Guides

How to contact micro-influencers (email and DM)

Cameron Blackwood

You already have names. This page is the first message. The goal is a reply, not a signed deal in one paragraph.

Microinfluencer stops at the shortlist. You send the DM or email yourself. If you do not have names yet, start with how to find micro influencers.

Deal types, usage rights, and FTC labels sit in the creator partnership guide. Rates sit in how much to pay.

DM or email?

Read the bio first. If they list an email or "for collabs," use that.

If they do not:

  • Nano and most micros who run their own account: Instagram or TikTok DM. They already live in the app.
  • Email in the bio, a manager, or a mid-tier account with a full inbox: email. DMs on bigger accounts often land in requests and never get opened.
  • YouTube: the email on the About tab, not a comment.

Do not blast the same text to 80 people. Creators compare notes. A specific first line is the whole advantage a solo founder has over a marketplace template.

What the first message is for

One job: get them to say they are open to details.

Do not attach the full creator brief. Do not ask for a media kit, rate card, and audience screenshots in message one. Do not lead with "we want influencers."

Include four things:

  1. A specific post. One video, one detail. Prove you watched it.
  2. Who you are. Brand name and what you sell, in one sentence.
  3. The ask. One deliverable, not a campaign menu.
  4. A small next step. "Want a one-pager?" beats "Are you interested in a long-term ambassador partnership across Q4."

Keep the DM short enough to read on a phone without scrolling twice. Email can be three to five sentences.

Instagram DM

Hey [name]. Your 10K easy-run vlog last week (the part where you swapped shoes mid-block) is exactly the kind of training content we look for. We make a lightweight shoe for first-time 10K runners. Would you be open to one 20-30 second Reel of it on a real easy run? I can send a one-page brief if that is a maybe.

Swap the post and the product. Leave the rest.

TikTok DM

TikTok inboxes are noisier. Shorter.

Hey [name], loved the race-week routine you posted Tuesday. We make a training shoe for first 10Ks. Open to one 20-30s video on an easy run? Happy to send details.

If they reply, move the brief and the fee to email so you have a thread you can search later.

Email

Use this when they listed an address, or after a DM yes.

Subject: [Brand] x your 10K training videos

Hi [name],

I watched [specific video]. The way you talk through easy-run pacing is a better fit for us than a studio unboxing.

We sell [product, one outcome]. We are looking for one 20-30 second TikTok, filmed in your usual style, plus [organic only / paid social for 90 days]. US or UK, English.

If that is even a maybe, I can send a one-page brief and a fee range. No deck.

[Your name] [Brand]

A range is enough at this stage. Exact numbers after they confirm interest. See how much to pay micro-influencers.

One follow-up

If they do not reply, send one bump five to seven days later. Same thread. Do not add three new deliverables.

Checking this is still on your radar. Happy to drop it if the timing is bad.

If the first DM is still unread, do not stack a second DM on top of it. If you emailed, a short DM that you sent a note is fine. Then stop.

What not to send

  • "Love your vibe" with no post named.
  • A Google Drive of brand guidelines in the first ping.
  • A hashtag dump.
  • "Paid in exposure."
  • A contract before they have said yes.
  • The same message to every handle on the shortlist.

If the account looks inactive or the comments are empty, skip the message. Vet the profile first. Analyze the TikTok or Instagram username. Free allows 5 username analyses a month.

After they reply

Send the creator brief: deliverable, must-say / must-not-say, usage, ship-to, fee or gift. That is the second document, not the first.

If you only need assets for ads and they may never post to their grid, say so. That is a UGC buy, not a reach buy. UGC vs influencers is the split. Structures (gift, flat fee, affiliate, hybrid) are in the partnership guide.

Paid posts in the US need a clear disclosure. Put that in the brief, not in the cold DM.

If you still need a shortlist

Write the discovery brief first, then run Creator Discovery Agent. Free is one search a month. You still do the outreach.