Influencer brief: a template and checklist for companies

1. In short: a good influencer brief settles the message, the labelling and the rights, and leaves the tone to the creator.

An influencer brief is the company’s instruction to the creator before a paid collaboration. The Swedish Agency for the Media (Mediemyndigheten) describes how the advertiser usually gives guidelines on key messages, visual and language requirements, mandatory tags, links or discount codes and the number and type of posts. The creator often has some room to adapt the content to their own tone, so that it is credible [1].

The brief does not move the responsibility. The company that hires an influencer carries the main responsibility for the marketing and cannot contract it away, according to the Swedish Consumer Agency (Konsumentverket) [2]. Nor can a breach be undone by changing the post afterwards. The agency writes that it is therefore important for companies to have a working advertising review function [3]. Our judgement is that the brief and the checklist are where that review begins.

Three parts of the brief carry the most risk: how the advertising is labelled, whether the product may appear in paid content at all and what the company may do with the video afterwards. Alcohol, gambling, vitamin supplements and loans are examples of categories that TikTok does not allow in paid content in Sweden [4]. And under the Copyright Act, receiving a copy of a work is not the same as receiving the copyright in it [5].

Section 2 shows the template part by part. Section 3 covers what the brief must say about the label, section 4 which products may not appear and section 5 rights, music and approvals. Section 6 gathers the checks before sending, before approval and before posting, and section 7 covers what does not belong in a brief.

2. The template has fourteen parts, and each part is there for a reason.

Figure 1 is the template. Each row is a heading in the brief, with what it should contain and why it is there. Where the reason is our judgement rather than a source, the table says so.

The parts that follow from the rules

The payment belongs in the brief even when it is only a product. The industry recommendation says that payment can be something other than money, for example goods, travel and services, and that affiliate links can also be influencer marketing [6]. Konsumentverket writes that the payment can consist of money or other financial benefits, for example goods [2]. TikTok counts gifts and commission via a link or discount code as paid content [4].

The brief alone does not decide what counts as advertising. Marketing agreements can be written, oral or implied. In a case that Konsumentverket refers to, PMT 2479-20, the assignment covered more posts than the parties had written down [3]. So write down which posts the collaboration covers, but do not assume that other posts about the product fall outside it.

The product must be recognisable without the viewer having to visit the profile or a link, and TikTok writes that it should be named out loud or in the caption [4]. Misleading product claims are forbidden, even when the creator makes them on their own initiative [2]. A list of approved claims, and of claims that may not be made, makes the review easier.

If the campaign is likely to reach children, the label must be clear to a child. The company may not direct calls to buy at children under 18 and may not urge children to persuade adults to buy [7]. TikTok’s policy has the same ban [4]. If the creator is under 18, the Children and Parents Code applies: a child may not take on work without the guardian’s consent [11].

3. The brief must say exactly how the advertising is labelled, not just that it must be labelled.

The industry recommendation of January 2026 comes from the Swedish Association of Communication Agencies, the Swedish Association of Advertisers (now Brand Marketing Sweden) and IAB Sweden. It says that it must be clear that the content is marketing and who the sender is. What decides it is whether the average consumer in the target group can immediately see that the post is advertising [6]. The guide to advertising labels goes through the rules in detail. Here is what the brief needs to say.

The wording

The recommendation gives three examples: “Reklam från X” (Advertising from X), “Marknadsföring från X” (Marketing from X) and “Betalt samarbete med X” (Paid partnership with X). “I samarbete med” (in collaboration with) should not be used, because in the court’s assessment the phrase does not signal clearly enough that it is advertising [6]. Konsumentverket writes that advertising posts should be labelled with the word “reklam” (advertising) [3]. Our judgement is that “Reklam från X” fits both.

Placement and design

The label should be placed early and open the caption, and it must not be hidden behind “more” buttons. Short words such as “AD” can be hard to notice. On fast video formats such as TikTok, the creator should make sure the post is clearly labelled, in a colour that stands out against the background. If the whole video is advertising, one way to make it extra clear is to keep the label on screen for the whole video [6].

Every new publication needs a label too, for example when a post is shared again as a Story, and several Stories in a row may need to be labelled one by one [6].

The platform toggle

On TikTok, the commercial content toggle must be switched on when paid content is posted [4]. The industry recommendation says that the platforms’ own labels do not always meet the law’s demand for clarity, and that anyone in the slightest doubt should add a clear label of their own [6]. In a decision that Konsumentverket refers to, PMB 5086-23, the fact that the platform’s labelling function had stopped working did not free the company from responsibility [3].

Example of a labelling block in the brief: “The caption opens with REKLAM FRÅN [brand] (ADVERTISING FROM [brand]) followed by a separator. The same text stays on screen for the whole video, in a colour that stands out against the background. The commercial content toggle is on. Every Story and every repost is labelled the same way.” The text is our wording. The capitals and the separator follow a suggestion in the industry recommendation [6].

4. Some products may not appear in paid content on TikTok in Sweden, however the brief is written.

The category needs checking before the brief is sent. TikTok’s branded content policy applies from 31 August 2026 and lists industries where paid content is prohibited [4]. They include adult and sexual products, animals, tobacco and nicotine, drugs, weapons, weight loss products and counterfeits. They also include healthcare and medicine, for example teeth whitening, hair growth products and cosmetic clinics, financial offers such as pyramid schemes, payday loans and get-rich-quick schemes, political advertising and accounting, legal and immigration services [4].

Other industries are restricted and allowed in some countries but not in others. Sweden is among the countries where paid content is not allowed for alcohol, dating and live video apps, financial services such as loans, credit cards, insurance and investments, over-the-counter and prescription medicines, vitamin supplements, and gambling and lotteries [4]. Paid content for energy drinks is restricted to audiences over 18 and should not show children [4].

TikTok’s rules come on top of the law and state that they are not exhaustive [4]. Konsumentverket points out that there are special rules for marketing to children, for example for alcohol, tobacco and gambling, which the company needs to know before a particular product is marketed [7].

5. Paying for a video does not give the right to use it any way you like, so the brief must say where, for how long and in what form.

Copyright

Whoever creates a work, for example a cinematographic or photographic work, holds the copyright in it. The copyright can be transferred in whole or in part, but receiving a copy of the work is not the same as receiving the copyright. Unless otherwise agreed, the person who has received the copyright may not change the work or pass the right on [5].

The author must be named to the extent good practice requires, and the work may not be changed in a way that harms the author’s reputation or individuality. That right can only be waived for a use limited in kind and scope. An author who transfers their copyright to someone who will use it in business is entitled to reasonable remuneration [5].

So the brief needs to say where the company may use the video, for how long, whether it may be re-edited and whether the creator is to be credited. Mediemyndigheten describes a collaboration where the advertiser afterwards received around a hundred photos to use in social media, print and email [1]. It shows how broad an assignment can be, but it is a single example and not a norm. We have found no independent Swedish source on how long usage rights usually last.

Names, images and music

The Names and Images in Advertising Act forbids traders from using another person’s name or image in marketing without consent, and anyone who breaks the law must pay reasonable compensation [8]. More people than the creator can appear in a video. In Mediemyndigheten’s example, the influencer often asks friends or family to come along as extras [1]. So the brief can ask who appears and confirmation that they have consented.

TikTok says that businesses may not use the general music library commercially, and should use the Commercial Music Library for everything commercial on TikTok, including branded content [12]. Under the terms of that library, TikTok grants no rights to use the music outside TikTok. Anyone who wants to must get permission directly from the rights holders [9].

The video as an ad

If the company is to use the creator’s post as an ad on TikTok, known as Spark Ads, the creator can give permission with a code. The authorisation is given for 7, 30, 60 or 365 days, and the caption cannot be changed once the post has been authorised as an ad [10]. The video must also be removed as a Spark Ad before it can be deleted from the creator’s account [13]. So the brief should state whether paid ads are included and for how long, and the label needs to be in the caption before the code is handed over.

Approvals and timeline

We have found no independent Swedish source on how many review rounds or what response times are reasonable. In TikTok’s own tool, TikTok One, the company can ask for up to five edits once the video has passed the platform’s review. There is also an optional expected posting date, and a different actual date carries no penalty [14]. This applies only to projects in that tool. Our judgement is that the number of rounds, response times and the posting window should be in the brief, so that both sides know where they stand.

Brand Marketing Sweden published an agreement template for collaborations with influencers in February 2026. It requires membership, and we have not read it [15]. Our judgement is that the brief does not replace an agreement.

6. The checklist has three checkpoints: before sending, before approval and before posting.

Figure 2 gathers the checks in the order they are done. The first is done on the brief, the second on the creator’s draft and the third on the finished post.

The check does not end at posting. The industry recommendation notes that how clear the label is can depend on whether the post is viewed in an app or a browser [6]. On TikTok, the creator can get a notification if a video seems to contain paid content without the right disclosure. If the creator does not respond within 24 hours, the video is no longer eligible for the For You feed [16]. But a breach cannot be undone by changing the post afterwards [3], so the check before posting weighs the most.

7. A brief should not write the creator’s script or ask for things that go against the rules.

Our judgement is that a brief should not dictate a word-for-word script. Mediemyndigheten describes how the creator often has room to adapt the content to their own tone, so that it is credible and suits the channel and the audience [1]. A finished script takes that room away. Give messages, facts and limits instead, and let the creator word the rest. We have found no study that compares scripts with free content.

The brief should not ask for the label “i samarbete med” (in collaboration with) or for the label to be placed after “more” [6]. It should not ask for direct calls to buy aimed at children [7]. It should not contain product claims the company cannot stand behind, because the creator’s own claims can also be judged misleading marketing [2].

Nor should the brief assume that music from TikTok can follow the video into ads in other channels [9], or that the company may edit the video freely without that being agreed [5].

8. About this article: built on law, authorities, the industry recommendation and TikTok’s rules, read in October 2026.

All sources were read on 15 October 2026, and the quotations come from the sources’ own text. “Independent” marks laws, authorities and industry bodies. “TikTok” marks TikTok’s own policies and help pages. The structure of the template, the example labelling block and everything marked “our judgement” are our own and not a source’s.

What is not covered

Instagram’s and Meta’s rules for paid content are not included, because their pages could not be read. Brand Marketing Sweden’s agreement template requires membership and has not been read, so the article reproduces none of its terms. Tax, VAT, personal data and contract law for minors beyond the statute text are not included. Search volumes have not been measured.

Limitations

The article describes what laws, authorities, the industry recommendation and TikTok say. It is not legal advice. Case numbers such as PMT 2479-20 and PMB 5086-23 are given as Konsumentverket states them, and the judgments themselves have not been read. TikTok’s policy can change, and it is the version in force from 31 August 2026 that has been read [4].