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Stop second-guessing every email. Find ready-made pitches, replies, and follow-ups — plus the (After) Hours breakdown of what brands really mean (and how to respond like a pro).
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This is probably why you’re here in the first place.
A quick-and-easy set of pitches that resonate. These templates ensure your initial outreach makes a lasting impression without taking you an age. It goes without saying, do not copy verbatim. Instead, steal the format and make them super specific to each brand you want to reach out to.
We get hundreds of pitches every single week at ARAY and these are the most common mistakes we see:
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Taking a little extra time to research the brand and personalize your email goes a long way. Mention their recent campaign, product, or brand values.
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It’s giving me, me, me. Brands don’t actually care about you, or your UGC journey. They care about what you can do for them. Lead with how you can solve a problem or improve their content strategy.
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Brands and agencies are managed by people.
People are busy, and emails get buried. A polite follow-up after 7-10 days can boost your response rate. You’re not bothering them with one extra email.
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Congratulations, you’ve got a bite from a brand 🍎
Next step, confidently navigate budget conversations, offers, and collaborations. Often, this is where creators overthink the most. We’re here to say don’t bother.
Negotiating doesn’t need to daunting, it just needs to be done.
If there’s any pro-tip we can offer, it’s to leave yourself the best opportunity to delight the brand. If you know you’re going to deliver raw footage or stills as standard, keep that to yourself and let it be a surprise on delivery.
Your UGC process will vary slightly every time you work on a project, but it should always be clear, consistent, and simple enough for clients to follow.
While brands and agencies may have their own ways of working, you should always be aiming to stick as closely to your own workflow as possible. Templating your emails is an easy way to do this.