[FAQ]

Hi,

I’m at a point where I’d like to start collaborating with other creators in my niche here on X, but I’m a bit nervous about the outreach. I really don’t want to come across as spammy or unprofessional.

What’s the best way to approach someone? Should I just slide into their DMs? Is it better to engage with their posts for a while first? I’m keen to make a good impression. Just wondering what the standard etiquette is so I don’t stuff it up.

Any advice would be sweet as. Cheers.

[Jeff Bullas]

An astute question—a poor approach can close a door before it even opens.

Short Answer: The standard etiquette is to build a genuine, public relationship first before sending a private, personalised pitch that clearly outlines the mutual benefit.

Let’s discuss how specific content formats play a critical role in each stage of this process.

Your approach should be a deliberate sequence of content interactions. First, your initial engagement must be through public content formats; spend weeks leaving thoughtful text replies on their threads or reposting their video content with your own valuable commentary to show you respect their work. Second, when you send a direct message, it must be a concise and personalised text-based format that gets straight to the point, and for complex ideas, you might link to a private video or a short document that visually outlines the proposed collaboration. Finally, the collaboration itself should be a strategic blend of your strongest content formats, whether that’s a co-hosted X Space, a joint video interview, or a co-authored educational thread. The most harmful practice is sending a cold, generic DM with no prior interaction; this is spam and will be ignored by any serious creator.

Cheers,

Jeff

[Author]

Posts