How to set up influencer whitelisting on Meta Ads Manager

What whitelisting is and is not

Whitelisting (also called creator licensing on Meta) gives a brand permission to run paid ads using a creator's content, from the creator's Facebook or Instagram account. The ad appears in users' feeds with the creator's handle and profile picture, not the brand's. This makes the ad appear more like organic content than a standard brand ad.

Whitelisting is not: posting to the creator's account, accessing their account credentials, controlling their account or requiring them to change their settings. The creator grants permission through Meta's Brand Collabs Manager. The brand controls the ad targeting and spend. The creator's account remains their own.

The permission process

Step 1: The creator connects their account to Meta's Brand Collabs Manager and adds your brand page as a partner. They go to: Creator Studio or Meta Business Suite > Brand Collabs Manager > Portfolio > Add Brand Partner. They enter your brand's Facebook page ID.

Step 2: Your brand accepts the partnership in Meta Business Suite. Go to Business Settings > Brand Collabs Manager > Pending Requests. Accept the creator partnership.

Step 3: The creator then grants advertising permissions. In Brand Collabs Manager, they select the content they want to license for ads and grant your brand access to use it in paid promotion.

Step 4: In Meta Ads Manager, when creating a new ad, select "Use existing content" and choose from the creator's licensed posts. The ad runs from the creator's account with your targeting and budget.

Whitelisting campaign setup in Meta Ads Manager

Once the creator has granted permissions, create a new campaign in Meta Ads Manager. At the ad level, click "Use existing post" and you will see the creator's licensed content available for selection.

Set your targeting as you would for any Meta campaign. The key difference: target audiences that include the creator's followers plus similar audience expansion. Whitelisted content converts well when targeted at lookalike audiences of the creator's existing follower base because those users have affinity for the creator's content style.

What to include in the brief for whitelisted campaigns

Whitelisting requires explicit written consent in your contract. Add to your campaign contract: "Creator grants [Brand] the right to whitelist the following content on Facebook and Instagram for a period of [X days] beginning on [post date]: [content description]. Whitelisted content will be used as paid advertising in [Brand]'s Meta Ads campaigns."

Also agree on the Spark Ads budget at the brief stage. Some creators factor potential ad spend into their rate. Transparency at the start prevents rate disputes after the content is live.