11 Proven Ways to Collaborate with Influencers and Creators in 2025 (With Examples)

8 Ways to Collaborate with Influencers

Collaborating with Influencers with a massive following can give retailers a much-needed boost in brand awareness, audience engagement, and sales. But even after finding the perfect Influencers for your brand, you’re wondering: what’s the best way to leverage their influence?

Below you’ll find five effective ways of working with Influencers:

1. Whitelisting

Influencer whitelisting allows brands to convert Influencers’ content—posts, stories, reels, and more—into paid ads running from the Influencers’ accounts. Unlike mainstream advertising, brands can post these ads directly from an Influencer’s profile.

Since the target audience is already invested in the Influencer’s content, whitelisted ads will receive better engagement and reach. Besides, brands can also maximize the ROI by defining the audience they want to target and optimizing the content through A/B testing.

Here’s the perfect example of Influencer whitelisting by Florida Crystals. Their Collaboration with Influencer Priyanka Naik went out as a paid partnership reel on her account. The organic sugar brand then pushed out this reel as a whitelisted ad to get more eyes to the post and generate more brand awareness.

Best practices for Influencer whitelisting

Here are a few handy tips for whitelisting Influencer content and running profitable ads:

• Find relevant Influencers: Choose Influencers who best represent your brand personality and vision. Use Influencer databases like Afluencer to browse a collection of Influencers from different niches and channels before picking the best fit.

• Establish meaningful Influencer relationships: Trust lies at the core of Influencer whitelisting—Influencers should trust a brand enough to grant permission to run ads from their personal accounts. So, focus on nurturing a healthy relationship with your Influencers to pitch a whitelisting campaign.

• Communicate expectations transparently: Give Influencers all the information they need before you run ads from their account. Clarify your expectations and workflows to ensure there are no misunderstandings once the campaign is underway.

• Define a content strategy beforehand: Finalize the core messaging, content formats, and campaign goals before allowing Influencers to create content. A targeted content strategy can help you reach the right audience and get more from your campaign.

• Optimize content with A/B testing: Whitelisting ads means you control how the ads look and feel. Optimize your ad content by testing and modifying the format, design, CTA placement, and other elements.

2. Product seeding

Product seeding, also known as Influencer gifting, is a form of organic Influencer marketing to build brand awareness. Brands Collaborate with Influencers and send them some products in exchange for an unpaid post, like a review or an unboxing video.

Besides amplifying your brand through positive word of mouth, product seeding also builds strong social proof. When 49% of customers trust an Influencer’s recommendations over branded marketing content, this Collaboration can potentially drive your sales.

Look at Bibado’s product seeding Collab with Steph, a first-time mother. They sent Steph a newly designed bib for her newborn baby and reached a group of several expecting or new mothers among her Instagram followers. This review also conveyed all the good things about the product to create interest. 

Best practices for product seeding

Here are a few handy tips for Influencer gifting to get the best results:

• Choose the right Influencers: Since Influencers don’t get paid to promote your products, Collaborate with Influencers who already like/love your product. Scrolling through your followers’ list is a great way to find them. Once you’ve shortlisted a few names, pick the ones that best fit your audience.

• Communicate with authenticity: Establishing an initial contact can be tricky. Influencers can straight away reject your offer if you don’t communicate well. Win their trust with a friendly, crisp, personalized pitch for a Collab.

• Choose the product(s) you want to give: Pick the products your chosen Influencers would actually want to use. Do some research to understand their preferences and send products they’d genuinely like.

• Create personalized packaging: Designing a customized package with a personalized message is the easiest way to stand out from the other brands using the same tactic. This could also encourage Influencers to share a more positive review for you.

• Promote the content on different channels: Getting a review from the Influencers is just the first step. Once the review is out, reshare and promote it on multiple channels to get the maximum value.

3. Collab product

Brands with long-term Influencer relationships often solidify their partnerships by co-creating a new product with these Influencers. Designing a new product is an excellent way for retailers to tap into an Influencer’s audience for more sales. For Influencers, this means more publicity and better campaign performance.

Co-creation allows Influencers to be more closely involved in the design and development process. This also increases their commitment to the brand values, turning them into brand ambassadors with a less transactional and more meaningful partnership.

That’s precisely what ba&sh’s Collab with Arielle Charnas’s Something Navy shows. The fashion Influencer co-created a line of accessories with the luxury fashion brand as a part of Influencer marketing. This collection went out to Arielle’s 1.2 million Instagram followers, creating a stronger brand reputation for ba&sh.

Best practices for Collab product

Here are a few handy tips to co-create products with Influencers:

• Pick Influencers with industry expertise: Work with industry-leading Influencers to get the best outputs from a co-creation project. Use this opportunity to build your brand’s credibility. Besides, investing your time and money into building a brand-new product can produce the expected ROI only when Influencers have a huge follower base.

• Strengthen Influencer partnerships: A surefire way to win at co-creation is developing an airtight relationship with the Influencers you have chosen to Collaborate with. When involving an Influencer in the backend development process, you want to ensure they’re fully committed to your brand.

• Involve their audience in the creation process: You can maximize the returns from a Collab product and increase conversions post-launch by involving the Influencers’ audience in the creation process. Include their inputs and ideas to create a customer-centric design.

4. Giveaways

Partnering with Influencers to host giveaways is an excellent way to create buzz around your brand, win more followers, and engage with a community of interested buyers. When done right, giveaways can enhance brand consideration and encourage more people to participate.

Influencers are also more inclined towards a giveaway since it’s an easy way to earn followers and ramp up engagement. Plus, there are many ways brands can use this tactic, such as:

• Co-host a giveaway with Influencers

• Promote a giveaway through Influencers

Here’s how Sherwin-Williams conducted a giveaway contest with Annika, a DIY decor Influencer on Instagram. The paint brand chose a niche Influencer whose followers showed interest in decor and craft, with one shared interest: paint. The giveaway rules helped both parties gain followers and allowed the brand to expand its audience on Instagram.

Best practices for giveaways

Here are a few handy tips for hosting giveaways with the Influencers you Collaborate with:

• Give Influencers creative freedom: The success of a giveaway campaign depends on how well Influencers can run the show. Give them the creative freedom and encouragement to engage with their audience from the start and hit the targets for the campaign.

• Set criteria to maximize engagement: Don’t overcomplicate your giveaway with too many rules. Choose a set of doable rules to maximize engagement on the giveaway post and attract new audiences.

• Promote the giveaway everywhere: Share the news about the giveaway on different channels to increase traction. Repurpose the post and publish it across social media platforms, emails, and other channels for maximum participation.

• Create urgency with a countdown: Ask Influencers to run a countdown for the giveaway and create a sense of urgency to remind more people about it.

5. Create a contest

Brands can leverage an Influencer’s massive following to run a contest or start a challenge nudging people to complete a task. This ultimately leads to a collection of user-generated content and social proof for the brand.

You need fresh and creative ideas to create a viral contest and make the headlines. Once these Influencer-run contests blow up, you’ll have a solid community of hyper-engaged users.

Colgate’s #MakeMomSmile campaign became a viral trend with over 5 billion views on TikTok, thanks to its Influencer partnerships. What started as a single video by a TikTok Influencer (also a Colgate partner) quickly went viral and had thousands of videos. This example shows how retailers can work with a few Influencers to host a contest and ace UGC marketing.

Best practices for creating a contest

Here are a few handy tips for running contests with Influencers:

• Choose an on-brand hashtag: A hashtag is the best way to accumulate all your user-generated content. So, before launching the contest, think of a unique hashtag that sticks with you. Involve the Influencers you Collaborate with in the brainstorming process to pick a good one.

• Pick a doable and share-worthy task: Make the contest easily achievable. You don’t want to stress your audience with a complicated task. Choose an activity they can easily perform and encourage them to participate.

• Define clear rules for the contest: Create a list of rules to make your contest fair to everyone. The goal isn’t just to create a lot of content. You also want to reward users for their efforts in participating. So, choose a prize for the winners and finalize the rules for the contest.

6. Podcast Features

Podcasts continue to grow in popularity and offer a unique way to connect with audiences. Collaborating with influencers who have their own podcasts or creating branded podcast episodes together can be a game-changer. Podcasts allow for in-depth conversations that can showcase your brand’s personality, provide valuable insights, and engage listeners on a deeper level. Partnering with influencers in this way helps you tap into their loyal audience, who trust their opinions and expertise.

When it comes to ways to collaborate with influencers, podcast episodes allow you to amplify your message in a relaxed and relatable format. It’s an effective strategy that builds brand awareness, nurtures relationships with your audience, and creates long-lasting connections with influencers.

Here’s how to make the most out of podcast features:

Benefits of Podcast Features

• In-Depth Discussions: Podcasts allow for detailed conversations about your products or services. Influencers can share their experiences and insights, giving listeners valuable information.
• Storytelling: Influencers can weave your brand’s story into their podcast episodes. This helps build a deeper connection with their audience.
• Personal Connection: The intimate nature of podcasts helps create a personal bond between the influencer, their audience, and your brand.

Best Practices for Podcast Features

• Choose the Right Influencer:

Alignment: Ensure the influencer’s audience aligns with your target market. Their followers should be interested in your products or services.

Engagement: Pick influencers who have high engagement rates on their podcasts. This shows their audience is actively listening and interested.

• Plan the Content Together:

Collaboration: Work with the influencer to plan the episode. Discuss the key messages and topics to cover.

Natural Integration: Ensure the promotion of your brand feels natural and not forced. Authenticity is key to maintaining listener trust.

• Create Valuable Content

Educational: Provide useful and informative content. This could be industry insights, tips, or behind-the-scenes stories.

Entertaining: Keep the content engaging and entertaining. This helps retain listeners and keeps them coming back for more.

• Promote the Episode

Cross-Promotion: Use your social media channels to promote the podcast episode. Share snippets or quotes to generate interest.

Influencer’s Platform: Encourage the influencer to promote the episode on their channels too. This maximizes reach and engagement. 

7. Influencer Takeovers

Influencer takeovers are a fantastic way to breathe new life into your social media channels. By allowing influencers to take control of your account for a day, you can attract their followers, boost engagement, and offer fresh content. Here’s how to execute successful influencer takeovers:

Benefits of Influencer Takeovers

• Fresh Perspective: Influencers bring their unique style and voice to your brand’s account, offering a fresh perspective that can captivate your audience.
• Increased Reach: Influencers’ followers will likely visit your account to see their content, increasing your reach and potential follower count.
• Enhanced Engagement: Takeovers typically involve interactive content like Q&As, live sessions, and behind-the-scenes looks, which drive higher engagement.

Best Practices for Influencer Takeovers

• Choose the Right Influencer

Relevance: Select an influencer whose audience aligns with your brand’s target demographic. Their followers should find your content appealing.

Authenticity: The influencer’s values and style should match your brand’s image to ensure a seamless takeover.

• Plan the Takeover

Set Clear Goals: Define what you want to achieve with the takeover, such as increased followers, higher engagement, or promoting a specific product.

Content Strategy: Collaborate with the influencer to plan the content for the takeover. Ensure there’s a mix of posts, stories, and possibly live sessions.

• Create a Schedule

Timeline: Establish a timeline for the takeover, including start and end times. Plan when each piece of content will be posted.

Content Approval: Review and approve all content beforehand to ensure it aligns with your brand’s guidelines.

• Promote the Takeover

Announcement: Announce the takeover in advance on your social media channels. Use teasers and countdowns to build anticipation.

Cross-Promotion: Encourage the influencer to promote the takeover on their channels to drive their followers to your account.

• Engage with the Audience

Interactive Content: Include interactive elements like Q&A sessions, polls, and live videos. This keeps the audience engaged and encourages participation.

Real-Time Interaction: Have the influencer respond to comments and messages in real-time to foster a sense of community and connection. 

8. Educational Webinars and Workshops

If you’re looking for one of the more “formal” ways to collaborate with influencers, try educational webinars and workshops. Collabbin’ with influencers this way can position your brand as a thought leader while providing valuable content to your audience. These events allow influencers to share their expertise and experiences in a structured, informative format. Collaborating on educational webinars and workshops offers a unique opportunity to engage your target market, demonstrate your brand’s commitment to industry knowledge, and foster a deeper connection with potential customers. Here’s how to effectively leverage educational webinars and workshops:

Benefits of Educational Webinars and Workshops

• Authority and Credibility: Hosting webinars and workshops with knowledgeable influencers can boost your brand’s credibility and authority in your industry.
• Engagement and Interaction: Live events offer real-time interaction with the audience, fostering engagement and a sense of community.
• Lead Generation: These events can be excellent tools for generating leads. Collect attendee information for future marketing efforts.

Best Practices for Educational Webinars and Workshops

• Choose the Right Influencer: We can’t stress this enough!

Expertise: Select an influencer who is an expert in your industry. Their knowledge and credibility will attract attendees and enhance the event’s value. 

Audience Alignment: Ensure the influencer’s audience aligns with your target market. This ensures the content is relevant and engaging for attendees.

• Plan the Event

Define Objectives: Set clear objectives for the webinar or workshop. Determine whether the focus is on brand awareness, product education, or lead generation. 

Content Strategy: Collaborate with the influencer to develop a detailed agenda. Include key topics, interactive elements, and a Q&A session to keep the audience engaged.

• Promote the Event

Pre-Event Marketing: Use your social media channels, email newsletters, and website to promote the event. Create engaging visuals and teasers to build excitement.

Influencer Promotion: Encourage the influencer to promote the event on their channels. This expands the reach and attracts their followers to join.

• Engage the Audience

Interactive Elements: Incorporate polls, quizzes, and live Q&A sessions to make the event interactive. This keeps attendees engaged and encourages participation.

Exclusive Content: Offer exclusive content or insights that are not available elsewhere. This adds value and makes the event more appealing.

• Provide Value

Educational Focus: Ensure the content is educational and valuable. Avoid making the event too promotional. Focus on providing insights, tips, and actionable advice.

Practical Takeaways: Include practical takeaways that attendees can implement. This enhances the perceived value of the event.

• Follow Up

Post-Event Engagement: Follow up with attendees after the event. Send a thank-you email, share a recording of the webinar or workshop, and provide additional resources.

Feedback and Analysis: Collect feedback from attendees to understand their experience. Analyze the event’s performance to identify areas for improvement.

Examples of Educational Webinar and Workshop Topics

• Industry Trends: Discuss the latest trends and developments in your industry.
• How-To Guides: Provide step-by-step guides on using your products or services.
• Expert Panels: Host panel discussions with multiple influencers or industry experts.
• Case Studies: Share successful case studies and real-world applications of your products. 

3 Ways to Collaborate with Creators

Creators are those who produce content for an audience and monetize this content. They have a relatively smaller following than Influencers. But Content Creators share a deeper and more constructive relationship with their followers.

Here are three of the best ways retailers can Collaborate with Creators:

1. Whitelisting

Whitelisting works the same way for Creators as it does for Influencers. Brands can whitelist Creators’ content as paid ads and bring their followers into the sales funnel. Since Creators produce more authentic content, these whitelisting ads can prove more beneficial than Influencer ads.

Here’s how Beam Collaborated with various Creators to run whitelisted story ads on Instagram and Facebook. The coffee brand repurposed its stories and posts into story ads with a swipe-up CTA.

Best practices for whitelisting

Here are a few tips to whitelist Creators’ content:

• Select niche-based Creators: Handpick Creators that align with your brand identity. Find Creators on social media using relevant hashtags or use Creator database platforms like Afluencer to pick the right Creators. Assess their engagement rates and comments to see how well they fit your requirements.

• Clearly communicate your guidelines: Let Creators know the campaign goals, timelines, requirements, and budget. Clarifying these details brings more transparency into your partnerships and minimizes the scope of misunderstandings.

• Set KPIs to measure success: Choose a list of metrics for each goal to review the Creators’ performance. You can track these KPIs directly from the ads manager on Facebook.

2. Branded commercials

Producing branded ads is another unique way for retailers to Collaborate with Creators. Similar to sponsored posts, these posts have a “paid partnership” or “sponsored” tag on Instagram and Facebook. Branded commercials feature Creators advertising the brand in a story, reel, or feed post format. 

For instance, TokyoTreat’s Collab with Luna, a Japanese gaming Creator, shows how branded commercials work. Luna created an unboxing reel with their snack box and shared it with a “paid partnership” tag. The brand also promoted this reel as a sponsored ad and gained more views. 

Best practices for branded commercials

Here are a few handy tips for creating branded commercials with Creators you Collaborate with:

• Create value-packed content: One of the most effective ways to get the best out of branded commercials is by sharing value through the Creators’ content. Create educational or entertaining content that intrigues the viewers instead of disrupting their experience.

• Give Creators complete control: Creators will do their best work when they enjoy creative control over their content. Create a set of guidelines to maintain consistency in all posts. But keep the final say with the Creators and let them flex their creative muscles.

• Don’t be too promotional: Since these are sponsored posts randomly appearing on users’ social media feeds, don’t make the ads overly promotional. The more organic and helpful your posts are, the better.

3. UGC reviews

Creators with a smaller following are open to creating content like product reviews or live-action videos. This is an opportunity for retailers to double down on Creator partnerships and build solid social proof on these platforms.

For instance, Coréelle Collaborated with Alisson, a beauty content creator, to review three products. This post included an honest and extensive review of all the products, raising interest from Alisson’s IG community and building more credibility for the skincare brand. Her review also covered a few downsides of the products, making the review less promotional and more realistic.

Best practices for UGC reviews

Here are a few handy tips for creating UGC reviews with Creators you Collaborate with:

• Design channel-specific strategies: Targeting multiple channels is one of the excellent ways to expand your reach and earn users’ trust through UGC. Do your research to identify people’s preferences and create channel-specific strategies.

• Run Influencer hashtag campaigns: Level up the UGC campaign with hashtags. Let Creators use these hashtags to encourage their followers to post brand-aligned content. Create a trend using these hashtags and your Creators.

• Repurpose UGC content for different channels: Recreate your UGC posts into other formats for distribution across various channels. Convert all IG reels and TikToks into YouTube videos and share all posts through a newsletter.

Working with Influencers and Creators Made Easy with Afluencer

Partnering with the right influencers and creators can do wonders for ecommerce brands. Finding the perfect fit for your brand is a breeze with the Afluencer.

Afluencer is an all-in-one influencer marketing platform designed to connect brands with influencers and creators across various niches, platforms, and regions. Whether you’re a small business or a large enterprise, Afluencer simplifies the process of discovering, connecting, and collaborating with the right influencers to elevate your marketing efforts. With its user-friendly interface and powerful features, Afluencer helps you streamline your influencer marketing campaigns from start to finish.
Here’s why Afluencer is your go-to platform for seamless collaborations:

Massive Selection of Influencers and Creators Afluencer offers a huge selection of influencers and creators from various niches, platforms, and regions. Whether you need a beauty guru, a car enthusiast, or a food fanatic, Afluencer has you covered. Simply use the intuitive search filters to find influencers who align with your brand’s values and target audience. 

Influencer Spotlight: Seymar K. – Fashion & Beauty 

When it comes to fashion and beauty, Seyma K. is an influencer who stands out from the crowd. With content that looks like images straight out of a high-end magazine, Seyma effortlessly combines luxury with everyday wear. Her stunning fashion choices and beauty tips will inspire you to ditch your boring outfits and “Wake up, beauty—it’s time to BEAST,” as she says, LOL.

Seyma’s feed is filled with elegant yet bold styles, from chic street looks to glamorous, red-carpet-worthy ensembles. She’s the go-to source for anyone looking to add a little sparkle to their wardrobe or elevate their beauty routine.

Influencers like Seyma K. are just a click away on Afluencer, making it easy for brands to connect with top-tier creators in the fashion and beauty space. With Afluencer, you don’t have to search far to find influencers who can truly elevate your brand’s image.

Streamlined Discovery and Outreach With Afluencer, discovering and reaching out to potential collaborators is super easy. The platform’s user-friendly interface allows you to browse profiles, view engagement metrics, and check out past collaborations. Once you’ve shortlisted your top picks, you can send proposals directly through the app, saving you time and effort.

Create Collabs and Attract Influencers One of Afluencer’s standout features is the ability to create collaboration opportunities and have influencers come to you. Post your campaign details, requirements, and goals, and let interested influencers apply. This approach not only saves you time but also ensures that the influencers who reach out are genuinely interested in working with your brand.

Collaboration Management Made Simple Managing multiple collaborations can be a headache, but not with Afluencer. The app provides tools to track communications, set up campaigns, and more all in one place. You can easily keep tabs on your collaborations and ensure everything runs smoothly.

Tailored Recommendations Afluencer offers tailored recommendations to help you find the best influencers and creators for your brand. Based on your campaign needs and brand profile, the platform suggests influencers who are a perfect match. This feature ensures that you’re connecting with influencers who can truly elevate your brand.

Support If you ever need help, Afluencer’s support team is just a click away, ready to assist you with any questions or issues. We got your back, 7 days a week.

Using Afluencer to find and collaborate with influencers and creators is not just easy—it’s fun and engaging. By taking advantage of these ways to collaborate with influencers, you can enhance your brand’s visibility, build authentic connections, and achieve your marketing goals with ease. So why wait? Dive into the world of influencer marketing, sign up with Afluencer and watch your brand soar!