Performance-based creator partnerships

How it works

Before a campaign starts, the brand picks the result that counts and sets a rate for each one. Creators who accept the rate make ads to the brand's guidelines, and the brand approves every ad before it goes live. Each ad is tracked with links, promo codes or app attribution, and the brand pays only for the results traced back to it.

Why it matters

Most creator deals are still sold like traditional media: a flat fee per post, priced on follower count or expected views. That puts all the risk on the brand. If the ad doesn't convert, the money is spent anyway.

A performance-based creator partnership makes creator ads work like paid search or paid social. Spend rises only when results do, and it moves toward the creators and ads that actually bring in customers.

An example

A fintech app pays $40 per funded account. One creator's ad drives 250 funded accounts, so the brand pays $10,000. Another drives 20, so the brand pays $800. Under a flat fee, both would have cost the same up front, whatever they delivered.

How it differs from affiliate marketing

Affiliate programs usually pay a commission on sales through a link the creator shares, with little say over the content. In a performance-based creator partnership, the brand chooses the result it pays for at any step of the funnel, creators make ads to a brief, and the brand approves every ad before it goes live.

What to watch for

• —The result you pay for. A deeper result, like a first deposit, brings better customers but fewer of them.
• —Attribution rules, agreed before launch, so both sides count the same results.
• —A rate high enough that strong creators want to run your ads.

How Panel handles it

On Panel, you set the rate and a maximum monthly spend, creators choose to run your campaign, you approve every ad before it goes live, and you're billed only for results tracked to their ads.