Why the sales mix matters
A GMV increase can come from stronger content, a merchant's advertising, or both. Those sources may carry different commission rates and may not continue on the same schedule. Separate them before deciding what to scale or how to evaluate employees.
A useful review states total orders, paid-attributed orders, organic-attributed orders, and the remainder. Classification is an aid to understanding the records; it is not proof that a particular editing choice caused the sale.
Define paid, organic, mixed, and unknown
In this workflow, paid attribution refers to Shop Ads commission evidence and organic attribution to standard affiliate commission evidence. A mixed order contains both. Unknown means the available evidence cannot support a classification.
This describes commission attribution, not the buyer's full viewing journey. An order record does not tell an agency every ad, search, or video the shopper encountered. Avoid turning a commission label into a claim about all marketing touchpoints.
Read attribution at the item level
Inspect the commission evidence for each SKU. Paid evidence only supports paid attribution; standard evidence only supports organic attribution; both support mixed. If neither provides usable evidence, keep it unknown. An order with an unresolved item should not be assigned a confident whole-order source.
Refunds can reduce actual commission to zero without changing the original attribution. Relevant estimated commission can preserve that evidence. Keep refund status separate. Historical imports without item detail should remain unknown rather than being assigned by an assumed percentage.
Reconcile GMV, commission, and refunds by category
Show paid, organic, and other totals that reconcile to the overall scope. Preserve mixed and unknown as distinct explanations within other orders. Do not distribute mixed-order GMV between categories when the source cannot support that split.
Illustrative example: 120 orders and $3,000 GMV comprise 40 paid orders/$1,200, 70 organic orders/$1,500, and 10 other orders/$300. Organic GMV is 50% of the total. Reclassifying the last $300 as organic without evidence would change the conclusion, not the business.
Give each role the right question
Owners review concentration, sustainability, and profit. Business staff verify which merchants are advertising and whether the commission rules reflect the agreement. Content leads look for work that continues to sell under a consistent attribution definition.
A video selected for advertising may offer useful creative lessons, but its order count should not automatically outrank an organic-only test as evidence of better editing. Review the product, audience, timing, and merchant support together.
Avoid four common attribution mistakes
Do not compare a merchant's ad spend with an agency's commission as though both belong to the same business. Record advertising your own team pays for separately. Do not turn unknown into organic simply to make the report look complete.
Do not apply one partner rate when the agreement distinguishes paid orders. Finally, do not rank employees solely by total GMV without checking whether paid distribution explains a large difference. Keep a comparable organic view where the data supports it.
Inspect the evidence in Star Captain
Star Captain's performance analytics separates paid, organic, mixed, and unknown attribution from the available commission records. Other-order filters keep unresolved categories visible. Supported exports retain attribution details for reconciliation.
Check the source fields and synchronization status when unknowns rise. The correct response may be to investigate data completeness, not to declare that organic demand disappeared. Confirm export access and other plan limits on the pricing page.
Apply separate partner rates where agreed
The Business center can use a shop's paid-order commission rule when separate calculation is enabled. A blank paid rate inherits the applicable ordinary rule; an explicit 0% is a valid configured rate. Those states must not be treated as equivalent.
Keep mixed orders and missing rates pending until a supported rule is confirmed. Review effective changes before confirming a statement, and preserve already confirmed values. Calculated partner commission then feeds operating income without duplicating the platform portion.
Use a weekly attribution checklist
Compare the mix with the previous completed period. Identify accounts and products responsible for changes, investigate unresolved attribution, and reconcile refund treatment. Ask whether a merchant changed its advertising before attributing the entire movement to content performance.
Finish with an action: confirm a rate, request missing evidence, test another creative approach, or adjust the next assignment. Save the date window and filters so next week's comparison uses the same basis.
Frequently asked questions
How are paid and organic affiliate orders classified?
Use item-level Shop Ads and standard commission evidence. The labels describe commission attribution, not every step in the buyer's journey.
Should a mixed order count as paid or organic?
Keep it separate unless supported item-level data and a defined calculation justify a split. Do not assign the entire order to whichever category is larger.
Does a refund change an order's original attribution?
Not necessarily. Estimated commission evidence can remain relevant after actual commission becomes zero. Track the refund and source separately.
What if paid orders use a different partner rate?
Configure the agreed paid rate and distinguish a blank value from an explicit 0%. Leave unresolved orders pending rather than estimating their commission.
What is a healthy organic order share?
There is no universal benchmark. Compare your own consistent history and consider product mix, merchant advertising, and data completeness.
Is attribution available on Spark?
Core order attribution is described across Star Captain's plans; order exports start with Starlight. Check the pricing page for the current feature comparison.
Related guides
Put it into practice: Explore Orders & performance →
