How OpenPromoter works
The OpenPromoter model on one page. Programs, partners, links and codes, clicks, leads, customers, commission states, the refund hold and payouts, with a worked example.
OpenPromoter pays partners a share of the revenue they bring you. A partner shares a link or code, a visitor clicks and later pays, and your billing provider reports the payment. OpenPromoter then books a commission, holds it through the refund window and pays it out on your schedule.
The parts
| Term | What it is |
|---|---|
| Program | Your offer to partners: the rate, cookie window, hold and payout rules. A workspace can run several |
| Partner | A person or company who promotes you. They apply, get approved and use the partner portal |
| Link | A partner's referral link, such as acme.com/?via=maya or a short link on your program domain |
| Coupon code | A discount code tied to one partner. A sale with the code counts as theirs with or without a click |
| Click | One visit through a partner link. op.js remembers it for the cookie window (60 days by default) |
| Lead | A referred visitor who signed up and hasn't paid yet |
| Customer | A referred visitor who paid. Every payment they make can earn a commission |
| Commission | The partner's share of one payment. It moves through the states below |
| Payout | One transfer to a partner covering their approved commissions |
On Customers, each referred person shows as Lead, Trialing, Active, Canceled or Refunded.
How a sale becomes a payout
- Click. A visitor opens a partner's link. op.js stores the click id in a first-party cookie for the cookie window.
- Lead. The visitor signs up. Your site calls
openpromoter.signup()and the lead is tied to the partner. - Customer. The visitor pays. Stripe, Paddle, Lemon Squeezy, Polar or Chargebee reports the payment and it is credited to the partner.
- Commission. OpenPromoter books the partner's share of what the customer paid after discounts and before tax. It starts as Pending.
- Hold. After the refund hold (30 days by default) the commission becomes Approved. A refund in that window reduces or reverses it.
- Payout. On your schedule, partners whose approved balance reaches the minimum get a payout. Someone on your team approves it and the money goes out.
When several signals point to different partners, a coupon code wins. See Tracking for the full order.
Commission states
| State | What it means |
|---|---|
| Pending | Booked and inside the refund window |
| Approved | Past the refund window. It joins the next payout |
| Held | Waiting for your review: a fraud flag, an open chargeback or held by you |
| Paid | Sent to the partner in a payout |
| Reversed | Canceled by a full refund, a lost chargeback or by you |
The Commissions page has a tab for each state. Partners see the same states in their portal.
The refund hold
Every commission waits in Pending for the program's Refund hold (30 days by default). Set it to at least your refund window. A refund then lands before any money moves.
- A partial refund reduces the commission by the same share.
- A full refund reverses it.
- A refund after the payout adds a negative line. It comes off the partner's next payout.
Change the hold in Settings > Program > Payouts. See Commissions.
A worked example
Acme sells a $49 monthly plan and keeps the default program. That is 30% of each payment for 12 months and a 60-day cookie. Commissions wait 30 days and pay out monthly from $50.
- Maya is a partner and posts her link. A reader clicks it on day 1.
- The reader signs up on day 5. They show as a Lead for Maya.
- On day 20 they start paying $49 a month. Maya earns $14.70 (30% of $49), and it is Pending.
- On day 50 the hold ends and the $14.70 becomes Approved.
- Each renewal adds another $14.70. Once four payments have cleared the hold, Maya's approved balance is $58.80.
- That passes the $50 minimum. On the 1st of the next month a payout of $58.80 is prepared. You approve it and Maya is paid.
Over 12 months the customer pays $588 and Maya earns $176.40. From month 13 she earns nothing on this customer. To keep paying a smaller share, set Then, for life (see Commissions).
Payouts
Payouts are prepared on the program's schedule: monthly on the 1st, weekly on Monday or only when you click. Each one waits for approval by an owner, admin or finance member.
Partners are paid by Stripe Connect, PayPal, Wise or a manual transfer. OpenPromoter takes 0% of payouts.
See Payouts for approval, methods, invoices and tax forms.
Good to know
- Commissions are based on what the customer actually paid after discounts. Tax is never included.
- A webhook delivered twice never books twice. Each commission has one source payment.
- Test-mode payments create commissions marked Test. They never count toward a payout.
Next: Try the demo