collabs-and-cross-promotion — Claude Code skill: creator collabs

---
name: collabs-and-cross-promotion
description: >-
  Creator collabs and cross-promotion — organic creator-to-creator partnerships that swap
  audiences. Use when someone wants to set up a collab, audience swap, cross-promotion, shoutout
  swap, joint giveaway, guest spot, joint video/series, a YouTube/IG collab post, or co-promo with
  another creator. Picks a complementary, similar-size, values-aligned partner, agrees the plan
  before creating, and co-creates shared-value content (not a bare shoutout) on a coordinated
  schedule. Uses the UNITE framework. Reads brand-profile + goals-and-kpis first. WoopSocial
  publishes each partner's OWN posts to their OWN
  accounts; it does NOT create native IG Collab co-authored posts, run giveaways, duet/stitch, or
  manage the agreement. A pure mutual collab isn't a sponsorship, but
  payment/free product makes it one -> disclose -> ugc-and-influencer; partnerships must be genuine;
  metrics never fabricated. Distinct from ugc-and-influencer (brand->creator) and
  creator-monetization (the creator's income).
version: 1.0.0
---

# collabs-and-cross-promotion

A **strategy/relationship skill** — pick the partner, plan the cross-promo, write both sides. The agent
**advises + drafts + plans**; **WoopSocial publishes each partner's own posts** on the coordinated schedule;
the **co-created content + the relationship are native/human.**

## The POV: mutuality, complementary partners, plan before you create
A collab's defining trait is **mutuality** — both creators contribute **and** both promote. That's what
separates it from a sponsorship (a paid mention) and from brand→creator UGC. The growth comes from a
**complementary-not-competing, similar-size (0.5–2×), values-aligned** partner — and from **agreeing the
cross-promo plan before anyone creates.** Be honest about the shift: **bare shoutouts barely move the needle
now** — **shared value beats shared exposure**, so co-create something real. WoopSocial's job is the
coordinated **publish** of **each side's own posts**; the co-created content and the relationship are not
things a scheduler can make.

## Read these first
1. **brand-profile** — niche / audience / values (for fit).
2. **goals-and-kpis** — the growth goal + the success metric (subs/followers per source).

## The framework: UNITE
(Depth: `references/the-unite-framework.md`.)
- **U — Understand the fit:** complementary not competing; 0.5–2× size; values-aligned + authentic
  (audiences spot fakes).
- **N — Negotiate the plan up front:** before creating, agree format + who-does-what + timing + the CTA +
  what each says; reach out 3–4 weeks ahead; low-risk format for a first collab.
- **I — Invest in shared value:** co-create real value (match format to effort/goal); shared value beats a
  bare shoutout; quality protects both. *(Co-created content is native/with the partner.)*
- **T — Tag + cross-promote:** mention/tag the partner (title / first ~50 chars) + one CTA; coordinated
  publish (WoopSocial publishes each side's own posts); ~1–2 collabs/month.
- **E — Evaluate + escalate:** track per-source (CTR / subs / retention); escalate if it works
  (shoutout → giveaway → content collab → co-product); never fabricate.

## The reality (verify-quarterly)
Mutuality as the defining trait (vs sponsorship / brand-UGC); partner fit (complementary, 0.5–2×, values +
authenticity); format effort tiers + the shoutouts-fade/shared-value-wins shift; cross-promo mechanics (plan
before creating, mention + title/first-50-chars, one CTA, ~1–2/month, 3–4 weeks lead); platform features (IG
native Collab, TikTok duet/stitch, YouTube's native Collaboration [up to 5 channels on one video — native],
giveaways, email/content swaps); escalation ladder; disclosure rule:
`references/collabs-2026-reality.md`. Format menu, the cross-promo checklist, the outreach template + worked
examples: `references/collab-formats-and-recipes.md`.

## Honest scope (never violate)
- **The agent** picks the partner, chooses the format, **drafts the outreach**, plans the cross-promo, and
  **writes each partner's posts.**
- **WoopSocial publishes each partner's OWN posts to their OWN accounts** (mention in the caption) on the
  agreed schedule. It does **not** create a **native IG Collab co-authored post**, **run giveaway
  mechanics**, **duet/stitch**, **DM to find/pitch partners** (no DM surface), or **manage the agreement** —
  the **co-created content + the relationship are native/human.**
- A **pure mutual collab is not a sponsorship** (no #ad); **payment/free product → sponsorship → disclose**
  (→ `ugc-and-influencer`/`creator-monetization`). **Genuine partnerships only** — no bought/faked
  engagement; **never fabricate metrics.** (Scope, distinctions + connections:
  `references/scope-and-connections.md`.)

## Distinct from its siblings (route correctly)
**collabs-and-cross-promotion (this)** = creator-to-creator MUTUAL partnership (unpaid; both promote) ·
**ugc-and-influencer** = brand→creator (paid/licensed, disclosed) · **creator-monetization** = the creator's
own income · **social-selling-and-dm** = the DM outreach mechanics (can pitch a partner) ·
**campaign-and-launch-planning** = the campaign wrapper a collab may sit inside.

## Where this connects
Reads first: **brand-profile**, **goals-and-kpis**. Pairs with: **caption-writer**/**hook-writer** + the
**format skills** (each side's posts), **social-selling-and-dm** (the outreach conversation),
**email-and-newsletter** (newsletter swaps). Publishes via: **scheduling-and-queue → WoopSocial** (each
partner's own posts, coordinated) + **platform-specs-and-validation** (validate each post); **content-calendar**
slots the ~1–2/month cadence. Measures with: **analytics-and-reporting** (per-source CTR/subs/retention).
Co-created content + the relationship + any required disclosure stay native/human.

## Definition of done
A complementary, not-competing, 0.5–2×-size, values-aligned partner identified; a cross-promo plan agreed
*before* creating (format, who-does-what, timing, the one CTA, what each says); a shared-value format chosen
over a bare shoutout; partner mentioned in the title/first ~50 chars with one CTA, published as each side's
own posts on a coordinated schedule at ~1–2 collabs/month; per-source success metric set and read from native
analytics (never fabricated); disclosure applied only if money/free product changed hands; the co-created
content and the relationship left to the partner/native; correctly distinguished from ugc-and-influencer and
creator-monetization.