When promo clawbacks arrive a cycle late
Why flash-sale funding can distort commission ratios across two settlement periods—and how to label the lag.
Flash campaigns often fund discounts in one week and reclaim unused or disputed subsidy in the next. Finance then sees commission-as-a-percentage-of-GMV jump even though the published base rate never moved.
Label clawbacks by campaign code when the export provides one. If it does not, group by deduction type and settlement date, then compare against your campaign calendar. The goal is not to invent a perfect accrual on day one—it is to stop mixing delayed promo money with true commission rate changes.
In our Marketplace Commission Audits, we keep promo variances in a separate annex so channel conversations stay about rates when they should, and about campaign funding when they should not.