Partner Evaluation · TikTok Shop

10 questions to evaluate
a TikTok Shop partner.

A fair scorecard for sizing up any TikTok Shop partner — including Amerify. Each one is built around the priority that actually matters: profitable growth at scale, not profit at a tiny scale or top-line that loses money.

See the questions
The lens

One bar every partner
should clear.

Most TikTok Shop partners fail in one of two ways: they grow GMV while losing money (high spend, low ROAS), or they protect profit by shrinking the business (great margins, almost no revenue). The right partner does neither — they grow the top line and hold a profit floor, at scale, with the downside protected. These ten questions are designed to find out, fast, which kind of partner you're really dealing with.

The scorecard

The 10 questions.

Ask each one. The gap between a strong answer and a vague one tells you everything.

01
Can you grow revenue and profit at the same time — and show me the trade-off?
Why it mattersDrinkZYN has been burned at both extremes: one partner grew GMV at a 1.2–1.8× ROAS and lost money; the other is profitable but tiny. The real question is whether a partner can do both.
A strong answerA model that scales GMV while holding a committed blended ROAS / contribution-margin floor (~4×), shown as a trade-off curve — not "we'll be profitable" or "we'll grow GMV."
02
Do you report platform ROAS or true blended MER — and how do you handle TikTok's view-through attribution?
Why it mattersTikTok's default 7-day-click / 1-day-view attribution inflates ROAS by 30–40%. A partner optimizing to a flattering dashboard isn't optimizing your bank account.
A strong answerBlended MER (total revenue ÷ total spend) tied to contribution margin, and candor that platform ROAS overstates true return.
03
Beyond paying creators, how do you coach them on hooks and content — and iterate?
Why it mattersThe #1 gap today: creators get paid but no one guides them on what actually converts, and winning content isn't systematically repeated.
A strong answerStructured briefs, hook and angle testing, a weekly winners-iteration loop, and a documented creative feedback process — not "we hand them an affiliate card and let them run."
04
How are retainers structured, and what happens when one underperforms?
Why it mattersRetainer dollars can quietly evaporate — paying $100/video for content that gets a dozen likes, week after week, with no review.
A strong answerClear deliverables (videos/month), performance minimums, GMV-per-creator tracking, and explicit keep / cut criteria. Every retainer dollar is accountable.
05
Are you actually in regular contact with my creators — especially the one driving most of the revenue?
Why it mattersIf one creator drives the majority of GMV, retaining and multiplying that relationship is the whole game — and a brand should never have to wonder whether the partner even talks to them.
A strong answerA named account owner, a real cadence of direct creator check-ins, a retention plan for the hero creator, and a concrete pipeline to diversify (e.g. into English-speaking creators).
06
Everyone fishes the same Yuka / Reacher AI pool — what specifically makes your outreach convert better?
Why it mattersThe creator pool is identical for everyone. The edge is entirely in how you reach out and how consistently — not the tool.
A strong answerA differentiated, measured process: multi-channel outreach (email / IG DM, not just Yuka spam), founder-led touches, a tracked activation rate, and creators vetted by GMV and views — not follower count.
07
How many creators are posting for your brands right now, and can you get us to 400 shoppable videos a month?
Why it mattersVolume is the lever that moves GMV — and active-creator counts separate real operators from a 1–3 person shop using templates.
A strong answerTrailing 30 / 90-day active-creator counts and monthly video throughput for comparable brands, with a credible path to 400 shoppable videos/month.
08
How do you run GMV Max without repeating an unprofitable-spend blow-up?
Why it mattersPouring thousands a day into GMV Max at a 1.2–1.8× ROAS is exactly how a brand ends up in the red.
A strong answerA disciplined, fixed budget with a hard ROAS floor, used to amplify proven winners only — paid as an amplifier of organic, never a firehose.
09
Exactly what's in the retainer vs. pass-through cost — and are there any markups on ad spend or creator pay?
Why it mattersThe most common agency red flag is a silent 10–20% media or "buying fee" markup you only catch when comparing invoices to TikTok's billing.
A strong answerA clean split: retainer = team and expertise; creator pay, ad spend, and samples = direct cost billed transparently. No fuzzy "all-inclusive."
10
Show me trailing-12-month GMV and 2–3 comparable case studies — and what do you commit to in writing if you miss?
Why it mattersFees should be commensurate with results, and a self-funded brand needs genuine downside protection — not promises.
A strong answerVerifiable results (ideally with real creator handles, not an "NDA" dodge), written KPI commitments, and a performance structure — reduced fee, an exit, or upside-share — if targets aren't hit.

Bonus — the question most partners can't answer. How do you measure the TikTok→Amazon halo, so we're not optimizing one channel while quietly hurting the other? Most brands run separate TikTok and Amazon vendors, and no one owns the blended P&L — yet that blended number is the one that actually matters.