Shave
Shave is when a network or advertiser quietly undercounts the conversions you actually sent, paying you for fewer leads or installs than really happened. In PWA arbitrage it's easier to catch than in classic funnels, because installs and leads can be logged independently through your own tracker and postbacks. Here's what shave looks like in practice and how to guard against it.
Spotting shave
The first sign is a gap between your own numbers (clicks, PWA installs, leads via postback) and what the network's dashboard reports for the same period. A sudden conversion drop right after you scale spend, with no creative or geo changes, is another red flag. Watch for suspiciously low figures on specific sub-flows that don't match your tracker logs.
Protecting yourself
Keep your own record through a tracker (e.g. Keitaro) with S2S postbacks instead of relying solely on the network's reporting. Reconcile the numbers on a regular schedule, not just when something feels off, and log discrepancies with date and volume. Splitting volume across a few networks or offers also makes it easier to spot which one is trimming your numbers.
FAQ
- How is shave different from traffic fraud?
- Fraud is fake conversions generated on the traffic side (bots, incentivized clicks); shave is the network or advertiser deliberately undercounting real conversions to pay you less.
- How fast can you catch shave in a funnel?
- Compare your own PWA install/lead counts (via postback) against the network's reported numbers for the same period — a gap that grows as volume grows is the tell.
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