Program type · Customer referral
One for you.
One for a friend.
Whatever you sell, your customers share a personal link. When a friend signs up or buys, both of them get their reward, approved by you or sent automatically.
- Who shares
- Your customers
- Rewards
- Credit, codes, gift cards or cash
- Setup
- Two lines of code, or a hosted page
- Plan
- Plus and up
How does a customer referral program work?
1
Every customer gets a link
Every customer gets a personal referral link automatically, or opts in from a widget on your site or in your app. They share it by email, chat or social.
2
A friend accepts the invite
The friend opens the link and joins on your site or on a hosted page. Every sign-up, payment or order the friend makes from then on is credited to the person who invited them.
3
The rewards go out
When the referral counts, the referrer gets a reward and so does the friend, such as credit, a discount, a gift card or your own product. Approve each one yourself, or let them go out automatically.
What counts, and what do people get?
You decide both. Each line shows the tool that does it; open one to see how it connects.
All integrationsA referral counts when
- SoftwareThe friend subscribesA first payment or a new subscription in Stripe.
- Online storesThe friend places a first orderCounted in your Shopify store.
- B2BA deal is wonA deal closes in your CRM.
SalesforceZoho - Local servicesA job is completedTracked in GoHighLevel when the job is done.
- Any businessThe friend signs upOn your site or in your app, through the widget or your own form.
- Any businessAnything else you sendAny event from your product, through Zapier, a webhook, the API or the JavaScript SDK.
People can get
- Account credit or a couponCredit added to the referrer’s Stripe balance, or a coupon for the friend.
- A discount codeUnique codes created in your Shopify store.
- A gift card or cashThe person’s pick from 2,500+ brands, or a cash payout.Tremendous
- A gift or merchandiseSent to the person’s door.
- Your own productA free month, more storage or an upgrade. Approve it in the dashboard, or redeem it through the API.
Approve rewards from the dashboard on Plus. From the Growing plan, they go out automatically the moment a referral counts.
Which template starts a customer referral program?
All templates
Refer a Friend
The Universal Referral
The Milestone ReferralWho runs customer referral programs on Viral Loops?
FAQ
Customer referral FAQ
What is a customer referral program?
A program where your customers invite friends with a personal link, and both are rewarded when the friend becomes a customer. Viral Loops gives every customer the link, tracks each referral and sends the rewards.
What should count as a referral?
Whatever is worth a reward to you. A sign-up is the simplest. If a sign-up is not enough, count the first payment in Stripe, a first order in Shopify, a won deal in your CRM or any event you send. You can also require several steps before a referral counts.
Should the referrer, the friend or both get a reward?
Most programs reward both. The friend gets a reason to accept, and the referrer a reason to share. Dropbox gave both sides extra storage. You can also reward one side only, or add milestones for people who bring several friends.
Do rewards go out automatically?
Yes, from the Growing plan. Rewards are sent through Stripe, Tremendous or Sendoso the moment a referral counts. On Plus, you approve each reward from the dashboard. You can also redeem rewards through the API.
How do I stop people from referring themselves?
Viral Loops runs more than a dozen checks on every referral, such as the same IP address, the same browser fingerprint or a similar email, and flags suspicious ones for review before anyone is rewarded.
Do I need a developer?
No. The widgets go on your site with two lines of code, or you can use a hosted page. Developers can go further with the JavaScript SDK and the REST API.
Other program types
Start your customer referral program this week.
Plans start at $35 a month, billed annually. Try it free for 14 days, or talk to our team.