Collaborating with influencers and businesses on Instagram can be a fantastic way to showcase your work and expand your reach. However, not every collaboration goes as planned. After completing three Instagram collaborations, we’ve learned valuable lessons—some from successful experiences and others from costly mistakes.
Our Experience with Instagram Collaborations
We entered into three Instagram collaborations, offering a total of $14,000 worth of our custom branding and design services. These collaborations were with three different businesses, each from a distinct industry. On paper, everything seemed aligned: we provided high-quality branding packages, and in return, we were supposed to receive valuable social media exposure through posts, stories, and mentions.
However, the results varied greatly across these partnerships, and we ended up losing approximately $3,600 instead of profiting.
The First Collaboration: Missed Opportunities
Our first collaboration was a simple exchange of a branding package for social media posts. Despite having an outlined agreement, we quickly realized that our contract wasn’t airtight. The collaborator chose to post at random times—often during low-traffic hours like early Saturday or Sunday mornings. As a result, the posts received minimal engagement, and our anticipated ROI was essentially zero. We found ourselves frustrated, having put in the effort only to see nothing in return.
The Second Collaboration: A Success Story
Fortunately, our second collaboration was the complete opposite. This business was thrilled with the branding package we provided and went above and beyond to promote our work. They posted during peak hours, used engaging captions, and even shared our work multiple times in their stories. This collaboration was exactly what we had hoped for—mutually beneficial and rewarding. It showed us what a successful partnership could look like when both parties are equally invested.
The Third Collaboration: The Biggest Learning Experience
Our third and largest collaboration was also our most challenging. We exchanged a comprehensive branding package, including full packaging design, expecting significant promotion in return. We went above and beyond, providing additional files, additional revisions, and resources that were not part of the original agreement. But in the end, we got the bare minimum. The business posted at odd hours, their captions were sometimes just simple tags or we weren’t tagged at all, and they failed to share posts to their stories, missing out on potential additional views. There were several other issues that came up as well that I’ll discuss more below, but this collaboration turned out to be our most disappointing, and we ended up losing money instead of gaining exposure.
What We Learned: 10 Tips for Successful Collaborations
Reflecting on these experiences, we’ve put together a list of tips to help you avoid the pitfalls we encountered and make the most out of your collaborations.
1. Be Explicit in Your Contract
Your contract is the foundation of a successful collaboration. Ensure it covers every possible scenario and clearly outlines what both parties are responsible for. Specify the number of posts, types of posts (e.g., reels, carousels, stories), and how your work will be featured. This helps prevent misunderstandings and ensures that both parties are on the same page.
2. Specify Post Timings and Days
The timing of posts is critical. In our experience, some collaborators posted at random times—like early Saturday mornings or late Friday evenings—when social media engagement was low. To avoid this, specify in your contract that posts must be made during peak hours (e.g., weekdays between 10 AM and 2 PM). Additionally, outline which days are acceptable, avoiding weekends or other low-traffic periods.
3. Approve Captions and Visuals in Advance
It’s essential to have control over how your work is presented. Require that you approve all captions and visuals before they are posted. This ensures that your work is accurately represented and that the captions appropriately highlight the value of your services. In one of our collaborations, a post was so zoomed out that our work was barely visible—a situation that could have been avoided with prior approval.
4. Outline Tagging Requirements
Proper tagging can significantly boost engagement. Specify in the contract how your business should be tagged: in the caption, in the post itself, or as a collaborator. Clear tagging makes it easier for the audience to engage with your brand and ensures you receive the recognition you deserve.
5. Set Deadlines for Posts
To maintain relevance and momentum, establish a timeline for when the posts must be completed—such as within 30 days of the collaboration’s end. This ensures that the content is timely and that the collaboration doesn’t drag on indefinitely.
6. Be Cautious with Over Delivering
It can be tempting to go above and beyond to impress your collaborator, but be cautious. We learned the hard way that over-delivering is often not reciprocated with collaborations. Oftentimes, this works wonders with our client work, but we didn’t find the same result with collaborations and you do want to make sure the exchange feels balanced. This ensures that both parties get fair value from the collaboration.
7. Control the Post Content Order
If your work is being shared in a carousel or multi-image post, make sure your work is the first image. Specify in your contract that your work should not be hidden as the second or third image, which may receive less attention. This helps maintain the visibility and impact of your content.
8. Ensure No Competing Content Around Your Post
Specify that your collaboration post should not be made within 12 hours of any other posts, especially those promoting other businesses. This ensures that your work gets the full attention it deserves, without being overshadowed by other content.
9. Trust Your Instincts and Address Red Flags Early
If something feels off during initial communications, trust your instincts. It’s better to walk away from a collaboration with red flags than to commit and face issues down the road. We’ve learned that listening to your gut can save you time, money, and frustration. There will always be more opportunities down the road.
10. Outline What is Unacceptable
Clearly state in your contract what is not allowed—such as posting at odd hours, posting without approval, or making your post compete with other collaborations. This sets firm boundaries and ensures both parties understand the stakes. For example, in one of our collaborations, we received only the bare minimum—they posted at odd hours and used simple tags instead of meaningful captions.
Conclusion
Instagram collaborations can be incredibly rewarding, but they also come with risks. By learning from our experiences and following these tips, you can protect your interests and make the most out of your collaborations. Remember, the key is to be as specific as possible in your agreements, communicate clearly, and trust your instincts. These steps can help you avoid costly mistakes and ensure that your collaborations are mutually beneficial.
