Programs and rules: how much a partner earns, when, and on what
A program is one set of rules its partners follow: what the partner earns, what their friend saves, and when a commission becomes due. The template fills everything with safe values; this lesson is for when you want to set them yourself. Nadia Ferhat, a fitness coach, sells a monthly “Home fitness program” subscription, a printed nutrition guide and one-to-one follow-up sessions, and her members promote her through “Nadia’s ambassadors”. The same rules work for a photographer selling courses or a marketer selling consulting.
- 5 minutes
- 5 steps
Who can do it: Whoever has “Partners: programs, partners and settings”.
In 5 steps
- 1“Items and commission”: an item’s own rate, or switch off “Included in the program”.
- 2“Rules”: “General rate” and “Friend’s discount”, then attribution: “Link duration” and who takes the sale.
- 3“When a commission becomes due”: “Safety period”, “Cash on delivery” and “Renewals”.
- 4“Rewards and tiers”: Bronze, Silver and Gold, “Reward instead of money” and “Academy credit”.
Before you start
- An existing program: from the first template in “Partners”, or “Programs” → “New program”.
- The “Partners: programs, partners and settings” permission.
- Know your margin on each item: a printed product that earns you little needs a lower rate than a course.
- Step 1 of 5
A rate per item, or leaving it out
Open the program from “Programs”, then the “Items and commission” tab. The “Printed nutrition guide” has a thin margin, so Nadia clicks it to open “Commission on “Printed nutrition guide””: in “Rate” she picks “Its own” and types 10% instead of “General (15%)”, which shows “The friend pays 1 620 DA and the partner earns 162 DA”, then “Save”. For the “One-to-one follow-up session” she switches off “Included in the program” (“Turned off, it earns no commission at all.”), and its row reads “Not in the program”. The line at the top changes: “General rate 15% · friend saves 10% · 2 of 3 included”. To change every item’s rate at once: “Change the general rate”.
On screenProgramsItems and commissionRateIts ownGeneral (15%)Included in the programSaveNot in the programChange the general rateTipAfter saving you read at the top: “Applies to new orders only · version 2”.
Heads-upAn item’s own fixed amount can’t exceed its price: “The amount is higher than the item’s price”.
- Step 2 of 5
“Rules”: commission and attribution
The “Rules” tab has five groups, and each row opens a small drawer with its value. In “Commission”: “General rate” (“For every item without its own rate”) and “Friend’s discount”. In “Attribution” (“Who a sale counts for”): “Partner links” (turn off only for printed-code programs), “Link duration” (30 days by default), “If two partners’ links were clicked” (“Last link” or “First link”), “A typed code beats a link” and “The buyer stays with their partner” (off: “No”). Nadia opens “Link duration”, and the drawer says: “If a friend clicks a partner’s link today and buys before 12 November, the sale counts for the partner.”
On screenRulesCommissionGeneral rateFriend’s discountAttributionPartner linksLink durationIf two partners’ links were clickedLast linkFirst linkA typed code beats a linkThe buyer stays with their partnerTip“The change applies to new clicks only. 30 days suit buyers who decide slowly, such as parents.” How a sale is attributed is detailed in the attribution lesson.
- Step 3 of 5
When a commission becomes due: safety, collection, renewals
The “When a commission becomes due” group has three rows. “Safety period” (14 days): “Match your store’s return window, and at least 14 days”. “Cash on delivery”: “A commission only counts once the delivery company has collected the money”, set to “Always” and locked. And “Renewals” (“Which subscription payments earn a commission”): “First payment only”, “First renewal”, “First 3 renewals” (the default), 6 or 12, or “Every renewal”. Nadia’s subscription is monthly, so she keeps “First 3 renewals”: whoever brings a member earns on her first month and the three after it, then their commission on her stops.
On screenWhen a commission becomes dueSafety periodCash on deliveryAlwaysRenewalsFirst payment onlyFirst 3 renewalsEvery renewalTip“A commission in its safety period does not enter a statement. If the order is returned or refunded meanwhile, it is voided by itself.” In the commissions log a renewal shows as such: “Renewal 2 of 3”.
Heads-upA period under 14 days warns you: “Under 14 days: you may pay a commission on an order that is refunded later.”
- Step 4 of 5
Tiers and rewards
In “Rewards and tiers”: “Tiers” raise a partner’s rate as their sales grow, on the general rate only. In the students template: “Bronze” 15% from the start, “Silver” 18% from 10 sales, “Gold” 20% from 25 sales; each tier has “Starts at” and “Rate”. Then “Reward instead of money”: “A free month after 3 friends”, which a partner may choose instead of the commission. Then the “Academy credit” switch (“The partner may take credit to spend in your store instead of a transfer”). And in “Program” at the bottom: the name, “Joining” and “On the “Become a partner” page”.
On screenRewards and tiersTiersBronzeSilverGoldStarts atRateReward instead of moneyAcademy creditProgramJoiningOn the “Become a partner” pageTipThe tier counts the partner’s non-void sales before the order, and their page tells them how many more they need: “3 more sales to reach “Silver”: 18% commission.”
Heads-up“Tiers work with a percentage commission only.” And don’t remove every way to pay: “Leave the partner at least one way to be paid.”
- Step 5 of 5
Rule versions, and what you do with the whole program
A week later Nadia raises the general rate to 20% for the summer season. Every save makes a version: in “Items and commission”, “Rule versions” (“Every change makes a new version. An order is priced by the version in force on the day of purchase.”) shows “Version 3 · Since 20 October · current” and the earlier ones with their date and who changed them. In the “Programs” list, each program’s options button: “Open the program”, “Copy as a new program”, “Copy the join link”, “Pause” and “Archive”.
On screenRule versionscurrentProgramsOpen the programCopy as a new programCopy the join linkPauseArchiveTipA better rate for one partner doesn’t need a new program: in their profile, “Change their rate” → “A personal rate for…”, with an optional end date after which the program’s rate comes back by itself. The order is fixed: the personal deal, then the item’s rate, then the tier, then the program’s rate, with a running campaign on top.
Heads-upPausing: “Nobody new joins, and its partners’ links and codes stop counting new sales.” Archiving is refused while its partners have unpaid commissions: “Pay the next statement or move them to another program, then archive it.”
After the rules
Questions
I raised the rate from 15% to 20%: do partners get the difference on last month’s sales?
No. Every order is priced by the rule version in force on the day it was bought. What sold before stays at 15%, what sells after is at 20%. And if you lower the rate, what was promised doesn’t shrink.
Can I give one partner a higher rate than the others?
Yes, from their profile: “Change their rate” → “A personal rate for…”, on every item or items you choose, with “Until · optional”. After the date the program’s rate comes back automatically.
Why isn’t a commission due as soon as the buyer pays?
Because money can be refunded or a parcel can come back. The commission stays in the “Safety period” for some days after payment, and for cash on delivery it stays “Waiting” until the delivery company has collected the money. Then it becomes “Due” on its own.
Can a partner be in two programs?
No: “Each partner belongs to one program. Move them to another from their page.” Their new sales follow the new program’s rules; the past stays as it is.
What’s the difference between “Pause” and “Archive”?
Pausing freezes joining and new sales, and “Resume” brings the program back. Archiving removes it from the list and the “Become a partner” page without deleting anything, and is only accepted once its partners have no unpaid commissions left.