What is the PartnerMix Affiliate Marketing Forecast Calculator?
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A free tool for affiliate marketing account managers and brand teams. It estimates the commercial return — ROAS, CAC, clicks, sales and revenue — from a specific partner media placement before you commit budget. Enter the partner's quoted reach, your brand's conversion metrics and the deal structure. The tool outputs a forecast across three scenarios: conservative, base case and upside.
Does it work for partnership marketing as well as affiliate marketing?
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Yes. The tool is built for any performance-based media placement — affiliate programmes, partnership marketing campaigns, influencer deals, cashback and loyalty partners, employee benefits platforms and B2B media buys. The commercial models (CPS, CPC, CPL, flat fee, hybrid) cover the full range of how both affiliate and strategic partnership deals are structured. If a partner has a media pack with reach, engagement or pricing data, this tool can forecast it.
What placement types does it cover?
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46 placement types across eight categories: on-site placements, email formats, app and push notifications, deal and cashback listings, corporate and employee benefits placements, editorial and content, and social and influencer. Each comes with a real-world benchmark engagement rate so you can forecast even when a partner hasn't shared their own data. If a placement type you work with isn't listed, add it as a custom row — and if you think it should be included as standard, hello@partnermixmedia.com.
What commercial models does it support?
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All six commercial models used in affiliate and partnership marketing: CPS (cost per sale / revenue share), CPC (cost per click), CPL (cost per lead / registration), CPI (cost per install), flat fee tenancy, and hybrid deals combining a flat placement fee with ongoing CPS commission. You can layer on an agency override or network fee — as a percentage on commission or on basket value — and model the impact of a voucher code on effective AOV and ROAS.
What is a good ROAS for an affiliate media buy?
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It depends on your sector, margin and cost structure. As a general guide: 4x to 8x is considered solid for most UK e-commerce affiliate programmes. Travel typically achieves higher due to large average order values. For flat fee tenancy placements on cashback, deal and voucher sites, most affiliate managers target a minimum 4x to cover the placement fee, CPA commission and network override combined. The tool colour-codes your result — green means target met, amber means within 30% (worth negotiating), red means it doesn't stack up on current figures.
How does the email placement formula work?
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Email uses a three-step formula: list size × open rate × click-to-open rate = estimated clicks. This is important because partners quote their total list size, not expected clicks. Applying a flat CTR to the full list — a common mistake — significantly overstates forecast results. The tool uses separate fields for open rate and click-to-open rate. If the partner hasn't shared their open rate, the benchmark defaults to industry average click-to-open data so you always get a grounded estimate.
What is actual vs forecast tracking?
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What does the Conservative scenario mean?
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A −30% reduction applied to the partner's quoted reach and engagement figures. Partners frequently quote optimistic reach and engagement figures in media packs. The conservative view gives you a realistic downside for internal planning and budget approval. Base case uses their figures as provided. Upside (+30%) models a best case, useful when building an internal business case or requesting budget. All three scenarios appear in the output panel simultaneously.
Does it work outside the UK and for non-English markets?
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Yes. The tool supports 22 currencies and 5 languages — English, French, German, Spanish and Italian. When a partner provides their own engagement data always use that in preference to the benchmarks. The calculation engine works for any market.
Something missing or not working as expected?
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The tool is actively developed based on how affiliate and partnership marketing managers use it. If you work with a placement type that isn't listed, a commercial model that isn't covered, or you've spotted a calculation issue, email hello@partnermixmedia.com and we'll look at it. Your feedback directly shapes what gets added next.