How to put a defensible number on your audience
Two ways to price a post arrive at almost the same figure, which is what makes the figure defensible in a negotiation.
The short answer
Value an audience against what a brand would pay to reach the same people through advertising. Two independent routes, cost per thousand views and cost per click, should land close to each other, and a number supported by both is far easier to defend than one derived from follower count.
The formula
reach method = average views / 1,000 x brand CPM benchmark
click method = average views x click-through rate x paid cost per click
cost per engagement = quoted fee / engaged users
Use average views rather than followers. Followers is a historical total and views is what a brand actually buys, and on most platforms the gap between them is now very large.
Worked example
An account with 45,000 followers averaging 12,000 views a post, a 4.2% engagement rate and a 1.8% click-through rate:
reach method at a $25 CPM = 12,000 / 1,000 x 25 = 300.00
click method: 12,000 x 0.018 = 216 clicks
at a 1.20 paid cost per click = 259.20
the two methods differ by 40.80
engaged users = 12,000 x 0.042 = 504
cost per engagement at 300 = 0.60
$259 to $300 for a post, from two methods that know nothing about each other. Asking $900 is not impossible, and it requires evidence of conversion rather than an argument about reach.
Why followers stopped being the number
Algorithmic feeds broke the link between audience size and reach. An account with 45,000 followers might average 12,000 views or 3,000, and the brand is buying the second number.
It also cuts the other way, and this is the useful part. A small account with high reach relative to its size is worth more than its follower count suggests, and showing the view figures is how you prove it.
What justifies a premium over the advertising equivalent
Trust, which is the thing a brand cannot buy through an ad platform. An audience that has bought on your recommendation before converts differently, and past campaign results are the evidence.
Production value. The brand is also buying content they would otherwise pay a production company for, and that has its own market price independent of distribution.
Usage rights and exclusivity, which are separate line items rather than a premium, and are where most of the money in a large deal actually sits.
The numbers to have ready before a call
Average views over the last ten posts, not your best one. Engagement rate on the same set. Click-through rate if you have ever run a link. Audience geography and age.
A creator who opens with those has already changed the conversation, because most negotiations start with the brand's benchmark rather than the creator's data.
If a metric is weak, know it before they do. Being the person who says the click-through is untested is much stronger than being the person who is told.
What this leaves out
- CPM and cost-per-click benchmarks vary by industry, geography and platform, sometimes by several times. Use figures from the brand's own market where you can.
- Assumes organic reach is stable. A single post that travelled unusually far distorts an average badly, which is why ten posts is the minimum sample.
- Excludes usage rights and exclusivity entirely. Those are priced separately and frequently exceed the content fee.
Common questions
- What is a good engagement rate?
- It varies enormously by platform and by audience size, and larger accounts almost always show lower rates. Comparing your own rate over time is more informative than comparing it to a published benchmark.
- Should I share my analytics with brands?
- The metrics that support your price, yes, and proactively. A brand working from your view and engagement figures is negotiating on your terms rather than on a follower-count formula.
- How do I charge more than the advertising equivalent?
- With evidence of conversion rather than reach. A previous campaign's results, a discount code redemption count, or an affiliate figure moves you from selling impressions to selling outcomes, and those are priced completely differently.
Spreadsheets that do this
The formulas above, already built and checked — so you fill in your numbers rather than the arithmetic.
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Last reviewed 22 August 2026