A business advertiser pays for two different things: the work required to prepare and manage a test, and the media bought in its own advertiser account. The right media budget depends on the offer, the value of a new customer and what the test needs to establish. A low management headline can exclude setup or tracking; a larger fee can still be poor value if its deliverables are vague.
01 / Separate the costs
Service fee and media are different commitments.
Twinflin’s full pilot is €1,500 for setup plus 30 active management days. It covers one business, one offer or product family, one country, one language and one conversion goal. The work includes offer and landing-page checks, one integration with your existing measurement tools, campaign setup, management on agreed business days, weekly decision updates and a final review. Ecommerce scope includes up to 50 existing variants. New landing pages, app development and custom integrations are quoted separately.
Advertising media is separate and is billed in the client’s own advertiser account. The client approves the launch plan and media budget before advertising begins. Applicable tax and final terms are confirmed in writing. There is no automatic renewal and no guaranteed revenue or return on ad spend.
02 / Use the right first step
A ready buyer can go directly to the pilot.
Initial fit qualification is free. We can prepare a brief outline using public information and details the buyer volunteers: the proposed offer, target market, approximate margin or lead value, measurement risks and first decision gates. If the likely economics do not support a paid test, we say so before proposing one. This outline is not a free technical audit.
An optional €300 readiness review is appropriate when a business or agency has a specific offer, access or conversion-tracking question that needs a written answer before implementation. It covers one offer and conversion path, checks the landing page, access and measurement, and produces findings and a go/no-go implementation plan. For ecommerce, this includes up to 50 existing product variants. It is fully credited toward the same business’s pilot. A buyer who is ready for implementation does not need to buy the review first.
03 / Compare like with like
Ask what the quoted fee actually includes.
When comparing proposals, confirm whether setup is separate, how long the minimum engagement lasts, who prepares the ads and landing-page requirements, who implements and tests conversion measurement, how many offers and markets are included, who owns the advertiser account, how media limits are approved, what operating coverage is promised, and what files or configuration are handed over.
Organic AI visibility, sometimes called GEO, AEO or optimisation for AI answers, is not the same service as buying and managing paid ads in ChatGPT. A proposal focused on brand mentions in organic answers should not be compared as though it includes paid campaign setup, media controls or conversion measurement.
04 / Judge the economics
Would the test make economic sense?
Start with the total test cost = service fee + agreed media budget + any extra work. Compare that with the contribution you retain from an additional customer after product cost, fulfilment, payment fees and expected returns. Dividing total test cost by retained contribution gives a rough order count needed to cover the test. It is a screening tool, not a sales forecast.
For example, if a store considered €3,000 of media alongside our €1,500 service fee, the total would be €4,500. At €150 retained contribution per additional order, 30 additional orders would cover that amount before other fixed costs. At €20 retained contribution, it would take 225. €3,000 is an illustration, not our default media recommendation or a minimum. Ad-attributed orders also may not all be incremental.
For services or apps, use the realistic value of a qualified lead, booking or acquired user, including how often it turns into revenue. A test can also buy learning, but that needs an explicit, affordable learning budget and clear decision criteria. We propose a media limit for your approval only after considering the business case. If the case is too weak or too uncertain, our recommendation may be to wait, change the offer or skip the campaign.
After the pilot, continuation is a new agreement based on the actual workload, results and economics. There is no automatic retainer.