How to Gift Products to Influencers

Gifting products to influencers is one of the most effective ways to get your brand seen, but a mailed package with a hopeful message rarely cuts it anymore. A solid gifting strategy can generate authentic content, build powerful relationships, and drive real growth for your brand, all without the high cost of a formal paid campaign. This guide breaks down exactly how to approach influencer gifting, from finding the right creators to packing a box that gets them excited to post.

First Things First: Nail Down Your Goals and Budget

Before you even think about who to send products to, you need to be crystal clear on what you want to achieve and what you're willing to spend. Jumping in without a plan is a fast way to burn through your budget with little to show for it.

What’s Your "Why"? Defining Your Campaign Goals

What does success look like for this gifting initiative? Influencer gifting can do a lot more than just boost sales. Get specific about your primary goal, as this will shape every other decision you make.

• Brand Awareness: Are you a new company trying to get your name out there? Your goal might be to get your product in front of as many relevant eyes as possible. Success is measured in things like impressions, reach, and mentions.
• Content Generation: Do you need high-quality photos and videos for your own social media channels? The goal here is to get user-generated content (UGC) you can repurpose on your website, Reels, or product pages. Success is a library of beautiful, authentic visuals.
• Building Social Proof: Maybe you just want to see respected voices in your niche using and enjoying your product. This builds trust with their audiences and validates your brand. Seeing other people use your stuff makes potential customers feel more confident hitting "buy."
• Driving Sales: This is a common goal, but it's the hardest to achieve with gifting alone, as there are no guarantees. If this is your main focus, you'll want to include a trackable discount code or affiliate link to measure direct ROI.

Budgeting Beyond the Product Cost

Your budget isn't just the retail value of the product you're sending. Think through the entire cost from start to finish to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

• Cost of Goods: What does it actually cost you to produce the item? This is the core of your budget.
• Shipping and Handling: This can add up fast, especially for international influencers. Factor in postage, boxes, packing materials, and handling time.
• Custom Packaging: Do you want to create a memorable unboxing experience? Branded tissue paper, custom boxes, or stickers all come with a cost. It’s often worth it, but you need to budget for it.
• The "Extras": Including a handwritten note is a must, but what about small bonus items to make the package feel more special?

Once you have a general budget, you can decide how many influencers you can realistically gift to. It's often better to send thoughtful, well-packaged gifts to 10 perfect-fit influencers than cheap packages to 50 generic ones.

Finding Your Perfect Match: How to Discover the Right Influencers

The success of your gifting campaign hinges almost entirely on choosing the right people. Sending your sustainable skincare product to a fast-fashion influencer isn't going to get you very far. Here’s how to find creators who align with your brand.

Go Beyond Follower Counts: Digging into Engagement Rates

A huge follower count can be deceiving. What you really care about is how many people are actually interacting with an influencer's content. An influencer with 10,000 engaged followers is far more valuable than one with 100,000 who get zero comments.

How to Calculate Engagement Rate: (Likes + Comments) / Followers x 100. For a quick gut check, look at their last 5-10 posts. Do people comment? Are the comments genuine conversations or just a string of emojis and spam?

A good engagement rate on Instagram is typically between 1-3%. Anything higher is fantastic. Anything lower might be a red flag for bought followers or a disengaged audience.

Check for Brand Alignment and Audience Demographics

This is where your intuition comes in. Scroll through their feed and ask yourself a few key questions:

• Aesthetics: Does their visual style match your brand's look and feel? If you have a bright, colorful brand, a creator with a minimalist, monochrome feed might not be the best fit.
• Values: What do they talk about? Do they promote values that align with your company? Look at their captions, their bios, and the other brands they work with.
• Audience: Who is following them? Look at the comments section. Are these the people you want to reach? Most serious influencers can provide a media kit with detailed audience demographics (age, location, gender) if you ask for it.

Where to Actually Look for Influencers

Finding creators doesn't have to be a scavenger hunt. Here are a few reliable hunting grounds:

• Your Own Followers: Who’s already shouting you out for free? Check your tagged photos and mentions. These are your warmest leads because they already love what you do.
• Hashtag Searching: Search for hashtags relevant to your industry, location, or product. For a boutique coffee brand, you might search for #specialtycoffee, #homebarista, or #coffeemoments. Look for posts that aren't from other brands but from genuine fans of the niche.
• Competitor Analysis: Who are your competitors working with? Who is tagging them in posts? This can give you a pre-vetted list of influencers who are open to working with brands in your space.
• Audience Deep-Dive: Find a creator you already know is a perfect fit. Then, look at who they follow and who is regularly commenting on their posts. Influencers often travel in packs, and you can discover entire communities this way.

Making Your Move: How to Craft the Perfect Outreach Message

Once you’ve built your dream list, it's time to reach out. Your first impression matters - a lot. Ditch the generic, copied-and-pasted templates and focus on building a genuine connection from the start.

Don't Be a Robot: The Power of Personalization

Influencers get dozens of generic pitches a day. Yours needs to stand out. Before you hit "send," spend a few minutes actually engaging with their content. Like a few posts. Leave a thoughtful comment or two. Show that you’re a real person who values their work.

In your email or DM, mention something specific you liked about their content. For example:

"Hi Sarah, I saw your recent Reel on making cold brew at home and it was amazing! I’ve been following your page for a while and love your in-depth yet approachable take on coffee education."

This simple step shows you’ve done your homework and aren’t just spamming a list.

Your First Message: A Simple Framework

Keep your initial outreach message short, clear, and friendly. Here’s a structure that works:

1. A Clear Subject Line: Something like "A gift from [Your Brand Name] 😊" or "Brand Collab Inquiry for [Influencer Name]". Keep it simple and enticing.
2. Personalized Introduction: The specific compliment we just talked about.
3. Quick Brand Intro: One sentence explaining who you are and what you do. "My name is Alex and I'm the founder of Brew Co., an independent roaster focused on single-origin beans."
4. The "No Strings Attached" Offer: Clearly state that you want to send them a product as a gift, with absolutely no obligation to post. This is the cornerstone of great gifting. Say something like, "We'd love to send you a bag of our new Guatemalan roast to try, just as a gift with no strings attached."
5. A Clear Call to Action: Make it easy for them to say yes. "If you're open to it, let me know the best shipping address to send it to."

What should you leave out? Don't ask for their rates, don't talk about posting guidelines, and don't attach huge files. This is just the first conversation.

Making it Happen: Nailing the Gifting and Follow-Up

Once they've said "yes," it's time to create an experience that feels special and professional.

Presentation Matters: Creating an Unforgettable Unboxing Experience

You’re not just sending a product, you’re sending a package. The unboxing moment is content gold, so make it memorable. You don't need a huge budget to do this well.

• A Handwritten Note: This is non-negotiable. A short, personalized note thanking them for letting you send a gift makes a huge difference. Mention that specific post you liked again to show continuity.
• Branded Touches: Even simple things like branded tissue paper, a thank-you card with your logo, or even a branded sticker on the box elevate the experience from a standard delivery to a thoughtful gift.
• Keep It Tidy: Make sure the product arrives safely and is presented neatly inside the box. No one wants to unbox a jumbled mess.

The Follow-Up: Nudging Without Being Pushy

After you’ve shipped the package, a light touch is all you need.

1. Send them the tracking number once it's shipped so they know it's on the way.
2. About a week after it's delivered, send a brief, friendly message checking in. Something like, "Hey Sarah! Just wanted to make sure the package arrived safely. Hope you enjoy the coffee!"

Notice you’re still not asking them to post. You’re simply confirming receipt and being polite. At this point, the ball is in their court. If they love the product and the experience you’ve provided, the chances are high that they’ll share it.

The Gift That Keeps on Giving: What to Do After They Post

Success! The influencer posted about your product. Your job isn't done yet. Now is the time to make the most of that content and solidify the relationship.

Engage, Engage, Engage!

As soon as they post, be their biggest fan. Like the post, leave a genuine comment thanking them, and share it to your own brand's Stories. This not only shows your appreciation but also drives more of your followers to their page, which they’ll definitely appreciate.

How to Track Your Success

Even though this wasn't a formal paid campaign, you can still monitor its impact.

• Watch for a halo effect: Track your follower growth and engagement in the 24-48 hours after they post.
• Check website traffic: Did you see a referral spike in your analytics?
• Monitor brand mentions and sentiment: Keep an eye on conversations about your brand popping up elsewhere.

Turning a One-Time Gift into a Long-Term Partnership

If an influencer’s content performed well and was a great fit for your brand, don't let the relationship end there. A month or so later, reach out again. Mention how much you loved the content they created and propose a more formal partnership, like a paid campaign or an affiliate relationship. Since you've already built trust and goodwill, this conversation becomes much easier and more natural.

Final Thoughts

Influencer gifting is a powerful strategy rooted in genuine relationships and generosity. By focusing on finding the right partners, making your outreach personal, and creating a memorable experience, you can generate authentic buzz and user-generated content that expensive ad campaigns often can't buy.

Navigating the excitement after a creator’s post goes live - engaging with all the new comments and DMs across platforms can feel like a full-time job. When our team was managing these campaigns, we always wished for a single place to see all those conversations. That’s why we built the unified inbox in Postbase, allowing you to manage engagement across Instagram, TikTok, and more from one clean dashboard so you never miss a chance to connect with your community.