Two parts: required and creative
Required: what must appear. The ad label, tags and links, any code, claims the creator must not make, the deliverables and the dates.
Creative direction: everything else. The idea, the story, the setting and the words are theirs. Give key messages, not lines to read.
Keep it short, about a page, easy to read on a phone.
Their own words, not a script
Ask creators to say it in their own words. Followers trust a creator for their voice, and a script hides it.
Never give several creators the same caption to post word for word. Followers notice, and trust in the brand falls.
Honest views are welcome
Say that honest views are welcome, including what they don’t love. Show the product in real use, if it suits their style.
Product facts
Take product facts from your product record in Products: the name, sizes, flavours or packs, and what it does.
List the claims a creator may make, and any they must not, such as health claims.
Labels, AI and edits
Tell the creator which ad label to use, where, and for how long on screen. See Ad labels by market.
Ask them to tell you if any part is made with AI, and to use the platform’s AI label if it looks real.
Ask them not to use filters that change how the product looks or works.
Where to put it
Write the brief in your own document and send it with your message. We draft messages; you copy and send them yourself.
Sources and dates
Guardrails, not scripts: Duffek, Eisingerich, Merlo and Lee, Journal of Marketing (online 06-02-2025), from 185 interviews; Arsel, Zanette and da Rocha Melo, Journal of Marketing (2025).
Same captions and honest negatives: Yesiloglu and Costello (eds.), Influencer Marketing, Routledge 2021, pages 84 and 126.
As read on 31-10-2026.