5 red flags in influencer and entertainment agreements

By Merrick Soss

Before any campaign launches, the agreement is the single most important factor in how the partnership will unfold. Most people treat it as just a formality, but by the time that issues arise, there's usually no way back.

Influencer deals can move quickly, terms get discussed informally over email or on a call, and written agreements tend to get less scrutiny than they deserve. The issues that cause real damage aren't always visible at signing: a vague exclusivity clause, a missing revision cap, an indemnification provision that nobody read closely enough.

Below are five areas where agreements most commonly create problems, and what to look for whether you're a creator, a brand, or an agency.

Red flag 1: The deal terms aren't actually in the deal

If the agreement doesn't reflect everything that was negotiated, disputes are almost inevitable. This is one of the most common issues that is also the most avoidable.

When deliverables are vague (eg: "promote the brand on socials,"), one party pictures a single post while the other expects seven. Neither is wrong based on the language, but both end up frustrated.

Every deliverable should be spelled out: post count, platforms, deadlines, and formats. If there are external documents like a creative brief, the agreement should specify which one controls in the event of a conflict. Verbal assurances, however well-intentioned, are legally worthless. If it's not in the agreement, it's not enforceable.

Red flag 2: The language is too vague to mean anything

Terms can appear in an agreement without actually doing any work. Ownership, usage rights, exclusivity, and payment details all need to be specific.

If an agreement grants a brand "digital promotion" rights, does that include paid boosting? If a creator is "exclusive to the brand," does that mean they can't post for competitors, or that they can't work at all? If payment is due "upon delivery," what counts as delivery?

Ambiguity in these clauses creates the conditions for genuine disagreement between parties who both believed they understood the deal. Specific language is what makes an agreement enforceable.

Red flag 3: There's no system of checks and balances

Without defined approval rights and revision processes, both sides lose control of the outcome.

For creators, the risk is being held to performance targets they were never told about, or being asked for unlimited revisions with no cap on how many rounds the brand can request. For brands and agencies, the risk is content going live without review that may not align with brand messaging, or that creates reputational exposure.

Approval rights need to run in both directions. Brands need sign-off before anything is posted. Creators need approval rights over how their name and likeness are used. Takedown provisions (giving the brand the right to request removal of unapproved content) are far less costly than platform-level legal action.

Morality clauses deserve particular scrutiny. They're legitimate tools, but broad or subjective language can penalise a creator for hypothetical future behaviour rather than conduct that actually causes harm. The clause should be specific and tied to real damage.

Red flag 4: The rights and liabilities are misaligned

When one party absorbs most of the risk, the agreement functions more as a liability transfer than a partnership document.

Watch for termination-for-convenience clauses that allow a brand to walk away without paying anything, leaving a creator who has already invested time with nothing to show for it. Watch for indemnification language that makes one party responsible for claims arising from the other's actions. Watch for insurance and liability clauses that haven't been thought through on both sides.

None of these clauses are inherently problematic. They exist for legitimate reasons, but the problem arises when they're one-sided. A well-drafted agreement distributes risk proportionally and makes clear, for each type of claim, who is responsible for what.

Red flag 5: There are negotiation difficulties

How a party behaves during negotiations is usually how they'll behave when the campaign runs into trouble. If they're inflexible, evasive, or dismissive of reasonable concerns before the ink is dry, expect more of the same when something goes wrong.

"Non-negotiable standard templates" is a leverage play, not a legal fact. Every agreement is negotiable. A counterparty who says otherwise is either inexperienced in the industry or isn't negotiating in good faith.

If a brand or agency doesn't understand why certain protections matter to a creator, or if a creator doesn't understand why a brand needs approval rights, those blind spots tend to show up during execution in ways that are costly for everyone involved.

Before you sign

Read every clause, not just the deal points. Check that nothing agreed upon is missing from the document. An agreement where one side carries all the risk is a warning sign, not a partnership.

And pay attention to how the other side conducts themselves at the table. It will tell you more about how the campaign is likely to go than anything written in the agreement itself.

Agreements that look straightforward rarely are. If you're a creator, brand, or agency navigating a deal and want to talk through the terms, get in touch with Merrick.