Concrete methods for a Brazilian creator to sign their first brands, from marketplaces to direct approach.
Building proof before approaching anybody
Six things to have before writing to anyone.
Three videos shot on products you already own, made as if they had been ordered.
A clean vertical format, with subtitles, ready for advertising.
A page or profile showing those videos without anybody having to ask.
A displayed price, even a low one, because a profile with no price cannot be compared.
One sentence saying what you film and what you do not film.
And a stated turnaround, counted from receipt of the product.
Where the first clients really come from
UGC marketplaces
They provide volume but put you in price competition. Useful for the first experience, for getting rated and for understanding briefs. Not to be treated as a lasting channel.
Direct approach on Instagram and by email
That is the most profitable channel, provided you write to the right person. The marketplace seller, dealt with above, is the fastest target. Then come the small national brands, which have a budget but no team.
Local businesses in your town
Restaurants, salons, shops, practices. They pay fast, often in cash, and ask for no paperwork. They provide the first real examples with real products.
Your own social networks
Publishing one video a week in a precise category brings requests without approaching anybody. It is not fast, but it is the only channel that works while you sleep.
UGC communities
Groups and discussion spaces where brand calls circulate. Their main interest is not the offer itself, it is the price others are charging, information hard to get otherwise.
Marketing and influence agencies
The best channel from the second year on. They pay less per unit but order in volume and come back. In exchange they demand regularity and clean invoicing.
How to price your first contracts
Five principles for not starting too low.
Never work free for a brand that runs paid advertising.
Display a low but real entry price, and do not negotiate it down a second time.
Separate production and rights from the first invoice, even if rights are given away at the start.
Raise prices after ten orders, not after six months.
And refuse requests demanding several versions for the price of one: that is where profitability is lost.
Where the first three orders come from
| The route | Typical delay | What it requires |
|---|---|---|
| Answering listings | One to three weeks | A complete profile |
| Writing to brands directly | A month | A video of their product |
| Word of mouth | After the first delivery | Asking for the referral |
What gets an application accepted
A video resembling what the brand wants to sell. A varied portfolio impresses less than a single sample matching the request exactly.
What is decided on the first order
The deadline. Delivering a day before the promised date turns a trial client into a regular one, and it is the only lever entirely under your control.
Being professional from day one
Six habits that bring a client back.
Reply the same day, the only criterion you fully control.
Ask two useful questions before accepting, which shows you read the brief.
Confirm receipt of the product on the day it arrives.
Deliver before the announced date, once is enough.
Name files properly and deliver in the right format.
And invoice with a declared activity, a condition whose arrangements are checked with the competent administration and with an accountant.
One last marker: first clients almost never come from big brands. They come from people who decide alone, spend little and reply fast. Find those people, deliver impeccably three times, and the big brands will come afterwards because you will have something to show them.
Sources
- Portal do Empreendedor (MEI), Brazilian government
- Receita Federal, Brazilian tax authority
- Simples Nacional, official portal
Checked on 26 August 2026. Thresholds and rates change: where this guide and the official source disagree, the official source is right.
