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How to Link Your Videos to a YouTube Brand Campaign

Creator's guide to linking videos and granting brand partner access on YouTube

Written by Heather Clark

💡 This feature is currently in beta. If you encounter any issues or have suggestions for improvement, please contact our Support team by emailing [email protected].

If you're participating in a YouTube Creator Partnership campaign with a brand, you must link your videos to the campaign within YouTube Studio and grant brand partner access. This enables the brand to:

  • View your video’s organic and paid performance metrics.

  • Boost your video as a paid partnership ad.

Finding Your Campaign Code

After signing the brief, you'll see your campaign code (a 6-character code like A7X2K9) on the content submission page. To find it, click Submit Content from the task list then select a YouTube deliverable.

How to Link Your Videos

There are two ways to link your video to the campaign:

Option 1: Link video during upload (recommended)

From the YouTube mobile app

  1. Open the YouTube mobile app.

  2. During the video upload process, click "Paid promotion & brands".
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  3. Select "Yes" for paid promotion.
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  4. Under Brand partnerships, click "Find your brand partner". Locate the brand's campaign by entering the campaign code shared with you and click Select.
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  5. Review the statements in the pop-up and click "Share Access".
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  6. Continue with your video upload.


Option 2: Link an already-published video

From the YouTube mobile app

  1. Open the YouTube mobile app.

  2. Go to your Profile → Channel videos.

  3. Tap the three-dot menu on your video and click "Edit".

  4. Select "More options".
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  5. Select "Paid promotion & brands".
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  6. Select "Yes" for paid promotion. Under Brands, tap "View request" next to the brand you partnered with.

  7. Review the statements in the pop-up and click "Share Access".
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  8. Save your changes.

From YouTube Studio on desktop

  1. Sign in to YouTube Studio.

  2. Go to Content in the left menu and click on the video you want to link.

  3. On the Video details page, click Show more to view Paid promotion settings.
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  4. Under Paid promotion, check the box "My video contains paid promotion like a product placement, sponsorship, or endorsement".
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  5. Under Brands, click Search for a brand. Search for the brand's name and select their channel.
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  6. Review the statements in the pop-up and click "Share Access".

  7. Click Save.

What Happens After Linking

Once you link your video:

  • The brand can access non-public video metrics like watch time, engaged views, audience retention, and organic vs paid breakdown.

  • The brand may be able to boost your video through Google Ads (Partnership Ads), if you've agreed to paid usage rights.

  • A paid promotion label will be added to your video.

  • The video remains linked even after the campaign ends, unless you explicitly unlink it. Learn how to manage brand partner access.

Submitting Your Video in Aspire

After linking your video in YouTube Studio, set your post live in Aspire by following these steps:

  1. Log into the Aspire creator portal.

  2. Navigate to your campaign.

  3. Click Submit Content.

  4. Select the deliverable you're submitting content for.

  5. Paste your live YouTube video URL.

  6. Click Submit.

If you haven't linked the video to a YouTube campaign yet, you'll receive a YouTube Studio push notification in the mobile app (if you have push notifications enabled) after your post has been set live in Aspire. Click Review to accept the brand access request.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where do I find the campaign code?

On the content submission page in the Aspire creator portal, shown with tagging instructions.

Do I need to use the YouTube mobile app?

To link your video during upload, the mobile app is easiest. For linking after upload, you can use either the mobile app or YouTube Studio on desktop.

What if I can't find the brand's campaign when entering the code?

Make sure you're entering the exact 6-character code provided. If the campaign still doesn't appear, the campaign's date range may have expired — contact the brand to check.

Can I unlink a video after linking it?

Yes. Go to your video's settings in YouTube Studio → "Paid promotion & brands" → remove the brand partnership. However, this will revoke the brand's access to your non-public metrics for that video. Learn how to manage brand partner access.

What is Channel Insights Sharing?

It's a setting in YouTube Studio that lets brands and platforms see your channel-level performance data (audience demographics, engagement metrics, etc.). It's separate from video linking — video linking shares metrics for specific videos, while Channel Insights Sharing shares channel-level data.

I tried to enable Channel Insights Sharing but it's not working?

Make sure you're using YouTube Studio on desktop (not mobile). Also, you must be enrolled in the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) to enable this setting. If you're not in YPP, you won't be able to toggle it on.

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