Free cheatsheet
Usage rights and exclusivity cheatsheet
Usage rights and exclusivity are separate from the content fee and should be written into every deal: define the channels, whether use is organic or paid, the duration, and whether the brand can edit; for exclusivity, define the category, the competitors, and the period, and price both as add-ons.
By Distinct ·
The terms to agree in writing before any content goes live, for both creators and brands.
Usage rights: define all four
Channels
Brand's organic social, paid social ads, website, email, out-of-home.
Organic or paid
Running content as an ad is a different licence from reposting it.
Duration
For example 30, 90, or 180 days, or 12 months. Perpetual is a separate, much higher price.
Edits
Can the brand cut, crop, add text, or combine your content with other footage?
Typical pricing conventions
Organic repost on the brand's channels: often included
Paid usage: commonly a 20 to 100 percent uplift for 3 to 12 months
Scales with duration and breadth.
Whitelisting (ads from the creator's account): priced separately
Usually per month of access.
Perpetual, all-media rights: a large multiple of the content fee
Exclusivity: define all three
Category
As narrow as possible: protein bars, not food.
Named competitors
A list removes arguments later.
Period
Counted from the go-live date. One month is routine.
Red flags
Usage or rights clauses with no end date
Exclusivity defined as the whole industry
Paid usage mentioned only after the content is delivered
Keep the business side in one place
Distinct keeps your media kit, rates, and brand deals together, so the numbers on this sheet live next to the deals they are for. See how it works.