Partner Connector decision workbook
Partner Lead Economics Workbook
A printable methodology for defining one buying cohort, auditing seven inputs, and reviewing downside, base, and upside cases before purchasing partner leads.
Companion to the Partner Lead Unit Economics Calculator. Updated August 7, 2026.
This workbook is a decision aid, not a revenue forecast, benchmark, valuation, purchase recommendation, or performance guarantee. All assumptions are supplied by the user. Validate them against one observed cohort and include costs outside this model before approval.
1. Define the cohort before the numbers
2. Input definition sheet
| Input | Definition | Valid range | Evidence to record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purchased leads | Paid leads in the defined monthly cohort. | Whole number, 1–1,000,000 | Purchase/export record and dates. |
| Price per lead | Quoted or paid amount for each purchased lead. | Greater than $0 | Invoice, contract, or marketplace price. |
| Acceptance rate | Accepted purchased leads ÷ purchased leads. | 0%–100% | Documented acceptance reason and review window. |
| Opportunity rate | Qualified opportunities ÷ accepted leads. | 0%–100% | CRM stage definition and attribution evidence. |
| Close rate | Won deals ÷ qualified opportunities. | 0%–100% | Closed-won records after a full sales cycle. |
| First-year deal value | Collected or reliably contracted first-year revenue per won deal. | Greater than $0 | Billing or contract evidence; exclude uncapped LTV. |
| Gross margin | Gross profit ÷ revenue for the same delivery mix. | 0%–100% | Finance-approved cost-of-delivery method. |
3. Formula ledger
| Output | Auditable formula |
|---|---|
| Monthly lead spend | Purchased leads × price per lead |
| Accepted leads | Purchased leads × (acceptance rate ÷ 100) |
| Opportunities | Accepted leads × (opportunity rate ÷ 100) |
| Projected wins | Opportunities × (close rate ÷ 100) |
| Gross revenue | Projected wins × average first-year deal value |
| Gross profit | Gross revenue × (gross margin ÷ 100) |
| Contribution after lead spend | Gross profit − monthly lead spend |
| ROI after lead spend | Contribution after lead spend ÷ monthly lead spend × 100 |
| Break-even cost per purchased lead | (Acceptance rate ÷ 100) × (opportunity rate ÷ 100) × (close rate ÷ 100) × deal value × (gross margin ÷ 100) |
4. Cohort audit
- Every rate uses the same buyer segment, lead source, and observation window.
- Acceptance follows the written buyer acceptance criteria.
- Opportunity and won outcomes follow the same attribution ladder.
- Records are resolved with documented CRM deduplication rules.
- Any score-defined segment has been checked against the lead quality score methodology.
- Sales labor, software, financing, tax, refunds, collection risk, and other excluded costs are reviewed separately.
5. Scenario review
| Case | Assumption changed | Break-even CPL | Contribution | Decision / evidence needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Downside | ||||
| Base | ||||
| Upside |
Change one assumption at a time so reviewers can see what drives the result. Read break-even cost per lead before ROI, document the source of every change, and replace assumptions with observed outcomes after the sales-cycle window closes.