Contacting creators directly looks free until you count the hours. A marketplace looks expensive until you count what it removes. The honest comparison is about volume and about what happens when something goes wrong.
What direct actually costs
Finding people, checking their work is theirs, agreeing terms, chasing replies, sending products, handling an invoice from each one, and following up when a delivery slips. For one video that is manageable. For eight videos a month across two languages, that is a part time job nobody budgeted for.
What a marketplace removes
The search, the contracting, the payment handling and the recourse when a delivery does not arrive. You are paying for coordination and for the fact that somebody other than you carries the administrative load. Whether that is worth it depends entirely on how many videos you buy.
Where direct stops being cheaper
Roughly at the point where you are managing more than two or three creators at once, or where you need consistent turnaround rather than best effort. Before that, direct is genuinely fine and often better because the relationship is closer.
The Canadian complication
Two languages usually means two creators, two contracts and two invoices for the same campaign, and often a search in two different creator communities. The coordination cost that pushes brands towards a marketplace arrives earlier here than in a single language market.
The reasonable answer
Start direct with one or two creators you like. Move to a marketplace when the administration starts eating the time you were supposed to spend on the campaign itself. Neither choice is permanent, and most brands end up doing both.
Keep reading
- UGC for Canadian Thanksgiving in October
- Why UGC Barely Works for Cannabis Brands in Canada
- UGC for Coffee Brands in Canada
- UGC Creators in Saguenay
- The complete UGC guide for Canada
Find creators for your campaign →
Frequently asked questions
Is going direct really free?
No, it costs hours nobody budgeted.
What does a marketplace remove?
Search, contracting, payment and recourse.
When does direct stop being cheaper?
Past two or three creators at once.
Does bilingual change the threshold?
Yes, coordination costs arrive earlier.
