The full rubric
Sponsor Deck Scorecard — all nine sections.
Open your current deck. For each section below, mark pass or fail against the criteria. Three or more fails is the most common reason brands stop replying.
The artifact · works without signup
Sponsor Deck
Page-by-Page Scorecard.
Open your current deck side-by-side. For each of the nine sections, mark pass or fail against the criteria below. Three or more fails is the most common reason brands stop replying.
- 01
Audience snapshot
Goal One specific persona with at least one demographic and one psychographic detail. Numbers come from your own analytics, not industry averages.
Pass · example sentence"78% women age 24–34 in the US and Canada. They keep a sourdough starter, follow 3–6 food creators, and 41% have purchased a kitchen tool I recommended in the last 12 months." (Source: Substack subscriber survey, n=412, run 2026-03.)
Common failure"Engaged audience of food lovers across all platforms." (No segmentation, no number, no source.)
Why it matters — Sponsors are buying a specific buyer. Generic audience claims read as either evasive or amateur.
- 02
Past brand wins
Goal Two or three named brands with one measurable outcome each. If you have not run a paid deal, swap this slide for a free-trial case study.
Pass · example sentence"Trade Coffee, Q1 2026 — dedicated send to 11,400 readers, 312 promo-code redemptions, $4.10 effective cost per purchase. Brand renewed for Q2."
Common failure"I have worked with many great brands including Trade Coffee and others." (No outcome, no number, undermines pricing later.)
Why it matters — One real number with a named brand outperforms three brand logos with no context.
- 03
Rate card
Goal One price per format. No ranges. Ranges signal you do not know your worth and invite the sponsor to anchor at the floor.
Pass · example sentence"Dedicated newsletter send: $2,400. Mid-roll podcast read (60s, 2 episodes): $1,800. 30-day rate-card lock if booked in this thread."
Common failure"Rates start from $1,500 and go up to $5,000 depending on scope and goals." (Sponsor reads the lower bound and counters under it.)
Why it matters — A range is a negotiation invitation, not a price. Single prices respect the sponsor's time.
- 04
Past performance proof
Goal One screenshot or table from a real campaign. Mask competitive data if needed, but the structure must be visible.
Pass · example sentenceScreenshot of an analytics dashboard with the campaign name, send date, open rate, click rate, redemption count, and timeframe. Caption: "Trade Coffee, week-1 cohort, captured 2026-03-04."
Common failureStock photo of a laptop with bar charts. "We see strong performance across campaigns."
Why it matters — Sponsors discount unverifiable claims. One visible artifact replaces ten adjectives.
- 05
Editorial fit
Goal Why this brand fits this audience in one sentence. Then a second sentence on what content you will not run.
Pass · example sentence"My readers ask about home-baking gear weekly; your Dutch oven is the first cast-iron I have ever endorsed. I do not run reads for diet products, MLM brands, or anything I would not buy at full price."
Common failure"We are a great fit because our audiences align." (Says nothing the sponsor cannot already guess.)
Why it matters — Fit is the most-skipped slide. A clear no-list is the cheapest credibility signal you can buy.
- 06
Deliverables and timeline
Goal Bullet list with format, length, placement, and a real publish date. No 'TBD'. No 'depending on scheduling'.
Pass · example sentence"One dedicated send, ~700-word write-up plus your hero image and a tracked link. Goes out Tuesday 2026-04-23 at 09:00 ET. Draft to you by Friday 2026-04-19. One round of edits."
Common failure"One newsletter feature when the schedule allows." (Sponsor cannot plan a launch around this.)
Why it matters — Sponsors need a date for their own quarterly plan. A confirmed slot is a real concession you are offering.
- 07
Reporting and reuse
Goal What you will send after the campaign and what they can reuse. Cover usage rights explicitly.
Pass · example sentence"On day 7 you get: send-time, open rate, CTR, redemptions, and a CSV of click timestamps. You can reuse the copy on owned channels (email, blog, social) for 90 days with attribution. Paid-media reuse requires a separate license."
Common failure"I will share results after the campaign." (Sponsor has to ask, and the rights question becomes a fight later.)
Why it matters — Usage-rights disputes are the most common reason a renewal does not happen.
- 08
Contract and payment terms
Goal How you invoice, when payment is due, and what happens if a deliverable slips. Plain English, not legalese.
Pass · example sentence"50% on signed brief, 50% on send confirmation. Net 14. Invoice via Stripe. If I miss a deliverable date by more than 5 business days, you get a 25% credit toward the next slot."
Common failure"We will discuss terms after the agreement." (Pushes the awkward conversation to the worst possible moment.)
Why it matters — Clear terms shorten the contract round and let the sponsor's finance team approve in one pass.
- 09
Next step
Goal One specific action the sponsor takes today. Not 'let me know your thoughts'.
Pass · example sentence"If the Q2 slot works, reply with your preferred send date and the asset pack will go on the calendar within 24 hours. Available dates: Apr 23, Apr 30, May 7."
Common failure"Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!" (Pushes the decision back onto the busiest person in the thread.)
Why it matters — Sponsors close deals on Tuesdays for a reason. A pre-filled next step removes their friction.
Score your deck
- 9 pass — ready to send. Add a date in section 06 and ship today.
- 7–8 pass — revise the weakest one or two sections before sending.
- 5–6 pass — rewrite the deck. The current draft is the bottleneck.
- 4 or fewer — the deck is not the problem. The offer is. See the 10 most common deck failures.