Usage rights, exclusivity and whitelisting, explained

You bought the video. Can you run it as an ad? Here's the plain-English answer, before the fine print bites.

Owning the files vs. running ads

When you buy a UGC video, the base price usually covers posting it on your own channels. Your page, your feed, your stories. That's called organic use.

Running that same video as a paid ad is a different use. Same file, but now you're putting money behind it and pushing it to people who never followed you. The video is working a lot harder, so most creators price that separately.

With Tank, the $400 rate covers the files for organic posting on your own channels. The files are yours to keep.

Paid usage rights

Paid usage means you're allowed to run the video as an ad. In any deal, look for three things:

• Where. Which platforms? "All paid social" is wide. One app is narrow.
• How long. Rights usually last a set window, then end or renew.
• What happens after. Do you pull the ad, or can you pay to keep it running?

Tank's paid ad rights add 35% to the video price and cover all paid social for 90 days. Want longer? That gets a quote.

Category exclusivity

Exclusivity means the creator won't work with your competitors for a set time. If you sell dental chews, you don't want the same dog pushing a rival chew next week. It muddies your ad and confuses the people watching.

It costs more because the creator turns down work to give it to you. So buy it when it matters. If you're still testing, you may not need it yet.

Tank's category exclusivity adds 50%. For 90 days, he skips competing brands in your category.

Whitelisting

Whitelisting means your ad runs from the creator's account. Same video, but it shows up under the creator's name and handle, with your ad money behind it. The creator gives you ad access. You run the spend.

Why brands like it: the ad looks like a post from a dog people follow. Someone who'd swipe past a brand ad may stop for a face they know.

Before you start, agree on four things: how long you have access, what you're allowed to run, who approves new captions, and how it ends.

With Tank, whitelisting is on request: your spend, run under Tank's handle. Ask, and we'll price it with your brief.

A post is a separate thing

Buying files is one product. Buying a post on the creator's page is another. With a post, you're renting the audience.

Reach swings, so you're buying a post, not a guaranteed number of views. Be careful with anyone who promises a number. A typical Tank post does about 5K. A solid one does 30K. 24M is the peak, not the average.

Tank's posts are quoted when you ask: an Instagram or Facebook feed post with a 24-hour story, or a story only, up to 3 frames, with a link.

Don't skip the label

Paid and gifted work has to be disclosed. In the US, that means FTC rules. Every one of Tank's paid or gifted posts is labeled. If a creator offers to skip the label, walk away.

Quick math

Extras go on top of the base video price. Here's how it adds up with Tank:

• 1 video, organic only: $400
• 1 video, run as a paid ad (+35%): $540
• 1 video, paid ad plus exclusivity (+35% and +50%): $740
• 3-Video Test Pack, run as paid ads (+35%): $1,350

Want to check your own mix? The price check on the rates page does the math in about 30 seconds.

5 questions to ask any creator

1. Does the base price cover organic posting only, or paid ads too?
2. For paid ads, which platforms, and for how long?
3. Is there exclusivity, and who counts as a competitor?
4. Can I whitelist, and how do we turn it off?
5. Do I keep the files when the window ends?

Get those five in writing and the fine print can't bite you later.