KPI and validation
✓The billable event is defined exactly — action, qualifiers, minimums
✓The data source of truth for validation is named (your system of record)
✓The attribution window is defined in days
✓Validation criteria for approval and rejection are written down
✓Your target approve rate or validation timeline is known
Tracking
✓A tracking platform is live: Keitaro, Everflow, Affise, TUNE, CAKE, Binom, RedTrack or in-house
✓A server-to-server postback fires on the billable event
✓The postback passes click ID, event type and required parameters
✓End-to-end postback test completed with a real conversion
✓Deduplication rules are defined for repeat events
Commercials
✓Unit economics documented: what a validated action is worth to you
✓Payout model chosen: CPA, CPL, FTD, sale, COD, revshare or hybrid
✓Daily and per-GEO caps set for the pilot phase
✓Hold period for validation agreed internally
✓Budget and payment flow for the pilot approved
Compliance and operations
✓Licenses confirmed for every target GEO where required
✓Creative rules written: what partners may and may not say
✓Prohibited traffic types listed (incent, brand bidding, misleading pre-landers)
✓An owner is assigned for approval feedback within one business day
✓A dispute contact and escalation path are agreed
How to use this checklist
Go through all twenty points before submitting your brief. Every unchecked point is a conversation that will happen anyway — during the pilot, with money at stake. The points that most often kill launches: an undefined validation source of truth (both sides count differently and dispute every rejection), an untested postback (conversions are lost or double-counted from day one), and missing caps (a bad source or a slow call center burns budget before anyone notices). Close these three first.
What happens after the checklist
With these twenty points closed, the brief conversation takes one round: you submit the offer, terms are proposed against your numbers, the pilot starts with written KPI terms. Without them, expect weeks of back-and-forth or a pilot that produces unusable data. The offer brief template structures exactly this information for submission — use both together.
FAQ
Q.Who is this checklist for?
Offer and product owners preparing a CPA launch with a media buying team or affiliate network. It covers what partners will ask before they commit traffic.
Q.Which points matter most?
The validation source of truth, a tested postback, and pilot caps. These three prevent the most common and most expensive launch failures.
Q.Do I need everything before the first call?
No — but every open point becomes a delay. Close what you can; the brief conversation will tell you honestly what blocks a pilot and what does not.
Q.What if I do not have a tracking platform?
Say so in the brief. We will tell you what a minimal reliable setup looks like for your funnel — but no traffic runs before postbacks fire correctly.
Q.How strict are the compliance points?
Strict. Licensed verticals require confirmed licensing per GEO, and creative rules are enforced on all sources. We do not run offers where promotion is prohibited.
Q.What is a realistic approve rate to target?
It depends on your vertical and confirmation setup — we do not quote generic numbers. The pilot measures your real rate; the terms adapt to it.
Q.Can caps change after launch?
Yes, in writing. Caps scale stepwise as cohorts pass your approval checks — you never discover a cap change from rejected conversions.
Q.Is this checklist binding?
No. It is preparation, not a contract. Commercial terms are agreed separately in writing before traffic runs.
Submit your offer