Many companies approach a creator with the same question they’d ask an influencer: how many people follow them.
That’s the right question for a different line of work. What matters here is what you can produce.
What you’re buying is the ability to shoot a video that performs well in the feed—with the lighting, pacing, and first three seconds that the platform values—and that you can reuse in advertising for months.
The creator’s audience remains an added advantage, and is included in the contract as a publication clause.
Below is how we put it into practice.
Companies have been producing content for years, often quite well.
The material is carefully crafted from the start: controlled lighting, the product prominently featured, and a polished message.
Then it shows up in the feed and passes by without catching anyone’s attention, while a video filmed in the kitchen with a phone rakes in thousands of views right next to it.
The difference isn’t in the technical quality.
It lies in the fact that each platform has its own language, made up of rhythm, camera angles, opening seconds, and the way people speak.
Those who work with it every day know it from experience and apply it without even thinking about it.
There is a second difference, one that is less obvious and more costly.
A creator’s content comes from a real person, and that changes the way it’s viewed: it’s not an ad—it’s someone showing something.
When that same content is used in advertising, it yields better results than material produced in a studio; however, this is only true if the rights of use were agreed upon before filming began.
We work with companies that need a steady stream of content in large volumes and that want that content to be tailored to the platforms where it will be published.
FARO is the approach we take to every project. When applied to a campaign featuring creators, it ensures consistency in the selection of profiles, the quality of their content, and the right to reuse it.
An influencer is paid for the audience they’ve built: the value lies in the recommendations they make to their followers.
A creator is paid for what they produce: the value lies in the content, which the company can also use on its own channels.
Many profiles do both, but the contract and metrics vary.
The difference between a collaboration and a content library comes down to a single line in a contract.
With usage rights agreed upon before filming, the content produced by a creator is used in campaigns, product pages, and internal communications throughout the agreed-upon period.
It is the step that transforms a time-sensitive production into an asset that remains with the company.
Start with the format you need for the launch, not the profile.
A product that needs to be shown in use requires a video creator; a product that’s evaluated visually requires photography.
They then look at the portfolio in that category, the turnaround times, and the usage rights, because launch content remains in advertising for months.
The financial commitment consists of:
Both sides depend on the choices we make together.
The first pieces of content typically arrive within a few weeks of signing the brief. We define the scope during a meeting, then put in writing exactly what it includes.
The method remains the same; what changes are the questions people ask, the channels they use, and the timing of their decisions. These are the four areas where we have the most expertise.
A creator produces content that is clearly recognizable as theirs, with their own visual style. A UGC creator produces content that looks like it was filmed by an ordinary customer, and the company uses it for advertising. These are two different outcomes, and they must be explicitly requested in the brief.
Not necessarily. If the content is used on the company’s channels and in advertising, what matters is the quality of the production. The creator’s audience becomes relevant when the content is also posted on their profile.
It depends on what is written in the contract. Ownership generally remains with the creator, while the company acquires a license to use the material for a specified duration, through specified channels, and in specified territories. Without that clause, the material cannot be used in advertising.
Objective of the content, format and duration, number of deliverables, required elements such as the product and message, what to avoid, visual references, deadlines, and the number of revisions planned.
To keep channels updated consistently, you need a steady stream of content—typically a few posts per month. For a launch, a concentrated batch of content in different formats lets you test which ones work best before investing in advertising.
On channels, based on views, watch time, and interactions. In advertising, based on cost per result for the same audience and offer. Creators are compared using the same metrics and over the same time period.
Yes, and it’s the best choice when the product needs to be shown where it’s made or used. On-location filming requires more planning and time, but it yields footage that would be difficult to obtain otherwise.
Times change, as do production costs and language. A film crew offers total control and content designed for long-form formats; a creator offers volume, speed, and a language native to the platforms. The two coexist well.
Many companies know that content is important, but they may not necessarily know what kind of content they need.
That’s exactly what a meeting is for: to figure out where to publish, what you need to showcase, and how long that material should remain available.
From there, we determine the appropriate formats, creators, and usage rights to be agreed upon.
