UGC Community #75

Why performance-based UGC pay is a risk for you & what to do about it

November 02, 2025

In partnership with

📧 UGC Community #74 | October 31, 2025

You've seen the offer. It lands in your inbox and looks tempting: "$300 Base Pay + Performance-Based Commission!"

It sounds like the best of both worlds—guaranteed money upfront plus the potential for unlimited earnings. But what does this offer really mean? And who does it truly benefit?

This "hybrid" model is becoming more common, and it's one of the most confusing and risky proposals a creator can get. We saw a brilliant post that breaks down exactly what's happening: brands are merging two different jobs to lower their costs and pass the risk on to you.

LOOKING FOR UGC JOBS?

A free newsletter with the marketing ideas you need

The best marketing ideas come from marketers who live it.

That’s what this newsletter delivers.

The Marketing Millennials is a look inside what’s working right now for other marketers. No theory. No fluff. Just real insights and ideas you can actually use—from marketers who’ve been there, done that, and are sharing the playbook.

Every newsletter is written by Daniel Murray, a marketer obsessed with what goes into great marketing. Expect fresh takes, hot topics, and the kind of stuff you’ll want to steal for your next campaign.

Because marketing shouldn’t feel like guesswork. And you shouldn’t have to dig for the good stuff.

[THE DEEP DIVE] What to Know Before Accepting a "Performance-Based" Deal

This critical analysis comes from Reddit user Javier-Just-Creates, who explains the fundamental difference between what brands are asking for and what they're paying for.

1. Know Your Job: UGC Creator vs. Affiliate Marketer

This is the most important distinction.

  • A UGC Creator is paid for their creativity, storytelling, and ability to produce high-quality, scroll-stopping content. Your job is done when you deliver the creative.

  • An Affiliate Marketer is paid for conversions. They are a sales partner who earns a commission when their content drives a sale.

When a brand offers a small base pay plus commission, they are not hiring a true UGC creator. They are hiring you as a hybrid affiliate marketer and transferring the risk of the ad's performance onto you.

2. Performance Is (Mostly) Out of Your Control

As the post brilliantly points out, the performance of an ad depends on dozens of factors that have nothing to do with you or your video.

A brand is responsible for:

  • The ad targeting and audience segmentation

  • The ad budget

  • The product-market fit

  • The quality of the offer or discount

  • The design and conversion rate of the landing page

You could deliver a masterpiece of a video, but if the brand targets the wrong audience or has a broken checkout page, the ad will fail, and you won't get paid.

3. How to Protect Yourself: 5 Questions to Ask

If you're still considering one of these hybrid deals, you must treat it like a business partnership and ask tough, specific questions.

  1. "How do you track conversions?"

  2. "What tracking system, attribution model, and cookie window do you use?"

  3. "Will I have real-time access to this data?" (The post notes that if it's a legit platform, you should.)

  4. "What happens if the tracking breaks? What recourse do I have?"

  5. "Will you add a 'transparency in reporting' clause to our contract?"

If they can't answer these questions clearly, it's a massive red flag.

Is Your Ad Spend Really Paying Off?

See how creator-led partnerships can boost sales with Levanta’s Affiliate Ad Shift Calculator.

Get instant insight into potential revenue lift, ROI gains, and efficiency improvements based on your current digital advertising strategy.

Run your numbers to find out how small shifts could drive big results.

[PRO TIP OF THE WEEK]

Here's the key takeaway from the post: Your base pay must reflect the risk. If you take on a performance-based deal, that base pay is not just for the video. It's for the video plus the risk you're taking that the commission structure will fail. Before you accept, ask yourself, "What is a fair price for this video if I assume the performance pay will be $0?" Price your risk accordingly.

The Creator Suite