Media kits and audience data

A media kit is a creator's sales document: a short, well-designed summary of who you are, who your audience is, how your content performs and what you offer brands. It answers the questions a brand manager asks when deciding whether to contact you, and it saves both sides time. This lesson covers what goes into a media kit, how to calculate and present the key metrics honestly, how to handle audience data responsibly and how to keep the kit current.

What a media kit is for

Brand managers and agency staff review many creators quickly. A media kit lets them assess fit in a minute or two without digging through your analytics. It also signals professionalism: a clear, accurate, up-to-date kit suggests a creator who will be easy to work with. Media kits are usually one to three pages as a PDF or a simple web page, and are sent with pitches or on request.

A media kit is not the same as a rate card, although many creators include one or attach it separately. Some creators prefer to leave prices out of the kit and discuss them once they understand a brand's needs; others include starting prices to filter out brands with very small budgets. Both approaches are reasonable, and Lesson 5 discusses pricing in depth.

The essential sections

Most effective media kits include the following, in roughly this order:

• A short introduction: your name, a photo, one or two sentences describing your content and positioning.
• Platforms and audience size: followers or subscribers on each platform that matters for partnerships.
• Performance metrics: typical views or reach per post, engagement rate, and for some formats watch time, saves or clicks.
• Audience demographics: age ranges, gender split, top countries and cities, and relevant interests.
• Past partners and results: logos or names of brands you have worked with, with short case studies and results where you have permission to share them.
• Offerings: the types of partnership you offer, such as integrations, dedicated videos, short-form bundles, UGC, usage rights, events or ambassadorships.
• Testimonials: short quotes from past brand partners, with permission.
• Contact details: an email address or a manager's contact, and how quickly you respond.

Choosing honest, meaningful metrics

The metrics in your kit should help a brand predict what a partnership will deliver. Follower counts are the most visible number, but they are a weak predictor of results: many followers may be inactive, and algorithms show posts to non-followers too. Brands increasingly focus on typical views or reach per post and on engagement.

Use medians or averages over a recent period, such as the last 30 or 90 days or the last 10 to 20 comparable posts. Medians are less distorted by a single viral post than means, so they give a more honest picture of what a brand can expect. State the period and the method in small print: "median views per video, last 15 videos, as of September" builds credibility.

Engagement rate can be calculated in several ways: by followers, by reach, by impressions or by views. The definition changes the result considerably, so always state which one you use. Engagement by reach or by views is generally more meaningful than by followers, because it measures how people who actually saw the content responded. Some brands also value particular actions more than others: a save or a share usually signals stronger interest than a like.

Benchmarks vary by platform, tier and niche. Industry reports commonly show average engagement rates by followers in the low single digits on Instagram and higher on TikTok, with smaller accounts typically achieving higher rates than large ones. Compare yourself with creators of similar size on the same platform rather than with a general average, and remember that brands will often check your public numbers themselves.

Audience demographics

Brands need to know whether your audience matches their customers. Platform analytics provide age ranges, gender splits and top countries and cities. Include the figures that matter for partnerships: the share of your audience in the countries where the brand sells, the main age groups, and any interest data available. If your audience is concentrated in Canada and the United States, say so prominently, because many brands ship only within those countries.

Supplement numbers with qualitative insight. What do your audience members care about? What questions do they ask most? What have they bought on your recommendation? A sentence such as "my comments are full of beginners asking which equipment to buy first" tells a gear brand more than a percentage.

Sharing data responsibly

Media kits should present aggregate audience data, not information about individuals. Platform analytics are already aggregated, but be careful with data from other sources such as email lists, community platforms or surveys. Do not share subscriber lists, email addresses or identifiable information with brands unless people have clearly consented and the law permits it.

In the United States there is no single general privacy law, but state laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (as amended by the CPRA) and similar laws in many other states regulate the sale and sharing of personal information above certain thresholds, and the FTC can act against unfair or deceptive data practices. Share only aggregated statistics in a media kit.

Brands sometimes ask for screenshots of analytics or temporary access to analytics through an influencer platform. Screenshots of aggregate data are normal. Granting account access is riskier; if you do it, use official read-only connections provided by the platform or reputable software, never share your password, and revoke access when the campaign ends.

Case studies and social proof

Results from past partnerships are among the most persuasive elements of a media kit. A short case study names the brand (with permission), the objective, what you made and the outcome: "Spring launch for a running shoe brand: one integration and three short videos; 210,000 views, 4,800 link clicks, 310 code redemptions; renewed for autumn." If you have no paid partnerships yet, include examples of organic product content that performed well, or results from gifted collaborations.

Always check permission before naming brands or sharing campaign results; some contracts include confidentiality clauses that prohibit it. Where you cannot name the brand, describe it generically, such as "a national meal-kit brand".

Design and format

A media kit should look professional and consistent with your content style, but it does not need to be elaborate. Readability matters more than decoration. Use a clean layout, large clear numbers, a small number of colors, high-quality photos and plenty of white space. Make sure it reads well on a phone, because many brand managers open attachments on mobile. Keep the file size small, name the file clearly (for example "YourName-MediaKit-2026.pdf"), and consider a web version with a link that never changes, so brands always see the current numbers.

Keeping it current

Out-of-date numbers damage credibility, especially if a brand checks your public profile and finds different figures. Update your media kit at least quarterly, and immediately after a significant change such as a big jump in audience or a notable campaign result. Include an "as of" date on the kit so brands know how recent the data is. A simple spreadsheet that tracks your key metrics monthly makes updates quick.

Common integrity problems

Inflating numbers in a media kit is tempting but self-defeating. Brands and agencies routinely check public metrics, use software to estimate audience quality, and compare campaign results with the kit. Discrepancies end relationships and can lead to disputes over payment. Present your best honest picture: choose the most relevant metrics, explain them clearly and let real results speak.

Platform-specific metrics

Different platforms emphasize different metrics, and your kit should present the ones brands expect for each. For YouTube, brands often look at median views in the first 30 days, average view duration and audience retention, because these predict how many people will see a mid-roll integration. For Instagram, reach, story views and saves are central, as are profile visits and link clicks from stories. For TikTok, views, completion rate and shares matter most because distribution depends heavily on the recommendation algorithm rather than followers. For podcasts, downloads per episode within 30 days are the standard measure. For newsletters, open rates and click rates are key, although open rates have become less reliable since privacy changes on some email apps.

Tools for audience data

Native platform analytics are the most trusted source of audience data, because they come directly from the platform. Third-party influencer tools estimate audience demographics and authenticity from public data, and brands often use them to check creators. Their estimates are not always accurate, so it is wise to check what these tools show about your accounts and be ready to provide screenshots of native analytics if a brand's tool gives a misleading picture.

A web-based kit

Many creators now keep a simple web page as their media kit, linked from their profiles and pitch emails. A web version can be updated in minutes, can include embedded examples of past sponsored content and can track how often brands view it. If you use one, keep a downloadable PDF version too, because some brands need a file to share internally or attach to approval documents.

Finally, ask a trusted peer to review your kit before sending it. A fresh reader quickly spots unclear metrics, missing context or claims that look exaggerated.