# Channel SOP — Paid acquisition

**Gate:** no recurring scale spend until target customers pay **and** receive/retain value. Before that, only a small capped test may learn about message or intent.

**Avoid when:** activation/retention is broken, conversion cannot be measured, margins are unknown, or spend is intended to manufacture launch vanity.

## Validation test

1. State one question: which audience, intent, message, or offer are we testing?
2. Pick one platform where targeting/context matches that question.
3. Use one landing path and one conversion event close to value.
4. Set total budget, duration, target, and automatic stop before launch.
5. Change one major variable per test; preserve source/campaign tracking.

## Scale test

Only after repeat payment/value:

- estimate allowable acquisition cost from contribution margin and retention with conservative assumptions;
- measure downstream activation, refund, retention, and quality by cohort—not front-end leads alone;
- increase budget gradually while marginal economics remain acceptable;
- monitor creative fatigue, audience saturation, and tracking gaps.

## Measure

Primary: qualified conversion, activation, retained payment, contribution after spend. Diagnose CPM/CPC/CTR and landing conversion, but cheap clicks are not success.

Stop immediately at the pre-set cap when tracking fails, lead quality is wrong, or downstream economics miss the threshold. Never imply guaranteed returns or hide sponsorship/advertising.