ROCS: A Smarter Way to Measure Creator Program Impact

Most marketers at game publishers are used to thinking in terms of ROAS—Return on Ad Spend. It’s a familiar metric that helps assess how much value you’re getting from your paid marketing. But when it comes to creator programs, ROAS doesn’t quite fit.

Here’s why: paid ads let you put money behind an unlimited number of impressions. You spend first, then hope the results follow. Creator programs work differently. There’s a finite number of creators who are a good fit for your game, and you only pay when they drive results.

That’s why we have developed a different metric: Return on Creator Spend (ROCS), pronounced ‘rocks’.

What is ROCS?

ROCS helps you measure the incremental revenue generated from creator-driven sales relative to what you’ve paid out in rewards, bonuses, or revenue share. It’s a performance-based metric tailored to how creator programs actually work. It does this by valuing new spenders and reactivated players most highly and discounting the revenue for spenders who were already actively spending in your game. 

For example, if a creator earns $500 in revenue share for sales that totaled $5,000 (some from new and reactivated spenders and some from existing spenders), your ROCS might be 8.5x. You spent $500 and earned $5,000. But here's where ROCS is smarter: it weights that $5,000 based on whether those were truly incremental purchases.

Why ROCS Weights Revenue Differently

The key insight behind ROCS is that not all creator-driven revenue is equal:

• New player conversions and Reactivated players = Fully attributed

• Existing active players = Partial attribution credit

This weighting helps you focus on measuring actual incremental impact, not just transaction volume.

Why Creator Programs (and ROCS as the KPI) Make More Sense for Games Marketers

1. No upfront risk. Unlike paid ads, you don’t spend before knowing if something will work. You only pay creators when they drive purchases.

2. Right message, right audience. Creators speak directly to engaged communities that already care about your genre or game. Their content feels native, not intrusive, making creator code promotions more trusted and more effective than generic ad placements.

3. Performance-based by design. Creator programs are structured to reward results, not raw impressions. ROCS reflects that.

What ROCS Tells You

A high ROCS indicates your program is delivering incremental, performance-driven growth. A lower ROCS might signal a need to optimize your targeting, adjust your offer, or better support your creators. Over time, tracking ROCS helps you benchmark success and invest in what works.

Final Thoughts

As more publishers shift from brand awareness to performance-based creator marketing, we believe ROCS will become a key metric. It captures what matters most: creators driving actual results—and getting rewarded for it. We’d love to hear your thoughts on this approach to valuing creator-driven sales. Reach out to start a conversation about how Nexus uses ROCS to help publishers understand the actual impact of their creator programs.