How much to charge for an editorial as a content creator on Substack from a trillion dollar company collab request?

Recently a large company (valued in the trillions) reached out wanting to do a collab with my niche 200 subscriber audience Substack. They liked the editorial angle I have and want me to write it on one of the products they’re launching. I’m working with a number on what to charge them but I don’t know what’s realistic or what’s defensible. They definitely have budget but I’m not sure what’s realistic to ask for?
I’d be writing about 2,000 words on the piece and weaving a source quote from one of their head product engineers. My open rates are 60% but that’s expected as my subscriber count is small. But the audience is very targeted. I just asked AI and it suggested 10-15k. My friend suggested 18-20k? I feel like those are such large numbers. Any advice?

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KhoslasBiggestOpp•2 months ago•1

For context, $20k for someone with a marketing budget of $1M is the equivalent of charging $1k for someone with a marketing budget of $50k.

They can afford it. They probably have multiple millions in their budget.

Exact-Evidence-3240•2 months ago•1

I would start with asking for “a lot” then padding that invoice so thick your next 3 generations will benefit from it 🤣

Agreeable_Elk4529•2 months ago•1

If I were you, I’d anchor like this. Start at 15-20k then be flexible down to 10K if they push but don’t go below 6K unless there’s strategic upside (recurring deal, exposure, long-term retainer)

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Independent-Ant-7230•2 months ago•1

Those numbers aren’t crazy, but they depend more on positioning than your subscriber count.

At 200 subs, you’re not really selling reach, you’re selling audience quality and the editorial itself. A 60% open rate with a niche, targeted audience is actually strong, but the real value here is that they want your voice and angle, not just distribution.

For something like a 2,000 word editorial with brand integration, a reasonable range would be somewhere around 3k to 8k if you price it like a small creator. The 10k to 20k range starts making sense if you position it more like commissioned branded content from a specialist writer rather than “newsletter sponsorship.”

Since they’re a huge company, you don’t need to anchor low. You can start higher and see how they respond. Something like 8k to 12k as an opening ask is defensible if you frame it around:

niche audience and relevance
long-form editorial effort
brand alignment and narrative integration

Also clarify what’s included. Drafts, revisions, promotion, exclusivity, usage rights. A lot of people undercharge because they don’t define scope.

If it feels too high, remember they reached out to you. You’re not convincing them to work with you, you’re pricing something they already want.

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