Do You Prefer Recurring Or One Time Commission?

I am looking to start an affiliate program with one of my larger products and have run into the issue of whether people would rather a large one time commission, Or the chance to get income over time.

For the purpose of the discussion, I will use a $20 recurring commission (Per month) and a $100 one time commission. Which one would you guys pick and why?

Obviously the one time commission is a nice to have. But the recurring commission starts paying out better after only 5 months. And the product I am selling would most likely continue to pay out for years. Think of it like your ISP. Some people never bother to change simply because it is easier to keep the status quo.

And for anyone who is selling products, which do you prefer? With the one time commission you run the risk of both fraudulent signups, and signups that never eventuate into back out offers. With recurring you are basically making money at the same time as your affiliates, thus your affiliates are probably more likely to bring quality over quantity.

As a publisher I'd want to have a general idea of your customer retention rate. If your average term of customer retention x $ monthly recurring commission outweighed the one time payout, it's a no brainer.

The recurring is nice. When my adult affiliate links were still converting it was nice to have that $35 tacked on every month. So if it is a service where the customer will need it on a month to month basis then the recurring is better from an affiliate standpoint

I remember seeing someone that people area a certain percentage more likely to keep paying if it is under $15/m. It's such a small monthly fee, that they don't care to take it off their bill.

I think it really depends on the niche you are in. If you think people are going to stick around for the long-term, such as the content is regularly updated, then definitely go recurring. Membership sites are awesome.