Setting Up Limited-Term and Tiered Affiliate Commissions

Configuring Commission Duration and Variable Rates

Within your CRM's affiliate manager, you can configure commission structures that are not indefinite. You can set a specific number of transactions for which an affiliate is paid, and you can also create tiered commission rates that change after certain milestones.

Creating or Editing an Affiliate Campaign

To begin, navigate to your Affiliate Manager and either create a new campaign or edit an existing one.

Defining the Default Commission

During the campaign setup process, you will specify a default commission rate or amount. This is the baseline commission that will be used unless overridden by other rules you set.

Enabling and Setting Commission Length

Look for the Commission Length setting. By default, commissions are paid for the entire life of a referred customer's subscription. To limit this, select the By Count option.

When you choose By Count, you can enter a number to limit how many successful payments an affiliate earns a commission on. For example, if you set the limit to 4, the affiliate will only receive a commission for the first four times the referred customer is billed, regardless of whether the subscription is monthly or annual.

Configuring Variable Commissions Over Time

To set up commission rates that change, locate and enable the Variable Commissions toggle. You can then define different commission levels based on the charge count.

A common setup is to use two levels. You can specify a commission rate for an initial set of charges (e.g., 40% for the first 3 payments), and then a different rate for all subsequent charges (e.g., the default 20% rate). The interface allows you to configure the specific charge count and percentage for each tier. You can add more tiers for complex, multi-stage commission plans.

Saving and Applying Changes

Once your commission length and variable rate rules are configured, save or publish the campaign. The new settings will apply to future affiliate referrals for this campaign.

Understanding Commission Priority

It's important to know the order in which commission rules are applied if multiple types are set for a product:

1. Product-Specific Commissions: Any commission rate assigned directly to a specific product takes first priority.
2. Variable Commissions: Tiered commission rules you set up in the campaign are applied next.
3. Default Commission: If no other rules apply, the default campaign commission rate is used.

This hierarchy ensures that your most specific commission settings are honored first.