Templates
Influencer Marketing RFP Template: Get Agency Proposals You Can Compare
An influencer marketing RFP template turns a vague request for ideas into proposals you can actually compare. When every agency receives the same objective, deliverables, rights, timeline, reporting needs and budget range, their answers line up field by field and the decision gets faster and fairer. Below is a complete template with the fields to copy, what to write in each, and how to ask agencies to format their response.
Short answer
What should an influencer marketing RFP include?
A good influencer marketing RFP covers the brand and context, the objective and success measures, product status, target audience and creator mix, deliverables per platform, usage rights and exclusivity, timeline and approval process, reporting and data handover, the budget range and fee format, and how proposals will be evaluated. Ask every agency to answer in the same structure.
- Brand, product and campaign context
- Objective and how success will be measured
- Product status: documents, store, stock, price
- Audience and preferred creator mix
- Deliverables, platforms, rights and exclusivity
- Timeline, approvals, reporting and data handover
- Budget range, fee breakdown and evaluation criteria
1. What is an influencer marketing RFP template, and why use one?
An influencer marketing RFP (request for proposal) is the written brief you send to agencies so they can propose a plan and a price. A template makes sure you include the same information every time and ask for answers in the same format.
Without one, each agency fills the gaps with its own assumptions. One prices three TikTok videos with organic use only; another prices five videos with three months of paid usage. The totals look different, but you cannot tell whether one agency is cheaper or simply quoting less. This RFP is different from a creator brief: the creator brief tells a creator what to film, while the RFP tells an agency what problem to solve. Our creator brief checklist covers the creator side.
If you are still deciding which agencies to invite, our guide on how to choose an influencer agency in Vietnam lists the 12 questions to score them on.
How to choose an influencer agency in VietnamCreator brief checklist
2. Section A: brand and campaign context
Open with what an agency needs to understand your situation in two minutes. Keep it factual and short; the detail goes in later sections.
Include anything that changes the plan, such as a launch date, a sales season, or a past campaign whose results you want to beat.
- Company and brand name, category, markets
- Product or range covered by this campaign
- Why now: launch, relaunch, season, new channel
- Past creator campaigns and what you learned
- Main contact and decision makers
3. Section B: objective and success measures
State one primary objective and how you will judge it. Agencies design very different plans for awareness, content volume, review coverage or sales through TikTok Shop and Shopee, so a single clear priority produces sharper proposals.
Name the measures you will use and where the data comes from: platform analytics, affiliate dashboards, your store data, or a brand-lift survey. If you have a target, say so; if not, ask agencies to propose realistic ranges and explain their reasoning.
- Primary objective (one only)
- Secondary objectives, if any
- Success measures and data sources
- Targets, or a request for proposed ranges
4. Section C: product status
Tell agencies exactly where the product stands, because it decides what creators can say and when they can post. A product without a live store listing cannot run an affiliate program; a product without its documents ready creates risk for creators.
Under Article 15a of the Advertising Law as amended by Law 75/2025/QH15, in force from 1 January 2026, influencers must check the advertiser and the product documents before advertising, so list which documents you can share. Our influencer advertising law guide explains the full set of obligations.
- Product documents available to share with creators
- Approved claims and claims that are not allowed
- Store status: TikTok Shop, Shopee, own website, retail
- Stock and sample quantities available
- Retail price, promotions and affiliate commission, if set
5. Section D: audience and creator mix
Describe who you want to reach and what kind of creators you think fit, but leave room for the agency to recommend. A good agency will challenge a mix that does not suit the goal.
If you already know the volume you need, share it; if not, ask agencies to show how they sized the plan. Our guide to how many influencers you need explains the backwards method you can ask them to use.
- Target audience: age, location, interests, needs
- Preferred creator types: KOL, KOC, UGC, livestream hosts
- Creators or categories to avoid
- Expected volume, or a request for a sizing rationale
6. Section E: deliverables and platforms
List the outputs you expect per platform, or ask the agency to propose them against your objective. Be explicit about what counts as one deliverable.
Mention content you want to reuse elsewhere, such as raw clips for ads or product pages, because it affects both the brief to creators and the price.
- Platforms: TikTok, TikTok Shop, Shopee, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube
- Formats: short video, livestream, photo post, story set, review
- Number of deliverables per creator
- Raw files or extra cuts needed
- Disclosure requirements for every post
7. Section F: usage rights, exclusivity and paid amplification
Rights and exclusivity are where quotes diverge most, so define them in the RFP rather than leaving each agency to guess. State where you want to reuse the content, for how long, and whether you will run it as ads from the creator's account or your own.
Our guide to usage rights and whitelisting explains the options and the trade-offs. The KOL and KOC contract checklist shows how these terms end up in the creator agreement.
- Usage: organic reposting, ads, website, retail screens
- Duration and territory of usage
- Paid amplification from creator accounts, if needed
- Category exclusivity and its period
8. Section G: timeline and approval process
Give the key dates and explain who approves what. Agencies plan resourcing and creator availability around these, and an unrealistic timeline is better discovered in the proposal than in week three.
Be honest about your internal approval steps. If a regional or overseas head office must sign off scripts, say so and state how long it usually takes; agencies can then build that into the schedule.
- Proposal deadline and pitch dates
- Campaign start, posting window and end date
- Who approves scripts and final cuts, and how fast
- Number of revision rounds you expect
9. Section H: reporting and data handover
Say what you want to receive during and after the campaign. This makes reporting part of the price, not an extra request later.
Ask for a sample report in the proposal. Our creator campaign reporting guide lists the measures worth asking for.
- Reporting frequency during the campaign
- Final report contents and deadline
- Per-creator and per-post data
- Content links, raw files and payment records at the end
- Access to the creator list after the campaign, if wanted
10. Section I: budget range and fee format
Share a budget range. Agencies cannot design a sensible plan without one, and a range stops proposals from being either padded or impossibly thin.
Ask for the same fee breakdown from everyone so the numbers can be compared. Creator fees, agency fees and third-party costs should be separate lines, with assumptions stated. Our creator campaign budget guide explains which costs to expect.
- Budget range and what it must cover
- Creator costs per creator or per deliverable
- Agency management or production fees
- Samples, shipping and paid amplification as separate lines
- Payment terms and invoicing requirements
11. Section J: proposal format and evaluation criteria
Tell agencies how to structure the response and how you will judge it. Publishing the criteria improves the proposals, because agencies focus on what you care about.
Example criteria: understanding of the objective, quality of the creator approach, operational plan and timeline, compliance and contracts, reporting, and value for money. Give each a weight and use the same scorecard for every agency.
- Response structure that mirrors sections A to I
- A sample creator shortlist with selection reasons
- Team members and their roles
- A sample report and creator contract template
- Evaluation criteria and their weights
12. How to send the RFP and avoid common mistakes
Send the same document to every agency on the same day, with one contact for questions and one deadline. Share answers to questions with all agencies, so nobody gets an information advantage.
The common mistakes are predictable: no budget range, no definition of rights, a timeline that ignores internal approvals, and asking for free creative work in the pitch. Ask for approach and examples instead of finished scripts, and save the real creative work for the paid pilot.
- Same document, same deadline, same contact
- Shared Q and A for all agencies
- No free spec work; ask for approach and examples
- Score with one scorecard, then run a paid pilot
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between an RFP and a creator brief?
An RFP goes to agencies and describes the problem, budget and constraints so they can propose a plan. A creator brief goes to individual creators and tells them what to make, the key messages and the rules for one deliverable.
Should I share my budget in an influencer RFP?
Yes, at least as a range. Without it, agencies guess, and proposals become impossible to compare. A range lets each agency show what it can deliver for the same money.
How long should agencies get to respond?
Give enough time for a considered answer, usually one to two weeks for a standard campaign, and more if you ask for a creator shortlist. Fix the deadline in the RFP and keep it the same for everyone.
How many agencies should receive the RFP?
Three to five is usually enough to compare without overloading your team. Send the same document to all of them.
Can I ask agencies for creative ideas in the RFP?
You can ask for their approach and examples of past work. Asking for full scripts or finished concepts without payment discourages strong agencies; keep detailed creative for the paid pilot.
