To get creators posting your brand’s content from their own TikTok accounts, use TikTok One, TikTok’s own platform for brand and creator collaboration, or a creator marketplace such as SideShift, Collabstr or Billo, where you hire creators and pay per video or per creator. Relay Studio (relaystudio.ai) works the other way around: Relay makes the drafts, and on the paid Scale plan ($149 the first month, then $249 a month) your approved drafts can go to Relay’s network of 50,000 creators, who post them from their own accounts, as part of Scale’s 150 posts a month.
Key takeaways
- Relay’s creator network is part of the paid Scale plan (not the trial): approved drafts can go to creators who post them from their own accounts. Scale covers up to 150 posts a month in total, split between your TikTok and the network, and a network post nobody picks up within 7 days comes back to you.
- relaysocial.app is Relay’s creator side, where creators earn by posting brand content. Brands use relaystudio.ai.
- Use a marketplace like SideShift, Collabstr or Billo for a real person filming your product, and TikTok One for restricted categories.
- Every paid creator post needs a disclosure under TikTok’s branded content policy and FTC guidance.
How do brands get creators to post their content on TikTok?
Five routes, as of October 2026:
- TikTok One. TikTok’s official platform for brand and creator collaboration. Restricted categories have to use it.
- Creator marketplaces. SideShift, Collabstr and Billo: you hire creators and pay per video or per creator (compared below).
- TikTok Shop’s affiliate program. For Shop sellers: creators promote your products and earn commission on sales.
- Pay-per-view campaigns. Content Rewards pays creators per 1,000 views, per approved post or on retainer, with a $1,000 minimum budget and a 10% platform fee.
- A content tool with a built-in network. Relay makes the drafts; on Scale, approved ones can go to its creators.
Why have creators post your content, not just your own account?
Each account that posts gets its own shot at the For You feed: TikTok says neither follower count nor past high-performing videos are direct factors in its recommendations, though bigger accounts still tend to get more views (TikTok, 2020). More accounts posting means more separate tests.
How does Relay’s creator network work?
Relay makes slideshows and videos from your website or App Store link, you swipe to approve (or switch on Autopilot to approve for you), and Relay sends each approved post to your TikTok inbox on its day (how a month of posts works).
The creator network shares that monthly allowance. Scale covers up to 150 posts a month in total, split between your TikTok and the creator network: approved drafts can go to creators in Relay’s network of 50,000 human creators, who post them from their own accounts. Creators post drafts you, or Autopilot, approved. A network post nobody picks up within 7 days comes back to you, so not every network post gets posted.
What is relaysocial.app, and how does it relate to Relay?
Brands use relaystudio.ai, and relaysocial.app is Relay’s creator side, the “Relay - Get Paid to Post” iOS app (App Store), where creators earn by posting brand content.
How is Relay’s creator network different from a creator marketplace?
A marketplace sells access to people: you brief or browse, creators film, and you pay per video or per creator.
| Platform | Who makes the content | Where it posts | How you get creators | Price, as of October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Relay (Scale plan) | Relay, from your website or App Store link | Your TikTok, plus creators’ own accounts | Approved drafts can go to creators in Relay’s network of 50,000 | $249 a month ($149 the first month); 150 posts a month in total, shared with your TikTok (pricing) |
| SideShift | Human creators who apply to your paid job | Creators’ accounts on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook | Post a job; SideShift says the median job gets 284 applications in 48 hours | $299 to $999 a month month to month, or $210 to $699 billed annually, creator pay separate |
| Collabstr | Creators you pick from 1.2 million+ vetted creators | Creators’ accounts, with live posts tracked | Buy a package from a profile, or post a campaign creators apply to | Free with a 10% hiring fee; Pro $249 a month (10% fee) and Premium $333 a month (5% fee) billed annually, or $299 and $399 month to month (pricing) |
| Billo | 5,000+ vetted creators in the US, Canada and UK | Video files for your ads, plus organic posts and Partnership Ads from creator handles | Paste a product URL; Billo drafts briefs and recommends creators | From $99 a video, bought as packs, plus an optional CreativeOps subscription (Billo’s own guide) |
Where each one wins
- SideShift: real people filming your product on four platforms, paid-ads usage rights on every plan and a 14-day trial on monthly plans. See Relay vs SideShift or SideShift alternatives.
- Collabstr: hand-picking creators by audience data, with no subscription to start and payment held in escrow until you approve the work.
- Billo: batches of ad-ready product videos from real people, run as Partnership Ads.
- Relay: TikTok volume without writing briefs, with your own account and the creator network sharing one plan’s posts.
What kind of drafts work on creators’ accounts?
Drafts that sound like a person, not a brand, fit a creator’s account.
| Format | Example hook | Why it fits a creator account |
|---|---|---|
| List slideshow | “5 things nobody tells you before your first apartment” | Reads like advice; your product is one item |
| Problem first | “If your skin feels tight by noon, read this” | Calls out the viewer before the product appears |
| Price comparison | “The $12 version vs the $60 version” | Gives viewers a reason to comment |
Before you approve a draft that can go to the network, edit out any first-person line (“I use this every morning”) the creator can’t stand behind: the FTC says creators can’t talk about their experience with a product they haven’t tried. Network Autopilot skips your review, so keep it off until you have checked a batch.
What disclosure rules apply when creators post for your brand?
- The TikTok toggle. Under TikTok’s branded content policy (effective August 31, 2026), a creator posting in exchange for payment or any other incentive must turn on the commercial content disclosure toggle.
- The FTC. Creators should disclose any financial relationship, free products included, and not rely on a platform’s disclosure tool alone. They also can’t make claims the advertiser can’t prove (FTC).
- Restricted categories. As of October 2026, for restricted industries, including alcohol, financial services, over-the-counter and prescription medicines, vitamin supplements, dating apps, energy drinks and gambling, TikTok’s policy says brands need its explicit permission and may only partner with creators through TikTok One. Weight loss products are banned from branded content outright.
- On your own account. Relay doesn’t set these for you. When you post the draft in TikTok, turn on the AI-generated content setting if the post uses realistic AI imagery, and the content disclosure toggle where it applies.
Which Relay plan includes the creator network?
| Plan | Price | Posts made a month | Posts sent a month | People | Creator network (Scale) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $49 a month ($25 first month) | 40 | 20 | Just you | No |
| Growth | $99 a month ($45 first month) | 120 | 60 | Up to 3 ($80 a month each added) | No |
| Scale | $249 a month ($149 first month) | 300 | 150 in total, shared with the network | Up to 5 ($200 a month each added) | Included on paid Scale (not the trial), within the 150 |
Annual billing gives you 2 months free. You pay $0 today on a 1-day trial (card required) that converts to the paid first month unless you cancel before it ends. Our advice: start with Starter or Growth on your own account, then move to Scale for the network.
When is Relay’s creator network not the right fit?
- You need a person filming your product. Taste tests and try-ons need someone on camera. Relay’s network creators post drafts Relay made, so hire through SideShift, Collabstr or Billo. The tradeoffs are in AI UGC vs creator UGC.
- You sell in a category TikTok restricts. Those brands (listed above) may only partner with creators through TikTok One under its branded content policy, so use TikTok One, not Relay’s creator network or a marketplace.
- You want to hand-pick named creators. Collabstr or TikTok One suit that better.
- You need Instagram, YouTube or Facebook. Relay’s self-serve product works with TikTok only.
- You only want paid ads. Relay’s managed UGC ads service makes the ad creative, separate from Scale, starting with a free 15-minute call and 5 free UGC ads; a media buyer or agency runs the account.
- You need guaranteed views or creator posts. Relay promises neither.
Get started
Compare plans on the pricing page, or paste your website or App Store link at relaystudio.ai to start with $0 today on a 1-day trial (card required). Still weighing marketplaces? Read the best UGC platforms for brands.