Step by step guide to setting up your first commission plan in Captivateiq

So, you’ve been told you’re in charge of getting your company’s commission plan out of Excel and into something a little less… breakable. If you’re staring at a login screen and wondering where to start, you’re not alone. This is for sales ops, finance folks, and anyone who’s tired of spreadsheet gymnastics. We’ll walk through setting up your first commission plan in Captivateiq, step by step—no jargon, no guesswork, just what you need to get things working.

Before You Start: What You’ll Need

Let’s get the basics out of the way. Here’s what you should have ready:

  • Your commission plan doc: The actual rules, not just “make it up as you go.” This is usually a PDF, slide deck, or a messy spreadsheet.
  • A list of people who get paid commissions: Names, emails, roles, and maybe their manager.
  • Your sales data: Closed deals, amounts, who sold what, dates. Usually from your CRM or billing platform.
  • Access to Captivateiq: You’ll need at least admin or plan-manager access.

If you’re missing any of these, pause here. No software—Captivateiq included—can fix unclear rules or missing data.

Step 1: Map Out (and Simplify) Your Commission Rules

Before you touch Captivateiq, take a hard look at your plan. Most “first-time” commission setups get bogged down here. Here’s how to avoid that:

  • Write out the basics in plain English. Example: “AEs get 8% on all closed-won deals over $10,000. Managers get 2% override on their team’s deals.”
  • Ignore exceptions for now. No one gets this perfect on round one. Start with the 90% case.
  • List your variables: Deal amount, close date, rep, product, quota, etc.

Pro tip: If your plan takes more than a page to explain, it’ll be a headache to automate. Start simple, get fancy later.

Step 2: Get Your Data House in Order

Captivateiq is only as smart as the data you feed it. Garbage in, garbage out.

  • Export your sales data from your CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot, etc.). You’ll want: deal ID, rep name, amount, close date, and any fields your plan needs.
  • Clean it up. Delete duplicates, fill in missing names, check for weird dates.
  • Format for upload. CSV is usually easiest. Make sure column headers are clear (no “Column A” nonsense).

Watch out: If your sales data is a mess, fix it now. Trying to “just get started” with bad data will waste hours later.

Step 3: Add Your Team to Captivateiq

You can’t pay people if Captivateiq doesn’t know who they are.

  1. Go to the “People” or “Users” section.
  2. Import users via CSV or add them one by one.
  3. You’ll need name, email, and role (rep, manager, admin).
  4. If you want to set up managers for overrides, assign them now.
  5. Double-check for duplicates or typos. These will haunt you at payout time.

Pro tip: If your org chart is complex (think overlays, splits, etc.), keep it simple for your first pass. Fix edge cases once the basics are working.

Step 4: Build Your First Plan

Now for the main event: actually setting up your commission plan.

  1. Create a new plan.
  2. Give it a name that makes sense (“2024 AE Plan,” not “Test 1”).
  3. Set your plan dates. Most teams do monthly or quarterly plans.
  4. Define eligibility. Pick who’s in the plan (roles, teams, etc.).

Adding Rules

  • Build your rules based on your plain-English summary.
  • Example: “If deal amount > $10,000 and status is closed-won, pay 8% to the AE.”
  • Ignore one-offs (spiffs, special cases) for now. Add them after your core plan works.
  • Use the formula builder, not custom code. Most plans can be handled with built-in tools. Avoid custom scripts unless absolutely necessary.

Setting Up Payouts

  • Decide how payouts are triggered: On close, after payment, etc. This matters for clawbacks and disputes.
  • Assign payout rates: Flat %, tiered, or by product. Don’t get cute—start with flat rates unless you really need tiers.

What to skip: Don’t automate clawbacks, multi-currency, or attainment bonuses on day one. These are rabbit holes for new users.

Step 5: Import and Map Your Sales Data

You’ve got your plan, now you need deals to actually pay out.

  1. Go to the “Data” or “Imports” section.
  2. Upload your cleaned CSV.
  3. Map each column to the right field (deal amount, rep, date, etc.).
  4. Run a test calculation.
  5. Most platforms will show you a preview. Check if payouts look right.
  6. Fix errors.
  7. If someone’s missing, check your user list.
  8. If payouts look weird, double-check your rules and data mapping.

Pro tip: Don’t import your entire sales history at once. Start with one month or a handful of deals to test.

Step 6: Review Payouts and Tweak

This is where most mistakes show up. Here’s how to spot them early:

  • Run a calculation and check results for a few reps.
  • Compare to your old spreadsheet. If numbers are wildly different, something’s off.
  • Ask a rep or manager to review their payout. They’ll spot anything fishy faster than you will.
  • Adjust as needed: Tweak rules, fix data, or update user assignments.

What people get wrong: Over-complicating the review. Just focus on whether people are getting paid the right amounts. Polish comes later.

Step 7: Communicate (and Set Expectations)

Rolling out a new system is when you’ll get the most questions—and complaints.

  • Tell your team what’s changing. Be honest: “We’re automating commissions to reduce errors. There may be some hiccups, so let us know if something looks off.”
  • Show them how to access their statements. Captivateiq usually has a rep portal—walk people through it.
  • Set a timeline for feedback. Give people a week to flag issues before you lock payouts.
  • Document your process. So you don’t have to explain it from scratch every time someone new joins.

Step 8: Lock and Pay

Once you’ve ironed out the kinks:

  • Lock the period in Captivateiq. This prevents last-minute changes.
  • Export payout files for payroll. Usually a CSV or integration.
  • Double-check totals before sending to payroll. This is not the moment for surprises.

Pro tip: Keep a backup of everything (data, rules, payouts). If someone disputes their pay six months later, you’ll want receipts.

What to Ignore (For Now)

Captivateiq (like most commission platforms) will try to sell you on advanced features: dashboards, real-time attainment, multi-currency, fancy analytics. Ignore these until you’ve got the basics running smoothly. Bells and whistles don’t fix broken rules or bad data.

Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Fast

Your first commission plan in Captivateiq won’t be perfect—and that’s fine. Focus on getting the core payouts right with clean data and simple rules. Once your team trusts the basics, you can layer on complexity. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of done. You can always tweak, tune, and improve as you go. And if you get stuck, remember: most problems are plan or data issues, not software bugs.

Now get back to work—your reps are waiting for their money.