How to negotiate usage rights in brand deals

Usage rights are the second-biggest line item in most deals (after the base fee), and the easiest to give away by accident.

What to negotiate

• Where — organic only, paid social, OOH, broadcast, web?
• How long — 30 days, 90 days, 6 months, 1 year?
• What — the specific deliverables, or any future content?
• Where geographically — US-only, North America, global?

Pricing rule of thumb

• Organic re-share on the brand's channels: included.
• Paid social boost, 90 days: +30% of base fee.
• Paid social boost, 6 months: +60%.
• Paid social, 12 months: +100%.
• OOH (billboards, in-store): +50–150% depending on scale.
• Broadcast/CTV: separate negotiation; rarely under 2x base.

Things to never give up

• Perpetual rights (always cap)
• Right to use your likeness in unrelated campaigns
• Right to edit content into something you didn't approve

Counter language that works

'Happy to include 90 days of paid social usage at +30%. For longer terms or other channels, we can scope a renewal closer to the end of the window.'