Put every proposal on the same decision contract
Common-basis inputs
- The same creator deliverables, publication period and review horizon. (not complete)
- The same conversion event, customer definition and attribution window. (not complete)
- Contribution per attributable conversion after the declared product, fulfilment, return and service boundary. (not complete)
- Fixed fee, commission base, commission trigger and hybrid terms from the actual proposal. (not complete)
- Production, samples, shipping, management, tracking, usage-rights and repurposing costs. (not complete)
- Cancellation, return, code leakage, cross-channel overlap and payment-timing treatment. (not complete)
| Criterion | Fixed sponsorship | Commission | Hybrid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Payment trigger | Agreed deliverable | Attributed outcome | Deliverable plus attributed outcome |
| Business exposure | Fixed before measured result | Variable with credited result | Fixed floor plus variable exposure |
| Attribution dependence | Needed for evaluation | Needed for payment and evaluation | Needed for variable payment and evaluation |
| Rights and control | Contract-specific | Contract-specific | Contract-specific |
| Key stop case | Fee exceeds tolerable downside | Per-conversion contribution is non-positive | Fixed element cannot recover under downside |
Reconcile each payment shape
campaign contribution = attributable conversions × contribution per conversion - fixed creator fee - variable commission - other campaign cost
- attributable conversions
- Conversions credited under the declared event, model and window (conversions over the campaign horizon) — platform/business record or user scenario
- contribution per conversion
- Revenue less the declared variable cost boundary before creator payment (CU per attributable conversion) — business record or user scenario
- fixed creator fee
- Entered amount due for defined deliverables (CU per campaign) — current proposal or contract
- variable commission
- Entered per-conversion or percentage payment under the contract trigger (CU per campaign) — current proposal or contract
- other campaign cost
- Production, product, rights, tracking, management and other included cost (CU per campaign) — business record or user scenario
A credited conversion is a measurement outcome, not proof that the creator caused it. Deduplicate cross-channel credit before comparing models.
- Normalise deliverables and rights before comparing price shapes.
- Set one conversion event, attribution rule and window.
- Calculate contribution per conversion on one tax and return basis.
- Enter fixed, commission and hybrid terms exactly as proposed.
- Add non-creator campaign costs once.
- Compare lower, base and higher attributed-conversion scenarios.
- Review unmeasured brand value qualitatively rather than inventing a number.
- Check local contract, endorsement, privacy and consumer obligations outside the model.
Worked example: fixed, commission and hybrid terms
Invented tax-excluded scenario: 30 CU contribution per attributable conversion. Fixed proposal 900 CU; commission proposal 9 CU per conversion; hybrid proposal 300 CU plus 6 CU per conversion. Other costs are excluded and must be added for a real decision.
| Model | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed | 900 ÷ 30 | 30 conversions |
| Commission | 30 - 9 | 21 CU retained per conversion |
| Hybrid fixed recovery | 300 ÷ (30 - 6) | 12.5; 13 whole conversions |
| Attributed conversions | Fixed 900 | Commission 9 each | Hybrid 300 + 6 each |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | (600) | 210 | (60) |
| 20 | (300) | 420 | 180 |
| 30 | 0 | 630 | 420 |
Avoid false comparisons
- Comparing a fixed proposal with broad rights against commission terms with different deliverables.
- Using revenue per order instead of contribution per conversion.
- Ignoring returned or cancelled orders in commission rules.
- Crediting the same conversion to creator, affiliate and paid-search channels.
- Treating a code or last-click record as causal incrementality.
- Copying a creator-rate or commission benchmark into a global decision.
Creator-payment questions
- Is a hybrid deal always a safer compromise?
- No. It creates both fixed and variable exposure. Its usefulness depends on deliverables, rights, contribution, attribution and downside under the actual terms.
- How should brand value be included?
- Record qualitative objectives and evidence separately unless the business has a defensible measured value. Do not insert an invented uplift to force a positive result.
- Why is 12.5 rounded to 13 conversions?
- A whole conversion is required to cross the fixed-recovery threshold in this count-based example. Keep fractional expectations separate when the model genuinely supports them.
Sources and methodology
- Influencer Break-Even methodology — Margin101: Product-owned fixed-fee, commission, contribution and break-even mechanics.
- About attribution models — Google Ads Help: Provider measurement semantics only; attributed conversions are not causal proof.
- FTC Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking — US Federal Trade Commission: US locality boundary for material connections; no global legal rule is imported.
Test creator and campaign economics
- Influencer Break-Even Calculator
Calculate contribution-based influencer campaign break-even and fee ceiling
- Campaign Profitability Planner
Evaluate total campaign contribution after incrementality and campaign cost
- Customer Acquisition Cost Planner
Measure loaded and marginal customer acquisition cost across aligned channels