Partner Scoring Model

Partner Scoring Model

This model provides an objective, repeatable scoring system for evaluating partners. Use it to compare prospects and prioritize your highest-value relationships.

Scoring Criteria

Domain Metrics (35% weight)

Factor	Score 1	Score 2	Score 3	Score 4	Score 5
Domain Rating	Under 15	15-24	25-39	40-59	60+
Organic Traffic	Under 1K	1K-5K	5K-25K	25K-100K	100K+
Backlink Quality	Poor	Below avg	Average	Good	Excellent

Relevance (25% weight)

Factor	Score 1	Score 2	Score 3	Score 4	Score 5
Topical Match	Unrelated	Loosely	Somewhat	Closely	Exact niche
Audience Overlap	None	Minimal	Moderate	Strong	Very strong

Reliability (25% weight)

Factor	Score 1	Score 2	Score 3	Score 4	Score 5
Placement Speed	30+ days	15-29 days	8-14 days	4-7 days	1-3 days
Link Maintenance	Removed links	Frequent issues	Occasional issues	Rare issues	Perfect record
Communication	Unresponsive	Very slow	Average	Quick	Immediate

Value (15% weight)

Factor	Score 1	Score 2	Score 3	Score 4	Score 5
Page Quality	Thin/spam	Low quality	Average	Good	Exceptional
Referral Traffic	None	Minimal	Some	Moderate	Significant

Calculation

1. Score each factor from 1-5
2. Average the scores within each category
3. Multiply each category average by its weight
4. Sum the weighted scores for a total partner score

Score Interpretation

Total Score	Tier	Action
4.5 - 5.0	Platinum	Prioritize, pursue multiple exchanges
3.5 - 4.4	Gold	Active partnership, single exchange
2.5 - 3.4	Silver	Acceptable, monitor closely
1.5 - 2.4	Bronze	Marginal, consider alternatives
Under 1.5	Reject	Do not pursue