· Vishnu Prithiv, founder of Vivin Sales · facts checked · 6 min read
What deal size suits a pay per close model?
A percentage-of-contract fee suits deals large enough to pay for the work. Test your contract value, margin and close rate before you agree.
Short answer: a percentage-of-contract model suits deals large enough that the success fee covers the partner’s work and the monthly cost, and small enough in relation to your margin that you still gain after paying it. There is no universal number. Test your own average contract value, margin and close rate before you agree.
Vivin Sales charges 5% to 20% of attributed contract value plus USD $497 per month. The rate is agreed per client, 20% is the ceiling, and the client closes the deal. Every fee is listed in your written quote before you sign.
Why does deal size matter for a percentage model?
Because the success fee depends on an attributed contract being signed, while the monthly infrastructure fee applies regardless, and each signed contract must help pay for the effort behind many introductions that did not close. If your contracts are small, a percentage may not cover that effort, and you may find the partner declines the work or prices it at the top of the range. If your contracts are large, a percentage can look expensive in absolute terms even when it is reasonable against the value you receive.
The test is not whether the fee looks big. It is whether, after the fee, the customer is still profitable to you over the contract or the lifetime you can document.
How do you work out whether the fee makes sense?
Use three numbers from your own records. First, average contract value and what it contains (first term, total commitment or collected revenue). Second, gross margin on that contract. Third, how many introductions or meetings you need to produce one signed deal, which is your close rate from meeting to contract.
Here is an illustration, not a quote or a benchmark. Suppose a contract is worth 40,000 in the first term and the agreed rate is 10 percent. The success fee is 4,000. If your gross margin on that contract is 30 percent, margin is 12,000, and after the fee 8,000 remains before the monthly fee and your own selling cost. Run the same sum with your numbers and a rate inside the range you were quoted. If the answer is thin, the deal may be too small for this model, or the rate may need to sit lower in the range, which is a point to raise before you sign.
| Input | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| Average contract value | Your last signed deals, by definition of value |
| Gross margin on the contract | Finance, after delivery cost |
| Close rate from meeting to contract | CRM, over a long enough period |
| Sales cycle length | Days from first meeting to signature |
| Renewal pattern | Whether renewals count in attribution |
Which contracts are usually too small for it?
Small contracts that close quickly and repeat often are usually better suited to a per-lead or per-appointment model, where you pay for each lead or attended meeting and control the follow-up. Vivin charges USD $15 to $500 per accepted lead, where each lead is exclusive and never resold and a lead that is off-criteria is replaced, and USD $100 to $500 per attended appointment, with no-shows never billed. Every fee is listed in your written quote before you sign.
Pay per close also needs a business that can close its own deals, since the client closes. If your close process is informal or relies on one person, a result-based fee before a meeting will not fix that. Read more leads, better leads or better follow-up to see whether the constraint is in the funnel or in the close.
What if my contracts are large but rare?
Large and rare means a long cycle and a small sample, so the contract needs a clear attribution window, an agreed definition of contract value and a rule for late signings. The guide to pay per close and six-to-twelve-month sales cycles covers these. Also decide how refunds, cancellations and unpaid invoices adjust the fee, and whether renewals count.
The rate itself is a negotiation inside the published range, and it depends on the deal, the buyer and the effort to reach them. Ask for the rate in the written quote, with the fee base, invoice timing and duration, before you sign. Either party can end a campaign on 14 days written notice.
How does the monthly fee change the math?
It is a fixed cost, so it weighs more when you close few deals. Vivin’s USD $497 per month covers domains, inboxes and sending infrastructure, as explained in why pay per close often includes a monthly fee. Over six months that is a known amount to include in your cost per deal, and a result of zero deals still leaves it in the sum. Every fee is listed in your written quote before you sign.
See the pay per close hub for the model, pay per close for management consultancies for a sector example, and the pay per close agency comparison for what others publish. The pay per close campaign planner lists the fields to capture.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a minimum contract value for pay per close?
This guide names no minimum. The fit depends on your average contract value, margin and close rate, and the quote reflects your market.
Does a higher percentage mean better service?
Not by itself. Compare the fee base, the attribution window and what the partner does, not the percentage alone.
Can the percentage change during the campaign?
The rate is agreed per client and fixed in writing before launch. Ask what happens if you change the offer or the scope.
Should I choose pay per close or pay per appointment?
If you can close and want cost to follow signed contracts, pay per close fits. If you want to pay for meetings held, choose pay per appointment.
