How to find content creators (and stay sane)

If you’ve reached this article, it’s because you don’t want to waste time or money when searching for, finding and choosing the right content creator. Right? You’re probably a marketing agency specialising in content creation or social media, although you may also be the person behind the marketing or social media of a company looking to create content for its social media.

Welcome. In this article, we explain the main ways to do it and why platforms such as HICARI are revolutionising this search.

The easiest, fastest and most effective way to find creators is through one of the best content creator platforms in Spanish and Spain; HICARI is the benchmark.

What is HICARI?

A platform that connects brands with UGC (User Generated Content) and content creators, ready to create authentic, creative and tailor-made videos for brands. You can create a brief in minutes and receive proposals from creators aligned with your needs, or directly select the creator who best fits your requirements.

Advantages of using HICARI:

• Quick access (30-second registration) to a marketplace with hundreds of available creators.
• The best price on the market in Spain and Latin America.
• No subscriptions or payments to use the platform.
• You can publish a specific request with your requirements: video type, dates, budget, tone…
• Control over content usage as it is covered by a contract with HICARI (organic, campaigns, online store…).
• Fixed rates. And free videos when buying video packs that include extra balance top-ups.
• Secure and professional management: invoicing, usage rights and 24-hour support in Spain.
• Possibility to send a product or request travel to a physical location.

Ideal for brands that need videos for ads (UGC Ads), social media posts, launches or to enrich their product pages.

🔗 Learn more about HICARI here

Another option is to search for creators directly on Instagram, TikTok or YouTube. You can use hashtags such as #ugcspain, #ugccontent, #creadordecontenido, or simply search for UGC using the search bar.

Disadvantages:

• You spend a lot of time reviewing profiles, starting conversations, receiving rates, etc.
• Higher prices. They “take advantage” of the fact that you approached them directly to charge higher rates.
• You have to manage contracts, payments and rights…

Advice: if you want to test several profiles and establish a recurring workflow, we don’t recommend taking on such manual work.

There are content creator platforms and influencer platforms that also have some content creators and UGC creators. The problem is that many focus on promotion through their own profiles, rather than creating content that you can use.

Remember: an influencer is not always a good UGC creator, and vice versa. Here we explain the difference and compare them. Here you can: calculate the engagement of an Instagram profile.

Spoiler: on HICARI, you can ask the UGC creator to upload the video to their profile if you also consider it appropriate, in addition to delivering the content to you. Two for one.

You can also find creators in Facebook groups, WhatsApp communities, creative Discord servers, industry events or even forums. Many freelance creators are active in communities where briefs and collaborations are shared.

In reality, this is not the most agile or fastest option for a brand. It is only advisable if you find a community in a very specific niche with creators you are interested in—making the extra effort to find that community worthwhile.

Some brands have struck gold among their own customers. You can launch a campaign like “Would you like to collaborate with us?” and select real people to create authentic content. For example, L’Oréal has its own influencer/creator programme (see here) called “Lorealistar”, where they ask you for content in exchange for products, with no payment involved (sorry, we don’t share that philosophy at HICARI).

This is a very good option, but it requires a great deal of time and resources to manage everything. Campaign, logistics, legal, rights… Ugh, forget it.

It’s the most common option, and the most expensive if you’re a brand, since it includes at least a 20% commission for the social media agency. With HICARI, you get direct access to a range of UGC creators. And if you’re an agency… don’t worry, we’ll keep your secret… shhh! We operate as a white-label service.

Finding creators is easy—you lift a digital or analogue rock and 200 appear… but doing it well, quickly and affordably is another story. Many brands make mistakes that cost them time, money and unusable content.

Here are some of the most common:

1. Searching by follower count: one of the most common mistakes is focusing on the number of followers a creator has. Remember that UGC is not influencer marketing. It’s not about who the content reaches, but how it communicates. A high-quality, well-structured and authentic UGC video has much more impact than one recorded by someone with thousands of followers but no connection to the brand.

2. Requesting unpaid content: sometimes brands are tempted to offer visibility or products as the only form of “payment”. This not only drives away good creators, but also significantly reduces the quality of the content. Creating a good video takes time, editing, equipment and experience. If you’re not willing to pay, you’re unlikely to receive content that’s useful for your brand. Not to mention the terrible reputation it gives your brand.

3. Not allowing enough creative freedom: UGC works precisely because it doesn’t look like an ad. If a brand dictates every word, shot and tone, the result will be forced and unconvincing. Ideally, provide clear guidance, but trust the creator’s style. They’re the ones who know how to connect with the camera—and with the audience.

4. Not defining the objective clearly: before requesting anything, you need to be clear about what you want to achieve with that content: attract traffic? Sell a product? Build up your social media organically and consistently? Strengthen your product listing? Without a defined objective, it’s impossible to assess whether the content is useful or not.

5. Not planning for the legal use of the content: Are you going to use that video on social media? On your website too? In paid campaigns? For how long? In which countries? Failing to define the usage and record it in writing can lead to legal issues. At HICARI, all usage rights are covered from the outset so you can use the content with complete freedom.

Finding content creators doesn’t have to be an ordeal. If you want to get it right from the start, choose platforms like HICARI, where you can find qualified, experienced creators who are available to produce exactly the type of content your brand needs.

Content sells, but good content sells better. And for that, you need the right creators with the right support and guidance (yes, we’re talking about HICARI—come on, sign up now!)