Engagement rate — the percentage of your audience that actively interacts with your content — is the metric that correlates most strongly with sales for brands running influencer campaigns. Nano-influencer engagement rates average 3 to 8%, while accounts with over 1 million followers typically see rates below 1.5%.

That gap matters enormously when a brand is trying to drive actual purchases, not just impressions. A food brand that partners with 20 nano-creators in their target city will often outperform one mega-influencer post at a fraction of the cost.

A media kit is a one to two-page document that tells a brand everything they need to know to say yes to working with you. It does not need to be elaborate — it needs to be credible and specific.

Include: your account handle and bio summary, follower count and monthly reach, engagement rate, audience demographics (age, gender, top locations), 3 to 5 examples of your best-performing posts, your collaboration rates and format options, and a brief statement of your niche and tone.

The most effective brand pitches come from genuine alignment. Brands can tell immediately whether a creator actually uses their product or is just going through a list. Start with brands you already buy from, brands you would honestly recommend to your audience, and brands that are already spending on creator marketing (look for the "Paid partnership" or "ad" tags on other posts in your niche).

Smaller, growth-phase brands are often your best starting point. They have marketing budgets, they understand influencer value, and they are more responsive than large companies with complex procurement processes.

Your outreach should be short, personal, and specific. A three-paragraph email works better than a long pitch deck. Paragraph one: who you are and why you love their product (be specific — name a product, not just the brand). Paragraph two: your relevant stats and what you can offer them. Paragraph three: a clear, low-friction next step.

Subject lines matter enormously. "Collaboration inquiry" gets ignored. "Your brand + my 5k engaged [niche] audience — quick thought" performs far better because it is specific and tease-hooks the key value.