Managing a collaboration from accept to paid

The exact status flow of a collaboration, what each step needs from you, and where things stall.

A collaboration is one agreed piece of work with one brand. It has a fixed status flow, and both sides see the same steps at the same time in Collabs.

The flow

  1. 1

    1. Accept

    You confirm the terms. From here the deliverables and price are locked unless both sides change them.

  2. 2

    2. Submit a draft

    Upload the content for review before it goes live.

  3. 3

    3. Brand reviews

    They approve it, or request a revision with notes. Revisions come back to you as step 2 again.

  4. 4

    4. Content approved

    Approval means you are clear to publish exactly what was approved.

  5. 5

    5. Submit the live URL

    Post it on your channel and paste the public link. A cash payout cannot be released without this.

  6. 6

    6. Payment released

    The brand releases the funds. They land in your Elev8or balance.

  7. 7

    7. Completed

    The collaboration closes. On barter, gifted and affiliate work, the brand marks it complete here instead of paying out.

Do not publish before approval

If you post content that was never approved, the brand can reasonably refuse it and the payout stalls. Always get step 4 first.

Where collaborations get stuck

SymptomWhat is actually happeningFix
No payout after postingThe live URL was never submittedPaste the public post link on the collab page
Endless revisionsThe brief was vague about the deliverableAsk for written, specific change notes and agree a revision cap in chat
Brand has gone quietNo obligation clock has run out yetMessage in the collab thread first, then contact support with the collab ID
Payment released but balance unchangedBalance refreshes after the ledger writeReload Earnings, then raise it if still missing

Keep negotiation inside the collab chat. If something is disputed later, the on-platform record is what support can actually act on.

Related

Getting paid: balance, payout methods and withdrawalsWhere your earnings sit, the payout methods you can add, the $10 minimum, and how long a withdrawal takes.Refunds, disputes and what support can actually doWhen money can be refunded, how to open a dispute, what evidence matters, and what is out of scope.Campaign types and how to join themCollab, affiliate, performance and contest campaigns, what each pays, and how you get selected.

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