Table of Contents
Trust pays more than any one-off check
Why I Said No to $1500 for a Single Reel, and Why You Might Want to, Too
As creators, we all dream about landing those “big” brand deals; the ones that make you feel like your work is finally paying off. So when a company offered me $1500 for one Instagram reel and one story, while having around 5000 followers, it seemed like an easy yes.
But here’s the truth creators don’t talk about enough:
Not every high-paying brand deal is a good deal.
Once I opened the contract, and looked into the company & its services, everything changed.
In this post, I’m breaking down exactly why I declined this offer, the contract red flags you should look out for, and how to make smarter, safer decisions as a content creator.
Here Were the 4 Biggest Red Flags
Misalignment with my audience and brand
I’ve built my platform on trust. Promoting a loan or cash-advance service, especially one with fees, hard to cancel, and truly a service that doesn’t make sense financially for anyone would damage that trust, no matter how much they offered. I can’t present to my audience something I wouldn’t use myself.
Indemnification clause is VERY one-sided
This is a major legal red flag. Indemnification means I would be responsible if anything went wrong; audience backlash, financial claims, misinformation, or legal issues. For a financial-lending company, that’s extremely high risk. If their services were good, why would they not backup their products and want to push liability to me?
Unlimited free reshoots
They can drag me in endless edits and it may not be worth the time and money anymore. I understand a brand wanting to make sure they can get a reshoot if something is off with the video based on their vision, but unlimited? not worth it.
Their "Morals Clause"
You might think it's understandable for a brand to want this, until you see that they can terminate the contract and not pay you (even after you posted) because they felt something you did or posted "reflects poorly on them," with no further description of what is "immoral." I feel like that's a great way to get free advertising, right?
There is so much more to that contract, but after I assessed the brands and services, going back to red flag #1, I already made my decision. This is not a service I feel actually helps people, so I can’t have my face on it. PERIOD.
The money looks good, but I know I won't even want to post it and will just regret doing the whole thing.
What is this deal actually costing me?
My brand. My reputation. My audience’s trust. My legal safety.
Sometimes the smartest move is walking away.
Learning how to evaluate contracts is important. If you’re ready to protect your content, negotiate with confidence, and understand what brands are really asking for, get my guide. For $27, it includes 60+ pages of information on every step of how to monetize your content, contract basics, templates, rate calculations, detailed instructions on finding paid brand deals, pitching yourself, and much more.
Saying “no” to a big number isn’t easy.
But saying “yes” to the wrong deal will cost you far more.
Sometimes your greatest power as a creator is a confident, strategic NO.
This is How I Can Help You When You’re Ready
Get the free step-by-step action plan (with a free portfolio template) to start landing brand deals (no big following or posting the brand required).
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