From cold email to paid brand deal

A paid brand deal almost never starts with a contract — it starts with one well-aimed cold email. This is the end-to-end path PitchBrand was built for, from finding the right brand to moving a hot lead through your pipeline. Follow it once and the loop becomes second nature.

1. Find the right brands

Start in Brands to browse companies that fit creators like you, or lean on Scout, your brand research agent, to surface options worth pitching. The goal is not a giant list — it is a list of brands you can genuinely speak to. Quality of fit beats quantity every time. New to this? See searching for brands with Scout.

2. Unlock the decision-maker's email

Once you have a brand, you need a real person to reach. Use Email Finder — drop in the company's domain and it returns verified decision-makers. Unlocking a contact's email costs one credit each. Unlock the contact you want, and it is saved to your library so you never pay for it twice. See using Email Finder for the details.

3. Write a pitch that fits

Now the message. Let Penny draft a personalized pitch for that specific brand, or build a reusable Template in the Templates section if you have a structure that works. Templates define what you say across a multi-step sequence; Penny tailors the words to each company. Either way, lead with the brand and keep it human. More on this in pitches that get replies.

4. Send, then let Chase follow up

Use Add to Outreach on the contact and your pitch lands in the Queued tab on the Outreach page. It sends automatically inside your schedule, then moves to In Progress. From there, Chase handles follow-ups on the cadence in your template — and cancels the rest the moment the brand replies. You do nothing but wait. See how follow-ups work.

5. Handle the reply

When a brand responds, it appears in your Inbox. Reply fast — same day if you can. Pam can draft a response in your voice if you are stuck, whether that is answering questions, sharing rates, or proposing next steps. This is the moment a cold email turns into a real conversation.

6. Move them through your pipeline

Track every relationship in Contacts, where each person sits at a stage: Not Contacted, Contacted, Responded, Qualified, or Not Interested. Sending moves a contact to Contacted; a reply moves them to Responded; and once a deal is taking real shape, mark them Qualified. Your pipeline becomes a clear map of where your next paycheck is coming from. See managing your pipeline in Contacts to go deeper.