8 Influencer Outreach Templates (& How To Personalize Them)
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We’re all trying to balance personalization vs efficiency in influencer outreach.
Recruiting faster means higher ROI on your influencer program, but… Nobody wants to receive a templated email. Or to feel like they’re talking to a robot.
The most successful outreach programs typically template 80% of the email, then spend 5-8 minutes adding personalization.
So, here, I will:
This is the “soft ask”. It’s good for getting a simple “yes”, and opening a conversation. That leaves flexibility around how the partnership could develop, and room for negotiations.
The downside is that it will cause additional emails for back-and-forth. (The next template avoids that.)
Hope to talk soon!
Here’s an example of how you might replace the “Add personalization here” part. Relevant for this one, and the next one too.
“Your peace lily care guide came up on my FYP today. Great idea to use liquid fertilizer in spring -— totally going to try this myself! 🙂”
If a “soft ask” isn’t for you, here’s a more detailed version. This is good when you have a specific offer, and tight timelines for recruitment. It cuts out back and forth.
The downside is that it pigeonholes the partnership. You’re saying “here’s the deal, take it or leave it”, rather than opening a flexible conversation (like above).
Don’t forget to customize each part of the template too (brand intro, campaign intro, deliverables).
Here’s a breakdown of the anatomy:
And in case you want to go the extra mile, here’s an extra place you can add further personalization. You can use this to get the ball rolling on content ideation, and further prove that you’ve put some effort in & you know the creator’s work.
Here's an example of how you might replace the "Add personalization here" part (following the plant theme...)
"I caught yesterday's vid and saw you added a new philodendron to your bathroom. Good taste, I like it! 👀"
If you expect posts (rather than the no-strings approach above), be clear about that up front. Here's a template you can try for influencer gifting campaigns:
Here's an example of how you might replace the "Add personalization here" part (still following the plant theme...)
"It was so bold of you to cut your syngonium back & start again! Super underrated thing to do. Really happy to see how well it grew back for you."
Disclaimer: if you’re going back to ask for usage rights after the content is live, it’ll always be more expensive. You’re better off negotiating this from the beginning. Nevertheless, here’s one you can use, if you need it:
This doesn't explicitly ask for rates/fees relating to usage rights, but you might face additional fees for this. Especially if the creator is represented by a talent manager/agency.
Remember to replace elements like "Reel" with the actual type of deliverable, and specify the type of rights you'd like.
In our outreach survey, most marketers followed up at least 2x.
Here's one take from Dmitri Cherner:
I think that, with care, you can safely add more follow-ups. However, if you're just getting started, you likely want to keep it simple anyway.
So, here's a 3-step follow-up flow you can use that contains two initial nudges, plus a polite ending that leaves the door open for future.
If there's a sense of urgency (i.e. a timeline you're trying to meet), I suggest mentioning it in the first or second follow-up!
There are dozens of ways to personalize influencer outreach emails. Here are 8 ideas (with examples).
From doing proper vetting, you should already know a little about the person & their content. With a handful of personalization methods in your back pocket ready to use, it doesn't take long. 🙂
Example: "I'm not sure which of us is the bigger Wicked fan. I saw it THREE times this year (most recently in NYC)."
Don't BS — it will be obvious. If you have no common ground, use another method.
Example: "I saw that you've already bought [PRODUCT]. That's amazing! All our best collaborations tend to be with people who were customers first."
Example: "I was so impressed by how you integrated [BRAND] into your video last week. It felt really authentic, and enjoyable to watch. I'd love to explore something similar."
Example: "The combination of your experience traveling in Zambia plus your storytelling skills makes you PERFECT for what I have in mind."
Example: "Huge congrats on crossing 20k subs last week. It's super obvious you're putting in a ton of work. 👏"
This could also be a personal event like a wedding, birthday or anniversary (as long as they shared it publicly — don't be a creep).
Example: "Loved your take on wastage in our industry yesterday. I think a lot of us feel the same, but you articulated the situation really well."
(Ideally, make sure this ties to your brand/offer/idea in some way.)
Example: "Those little skits you've been adding lately are killing me. Especially the pirate one! 😂"
This should be something that the creator is clearly working on & improving over time. It feels good when people notice!
Example: "I just skimmed through the comments on your last couple of Reels. People are absolutely loving your pottery series. That must feel so good!"
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