Fifteen questions.
Straight answers.
How the money works, who gets credit for a deal, when you're paid, and what gets you removed — the questions partners and affiliates actually ask, answered without the legalese.
This page is the plain-English version — the partner terms are the binding document.
How the money works
How much do I earn?
Depends on which side of the program you're on. Certified HR Partners earn 35% of everything the client pays — every invoice, for as long as the client stays a customer. Classic affiliates earn 25% on the same lifetime basis — 25% of everything their referred customer pays, for as long as they stay subscribed. For context: a Growth-plan client at $199/mo is roughly $70/mo to a Certified Partner and about $50/mo to an affiliate — both for as long as the client stays.
What does "lifetime" mean — and what is it net of?
Lifetime means as long as the customer stays subscribed — year one, year five, plan upgrades included — and it applies to both tracks: partners at 35%, affiliates at 25%. Commissions are calculated on cash we actually collect, net of discounts, refunds, taxes, and chargebacks. If the client uses your 10% first-year code, your commission is on the discounted amount they actually pay.
What earns Certified Partner status?
Implementation. Certified HR Partners stay involved through the client's first pulse launch — setting up the workspace, rolling the survey out, and reading the first Leadership Brief with them. If you only pass along a name and step away, that deal earns affiliate terms instead. Both tracks pay for as long as the client stays, so the difference is the rate — 35% versus 25% — and the level of partner support behind you. The higher rate is compensation for the work, not the introduction.
What does my client get?
10% off their first year when they sign up with your code — a named, memorable code like INTERIM-MARY, not a random string. The discount applies to first-time customers only, so your code is a genuine reason for a new client to buy through you rather than around you.
Can I be both a partner and an affiliate?
If you're a Certified HR Partner, you don't need both. Your single partner account attributes everything you generate — client implementations and content or LinkedIn referrals alike — at 35% lifetime, through one code, one link, one payout balance. Rewardful allows one campaign per email address, which is one more reason a single partner account is the right setup. Affiliates who start implementing with clients can apply to upgrade to partner terms.
Who gets credit for a deal
How does attribution actually work?
Your code beats your link beats registration. A code entered at checkout is the customer's explicit statement of who sent them — it works even if they never clicked a single link of yours. Behind that, your partner link carries a 90-day cookie. Behind that sit deal registration and manual attribution.
What if my client forgets my code?
Register the deal: email the company name to partners@staffhero.com and it's protected for 90 days, with one extension available while the deal is genuinely progressing. There's also a "how did you hear about us?" catch at signup, and we attribute manually when the evidence is clear.
Can I lose a deal I worked to a random coupon link?
No. An approved deal registration or a documented introduction beats later public-affiliate attribution — a client you spent weeks advising doesn't become someone else's commission because they clicked a stray link at checkout. And if a code leaks onto a coupon site, that attribution can be voided.
What if two partners claim the same client?
The code the customer entered wins, absent abuse or a previously registered deal — it's the customer telling us who sent them. If no code was used, the first approved deal registration takes it. Edge cases get decided on the evidence, and StaffHero's decision on attribution is final.
When you get paid
When do I get paid?
Monthly, once your balance reaches $50 and the commissions in it are at least 60 days old. The maturity window matches the customer's 60-day money-back guarantee — nothing pays out while the payment behind it could still be refunded. Payouts go by PayPal or Wise, your choice.
What happens on refunds or cancellations?
The commission adjusts or claws back automatically. Because commissions mature for 60+ days before paying out, in practice a refunded payment usually means that commission simply never pays — not money you have to send back. Cancellations end future commissions from the payment they stop at.
I'm outside the US — what about tax forms?
Welcome — the program is open internationally, and Wise covers most currencies. US persons file a W-9 before their first payout, and we issue a 1099-NEC once you cross $600 in a year. Everyone else files the W-8 equivalent — a one-time form, then you're paid like everyone else.
What keeps the program clean
What may I say about StaffHero?
Stick to the approved claims sheet in the partner resources. The one that matters most: describe the anonymity mechanics— results appear only once 5+ people answer, no IP logging or device fingerprinting, response-timing jitter, identifying details redacted from comments — and never promise "100% anonymous" or "guaranteed private." The mechanics are more convincing anyway. Two more: the AI brief is the Leadership Brief, and eNPS® always carries its trademark attribution.
Do I have to disclose our relationship?
Yes. FTC rules require a clear disclosure anywhere you recommend StaffHero and stand to earn from it — every post, video, email, and landing page. You can adapt the wording to your own tone and voice; what matters is that it's clear, easy to spot, appears before your first link or recommendation, and lives in the same medium as the content — a video needs it spoken and in the description. Copy-paste disclosure examples ship in the templates pack if you'd rather not write your own. Disclosing itself is non-negotiable — the program terms require it, in every placement.
What gets me removed from the program?
Self-referral, bidding on StaffHero brand terms (including misspellings and brand + coupon/code/discount), listing codes on coupon, deal, or cashback sites, posting fake reviews, or registering companies you have no real relationship with. Any of these ends the partnership — the program pays well enough that we protect it aggressively.
The short answers live here.
The long ones, in the terms.
Everything above is a plain-English summary — the partner terms are the document that governs. Still stuck on something? Email partners@staffhero.com and a human answers.