Have you ever encountered a collaboration that was too good to be true? That’s most likely the case!
I’ve received tons of emails from scammers who try to offer me thousands of dollars worth of products to post and share their products.
Unfortunately, these deals are always too good to be true. Below, we’ll share our guide on how to spot fake influencer collaboration emails.
How to Tell a Collaboration Email is FAKE
- They address you by your username or a pet name. This is always a dead giveaway if a company doesn’t refer to me as Alex or Alexandra. Instead, they call me Alex Goes Global (my username) or a pet name such as Dear, Madam, etc.
- They use a Gmail email. A real collaboration will NEVER use Gmail. There might be a chance that legit companies may use a Gmail email if the company is smaller and from overseas. Most real collaborations will use a company email (not @yahoo or @gmail).
- The e-mail is typically formatted terribly with lots of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.
- The product they are selling does not match your niche. I write about fashion, food, travel, photography, and marketing. I would never promote cars or children’s toys to my audience.
- They don’t offer a sponsorship contract. This is a huge red flag for me, especially if the collab is coming from a big company such as Nordstrom, lululemon, Nike, REVOLVE, or other similar companies.
- They require that I deposit a check. It’s definitely a scam if you are sent a check to deposit in order to buy the merchandise needed for the collaboration. Most brand collaborations will just send you the products you request, OR give you a gift card or coupon code to purchase the merchandise.
- You usually receive these emails immediately after tagging your favorite brands. These scammers probably have bots that scrape recent tags and automate these scammy emails.
Examples of Fake Collaboration E-mails
#1 Everlane
Everlane is one of my favorite companies to work with! They offer gifting campaigns, but the process is NEVER like this.
#2 REVOLVE
I am also a REVOLVE Ambassador, so this scam email was easy to spot. REVOLVE will email you only if you are accepted into their Ambassador Program.
Below is an example of my post from an actual sponsored REVOLVE collaboration.
View this post on Instagram
#3 Cupshe
Cupshe is a women’s affordable fashion brand. This email has MANY red flags which include:
- Uses a Gmail email
- They are sending 10 items. That is usually too many items for a collab.
- $2500 per post is a ridiculous amount.
- They require you to pay 30% of the shipping fee ($105)
- The e-mail formatting is too simple.
- There is no signature that identifies the person, their role, and important links for the company.
#4 Fashion Nova
Fashion Nova is one of the most popular brands that scammers will use. They’re a fast fashion brand anyway so it’s best to avoid the brand altogether.
#5 Fendi
View this post on Instagram
How Do I Find REAL Collaborations
If you want to connect with brands directly, it’s best to do so on an affiliate platform such as ShopMy or RewardStyle.
Related: How to Get Accepted into RewardStyle
Through these platforms, you can create an account, set up a “store” for people to shop from, and connect with real brand representatives.
I personally prefer ShopMy over RewardStyle. Here is our guide on how to sign up for and use ShopMy.
Have questions? Feel free to DM me on Instagram.
If you found our How to Spot Fake Influencer Collaboration E-mails guide helpful, please share it and keep others safe. Thanks for your support!
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