In short: Paying for UGC only after you have approved the video moves the risk of a miss from you to the creator, and it keeps your leverage where it belongs. MakeInfluence’s buying guide warns that “paying in full before the delivery has been checked removes your only real leverage”. The common alternatives, a deposit, a subscription or a balance you top up, all move money before you have seen a finished video. Charging on approval works when “approved” means something checkable, so write the brief that way. On Usicri your card is charged only when you approve a video.
The payment models you will meet
MakeInfluence says platforms usually charge either a price per video or a subscription plus a marketplace fee, and its buying guide describes a deposit at briefing as common for smaller orders, with the balance due on approved delivery. Insense’s payments page describes a balance the brand tops up, which is released to the creator when the brand approves. Every platform has its own terms, so this is a summary of patterns, not a rule.
| Model | When money moves | Who carries the risk |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit, balance on approved delivery | Part at briefing, the rest at delivery | You, for the deposit, until delivery |
| Subscription plus marketplace fee | Every period, whether or not you commission | You, for months you do not use |
| Balance you top up | Before the video, released at approval | You, for money parked in advance |
| Pay per approved video | When you approve | The creator, until you approve |
Why approval is the right moment
An approval is the one point at which you know what you are buying. Before it, you pay for a promise. After it, you hold a finished video that matches the brief or does not. When payment and approval are the same click, the review is a real decision and not a formality, because nothing has been spent yet.
That only works if the review is fair and fast. Vidovo’s approval guide separates non-negotiables, such as disclosures, legal restrictions and offer details, from creative preferences like camera angle or setting, so a taste difference is not treated as a compliance problem. Twirl makes a similar point about feedback: it becomes excessive when it adds requirements that were not in the brief.
What “approved” should mean
- The must-include items from the brief are in the video.
- The disclosure is there, in the video itself.
- Product claims stay within the wording you supplied.
- Sound, framing and length work for the place you will use it.
- The people in it are real and the creator filmed it.
- Anything that is only a preference stays out of the decision.
If a video fails the first five, reject it and say why in a short note. If it only misses a preference, approve it and keep the preference for the next brief. The full method is in how to review UGC videos.
What the creator risks, and why it matters to you
A creator who films for a campaign does not know whether the video will be paid. On Usicri a brand may reject a video at its discretion, with or without a reason, and only approved videos are paid (section 3 of the Terms of Service). Creators weigh that risk when they choose a campaign, and they see three things first: the payout, the brief and the brand’s rating from earlier videos.
So a pay-on-approval campaign attracts videos in proportion to how safe it feels to film for you:
- A specific brief. Creators can tell what a pass looks like.
- A fair payout. A price that matches the effort. See UGC rates for beauty and fashion.
- Reasons when you reject. Twirl advises that each comment say where the change is needed, what should change and why.
- Prompt, fair reviews. After approval a creator can rate the brand from 1 to 5 stars, and the average is shown next to your campaigns, so how you treat creators is visible.
One moment for payment and rights
On Usicri the license for a video takes effect once you have approved it and the payment has been collected. A rejected or unpaid video may not be used. There is no separate usage fee to negotiate and no second invoice for rights, which keeps the record simple: the approval date is also the date your license starts. See what the license covers.
When pay-per-approval is not the right fit
Charging on approval does not give you a delivery date or a guaranteed number of videos. If you need videos by a fixed day, creators you pick yourself or a team that manages the work for you, a different model fits better; the trade-offs are in agency, marketplace or freelancer.
On Usicri
You create a campaign, set the payout per video and choose how many videos you want. You save a payment method so the campaign can go live, and nothing is charged when you do. Your card is charged when you approve a video: the payout, with no platform fee on videos approved through December 31 and a platform fee of 15% after that. The creator receives the full payout. There is no deposit, no subscription and no minimum spend, and a rejected video costs nothing. A campaign is not guaranteed to receive submissions, so a clear brief and a fair payout matter. See how it works for brands.
The arithmetic behind it is in how to calculate the cost per usable UGC video.
More costs to compare: the hidden costs of UGC platforms.
Why a finished video is a better basis for a decision than a portfolio is covered in review finished videos, not portfolios.