Compensation Plan
Last revised: 11/17/2017
Outline
I. The Goals of Agora Advantage
II. How the Compensation Plan is Designed
III. Comp Plan Total Payout Calculations
IV. Direct Sales Commissions
V. Downline Payout Calculations
VI. Bonus Pools
VII. Vendor Ambassador
We here at Agora Advantage fully understand that individual Sales Reps and Team Builders are the heart of Agora and when they win, we all win.
The Agora Advantage Comp Plan was designed to not only highly reward the individual Sales Reps for their ability to close deals,
but it was also fabricated to greatly compensate on many levels for those who are looking to build large teams.
This is one of the greatest opportunities in the direct sales industry.
Thank you for being a part of this unique opportunity and joining the Agora family where everyone is appreciated.
I. The Goals of Agora Advantage
1. To create a dynamic Merchant Marketplace with the #1 products and services nationwide that provide solutions to business owners/entrepreneurs.
2. Provide an online marketplace that's attractive and beneficial to clients, providing many of the services their businesses need at greatly reduced prices.
3. Introduce business owners/entrepreneurs to powerful marketing strategies such as the Five Pillars of the Internet, along with coaching, teaching, and mentorship.
4. Maintain a large base of loyal members (clients) that benefit from the products and services in the Merchant Marketplace.
5. Expand on our large team of loyal Member Advisors that continually sell products and services offered in the Agora Marketplace to business owners/entrepreneurs.
6. Provide a large platform for Member Advisors to build substantial long-term residual income through personal sales and team building with easy to train lead-to-sale conversion systems.
7. Train and coach Member Advisors to become some of the top-notch Sales Reps in the country.
8. Attract powerful marketing agencies, coaches, and successful Sales Reps to resell Agora Advantage Marketplace products and services.
9. Provide a marketplace that enables Member Advisors and Agora Advantage to attract great vendor partners and alliances.
10. Develop advanced marketing strategies that are duplicatable that generates income for all participants in the marketing plan.
11. Work with veterans, families, and individuals who desire to make a strong and lasting residual income by learning a new trade.
12. Build a very valuable company for ALL owners, founders, investors, employees, vendors, Member Advisors, and members.
II. How the Compensation Plan is Designed
There are two different experiences when joining Agora Advantage and it is important to understand them both:
1. Someone may want to join Agora Advantage just as a Member Advisor (MA). At this level of entry, you have the potential to earn commissions on personal sales, build a sales team, and advance ranks into multiple levels of compensation as noted below in the comp plan.
2. A businesses owner/entrepreneur may join Agora Advantage as a Member (M) for the sole purpose of saving money on products and services. At this level of entry, they are not looking for an income opportunity. They just want to enjoy all of the marketplace benefits our membership has to offer.
Note:
A Member Advisor may also opt to join as a Member under their own personal account to take advantage for themselves of the savings on products and services. It is important to remember that if you buy any products or services in your Member Advisor account the commission will go directly to the Member Advisor who signed you up. Commissions are only earned by accounts that are under your main Member Advisor account. Also, a business owner/entrepreneur who becomes just a member may want to take advantage of the Agora opportunity as a Member Advisor later on. However, you receive a larger commission on the personal sale if it is direct to you. It is only beneficial for you to present the Agora Opportunity to the business owner/entrepreneur if they are truly going to build the business. Lastly, just because you paid for a Member Advisor position does not mean you are buying any products or services in the marketplace. You are only paying for the benefits of a Member Advisor position [See Below under Member Advisor (MA).] All packages, products, services, and memberships are paid for separately.
Important Terms Defined:
CV = Commissionable Value - This is the dollar amount of commission(s) that is to be paid out within the Agora Advantage Compensation Plan. The amount of CV that goes to the comp plan is based on what remains after the vendor’s cost and Agora’s expense (cost of goods) has been calculated. The remaining amount is defined as Commissionable Value (CV).
Example 1: A product/service is sold to a client for $500 per month. After vendor cost and Agora expenses (cost of goods), the remaining Commissionable Value (CV) for this sale could be $200. That $200 is what goes into the comp plan as the Commissionable Value (CV). As the Member Advisor, you will directly earn 45% of that amount which calculates to $90 per month.
Example 2: A product/service sold to a client for a one-time purchase amount of $1,000. After vendor cost and Agora expenses (cost of goods), the remaining commissionable value for this sale could be $450. That $450 is what goes into the comp plan as the Commissionable Value (CV). As the Member Advisor, you will directly earn 45% of that amount, which calculates to a $202.50 one-time commission.
TV = Team Value - This term is used to define the total amount of sales production of Commissionable Value (CV) produced by a Member Advisor’s team/organization/downline. Every sale that is transacted by your team/organization in your downline is given a CV amount and goes towards your Team Value (TV). It doesn’t matter what level or how far down they are in your organization, if the sale is made somewhere in your team/organization/downline you receive TV. This total is used to help you advance rank. The Member Advisors personal sales (CV) are also included and calculated in this amount.
Example 1: Your team/organization/downline has produced $2,000 in Commissionable Value (CV). You have personally produced $500 in Commissionable Value (CV). These two amounts are combined and defined as Team Value (TV). As a result, you now have a Team Value of $2,500.
Example 2: Your team/organization/downline has produced $55,000 in Commissionable Value (CV). You personally have produced $20,000 in Commissionable Value (CV). These two amounts are combined and defined as Team Value (TV). As a result, you now have a Team Value (TV) of $75,000.
In order to receive income in this Compensation Plan a Member Advisor must have at least signed up ONE Directly Enrolled Member, Enhanced Member, or one of our packages which includes an Enhanced Membership. Simply put, this means you must have an actively paying monthly Member directly signed up under you, which is not just a Member Advisor with Agora Advantage. Some members may opt to pay for a membership under their main Member Account. In these cases, this membership/enhanced member or package will count towards meeting this requirement. A Member Advisor must also remain Active with the company in order to receive compensation. For purposes of this comp plan, Active is defined as paying for their virtual office and monthly maintenance fee. All missed paid periods will not be paid retroactively. If the Advisor’s account goes inactive, once they pay their back-office fee they are fully restored to their current status. The current virtual office and monthly maintenance fee is listed at www.agoraadvantage.com/enrollment/advisors
Unlike traditional business solution providers, which only reward individuals for their direct sales efforts, the Agora Advantage marketing plan is designed to also reward leadership efforts in building a team and a network of participants. We have worked diligently to make this comp plan simple, easy to understand and with very attainable goals for those looking to build a team.
There are eight major components of the Agora Marketing Plan:
1. Member (M):
The Member is a business entity (merchant/client/business owner/entrepreneur) that elects to purchase and use the membership marketplace to receive discounts and benefits to help their business. Members will pay a basic monthly fee of $14.95. There are higher levels of membership available with higher levels of service/products as follows:
Enhanced Membership – $49.95 per month + $39.95 Enrollment Fee (Includes: Membership and YEXT)
Starter Package A – $148.95 down 237.95/month (Includes: Membership, YEXT, SoTellUs/first month free, and four cities of SEP Connect)
Starter Package B – $228.95 down 317.95/month (Includes: Membership, YEXT, SoTellUs/first month free, and eight cities of SEP Connect)
Starter Package C – $318.95 down 407.95/month (Includes: Membership, YEXT, SoTellUs/first month free, and 15 cities of SEP Connect)
Starter Package D – $408.95 down 497.95/month (Includes: Membership, YEXT, SoTellUs/first month free, and 25 cities of SEP Connect)
Note:
In situations such as selling a business owner on just a business loan, merchant account or any marketplace product that is a one-time sale we do offer basic membership included on the deal. This is for the sole purpose of not losing the deal. Some clients do not want to pay a monthly fee for a one-time loan or when they are just trying to save money on a merchant account. In these situations, just fill out the form needed for that sale which you will find in the marketplace Forms Tab under your own Member Advisor account. If Agora is able to get them a business loan or win over their Merchant Account the Agora Advantage Admin Team will enroll them for free into the Agora Marketplace. We don’t want there to be any hindrances for the Merchant Advisor(s) when it comes to closing a deal. We are truly here to help the clients save money and to assist our Member Advisors in making the sale.
2. Member Advisor (MA):
The Member Advisor (MA) position enables anyone to participate in the compensation plan. You cannot enroll other (MA) accounts in the same Tax ID # or EIN #. Member Advisors (MAs) can only have one account. If you want to sign up anyone in your family such as a wife, child, relative or other they must have their own account in their own Tax ID # or EIN #. Note: There are no commissions paid out to the field on Member Advisor (MA) virtual back office and monthly maintenance fees.
Requirements
1. Member Advisors must maintain an active virtual office (back office) and keep their account in good standing with the company.
Benefit
• MAs qualify to be paid on three levels deep in their team/organization/downline.
Enrollment Includes:
1. Ability to resell Marketplace products and services
2. 45% of sales Commission Value (CV)
3. Virtual high tech back office
4. Merchant Marketplace access
5. Contact Manager (CRM)
6. Sales training and coaching
7. Customized Agora landing page
8. Built-in Member Management System
9. Ability to build your own sales force
10. Infinite override earning potential of (CV and TV)
11. Room for rank advancements
12. Company wide bonus pool potential
13. Advanced sales and downline reporting
14. VOIP calling features
3. Qualified Member Advisor (QMA):
Requirements
1. Qualified Member Advisors must maintain a virtual office (back office) and keep their account in good standing with the company by paying their monthly fee.
2. The Qualified Member Advisor (QMA) position is achieved when an MA that has enrolled at least two Direct Active MAs.
3. Personal sales minimum CV of $50 must be maintained monthly.
4. There is no monthly team volume required for this rank
5. The rank of QMA can also be obtained based solely on direct sales of $1,000 CV per month and must be maintained.
Benefit
• QMAs are qualified to be paid four levels deep in their team/organization/downline.
4. Regional Member Advisor (RMA):
Requirements
1. Regional Member Advisors must maintain a virtual office (back office) and keep their account in good standing with the company by paying their monthly fee.
2. The Regional Member Advisor (RMA) position is achieved when you have enrolled at least three direct MAs.
3. You must have at least two Qualified MAs (QMAs) in two separate legs somewhere in your team/organization/downline.
4. Personal Sales Minimum CV of $100 must be maintained monthly.
5. Monthly Team Volume (TV) required for this rank is $2,000 and must be maintained monthly. Your personal CV is included in the TV.
6. The rank of RMA can also be obtained based solely on direct sales of $2,000 CV per month and must be maintained.
Benefits
• RMAs are qualified to be paid five levels deep in their team/organization/downline.
• RMAS’s qualify to share in the 5.0% companywide RMA Bonus Pool.
5. National Member Advisor (NMA):
Requirements
1. National Member Advisors must maintain a virtual office (back office) and keep their account in good standing with the company by paying their monthly fee.
2. The National Member Advisor (NMA) position is achieved when you have enrolled at least four direct MAs.
3. You must have at least three qualified QMAs in three separate legs somewhere in your team/organization/downline.
4. You must have at least 2 qualified RMAs in two separate legs somewhere in your team/organization/downline.
5. Personal Sales Minimum CV of $200 must be maintained monthly.
6. Monthly Team Volume (TV) required for this rank is $10,000. Your personal CV is included in the TV.
7. The rank of NMA can also be obtained based solely on direct sales of $10,000 CV per month and must be maintained.
Benefits
• NMAs are qualified to be paid six levels deep in their team/downline.
• NMAs Qualify to share in the 5.0% companywide RMA Bonus Pool.
• NMAs Qualify to share in the 3.0% companywide NMA Bonus Pool.
6. Executive Member Advisor (EMA):
Requirements
1. Executive Member Advisors must maintain a virtual office (back office) and keep their account in good standing with the company by paying their monthly fee.
2. The Executive Member Advisor (EMA) position is achieved when an MA that has enrolled at least five Direct MAs.
3. You must have at least four qualified QMAs in four separate legs somewhere in your team/organization/downline.
4. You must have at least three qualified RMAs in three separate legs somewhere in your team/organization/downline.
5. You must have at least two qualified NMAs in two separate legs somewhere in your team/organization/downline.
6. Personal Sales Minimum CV of $300 must be maintained monthly.
7. Monthly Team Volume (TV) required for this Rank is $35,000. Your personal CV is included in the TV.
8. The rank of EMA can also be obtained based solely on direct sales of $35,000 CV per month and must be maintained.
Benefits
• EMAs are qualified to be paid seven levels deep in their team/organization/downline.
• EMAs Qualify to share in the 5.0% companywide RMA Bonus Pool.
• EMAs Qualify to share in the 3.0% companywide NMA Bonus Pool.
• EMAs Qualify to share in the 2.0% companywide EMA Bonus Pool.
7. Referral Advisor (RA):
An RA or Referral Advisor is a Free position in the compensation plan. This position is typically used for Member Advisors who want to show the back office to potential entrepreneurs looking at the Agora Advantage opportunity. In some cases, it can be used as a position for business owners who are going to refer business to a Member Advisor and will receive a split commission on the deal. The RA receives 10% of the CV value while the Advisors receives 35% of the CV value.
8. Certified Member Advisor (CMA):
The Certified Member Advisor (CMA) position is an MA that has been Certified in advance to sell specific products and services (certified products and services) where the seller must be knowledgeable and certified (trained and tested) to sell certain products or services. This is only applicable on products or services in Agora Advantage that have a higher requirement of skill set to sell.
Note:
In cases where an MA, QMA, RMA, NMA or EMA has qualified for a specific rank, and thereafter falls off on either personal monthly CV or monthly TV requirements, they will be provided a thirty (30) day grace period to make up the difference.
In these cases, Agora Advantage will not pay retro commissions they did not qualify for. Once they qualify their account by paying the monthly fee, their account will be fully restored and they will start earning any commissions earned that same pay period.
Once a rank is earned, it can never be taken away. However, you have to meet all of the qualifications to be compensated for the number of levels paid, and bonus pools. Although, you keep your rank title, you will only be paid at the actual level you are qualified for.
III. Comp Plan Total Payout Calculations
The following are Commissionable Values (CV) paid out to the field per sale after vendor and cost of goods is taken out:
Note:
• Commissions are paid out twice a month on most of marketplace sales.
• Within the marketplace, on each product, we list the payout structure of commissions under the commissions tab.
IV. Direct Sales Commissions
MAs, QMAs, RMAs, NMAs and EMAs earn 45% of the Commissionable Value (CV) on all personal sales.
Example 1:
In the case when a Member Advisor makes a sale of $700.00 and a $300.00 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan, here is the calculation of how much the MA will be paid:
Commission on the $300 CV of 45% = $135.00. This is paid directly to the MA on that sale.
Example 2:
In the case when a Member Advisor makes a sale of $500.00 and a $200.00 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan, here is the calculation of how much the MA will be paid:
Commission on the $200 CV of 45% = $90.00. This is paid directly to the MA on that sale.
Split Sales Commissions:
There are some cases where a beginning MA needs help from a Trainer in their upline to close a deal. We have the option in the Comp Plan for the Trainer to split the commissions paid out on those sales. This can also be applied where a Trainer crossline can work with another MA in a different downline. This commission may be a one time or a monthly payout depending on the type of sale. In other words, if the sale is on a residual product/service the Trainer will be paid a commission for the life of that client on any product/service they buy. This is also useful if a MA desires to bring in a Trainer on big or small events. This can also be applied to crosslines. This is to encourage and compensate Teams helping Teams company wide. The CV payout is as follows 15% of the CV goes to the Trainer and 30% of the CV goes to the MA. The 15% CV going to the Trainer is applied to their TV and the 30% CV going to the MA will be applied to their TV.
Example 1:
In the case when a Member Advisor makes a sale with their Trainer of $700.00 and a $300.00 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan here are the calculations of how much the Trainer and MA will be paid:
Commission on the $300 CV of 15% = $45.00. This is paid directly to the Trainer on that sale.
Commission on the $300 CV of 30% = $90.00. This is paid directly to the MA on that sale.
Example 2:
In the case when a Member Advisor makes a sale with their Trainer of $500.00 and a $200.00 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan here are the calculations of how much the Trainer and MA will be paid:
Commission on the $200 CV of 15% = $30.00. This is paid directly to the Trainer on that sale.
Commission on the $200 CV of 30% = $60.00. This is paid directly to the MA on that sale.
Note:
Merchant accounts or some products in the marketplace are set up with a 30 to 60-day delay in payout. These products take longer to calculate CV based upon end of month sales. In addition, Agora Advantage does not receive the funds from these vendors for 30 to 60 days depending upon when the sale took place. This is also applicable in business loans or lines of credit that don’t pay out by the end of the pay period. In these situations, the Commissionable Value (CV) and Team Volume (TV) is applied to the appropriate monthly commission payout when funds are received by Agora Advantage within that pay period.
V. Downline Payout Calculations
Member Advisors are paid on team overrides on up to seven (7) levels in their team/organization/downline, which represents 25% of the comp plan. You are required to have enrolled at least five MAs to reach the highest levels of this pay plan; however, you can recruit as far wide as you like. We pay higher on the top three levels because most MAs activity will be on those levels at the beginning. We also pay 7.0% CV on level 1 to reward someone highly for bringing in a Top Seller. Finally, we pay higher on levels six and seven because as your team grows you will potentially have a lot more MAs on those levels in your organization than on your upper levels. For example, you may only have 30 MAs on Level 3 but because of growth, you could have hundreds of MAs on levels six and seven. The commissionable amount in the comp plan per the seven Paid levels are as follows:
Example 1:
In the case when a Member Advisor on Level 1 (7.0% CV) makes a sale of $700 and a $300 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan. Here is the calculation of how much that you as the Member Advisor will be paid from that downline sale in your organization:
Commission on the $300 CV of 7.0% = $21.00. This is paid directly to the MA team override on that sale.
Example 2:
In the case when a Member Advisor on Level 2 (5.0% CV) makes a sale of $500 and a $200 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan. Here is the calculation of how much that you as the Member Advisor will be paid from that downline sale in your organization:
Commission on the $200 of 5.0% = $10.00. This is paid directly to the MA team override on that sale.
Example 3:
In the case when a Member Advisor on Level 4 (2.0% CV) makes a sale of $1,000 and a $500 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan. Here is the calculation of how much that you as the Member Advisor will be paid from that downline sale in your organization:
Commission on the $500 of 2.0% = $10.00. This is paid directly to the MA team override on that sale.
Example 4:
In the case when a Member Advisor on Level 7 (3.0% CV) makes a sale of $900 and a $400 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan. Here is the calculation of how much that you as the Member Advisor will be paid from that downline sale in your organization:
Commission on the $400 of 3.0% = $12.00. This is paid directly to the MA team override on that sale.
VI. Bonus Pools
Three main Bonus Pools can be attained by rank advancement. These Bonus Pools are comprised of Commissionable Value (CV) calculated on every sale company wide. The Bonus Pools are paid out on a monthly basis. The payout on these bonus pools are split between any and all Member Advisors who have met the requirements of that rank and continually maintain the requirements of that rank on a monthly basis. The MAs organization who has contributed the highest amount of Team Value (TV) into the pool will receive a higher percentage of the collective pool. The MAs organization who has contributed the lowest amount of Team Value (TV) into the pool will receive a lower percentage of the collective pool, so on and so forth. There are no retroactive payouts on these bonus pools. In cases such as merchant accounts or other products in the marketplace there is a 30 to 60-day delay in payout per these products take longer to calculate CV based upon end of month sales. This is also applicable in Business Loans or lines of credits that don’t pay out by the end of the pay period. In these situations, the Commissionable Value (CV) and Team Volume (TV) is applied to the appropriate monthly Bonus Pools when funds are received by Agora Advantage within that pay period.
Below is a list of the three Bonus Pools:
1. Regional Member Advisor (RMA) Bonus Pool = 5.0% CV
2. National Member Advisor (NMA) Bonus Pool = 3.0% CV
3. Executive Member Advisor (EMA) Bonus Pool = 2.0% CV
Example 1:
In the case when a Member Advisor makes a sale of $700 and a $300 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan, here are the calculations of how much will go into each of the 3 Bonus Pools Per just that one sale:
1. RMA Bonus Pool of 5.0% CV = $15.00 that goes into the RMA Bonus Pool
2. NMA Bonus Pool of 3.0% CV = $9.00 that goes into the NMA Bonus Pool
3. EMA Bonus Pool of 2.0% CV = $6.00 that goes into the EMA Bonus Pool
Example 2:
In the case when a Member Advisor makes a sale of $500 and a $200 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan, here are the calculations of how much will go into each of the three Bonus Pools Per just this one sale:
1. RMA Bonus Pool of 5.0% CV = $10.00 that goes into the RMA Bonus Pool
2. NMA Bonus Pool of 3.0% CV = $6.00 that goes into the NMA Bonus Pool
3. EMA Bonus Pool of 2.0% CV = $4.00 that goes into the EMA Bonus Pool
Note:
- Anyone achieving one or more of these levels will be paid a share of the appropriate pool according to a point system that determines what share of the pool they qualify for. The start of this pool will be calculated using overall Team Volume (TV) compared to others with the same exact rank.
- The pools are non-cumulative. Advisors will be paid from the pool for the rank they currently hold at the time of compensation.
- The (CV) percentage payout might be lower in the higher rank bonus pools of NMA and EMA but there usually will always be less Member Advisors participating in these pools thus making them a higher payout per each MA that qualifies.
VII. Vendor Ambassador
A Vendor Ambassador (VA) is an MA that introduces a vendor to Agora Advantage that is brought into the Marketplace. Once the introduction has been made the Agora Advantage management team will assume all negotiations and decide on vendor approval. In most cases, Agora Advantage will collect all monies at the point of sale and pay the vendor monthly or bi-weekly. The (VA) is paid a commission either bi-weekly or monthly, depending on the product or service.
The six items Agora Advantage is looking for in the Vendor(s) are as follows:
1. They must be a national company and can accept sales in all 50 states
2. They must have great customer service
3. They must be able to handle a high volume of monthly sales
4. We must not already have a vendor in the Marketplace that does exactly what they do
5. They must be able to provide Agora Members a discount on their product or service
6. Agora Advantage and Member Advisors must be able to make a fair commission on the sale
The VA will be notified of Agora’s decision to move forward with the proposed vendor. Agora management reserves the right to determine the validity of introductions and commissions are as follows:
• 3.0% of CV generated from the specific vendor's sales company wide is paid to the VA.
Example 1:
When any MA, QMA, RMA, NMA, and EMA makes a sale companywide of $700 and a $300 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan. Here is the calculation of how much the Vendor Ambassador (VA) will be paid from that sale:
• Commission on the $300 of 3.0% CV = $9.00. This is paid directly to the Vendor Ambassador per sale company-wide.
Example 2:
When any MA, QMA, RMA, NMA, and EMA makes a sale company-wide of $500 and a $200 Commissionable Value (CV) is going to go into the Comp Plan. Here is the calculation of how much the Vendor Ambassador (VA) will be paid from that sale:
• Commission on the $200 of 3.0% CV = $6.00. This is paid directly to the Vendor Ambassador per sale company-wide.