For years, the creator partnership conversation often started with a fee: What are you paying for a post, a video, an appearance? Now, more creators are opening with a different question: What ownership can I have?
That shift is worth celebrating. Creators help brands earn attention, build community, and become part of everyday culture. When their contribution helps create lasting value, asking to share in that value is a reasonable move, not an audacious one.
But equity isn’t simply a bigger fee with a more exciting name. It is a bet on a company, with uncertain timing, uncertain value, and terms that can be difficult to compare. The opportunity is real. So is the need to understand what you’re accepting.
The conversation recently came into focus when Allison Ellsworth, co-founder of Poppi, said creators she approached for her new hydration brand, Jetty, were asking for advisory roles and investment stakes. Ellsworth said the creators were right to ask and should participate in the upside. Poppi was acquired by PepsiCo in a deal announced at $1.95 billion in 2025, and creator Alix Earle held equity in the brand before the sale.
Jetty, launched on November 9, is funded so far by about $2.5 million from its founders, with no outside investors. Ellsworth described two potential creator arrangements: one tied to regular deliverables and appearances, and another built around a less frequent, “best effort” commitment from a thought leader. Her point was that terms need to fit the person.
For creators, the broader takeaway is not that every partnership should include equity. It’s that you can ask, and that a thoughtful “yes” deserves a closer look.
A fee is a number. Equity is a scenario.
A fee is comparatively straightforward: You deliver agreed work, and you receive an agreed amount. Equity is different. It represents a possible future return, not cash in hand, and it may take years to become valuable, or never become valuable at all.
That makes the first question less “How much equity?” and more “What does this equity mean?”
Ask for the company’s current valuation and how it was determined. Then clarify exactly what you’re being offered: shares, options, or another form of ownership? If it’s an option, what is the strike price, meaning the price you would have to pay to exercise it? What percentage of the company does the stake represent on a fully diluted basis, meaning after accounting for shares and options that could be issued?
The percentage alone can be misleading. A small slice of a company with strong prospects may sound appealing, but that slice can shrink as the company raises money and issues more shares. And even if a company sells, the amount common shareholders receive can depend on debt, investor rights, and the order in which proceeds are distributed.
You don’t need to become a finance expert before a conversation. You do need enough information to understand what is being offered. If the company can’t explain the terms in plain language, or won’t share the details needed to evaluate them, pause before treating the stake as compensation.
Put two possible futures on paper
A useful way to test an equity offer is to ask the company to walk you through a few outcomes.
What might your stake be worth if the business performs roughly as it did last year? What if it grows more slowly than expected? What if it reaches the ambitious outcome everyone is excited about? Ask what assumptions sit behind those estimates, and whether they account for future fundraising, dilution, and the rights attached to the shares.
These are scenarios, not promises. No projection can turn startup ownership into guaranteed money. But asking for several outcomes helps keep the conversation grounded. If the only explanation is a giant number attached to a dream exit, you don’t yet have enough information to make a sound comparison.
Then compare the offer with what you would earn for the same work as a fee. Consider the time, production costs, exclusivity, usage rights, and opportunity cost. Equity can be an addition to a fee, part of a carefully negotiated package, or a risk you choose to take. It should not automatically erase the value of the work you’re doing now.
Find out when you earn it, and what happens if you leave
An equity offer can come with a vesting schedule: You earn the right to keep the shares or options over time or as you meet conditions. That may be tied to months of service, specific milestones, or both.
Ask what must happen for the equity to vest. If your partnership ends early, do you keep what has already vested? What happens to the portion that hasn’t? If the company is sold, does anything change? If you receive options, how long do you have to exercise them after the relationship ends, and how much would exercising cost?
Get the answers in writing. A verbal assurance that “you’ll be taken care of” is not a substitute for clear terms. Before accepting, have a qualified professional review the agreement, especially if the stake is meaningful to your income or involves complicated rights.
And remember that vesting and deliverables need to make sense together. A monthly posting commitment, a quarterly appearance, and an in-person production day are different kinds of work. Define what you’re expected to do, how long you’re committing, and what the company can use your content for. If the brand wants permission to run your work in advertising, that right deserves its own clear terms.
Advisory work is work. Ownership is ownership.
The word “advisor” can sound flattering, and it can describe real value. You might be asked to help shape a product, make introductions, give regular feedback, or lend your expertise to important decisions. Those are contributions that take time and skill.
Keep that labor separate in your thinking from the equity itself. Ask what advisory work is expected, how often you’ll meet, and how much preparation or follow-up is involved. If the company wants recurring work, discuss compensation for that work rather than assuming a speculative ownership stake covers everything.
The same clarity applies to promotional deliverables. Posting content, appearing at events, making a production day available, and allowing paid ad usage are not interchangeable. A useful deal spells out each piece. That protects both sides and makes it easier for you to decide whether the total package is fair.
Ownership doesn’t cancel disclosure
This part should be simple and clear: If you own part of a brand, that financial interest is a material connection your audience may need to know about when you endorse or discuss the company.
A creator-investor can speak in their own voice. A brand can give the creator room to be candid. But having equity does not make the connection invisible, and it doesn’t create a pass to post without disclosure. Disclosure helps your audience understand the relationship and weigh what they’re watching.
The right approach is to make the connection clear and easy to notice when you’re promoting or endorsing the brand. Don’t assume that a profile link, an old announcement, or a vague mention of being “involved” will tell people what they need to know. When in doubt, consult current guidance and a qualified professional about the specific content and arrangement.
Choose the brand you’d believe in without the upside
The new openness around creator equity is encouraging. It recognizes that creators can be more than rented reach: They can be collaborators, advisers, investors, and genuine believers in the work. Asking for ownership can be a smart way to explore that potential.
Just don’t let the possibility of a big return do all the talking. Price the stake as carefully as you can. Understand the valuation, strike price, dilution, vesting, and exit terms. Put advisory labor and promotional work on the table as work. And disclose your financial connection when you endorse the brand.
Then ask yourself one final question: Would I still want to talk about this company if the equity turned out to be worth nothing?
If the answer is yes, the deal may be built on something sturdier than a hopeful projection. That’s the kind of partnership that can survive the wait, and still feel like yours.
