Quick take
Collabs only work if both sides actually ride for the release. If they won’t co-post, won’t grant ad permissions, or go dark on you—don’t do it. Spend that energy on your own machine. Big names can move mountains by name alone. For peer-level collabs, commitment is the whole play.
Table of Contents
- Who you should (and shouldn’t) collaborate with
- Platform mechanics and step-by-steps
- META (Instagram + Facebook)
- How to publish an Instagram collab post (owner’s device)
- How to “schedule” an IG collab (what actually works)
- Running paid ads on collab posts
- Notes for collaborators (“collabees”)
- Posting matrices that prevent chaos
- YOUTUBE (videos + Shorts)
- SPOTIFY (and streaming) — where collabs often break
- Reality checks across platforms
- Ready to run better collabs?
Who you should (and shouldn’t) collaborate with
- Green flags: Says “yes” to collab posts. Shares dates and assets on time. Grants advertiser access (or uses Partnership Ads properly).
- Red flags: “I’ll post it later.” “My manager handles that.” Won’t co-post, won’t share ad permissions, wants the clout without lifting a finger.
- Reality check: If they have 13 YouTube subs or a dead IG, their audience won’t lift you. Collaborate for cross-pollination, not charity.
Platform mechanics and step-by-steps
META (Instagram + Facebook)
What matters
IG collab posts show on both profiles but the post lives on the original poster’s account. The invitee can’t boost it from their app.
IG→FB cross-posting is unreliable for collab posts. If Facebook distribution matters, plan a separate FB post.
Scheduling: Meta Business Suite is solid for normal scheduling, but IG collab scheduling is flaky. Treat high-stakes collabs as manual, live publishes from the owner’s phone.
Many collaborators: You can invite multiple collaborators to a single reel. Also cut additional reels spotlighting each collaborator’s verse/part.
How to publish an Instagram collab post (owner’s device)
- Open Instagram and create your Post or Reel.
- Add media, caption, tags, location, music.
- Tap Tag people → Invite collaborator.
- Search and add every collaborator (and the label, if you want the label’s profile to carry it).
- Share.
- Ping collaborators to accept immediately. It won’t show on their profiles until they accept.
How to “schedule” an IG collab (what actually works)
- Best practice: Don’t. Publish live from the owner’s phone at the agreed time and have collaborators ready to accept within minutes.
- If you must schedule: On the final Share screen tap Advanced settings → Schedule (if available). After it posts, remind collaborators to accept. If the invite fails, re-invite from the post (… → Edit → Tag people → Invite collaborator).
Running paid ads on collab posts
There are two clean paths:
Path A — Content-level permission (boost the owner’s exact organic post)
Use this when you want to put budget behind the organic collab post itself.
Creator/owner side:
- Before posting: on the final Share screen, tap Advanced settings.
- Open Branded content / Partnerships.
- Add the advertiser as a partner and toggle Allow partner to boost.
- If already posted: open the post → … → Edit → Tag business partner → Add paid partnership label → add advertiser → toggle Allow partner to boost.
- Confirm the partner shows on the post (Paid partnership with …).
Advertiser side (Meta Ads Manager):
- Create campaign → choose an objective that supports “Use existing post.”
- Ad level → Identity: pick the creator’s IG handle.
- Ad setup → Use existing post → Select Post → find the creator’s collab post.
- Set targeting, placements (Reels + IG Feed), budget, and publish.
- If post doesn’t appear: the partner didn’t grant boost permission. Have them enable it and refresh.
Path B — Account-level permission via Partnership Ads (for ongoing, “dark” collab ads)
Use this when you’ll cut multiple edits, run dark variants, or scale spend over weeks.
Advertiser side:
- Go to Business Suite → All tools → Partnership Ads (or Business Settings → Users → Partners).
- Request partnership/ad permission from the creator’s IG account or Page.
- Request permission to run ads from their handle.
Creator/owner side:
- Instagram → Menu → Settings & privacy → Business tools & controls → Ad permissions.
- Open Requests → approve the advertiser.
- In Approved partners, keep the advertiser listed for future campaigns.
Advertiser side (building dark ads):
- Create campaign → choose objective.
- Ad level → Identity: choose the creator’s IG handle.
- Build a new ad (dark post): upload creative, write copy, add music if needed.
- Set targeting, placements, budget → publish.
- Test multiple hooks/edits using the same permission link-up.
Notes for collaborators (“collabees”)
- You can’t boost a collab post that lives on someone else’s profile. Ask for Path A or Path B permissions.
- Don’t rely on IG→FB cross-posting for collabs—recreate FB posts manually if needed.
Posting matrices that prevent chaos
- Label-first: Label publishes, adds all artists as collaborators, label runs paid. Artists accept within 2 hours and post their own POV clips.
- Artist-first: Lead artist publishes, adds guests + label; advertiser runs dark variants via Partnership Ads (Path B).
- Many collaborators: One master collab reel + 1 short reel per collaborator featuring their verse up front.
YOUTUBE (videos + Shorts)
What’s new: You can add up to five collaborators to a video or Short. Their channels appear on the watch page and viewers can subscribe directly. Monetization stays with the posting channel—split outside YouTube. For more on posting to YouTube read this article.
How to add collaborators (desktop)
- Go to YouTube Studio → Upload.
- In Details, click Show more → Collaborations → Add collaborators.
- Add up to five channels (URLs or @handles).
- Save or publish. Invited channels must accept to display credits.
- To edit later: Studio → Content → Edit → Collaborations → add and save.
For Shorts
- Upload the 9:16 Short.
- Show more → Collaborations → Add channels → Publish.
- Keep your hook in the first 1.5 seconds.
Extra reach on YouTube
Feature the collab video:
- Studio → Customization → Layout.
- Set Featured video for returning viewers or new visitors.
- Select the collab video → Publish.
Create a shared playlist:
- Create a new playlist (single + live + BTS).
- Open playlist → three dots → Collaborate → Allow collaborators.
- Share invite link with partners.
- Each channel: Studio → Customization → Layout → Add section → Playlists → choose that playlist.
Titles & descriptions:
Include all collaborator @handles. Keep “feat.” consistent with distributor metadata. Add streaming links and credits cleanly in the description.
SPOTIFY (and streaming) — where collabs often break
Why it matters: Bad crediting (wrong primary/featuring) can split audiences, nuke discovery, and misdirect traffic. Too many primary artists at the release level can trigger “Various Artists” classification.
How to credit it correctly (step-by-step)
- In your distributor, set Primary Artist only for actual co-owners.
- At track level, use the Featuring Artist field (not “(feat. Name)” in the title).
- Credit producers/writers in their proper fields.
- Attach correct Spotify artist URIs to avoid mis-mapping.
- Request preview links from your distributor 3–5 days before release and confirm credits.
- If mapping goes sideways, file a fix via your distributor or Spotify for Artists. For duplicates, start here: fix duplicate Spotify profiles.
Reality checks across platforms
- Agree on who owns the root post (IG + YT). That account must publish.
- Large collab groups: one master post + one spotlight reel per collaborator.
- Ads: For quick boosts, use Path A. For testing/scale, use Path B.
Ready to run better collabs?
If you’re ready to take action on this kind of strategy, check out our campaigns and services that address just this issue — we’ll tailor the posting plan, ad structure, and collaborator workflows for your release: 360Promo Social Media Ads
360 Promo is a full-service music marketing, promotion, distribution and admin company. Learn more about us and what we do at 360 Promo, follow us on Instagram and contact us to tailor a plan that works for you