Product seeding: how to send products to YouTubers

Product seeding is sending a product to a creator with no fee and no obligation to post. You're betting that a creator who likes it will review it, mention it or use it on camera. It costs product and postage rather than fees, but you can't predict who will post, when, or what they'll say.

Never send a product unannounced. An unexpected parcel goes to an address the creator didn't give you for this, may arrive with charges to pay, and lands as an obligation they never agreed to. A short message first costs you a day and gets you an address they chose, which may be a PO box or their manager's office. Write to the business address they publish; our guide to outreach email templates has more on the first message.

"No obligation" has to be true. Don't chase for a video, don't send a script, and don't make the next shipment depend on a post. If you need guaranteed coverage, that's a sponsorship, and you should pay for it.

A free product still counts as a paid relationship for disclosure. The UK's ASA says it doesn't matter whether there was any obligation to post, and the CMA tells brands sending gifts to include clear instructions that anything posted must be labelled as an ad, even when they ask for nothing in return. In the US, the FTC's disclosure guide for creators says to disclose free products even when the creator wasn't asked to mention them. Put that line in your message and in the parcel. More in our guide to disclosure rules.

• Gift or loan. Say which before you send. If you want it back, include a prepaid return label and a date.
• Pay the shipping both ways. The creator shouldn't be out of pocket for receiving something they didn't buy.
• Check the rules when sending abroad. A parcel crossing a border can need customs paperwork and may carry import duties or taxes on delivery. Check the destination's rules, and if your courier lets you pay those charges up front, do.
• Check what can be shipped. Couriers restrict items such as batteries, liquids and aerosols, and some products can't be sent to some countries.
• Put a note in the box. Your name, a contact address, what the product is, a reminder that there's no obligation, and the line about labelling any video as an ad. Skip the glossy brochure.
• Look after their address. Keep it only as long as you need it for delivery, and don't add it to a mailing list.

Seeding without records turns into "we sent some out and a few people posted, we think". A simple sheet is enough:

One check-in after delivery is fine ("Did it arrive in one piece?"). Asking whether they'll post isn't. Our guide to measuring YouTube sponsorships covers codes and tracked links in more detail.

When a creator posts and the video works, through sales on their code, comments asking where to buy, or simply a review you'd be glad to share, that's the moment to offer paid work. They know the product and you've seen how their audience responds. Thank them first, then offer a paid integration or dedicated video (what to pay). If you'd like to reuse their review in your own ads, ask: that's a separate usage right and may cost extra.

Nakodo searches YouTube for recent videos that match your brief's keywords, which can include review searches for your category, and scores each creator from 0 to 100 with reasons such as "7 of 12 recent videos match the brief's topics". It finds the business email creators publish and emails the ones you choose on your behalf, stating your offer exactly as you set it, so a free product with no obligation is described as exactly that. When a creator says yes, Nakodo introduces you by email, and you ask for a shipping address and agree the details from your own inbox. See how Nakodo works.