An Offer Goal is a declared outcome inside an AgentOffer Protocol Offer.
It identifies the exact downstream event through goals[].event and defines the applicable CPA or CPS pricing in goals[].pricing. A Goal tells AON and its partners what event can be evaluated; it does not authorize payment, confirm a sale, or guarantee that a reported event becomes payable.
Goals in AON Offers
AON carries Goal semantics in public Offer and Partner supply contracts, then uses the declared event and pricing to evaluate Provider-reported outcomes. The declared event and pricing give Partners and Developers a common basis for evaluating those reports. AON does not replace merchant checkout or decide whether a merchant's underlying transaction occurred.
Read the AgentOffer Protocol overviewHow an Offer Goal is evaluated
Declare the outcome
The Offer names the exact event that the merchant or Provider can report, such as a purchase, booking, or qualified signup.
Declare the pricing
The Goal carries CPA or CPS pricing and the commercial terms that explain what qualifies.
Preserve the handoff
The Agent or Publisher keeps the Offer, dispatch, and supported tracking context when the user continues.
Report the event
The Provider or applicable callback route reports the downstream event with the supported attribution anchor.
Validate and settle
AON matches the event to the Goal, handles duplicates and validation, and applies settlement rules before determining payable revenue.
What a Goal does and does not define
A Goal gives a commercial event precise protocol meaning while leaving the transaction authority with the responsible commerce systems.
| Concept | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Event identity | The event value identifies the outcome that the receiving system evaluates against the declared Goal. |
| Pricing basis | CPA attaches a fixed amount to a qualified action; CPS attaches pricing to a confirmed sale under the applicable terms. The declared basis gives Partners and Developers a common starting point for commercial review. |
| Attribution anchor | A supported click, tracking, or served-instance identity connects the reported event to the Offer interaction. |
| Validation boundary | A matched event can still be rejected, deduplicated, restated, or withheld from payment under risk and commercial rules. |
- A Goal is not a payment authorization, checkout confirmation, merchant order, or final payout.
- A click or received conversion report is evidence for evaluation, not an automatic payable result.
- The merchant or Provider remains authoritative for the downstream event, order, refund, cancellation, and fulfillment state.
Offer Goal vs conversion event
An Offer Goal declares which event can qualify and how it is priced. A conversion event is a reported occurrence that may be checked against that declaration. The report must match the Goal and satisfy the remaining attribution and commercial rules before it can enter billing evaluation. See the Conversion event definition.
Example in practice
A travel Offer declares a booking Goal with CPS pricing. The user follows the tracked action, the Partner later reports a confirmed booking with a supported attribution anchor, and AON evaluates the event against that Goal before applying validation and settlement rules.
Common questions about offer goal
What is the difference between a Goal and a conversion?
A Goal is the Offer's declaration of the exact event and pricing that can qualify. A conversion is a later reported event that AON evaluates against that declaration.
Does a Goal guarantee commission?
No. The event must match the Goal and pass attribution, validation, deduplication, risk, reconciliation, and applicable commercial rules.
Can an Offer have more than one Goal?
Yes. An Offer can declare multiple explicit Goals when its commercial terms recognize more than one payable outcome.
Does a Goal authorize payment?
No. A Goal describes event and pricing semantics. Payment authorization, checkout, order acceptance, and final settlement remain separate responsibilities.
Sources
- AgentOffer Protocol v1.0 Offer field semanticsAON specification
- AgentOffer v1.0 Offer schemaAON specification
- AgentOffer Protocol documentationAON documentation
- AON Partner postbacksAON documentation
- Review commission modelsAON documentation