A media kit is a short document that you send to an advertiser instead of exchanging three screens' worth of messages. Its purpose is not to praise you, but to take work off the advertiser's hands by providing all the figures needed to make a decision in one place. This is exactly why it increases your price: someone who approaches with calculations looks like a partner, while someone who writes “How much will you give me?” looks like a supplicant.

Why You Sell for Less Without One

Put yourself in the advertiser's position. They receive messages from ten creators. Nine send a screenshot showing their number of followers and ask whether the advertiser is interested. One sends a document with reach, demographics, examples of previous placements, and a price list. The advertiser will respond to the tenth person, and there will be less bargaining with them because the price is already justified by figures rather than named at random. The second reason is that without a media kit, you have to negotiate from scratch every time, meaning you spend time answering the same questions.

The Main Figures, and There Are Fewer Than You Think

Advertisers are interested in four things, and everything else is supplementary. Average reach per piece of content, meaning how many people will actually see it. This is the main figure, and it is precisely what you are selling. Engagement rate, meaning the ratio of reach to audience size. It shows whether your audience is active. Demographics, meaning gender, age, and location, because advertisers need specific people, not just anyone. Examples of previous placements with results, since this is the only proof that your advertising works. The number of followers is the least important figure, and in a media kit it should appear alongside reach, not instead of it.

What Should Be Included

The first section is who you are and what your platform is about, in two or three sentences. No artistic descriptions of your mission. The second section is statistics. Number of followers, average reach over the last 30 days, engagement rate, and audience growth dynamics. It is critically important to use data specifically from the last 30 days, not from the entire period, because an experienced advertiser will ask for exactly that, and it is better to provide it immediately. The third section is an audience profile. Gender, age, location, and, for expert platforms, professional composition if you know it. The fourth section is placement formats and prices. List exactly what you offer, such as a post, pinned post, series of publications, or review, and specify the price for each. The fifth section is examples. Two or three previous placements with screenshots and figures showing how many views and clicks they generated. The sixth section is terms and conditions. Placement duration, publication time, number of revisions, payment procedure, and what you do not advertise. The seventh section is contact details.

How to Justify Your Price

This is what distinguishes a media kit from a price list. Next to the price, indicate the cost per thousand people reached, meaning divide the price by reach and multiply by one thousand. This immediately shifts the conversation from “expensive or cheap” to comparison with the market. If your figure matches market benchmarks for your niche, there is practically nothing to negotiate, and the advertiser can see that. If you do not know the market benchmarks for your topic, take a look at our articles about prices on specific platforms, since they are listed there.

What Should Not Be Included

Artistic descriptions such as “a unique, loyal community,” because these are not figures. The total number of views accumulated over the entire existence of the platform, because this is manipulation, and an experienced advertiser will notice it. Hidden terms that appear after payment. Old data, meaning statistics from six months ago. A list of ten different topics, because this indicates a lack of specialization. Inflated figures, because reach can be checked through external services in a few minutes, and getting caught providing inaccurate information closes the door to that advertiser permanently.

Format

The most convenient option is a one- or two-page PDF document. The reason is practical: it is easy to forward within a company, and its appearance does not change when opened on another device. An alternative is a webpage with a permanent link, which is more convenient because it can be updated without having to send it again. Screenshots of statistics are essential because figures written in words and figures shown in a screenshot carry different weight. Design matters less than content, but readability is important: large figures, short captions, and no walls of text.

How Often to Update It

Once a month, because statistics for the last 30 days are the main section, and outdated data make the document useless. Add new placement examples as they become available, because over time this section becomes your strongest argument. Review prices once a quarter because reach changes.

How to Use It in Negotiations

Send the media kit in your very first message, not after being asked for statistics, because this saves one round of correspondence. In the message itself, write not about yourself, but about why your audience is suitable specifically for that advertiser. When asked for a discount, respond not by lowering the price, but by changing the scope: offer a package of several placements at a better rate instead of reducing the cost of a single one. If an advertiser says it is expensive, ask them to name their benchmark, because it often turns out that they are comparing your platform with a channel that has half the reach.

Who Benefits from This Most

Small platforms, because they find it hardest to compete with large ones, and a media kit levels the playing field by showing audience quality instead of quantity. Niche topics, because audience precision is the main argument, and it needs to be demonstrated through figures. Those who work with several platforms simultaneously, because one document can cover a channel, a social media page, and a website, increasing the overall deal value.

Summary

A media kit increases your price not through its design, but by taking work off the advertiser's hands, since they receive all the information needed to make a decision immediately. Its four main figures are average reach, engagement rate, demographics, and results of previous placements, while the number of followers is the least important of all. The most effective element is to indicate the cost per thousand people reached next to the price, because this shifts the conversation from bargaining to comparison with the market, where you can be objectively right.