UGC creator as a light entrepreneur: pricing, agreements and invoicing

A brand sends you a message: could you make a few videos for us? They send the product to your home, you create the content and deliver the finished files. Before filming, though, there is more to agree on than the number of videos and the deadline.

Can the company use the videos in paid advertising? Does your price cover another shoot if the client changes their mind? Will they also receive all your raw footage?

Agreeing on these points in advance lets you focus on the work. It also makes buying easier for the client, who knows what they are getting.

In Finland, you can take UGC assignments as a light entrepreneur and invoice through an invoicing service without your own Business ID. You find the clients and agree on the work. Bisse.fi’s light entrepreneurship service helps with invoicing and salary payments.

Want to see what starting out can look like? Martta Lampikoski began with UGC videos and later became a sole trader (story in Finnish). Her first client projects helped her test entrepreneurship before setting up her own business.

Contents

1. What does a UGC creator sell?
2. A clear brief helps both sides
3. Agree on revisions before filming
4. Where and for how long can the content be used?
5. What goes into the price?
6. Money, products or both?
7. How to invoice a UGC collaboration through Bisse.fi
8. Good collaboration makes the next assignment easier

1. What does a UGC creator sell?

UGC stands for user-generated content. In a paid UGC collaboration, a company commissions a creator to make product videos, photos or service demonstrations for its marketing. The content might show a product in everyday use, explain how something works or feature the creator talking to the camera.

Agree at the outset whether you are delivering content for the company’s channels or also publishing it on your own. Both can be part of one collaboration, but posting on your own channels should be agreed separately.

If your job is to produce content for a company’s channels, you do not need a large following in the same way as someone selling access to their own audience. Work samples can show your skills: how you present a product, open a video and communicate naturally.

Choose collaborations where you can stand behind the content. If you describe your own experience with a product, it must reflect what you actually experienced. Do not make promises about a product that you cannot support.

2. A clear brief helps both sides

A brief describes what the client is ordering and what it will be used for. A good brief leaves room for your own approach while giving enough detail about the result the client wants.

Discuss at least these points:

• Quantity and format. How many videos or photos will you deliver? How long are the videos, and which channels are they for?
• The main idea. What should viewers understand about the product? Is there anything you must show or say?
• The finished deliverables. Are subtitles, music, a cover image or alternative openings included?
• The schedule. When will the product arrive, when will you send the first version, and when will the client provide feedback?
• Approval. Who collects the feedback and approves the finished work?

Also agree on whether the client will approve your script or filming plan before the shoot. This is particularly helpful when they have specific requirements for wording or the product demonstration.

For example, you could describe the assignment like this:

I will deliver two vertical videos, approximately 30 seconds each, based on a filming plan approved by the client. Both include editing and Finnish subtitles. The client will provide the product and checked product information before filming. First versions will be delivered on the agreed date, with three working days allowed for feedback.

This example describes the work. It still needs pricing, usage rights and payment terms. You can find a broader framework in our guide to agreements between light entrepreneurs and clients.

3. Agree on revisions before filming

“Could you change this as well?” is a normal part of creative work. Allow time for handling feedback when preparing your quote.

For example, you can include one revision round. Define what that means: the client sends one consolidated set of comments, and you make the agreed changes. If several people are reviewing the work, ask the client to collect their feedback before sending it.

Distinguish between correcting the agreed work and fulfilling a new request. If you made a typo in the subtitles, correct it. If the client wants a different location or a new script after approving the filming plan, assess the extra work and agree on its price before doing it.

The same applies to additional versions. A different opening, subtitles in another language or a shorter ad edit may be useful, but they also take time. Specify which versions are included in the original order.

4. Where and for how long can the content be used?

Alongside producing the video, you agree on how the client may use the finished material. A post on the company’s own social channels and an advertising campaign running for several months are different uses.

Ask the client about their plans and record:

• which channels may publish the content
• whether paid advertising is permitted
• whether use is ongoing or time-limited, and when any agreed period starts
• whether the client may edit the material or pass it to others
• whether you may show the work in your portfolio.

Charging separately for advertising rights can seem like a smart approach. However, not every company wants short, video-specific usage periods. The reason is not necessarily a wish to advertise with the same video forever. It may be the work involved in tracking permissions. For a small business with dozens of videos from different creators, keeping track of every usage period, expiry date and renewal can become a substantial task.

Listen to the client’s needs too. You can agree on a total price that includes use in specified channels and paid advertising without a time limit. Another option is one shared, sufficiently long usage period for all the videos in a collaboration. Still define where and how the content may be used, and account for those rights in your price. Clear terms make buying and working together again easier.

If the client wants to run ads through your social media identity, agree on that separately. Establish what advertising access you grant, which content it covers and when it ends.

Discuss raw footage as a separate item. Agree on whether you will deliver only finished videos or original recordings too, and what editing is permitted. Raw footage may let the client create several new pieces of content, so the scope of its use belongs in the pricing discussion.

Check that music, images and other materials may be used as agreed. A sound being available in a social media app does not by itself establish the rights needed for advertising or use on another platform. TikTok’s guidance on commercial music use can help you check a music choice.

Agree on advertising disclosures too

When you publish a commercial collaboration on your own account, the advertising must be clearly identifiable. An example given by Finland’s Consumer and Competition Authority, KKV, is “Mainos [Yritys/Tuotemerkki]” for Finnish content, meaning “Ad [Company/Brand]”. The disclosure must be immediately visible and remain visible throughout the commercial content. Compensation can also be a product or service. See KKV’s influencer marketing guidance, in Finnish.

If you deliver material for the company to publish, agree on who adds the necessary disclosures to the final post. An ad can still feel natural, provided viewers understand its commercial purpose.

5. What goes into the price?

As an illustration, you could consider a range of €80–€300 per UGC video, excluding VAT. This is an example to help you think about pricing. Your own quote depends on the work, your skills and the agreed usage rights. More demanding projects can cost more.

The lower end may suit a simple, tightly defined video or one made as part of a batch filmed together. If you develop the idea and script from scratch, film in several locations or do extensive editing, the price should reflect that work. Specify whether subtitles, a revision round and paid advertising use are included.

Even a short video can involve substantial work. Besides filming, you spend time learning about the product, developing ideas, scripting, preparing the location, editing and communicating with the client. Revisions and file delivery also belong in your estimate.

If an €80 video takes four hours altogether, that is €20 invoiced per working hour before expenses, service fees and taxes. Track your actual hours even when charging a fixed price.

Assess the full assignment before quoting. What will the client receive, how long will it take, and what usage rights do they need? These questions help you make an offer both sides understand.

You can offer one clear price covering production and the agreed rights, or itemise them as agreed with the client. Both sides should understand what is included and what needs a separate agreement. If the budget is small, discuss the number of videos or the scope of production.

If the client requires you to avoid working with competitors, establish the scope and duration of that restriction. It may limit other assignments, so consider it before accepting the offer.

Finally, the amount invoiced to the client is not the same as the salary paid into your account. Include your own costs and check the invoicing service’s fees before committing to a price.

Work out your invoicing target. Bisse.fi’s hourly rate calculator, in Finnish helps you assess profitability. Use the salary calculator to estimate take-home pay. You can also read about net and gross income, in Finnish.

6. Money, products or both?

A brand may offer money, products or both. Establish what is compensation for your work and what is supplied only for filming. If a product is on loan, agree on its return and the return costs.

Also consider whether the compensation works for you. Even a useful product is different from money you can use to cover your costs. You can propose a cash fee even if the first offer is a product-only collaboration.

If you receive a product in exchange for advertising or social media visibility, its fair market value is taxable income. This means the price you would pay to buy it yourself. Keep records of money, products and work-related expenses. Check your tax return and add any missing information. See the Finnish Tax Administration’s guidance on social media income and product gifts.

If cash is paid through an invoicing service but the brand gives you products directly, check how those products should be handled too. Invoicing the cash payment does not automatically ensure that products received separately are included in your taxation. Ask Bisse.fi customer support how the different parts of the collaboration are handled through the service.

7. How to invoice a UGC collaboration through Bisse.fi

Once the assignment is agreed, tell the client that you invoice through Bisse.fi. Confirm which company will pay. Your contact may represent the brand while an agency handles the contract and invoice.

As a Bisse.fi light entrepreneur without your own Business ID, you create the invoice in the service. Bisse.fi handles payroll and tax withholding under its service terms. The invoicing service does not find the assignment or negotiate its terms for you. The Finnish Tax Administration’s light entrepreneurship guide explains these roles.

Before sending the invoice:

1. Check the paying company’s name, Business ID and billing details.
2. Add any purchase order number or campaign name requested by the client.
3. Describe the agreed work and any separately approved additional work.
4. Check the VAT treatment and payment terms.
5. Send the invoice at the stage agreed in the contract.

An invoice line could read “Planning, filming and editing two UGC videos, September campaign”. If a separate fee was agreed for advertising rights, itemise it accordingly and state the usage period. Keep the quote, the client’s acceptance and messages approving extra work.

If the client requests an e-invoice, see our guide to e-invoicing for light entrepreneurs. For clients abroad, check invoicing arrangements and tax treatment before starting. Begin with our guide to invoicing international clients.

Ready to invoice an agreed collaboration? Register with Bisse.fi and collect the client’s billing details. See the services and fees on Bisse.fi’s pricing page.

8. Good collaboration makes the next assignment easier

Deliver clearly named files and explain which version is intended for each use. Confirm that the client has received everything agreed. If you have permission to show the work as a reference, add it to your portfolio at the agreed time.

You can also ask for feedback and discuss what content the client needs next. In an ongoing collaboration, agree on the same things as in the first project: quantity, workload, revisions, usage rights and invoicing. The hours recorded on your first project will help you price the next one.

For ideas on presenting your work, read our guide to building a website as a light entrepreneur.

English version published on 21 September 2026. Based on the Finnish article published on 15 September 2026.

Make your next UGC collaboration a clear assignment. Agree on the work and usage rights, confirm the price and handle invoicing through Bisse.fi.