How to Get Brand Deals With No Followers
2 October 2026 · OpenWild
Getting brand deals with no followers may sound impossible, but you do not always need a large audience to work with brands. The creator economy has changed the way companies approach content, and many brands now work with creators because of the content they can produce rather than simply because of how many people follow them.
If you can create engaging videos, demonstrate products naturally, or communicate a brand’s message clearly, you can start building opportunities even while your social media audience is still small.
The key is understanding the difference between being paid for your audience and being paid for your content.
Can You Get Brand Deals With No Followers?
Yes, you can get brand deals without having a large following. The type of opportunity available to you will depend on what the brand needs.
Traditional influencer campaigns are usually focused on distribution. A brand pays a creator to reach their audience through a post, Story, Reel, TikTok, or YouTube video. In this situation, audience size can be an important factor.
UGC campaigns work differently. A brand may hire you to create a video that it can use on its own social media channels, website, or advertising campaigns. The brand is primarily paying for your ability to create content rather than your follower count.
This creates an opportunity for new creators who have strong content skills but are still building their audience.
What Are Brand Deals?
A brand deal is an agreement between a creator and a company where the creator receives compensation for providing content, promotion, exposure, or another agreed deliverable.
Brand deals can include sponsored posts, TikTok videos, Instagram Reels, YouTube videos, product reviews, tutorials, testimonials, unboxing videos, and UGC advertisements.
The requirements can vary significantly from one campaign to another. Some brands may want you to publish the content to your own account, while others may only need you to create the content for them to use.
Understanding this difference can help you find opportunities that do not depend heavily on follower count.
Brand Deals vs. UGC Deals
If you have no followers, UGC can be one of the most relevant types of brand work to explore.
With a traditional influencer deal, your audience is part of what the brand is buying. With UGC, the brand is generally interested in the content itself.
For example, a skincare company might pay a creator to make a 30-second video showing how they use a product. The company could then use that video as an Instagram Reel, TikTok, website asset, or paid advertisement.
The creator does not necessarily need to have a large audience because the brand can distribute the content through its own channels.
How to Get Your First Brand Deal With No Followers
Start by creating examples of the type of content you want brands to buy. You do not have to wait for a company to send you a product before building a portfolio.
Look around your home and choose products you already use. Create short videos demonstrating them, explaining how they work, or showing a problem they solve. Treat these videos as portfolio pieces rather than pretending they are sponsored content.
A few strong examples can demonstrate your ability to create hooks, shoot video, edit footage, communicate benefits, and make products look natural on camera.
Your portfolio should answer one simple question for a brand: Can this creator make content that we can use?
Create a UGC Portfolio
Your portfolio does not need to be complicated. A simple collection of five to ten strong examples can be enough to demonstrate your style.
Try to include different formats rather than creating the same type of video repeatedly. You could include a product demonstration, testimonial, unboxing, tutorial, problem-and-solution video, voiceover, and lifestyle video.
If you want to work with technology brands, for example, your portfolio should contain technology-related examples. If you want to work with beauty brands, create examples that demonstrate products in that category.
The more relevant your portfolio is to a campaign, the easier it becomes for a brand to imagine you creating content for them.
You Don’t Need to Look Like an Influencer
One of the biggest advantages of UGC is that the content does not necessarily need to look like a traditional influencer advertisement.
Brands often want videos that feel native to TikTok, Instagram, and other social platforms. A simple video filmed on a phone can sometimes be more appropriate than a highly produced commercial.
What matters is whether the video captures attention, communicates the product clearly, and feels natural to the person watching it.
This means you should focus on your content skills rather than trying to make your profile look like a celebrity account.
Find Brands That Work With Small Creators
Once your portfolio is ready, start looking for brands that are actively working with creators.
You can find potential companies through social media, creator communities, direct outreach, and creator marketplaces. Search for brands that already use UGC or creator content in their marketing because they are more likely to understand the value of this type of work.
You can also look for specific campaign opportunities instead of contacting companies one by one.
OpenWild is built around this type of connection. Creators can discover brand campaigns and look for opportunities that match their content skills without relying entirely on their follower count.
Explore brand opportunities on OpenWild
How to Pitch Brands With No Followers
When contacting a brand, do not make your lack of followers the focus of your pitch.
Instead, show the company what you can create for them.
A strong pitch can briefly explain who you are, what type of content you create, why the brand is relevant to your content, and include examples of your work.
Instead of saying, “I don’t have many followers but I would love to work with you,” focus on the value you can provide.
For example, you might explain that you create short-form product videos and have prepared a portfolio specifically around the brand’s category.
Your content should make the conversation about what you can produce rather than what you currently lack.
How Much Can You Make From Brand Deals Without Followers?
There is no fixed rate for brand deals without followers. Pricing depends on the type of content, number of deliverables, production requirements, revisions, usage rights, exclusivity, and whether the content will be published on your account.
A creator producing UGC may charge for the production of the video itself, while an influencer campaign may also include the value of access to the creator’s audience.
This is why follower count should not automatically determine the value of your work. If a company wants to use your video in paid advertising, for example, usage rights can become an important part of the agreement.
Before accepting a campaign, make sure you understand exactly how the brand plans to use your content.
What Brands Look for in New Creators
Follower count is only one possible signal when brands evaluate creators.
Companies may also look at video quality, communication skills, creativity, reliability, niche relevance, camera presence, editing ability, and whether the creator can follow a brief.
A creator with 300 followers who consistently produces clear and engaging product videos can potentially be useful to a brand looking for UGC.
Your goal should therefore be to demonstrate that you understand how to create content for brands.
Don’t Wait for Brands to Discover You
One of the most common mistakes new creators make is waiting for brands to contact them.
You can be proactive instead.
Build your portfolio, identify relevant brands, apply to campaigns, create content consistently, and improve your skills with every project. The first opportunity may be small, but completing real campaigns gives you experience, examples for your portfolio, and a better understanding of what brands actually need.
Over time, your portfolio can become more valuable than simply having a large number displayed on your social profile.
Get Brand Deals Before You Have a Big Audience
You do not need to become an influencer before you can start working with brands.
If you can create useful, engaging, and authentic content, you already have a skill that companies can use. UGC and creator campaigns give smaller creators a way to monetize their ability to make content without depending entirely on follower count.
The most important first step is to stop thinking of yourself only as someone trying to grow an audience and start thinking of yourself as a creator who can produce something valuable for a brand.
Build your portfolio, find relevant campaigns, and put your content skills to work.
