Getting an inbound from a brand feels good. It’s validation. Someone chose you. The temptation is to say yes quickly — before they change their mind.

That instinct is how creators end up doing expensive production work for brands that ghost them at invoice time.

Here’s how to vet a brand before you commit your time.

The basic check: does this company actually exist?

This sounds paranoid until the third time you get an email from “marketing@globalbrands-campaigns.com.”

Check:

Legitimate brands use their own domain. Scam campaigns typically don’t.

Payment terms are a signal

Standard B2B payment in the EU is Net 30. Some large companies run Net 60. Anything beyond 90 days is a red flag — not necessarily a scam, but a cash-flow problem you’re about to absorb on their behalf.

Ask yourself: can you float that money for three months if something goes wrong?

Payment terms you should see in writing before you produce anything:

If a brand is evasive about payment terms before you sign a brief, it’s because they already know the terms aren’t great.

The brief review

A vague brief is not generosity — it’s future ammunition. “We trust your creative vision!” sounds nice until they request revisions because the video wasn’t what they imagined.

A good brief tells you:

If there’s no written brief, write one yourself and send it for confirmation. “Here’s my understanding of the campaign — please confirm.” This protects both parties.

Revision culture

Some brands use sponsored content as a free asset-creation service. They request revision after revision, each one slightly different from the last, until the creator burns out or gives up.

Protect yourself with a revision clause: “Two rounds of revisions included. Additional revisions billed at €X/hour.”

You’ll never have to enforce it with a good brand. You’ll always need it with a difficult one.

What the community already knows

Some brands have a reputation. Late payment. Overreaching exclusivity. Impossible revision requests. Ghosting after delivery. That information exists — it’s just scattered across DMs and Twitter threads.

The most valuable thing about working in a community of creators isn’t the collaboration. It’s the collective knowledge about which brands pay on time and which ones don’t.

Before you sign with an unknown brand, ask around. Post in a creator Discord. DM someone who you know has worked in your niche. A five-minute conversation can save you three months of payment chasing.

The exclusivity trap

A 90-day exclusivity clause in a category blocks you from taking money from any competitor in that space for three months. For a €1,500 sponsored video, you might be blocking €4,500 in other potential revenue.

Exclusivity should be priced, not given away. Standard thinking: if exclusivity is included, it should be worth at least as much as your base rate. A one-month exclusivity clause on a €2,000 deal? Add €1,500–€2,000 for the exclusivity.

If a brand pushes back on paying for exclusivity, they can have a non-exclusive deal. Your content calendar stays open.

Trust your gut on culture fit

Beyond the due diligence, there’s a simpler filter: would you actually use this product?

Not “would you recommend anything for money” — but would you, if money weren’t involved, genuinely find this useful? If the answer is no, your audience will feel that. And if the deal goes sideways, you’ll feel worse about it than if you’d passed.

The best long-term brand relationships are with brands you’d have talked about anyway.

Sponstra’s Brand Intelligence database aggregates anonymous reviews from creators across the network. Before you commit to a new brand, check their Trust Score — payment reliability, brief quality, and communication are rated after every completed deal.