage rights: [organic only, or paid ads; duration; platforms]
- Payment: [fee, product, schedule]
4 influencer brief examples
These are illustrative examples for fictional brands, written to show how the template changes by campaign goal.
Example 1: Awareness brief for a skincare brand
- Goal: introduce a new daily sunscreen to people who skip SPF; measured by views and saves.
- Key message: a sunscreen light enough to wear every day.
- Creative direction: show your real morning routine; mention why you used to skip sunscreen.
- Deliverables: one 30- to 45-second TikTok and one Instagram Reel.
- Avoid: medical claims beyond what is on the label.
Example 2: Product launch brief for a kitchen gadget
- Goal: build launch-week demand; measured by link clicks to the launch page.
- Key message: dinner prep in half the steps.
- Must include: unboxing, one recipe from start to finish, the launch date on screen.
- Timeline: draft five days before launch; post on launch day.
Example 3: UGC ad creative brief for a DTC apparel brand
- Goal: create paid social ads, not organic posts; measured by cost per acquisition in testing.
- Deliverables: three 20- to 30-second vertical videos, each with a different hook, plus raw clips.
- Hooks to test: a fit problem, a try-on reaction and a comparison with an old favorite.
- Usage rights: paid ads on Meta and TikTok for a set period.
Example 4: Affiliate brief for a supplement subscription
- Goal: drive first orders with a unique discount code; measured by code redemptions.
- Key message: an easy routine that fits a busy morning.
- Must include: code on screen and in caption; clear paid partnership disclosure.
- Avoid: any claim that the product treats or cures a condition.
Tips for briefs that creators actually follow
- Keep it short. If a creator cannot scan the brief in a few minutes, the key points get lost.
- Lead with the goal. Creators make better choices when they know what success looks like.
- Give direction, not scripts. Suggested hooks help; word-for-word scripts often sound forced.
- Agree on feedback rounds upfront so revisions stay quick.
- Put usage rights in writing before production starts.
Briefing is also changing fast. In IAB's 2025 creator economy report, 46% of creator ad buyers said they use AI for creator briefs. MediaNug's NugVerse platform, for example, includes an AI brief generator and AI creator matching, with real vetted creators and a human quality check on every video. For the earlier step of finding and contracting creators, see our guide on how to hire influencers step by step.
Frequently asked questions
What is an influencer brief?
A short document that tells a creator the campaign goal, audience, key message, deliverables, timeline, disclosure rules and usage rights.
How do you write an influencer brief?
Start with one clear goal and KPI, define the audience and key message, list mandatories and deliverables, then add timeline, disclosure and usage terms. Keep creative direction flexible.
Is a content creator brief different from an influencer brief?
Mostly in focus. A content creator brief for UGC ads centers on deliverables and usage rights, because the brand posts the content. An influencer brief also covers posting on the creator's own channels.
How do you brief creators so content matches the brand vision?
Share examples of content you like, list tone and must-avoid items, and explain the goal, then let creators adapt the message to their own style.
Sources
- Davis Wright Tremaine, "FTC Issues Updated Endorsement Guides," July 2023 (summary of FTC's June 29, 2023 update), accessed Oct 2026
- TikTok Ads Help Center, "About the content disclosure setting for creators," accessed Oct 2026
- IAB, "2025 Creator Economy Ad Spend and Strategy Report" press release, November 20, 2025
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