Did you know? 74% of customers trust word-of-mouth recommendations before buying a product. A customer referral program’s key function is to nudge your customers to promote your products in return for referral incentives.
There are various elements involved with attracting your customers to become brand advocates. Attractive referral rewards, a referral page, and other perks to encourage customers to sign up form an ideal referral marketing strategy.
In this blog, we have discussed the best customer referral programs to help you understand what works with the audience. You can use this knowledge to design your program better.
Reach a wide set of target audience by creating an attractive referral landing page with Afflr
What is a customer referral program?
A customer referral program is a marketing strategy where businesses approach their existing customers or others to tell their friends or family about the brand in return for referral incentives.
Creating a referral program for customers will help you bring in new customers, develop relationships with your existing customers, and help in retention.
To attract customers and encourage them to become your brand advocates, you can give them rewards in the form of commissions, gift cards, or coupons. As part of the referral marketing strategy, some Shopify owners also award considerable discounts to the referrals these customers bring.
Having an active Shopify customer referral program in place will help the business grow its revenue proportionally. Additionally, this will also help build brand authenticity and increase awareness of your DTC Shopify store.
How to create a referral program for customers?
To create a referral program for customers of your Shopify store, you can follow the steps:
- Define referral program objective: The purpose of a customer referral program can be to acquire new customers, retain existing ones, or gauge how many satisfied customers you have. It’s important to define your goals and expected outcomes for the program. This helps know when you’ve achieved your objectives.
- Set Flexible Referral Rewards and Discounts: An easy way to motivate satisfied customers to recommend your products and services is by setting attractive rewards for customers and discounts for referrals. These rewards should be proportional to the sales and can be adjusted based on the performance of the customers.
- Set Customer Referral Program Landing Page: Your customers will need full disclosure of what the program entitles and what’s in it for them. So, promote your customer referral link and guide them to a landing page of your program. This page will have all the information required like commission rates, product details, payment details, etc.
- Set KPI for Performance Measurement: The most important part of your customer referral program is monitoring its performance. This helps improve your referral sales and customer acquisition. Identify your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and adjust your program as needed for better results.
The simplest way to automate and manage all the key aspects of creating a referral program for your Shopify store is by using reliable customer referral program software.
11 best customer referral program examples
The best customer referral program examples are analyzed here to help you create your own for your Shopify store. You can discover the best practices for referral programs in 2024 that can drive sales and improve conversions.
Top referral programs for e-commerce stores are:
- Friendly Planet
- Rothy’s
- Weekendbee
- Savor Beauty
- FitnessFirst
- Thrift Books
- Pact
- Homefield
- ToyToys
- EveryTable
- iWader
Encourage referral sign-ups by embedding a registration form from Afflr in your store
1. Friendly Planet
Friendly Planet is a travel company that organizes tours to various destinations across the globe.
Landing Page: Their landing page clearly explains their customer referral program in four easy steps. It tells customers everything they need to know. It also includes payout details and fine print, so customers know exactly what to expect.
Customer Reward: $100 off their next booking.
Referral Discount: $100 off the first booking for new customers.
Additional Information: You can also gift your $100 offer to someone else.
2. Rothy’s
It is a brand for footwear for women, men, and kids. They also make bags and other accessories.
Landing Page: Their landing page for the customer referral program is simple and direct. It features a card that explains the referral rewards and discounts. Email addresses of the audience interested in joining are collected. Once you provide your email, you’ll get more details about the program. This approach helps identify people who are genuinely interested from those just exploring.
Customer Reward: $20 off for each offer redeemed.
Referral Discount: $20 off orders over $50.
Additional Information: Limited to US residents.
3. Weekendbee
Weekendbee makes activewear clothes for men and women. Their collection is suitable for comfortable weekends, travel, and gyms.
Landing Page: Their Refer a Friend program page includes information about commissions and discounts. It also mentions that the ideal customer enjoys spending time outdoors to attract the right audience.
However, the page lacks a clear call-to-action (CTA) for signing up. It doesn’t specify what interested individuals should do to join the program. Although a chat facility is available for questions, not providing a clear joining process is a drawback.
Customer Reward: 10€ commission
Referral Discount: 10€ discount
Additional Information: Discount codes are valid for 30 days.
4. Savor Beauty
Savor Beauty is a beauty brand that makes natural skincare products. They have a variety of products along with planners and books.
Landing Page: They have a simple yet informative page for their customer referral program. The CTA button is placed with a straightforward “Join Now” message. The page also includes FAQs to address common customer questions.
Customer Reward: $25 off the next order
Referral Discount: $25 off the first order
Additional Information: Rewards and discounts apply only if the total order value is over $50. This discount code cannot be combined with other offers.
5. FitnessFirst
It is a fitness club where you can take membership to get trained by experts. They offer easy scheduling and also a free trial.
Landing Page: While referring a friend through this customer referral program, the existing customer is offered a chance to participate in a draw. If they win the lucky draw, they will win a Flight Centre voucher worth $7500. Runners up will win free membership for 12 months. A link is attached to the Terms and conditions associated with the client referral program for easy access.
A submission form with required fields is embedded in the page to submit the details of referrals.
Customer Reward: 2 Week free session
Referral Discount: None
Additional Information: A maximum of 70 free days can be availed by referring 5 friends to the business.
6. Thrift Books
It is an online bookstore that sells used books for affordable prices. They have a wide range of books and also post relevant blogs and articles.
Landing Page: Their referral page provides all the details about the customer referral program, including rewards, conditions, and a clear CTA. The page also features reviews and testimonials to build credibility.
Customer Reward: Free book if your referral creates an account and makes a purchase over $30
Referral Discount: Free book
Additional Information: The new customer must create an account with Thrift Books and join the ReadingRewards program to be considered a valid referral.
7. Pact
It is an apparel brand for men and women. They have a variety of collections that are certified to be sustainable.
Landing Page: The referral program page features products and uses emotional marketing by showcasing happy people wearing their clothes. This positive portrayal helps build a favorable impression of the brand and encourages purchases. The page provides necessary details about the program and collects email addresses from interested customers for enrollment.
Customer Reward: $20 credit on your next purchase
Referral Discount: 20% off the first purchase
Additional Information: This program is available only to new customers and is limited to US residents.
8. Homefield
Homefield is an e-commerce store that sells sports merchandise. They have a variety of collections like hoodies, sweatshirts, caps, etc.
Landing Page: Their page provides all the details of the customer referral program and outlines the process in clear steps. An embedded chat guides users on how to join the program and offers information about the program and VIP members’ loyalty points. A CTA to become a member is also available in the chat. The referral page lists the products eligible for referral.
Customer Reward: 20% off the next order
Referral Discount: 20% off the first order
Additional Information: You can earn loyalty points and redeem them later.
9. ToyToys
This store sells and rents toys, books, puzzles etc for kids. They sell all brand products. They cater to kids between 0 to 12 years.
Landing Page: The customer referral program page uses colors and animated images to align with the store’s branding. It features a drop-down list to filter products by age, brand, type, and more. However, the page does not explain the benefits of joining the referral program or offer details about any discounts or benefits for referrals. There is a form to collect email addresses from customers and referrals, but no further information is provided about how the referral program will proceed.
10. EveryTable
They make ready-to-eat meals. The ingredients are sourced locally and prepared freshly every day.
Landing Page: Their referral page has a very impactful product displacement of two people happily eating. This will spread the vibe of the business to customers.
The benefits of the customer referral program are explained in precise language along with a CTA button.
Customer Reward:$40 off for each person referred
Referral Discount: $40 off on first order
Additional Information: You have to sign up to become part of the program.
11. iWader
iWader sells gear and clothes needed for fishing. They offer to customize the sizes of their accessories and fishing wardrobes.
Landing Page: Their program provides information about rewards and discounts. They have also included FAQs to address important queries.
They have included a “Why Choose iWader” section to share the positives of the business with everyone.
Customer Reward: 15% of the referral’s order value
Referral Discount: 5% off on first order
Additional Information: There is an additional $100 commission on the 4th consecutive referral order in one month
You can use some of these examples as templates to create a referral program for your Shopify store.
Turn satisfied customers into advocates of your Shopify store by incentivizing with a tailor-made reward plan using Afflr.
Conclusion
A customer referral program improves the referral sales and customer acquisition of a Shopify store by a large margin. Design your referral marketing campaign to target your specific audience. This will ensure your message resonates with them.
Create a referral program landing page that is attractive and informative. Include a clear call to action to prompt your customers to participate.
Refer to the examples of referral programs for customers in the blog to take inspiration and create your own for your Shopify store.
Further Reading
- How can Referral Marketing in Shopify benefit your store?
- 10 Best Shopify Referral Apps in 2024
- How to create a Referral Program for your Shopify store?
- 10 Best Shopify Affiliate Marketing Apps in 2024
The objective of the customer referral program is simple. Motivate satisfied customers with rewards and commissions to promote the products or services of the Shopify store. This will increase customer acquisition and bring more sales.
You can generate customer referrals by approaching your satisfied customers through email marketing or Thank you page pop-ups and requesting them to promote your business in return for referral incentives, commission, or loyalty points.
The 3 types of referrals are Direct referrals, Customer Referrals, and social media referrals.
To set up a referral program:
1. Define a clear goal
2. Set Flexible commission and discount
3. Promote your referral program
4. Pick the right automation app for referral marketing
5. Measure and optimize the Performance
