How approvals and the two-way veto work | Harmonia

When an athlete applies to your program, you do three things in the applications queue: triage the application, set the net commission, then approve or decline. Approval is what creates the working relationship. It signs an insertion order that locks the terms, creates the athlete's tracking link, and emails both sides. A decline always sends a short, neutral message, so no athlete is left waiting.

This is the brand side of a curated affiliate program. It works on a two-way veto: you choose who promotes your brand, and the athlete chooses which brands they back.

The two-way veto: both sides choose

Approval takes two yeses. Neither side is matched to the other by default.

• You approve the athlete. You review each application and decide.
• The athlete accepts your program. The athlete reviews your terms and accepts them when they apply.

Because both sides choose, every partnership is one you and the athlete both wanted. There is no mass marketplace where any athlete can promote any brand without your sign-off. See the two-way veto glossary entry for the short definition.

Triage the applications queue

Open the queue from your brand dashboard. Each row shows what you need to decide on:

• Athlete name and profile. Their bio, audience, and the brands they already back.
• Click quality score. A sortable signal from how their past traffic converts. It helps you sort applicants. It is never a gate and never an automatic clawback. A high score does not auto-approve; a low score does not auto-decline.
• How they applied. By invite, by browsing your program, or off-platform.
• Applied date. So the oldest applications do not sit waiting.

Sort by click quality score to put your strongest fits on top, then work down the list. Fit over follower count is the rule. A smaller athlete who genuinely uses your products is worth more than a large account that does not.

For the full field-by-field walkthrough, see the applications and approvals help article.

Set the net commission at approval

The program sets a default commission, the flat dollar amount or flat percent you chose when you launched it. On the approval screen you can confirm that default or set a different net commission for this one athlete.

The number you confirm is the net commission: what the athlete earns, in full. The 20% platform fee is billed to you on top, never deducted from the athlete. If you set $50 per sale:

$50athlete keeps, in full $1020% platform fee, billed to you $60your total cost per sale

Here is how a few common amounts work out:

The fee is charged only when an athlete drives a real attributed sale. For how flat-dollar and flat-percent commissions compare, see setting commission for a program.

What approval generates

When you approve, three things happen at once:

• An insertion order (EIO) is signed. It records the brand, the athlete, the program, the net commission, the attribution window, and the refund window, dated to the day you approve. It is the contractual record of the terms, attached to the approval email and saved to the application.
• The tracking link is created. The athlete gets one tracking link for your program, per relationship, not per product. Attribution is first-party and server-side through your Shopify store, so there is no discount code for the customer to enter.
• Both sides are emailed. The athlete gets their link and the signed insertion order; you get a copy for your records.

The insertion order locks the terms

The insertion order pins down exactly what was agreed at approval, so there is no ambiguity later about what an athlete earns on a sale. It freezes the net commission, the attribution window, and the refund window, plus a snapshot of the exact program terms and conditions both sides agreed to.

Locking matters because money moves against these numbers. Once a sale is attributed under an insertion order, the terms that priced it cannot shift underneath it. If you change commission going forward, you publish a new program and approve athletes into it, which generates a fresh insertion order. Each sale stays tied to the exact terms in force when it happened.

See the insertion order glossary entry for the short definition, and the insertion orders (EIO) help article for where each record is stored.

Decline an application

Declining is a normal part of curation. Select decline, and the athlete gets a short, neutral message. You can add a reason, which helps the athlete understand the fit.

A decline is a brand decision for right now, not a permanent block. As your program changes or the athlete's profile grows, they can apply again. We never use guilt or false hope in the message either way.

Resend an expired invite

If you invited an athlete directly and their invite expired before they signed up, you can resend it. Open the invite in your applications tools and select resend. This issues a fresh email-bound invite with a new 30-day window. The original link stops working once a new one is sent.

Approve, decline, lock: a quick comparison

Once an approval is live, the next thing on your mind is usually money. Athletes are paid the full commission from your cleared invoice. We invoice you monthly via Stripe Billing, net-30, on the 1st of the following month: the commission your athletes earned plus the 20% platform fee. Athletes are paid daily once your invoice clears, with a $25 minimum.

FAQ

What happens when I approve an application?

Approval signs an electronic insertion order (EIO) that records the net commission, the attribution window, and the refund window, creates the athlete's per-program tracking link, and emails both sides. The athlete keeps the full commission you set. The 20% platform fee is billed to you on top, never deducted from the athlete.

Can I decline without notifying the athlete?

No. Declining always sends a short, neutral message so the athlete is not left waiting. You can add a reason. A decline is a brand decision for right now, not a permanent block: the athlete can apply again as your program or their profile changes.

Can I set a custom commission per athlete at approval?

Yes. The program sets a default commission, and you can set a different net commission for an individual athlete on the approval screen. The number you confirm is what that athlete earns, in full, and what the signed insertion order records.

What is the two-way veto?

Both sides have to say yes. You approve the athlete, and the athlete accepts your program and its terms. Neither side is auto-enrolled, so every partnership is one both parties chose.

Is the insertion order legally binding?

Yes. The insertion order is the signed record of the commission terms both sides accepted at approval. The athlete agreed to those terms when they applied, and you confirmed them when you approved. It is the agreement of record for that athlete on that program. It is not tax advice; Harmonia issues each athlete's 1099-NEC automatically at year-end through Stripe.