You do not need followers. You need three samples and a page.
Brands pay for short videos and photos they run themselves, so a first deal does not need an audience, a social account, or any experience. Seven steps, on your dashboard, checking themselves off as you go.
A brand looks at your samples, not your follower count.
Because it is buying the content to run on its own channels. That is the whole reason this works from zero.
- Three samples are the portfolio
Short videos, a photo set, or a mix, made with products you already own. A brand judges the samples, not a follower count, because it is buying the content to run itself.
- One page is the thing you send
Your Plug Pro page holds the samples, a line about you, and a rate. It is the link a brand opens. No Instagram, no TikTok, no audience required to have it.
- A first video pays $25 to $75
Organic use, one video. More with delivered work to show, more again with a track record, and paid-ad usage priced on top. Our published bands, not a promise.
Set up, pitch, get paid. The same list your dashboard keeps.
Each step checks itself off from what you actually did, and the lesson for each one is a tap away.
- 1Make three samples
Short videos, a photo set, or a mix, with products you already own. A hook, a demo, one talking to camera. Same window light, one afternoon. Pin them to your page.
The guide for this step - 2Your page is your portfolio
A brand needs one link it can forward, not a DM full of attachments. A bio and a niche make the link make sense. No social account required.
The guide for this step - 3Set a starting rate
One package with a price. A first video sits at $25 to $75; usage rights for paid ads are priced separately, on top.
The guide for this step
- 4Pick ten brands
Brands you already buy from, small founder-run ones in your niche, local businesses. Swipe right to save them.
The guide for this step - 5Send ten pitches
One specific idea each. The first six words are about them, no link in the first message, one easy question. Then stop.
The guide for this step - 6Follow up on day four
Most first deals come from the follow-up, not the first message. One bump, then move on.
The guide for this step
- 7Close the first deal
Terms in writing before you film, then the invoice from the same record, paid to your own account. You keep all of it.
The guide for this step
Four reasons this is the first deal you can actually land.
- No audience requiredThe brand runs the video. Creators with a few hundred followers, or none, get paid UGC work every week.
- Fits around a day jobFour to six hours a week: film, deliver, pitch. Most people who do all seven steps land a first deal inside six to eight weeks.
- You already own the gearA recent phone and a window. Upgrade after the work is paying for it.
- The app walks the steps with youThe same seven steps sit on your dashboard, checking themselves off as you go, with the lesson for each one a tap away.
Who should skip this.
- You want money this week. The first deal takes six to eight weeks of steady work.
- You want passive income. Every dollar here is a sample you made or a pitch you sent.
- You never want to be on camera. Hands-only and photo formats exist, but the best-paid briefs have a face in them.
If none of those are you, the seven steps above are the whole plan, and your dashboard keeps the list. Plug Pro is the page, the brands, the pitches, and the invoice, for one flat fee with no cut of anything you earn.
Start freeFirst-deal questions, answered
Can I get a brand deal without a social media account?+
Yes. The deals that need no audience are UGC deals: a brand pays you for a video or photo set it posts on its own channels or runs as an ad. It judges your samples, not your follower count. Your Plug Pro page holds those samples and is the link the brand opens, so no Instagram or TikTok account is required to have one.
What do I need before I pitch a brand for the first time?+
Three samples made with products you already own, one page that shows them with a starting rate, and a list of ten small brands to pitch. That is the whole starting kit, and it is the first four steps on the dashboard track.
How much does a first brand deal pay?+
For one video with organic use, $25 to $75 while you are new, $75 to $150 once you have delivered work to show, $150 to $300 with a track record. Paid-ad usage adds roughly half again on top. Those are our published bands; nothing here is a guaranteed income.
How long does it take to land the first deal?+
Six to eight weeks of consistent work is the honest range: two weeks to make samples and a page, then ten personalized pitches a week with one follow-up each. Faster happens with a local business or a brand you already buy from. Slower usually means the pitching step got skipped.
Do I have to do all seven steps in order?+
No, but the order is the shortest path. Samples before the page, the page before the rate, all three before you pitch, because a pitch with nothing to show does not get a reply. The dashboard checks each step off from what you actually did, in whatever order you did it.
Pitch your next brand. Keep every dollar.
Run every brand deal you land from one link, keep 100% of what you earn, and let Plug handle the paperwork. Start free — no card.