Two ways into distribution, sized to commitment. The Affiliate opens a door. The Agent builds a book. Both own what they bring — for as long as it keeps running.
Distribution is how a Company ever hears of us in the first place — and we run it through people, not ad spend. There are two ways to do that job, and the only real difference between them is how much you want to build.
Has earned trust inside one operator world. Makes a warm introduction — and because they own that chain, they earn for as long as the relationship recurs. They open the door; the Advisor runs what's behind it.
Builds distribution as their actual business — a book of chains they own and grow. Closer to a franchise operator than a referrer. The mechanic, literally: empowered with chains that exist as long as the business is recurring.
We're not buying contacts — we're borrowing trust. The best Affiliate is someone whose introduction is a credential on its own. Four things make them optimal.
Already trusted by the operators we want. When they connect two people, both sides show up because of who made the call.
Concentrated in a single operator world — beverage, hospitality, cannabis, CPG. Depth beats a wide, thin rolodex every time.
Perfect for a role that pays for the door, not the hours. They'd never take on full-time selling — but they'll make the right call gladly.
Wins twice: residual income, and an intro that makes them look good to their own network. The relationship gets stronger, never spent.
The Agent is the engine of the whole model — the one who turns a handful of intros into a durable book, and a strong book into a silo. Four things make them optimal.
Knows what a real business problem feels like from the inside. That's what lets them lead with a diagnosis instead of a pitch.
Treats the book as their business. The residual model rewards ownership — it punishes anyone waiting for a salary to clear.
Not one warm intro — enough surface to build on. A category they understand and a network they can return to again and again.
Diagnoses first; the placement is downstream of the trust. If they pitch products, they're a vendor rep — not one of us.
The Affiliate and the Agent aren't two job titles fighting for the same seat. They're two rungs of the same ladder — and that's exactly how we land the right people first, the way Compass did: start with the most credible operator in a room and let trust pull the rest in.
Field guide → who actually sends the business in →
Low barrier, high trust. One warm intro seeds a chain — and seeds the network. The most trusted Affiliate in an operator world is the credential that makes the next ten introductions easy.
Seeds the networkAn Affiliate who catches the bug becomes an Agent: they stop making one-off intros and start building a book they own and work on purpose.
Builds the bookEnough book, enough judgment, enough trust — and the Agent steps up to run a silo as an Advisor. Same job, one rung up. The climb is the retention plan.
Becomes an AdvisorA marketplace would rent your network, take the customer, and forget your name. Here, the door you open stays yours — for as long as it keeps paying.