# Free briefs and casting calls

Posting a brief, what creators see and how to manage applications.

For brands · 7 questions · Updated 14 October 2026

## What is a free brief?

A one-page form where you describe your campaign and the creators you need. It costs nothing and needs no account or purchase. We review it, then email it to creators who match and have opted in to opportunities, and they contact you directly.

You can also publish it as a public casting call: a page on UGCStars that creators can find, apply to and share. A brief brings you creators who are available now. Searching the database lets you pick specific people. You can do both. [Post a free brief](https://ugcstars.com/post-a-brief).

## What should I put in a brief?

The form asks for:

- **Your brand:** who you are and the email creators should reply to.
- **The campaign:** a name, the product, a description, the content type and the deliverables, for example two 30-second vertical videos.
- **The creators you need:** country, language, age range, gender if relevant, niches and any specific details, such as dog owners or dry skin.
- **Compensation and timing:** paid, gifted or both, the budget, how many creators you need and the application deadline.

Be specific about usage. Say where the content will run, such as organic social or paid ads, and for how long, because that changes what creators charge. As you fill in the form, it shows how many creators match and their median starting rate, so you can check the budget is realistic.

## What happens after I post a brief?

1. We review it. We may edit it for clarity or length, ask you for more detail, or decline it if it breaks our rules.
2. Once approved, we email it to matching creators who opted in to opportunities, with your contact email so they can reply.
3. If you chose to publish it, a public casting call page goes live that creators can find and share.
4. Creators apply. Each application, with the creator’s profile and a short message, arrives in your inbox.
5. You contact the creators you want and agree terms with them directly.

We email you when the brief is approved. That email, and each one about the brief, has links to edit, pause or close it. We can’t guarantee how many creators apply. A clear budget, deliverables and deadline help.

## How do I edit, pause or close a brief?

Use the Manage link in any email we sent about your brief. It opens the brief without a password. Edit any part and save, and the changes show on the public casting call straight away.

- **Pause** stops new applications for a while. Resume when you’re ready.
- **Close** ends the brief once you’ve found your creators. A closed brief can’t be reopened, so post a new one if you need more creators later.

Anyone with the link can manage the brief, so don’t forward those emails. The link stops working 30 days after the brief closes. With annual access, every brief you’ve posted is also under [Account \> Your briefs](https://ugcstars.com/account/briefs).

## How do I see who applied to my brief?

Each application arrives as an email with the creator’s profile and message. Reply to the creator from that email to continue.

With annual access, [Account \> Your briefs](https://ugcstars.com/account/briefs) lists the applicants for every brief. From there you can accept an applicant, which tells them you’re interested and shares your email; decline, which sends a short, polite note so they aren’t left waiting; add them to a shortlist; or copy their email. The manage link in your emails never shows creator contact details.

## What kinds of briefs don’t you accept?

We decline or close briefs that:

- ask creators to pay a fee, deposit or purchase to take part, other than receiving a disclosed gifted product
- don’t describe a real opportunity, or misdescribe the product, pay, deliverables or usage rights
- concern adult, sexual, illegal or unsafe products or content
- set creator criteria that would break advertising or anti-discrimination law
- are posted by someone who isn’t authorized to act for the brand

Gifted-only briefs are fine if they say so clearly. We may also close a casting call at any time if we receive reports about it.

## Can I post a brief and buy annual access too?

Yes. A brief brings creators to you, and the database lets you reach specific creators yourself. Posting is free either way. With annual access, your briefs and their applicants also sit in your account next to your shortlists, so you can add an applicant to a shortlist in one click.

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