Referral Campaign

What’s a Referral Campaign?

A referral campaign is a great way to build customer loyalty and leverage your existing customers to acquire new, high-quality customers at a lower cost. By offering incentives for customers to refer their friends, you'll generate buzz, social media visibility, and new leads all while rewarding your existing community.

There are a few things to keep in mind when designing your program:

1. What’s your budget (for discount codes, launch activation, etc.)?
2. Who is your audience? Who qualifies to join your program?
3. What types of offers will be most appealing to both the referrer and the referral?
4. Can you start a basic rewards program with UTM codes and Google sheets, or should you invest in a referral platform like Friendbuy, Yotpo, or Growsurf?
5. What data do you need to track your program’s performance?

Once you’ve answered these questions, it’s time to start building your flow.

Setting up your flow

Customer segmentation

When it comes to customer segmentation, think about who your ideal customer is and what type of offer would be most appealing to them. For example, if you’re targeting new parents, an offer like “Receive a custom baby blanket when you get 5 friends to sign up” would be more likely to resonate than a generic “Refer a friend and receive $10 off your next purchase.”

You might also consider segmenting by status, giving more benefits to your VIP customers or those who have been with you the longest. By showing them you value their loyalty, you’ll increase customer retention and the likelihood of those customers continuing to refer their friends.

Email sequence

The referral sequence includes 3-4 emails spaced a few days apart.

Email 1: Introduction
The first email in your sequence should introduce the program and explain how it works. If your users are automatically enrolled in your program, be sure to include their unique referral link, instructions on how to share, offers and incentives, and how to claim their reward.

If you prefer to ask your customers to opt in to your program, be sure to include a clear CTA with a link to join.

Email 2: Reminders
We suggest sending 1-2 follow-up emails to anyone who hasn't made a referral. These emails should remind users about their invitation and highlight the potential for rewards. Send the first reminder 2 days after the initial invite, and the second reminder after another 10 days.

Email 3: Encourage them to keep referring
After a customer makes their first referral, send them a congratulatory email to recognize their loyalty. This email should thank them for their participation and encourage them to keep up the good work.

In addition to the emails above, there are at least 2 transactional emails every referral program should have:

1. An email for new referrals that lets them know when someone has referred them to your platform. (See our Referral Activation flow)
2. An email for referrers when they receive a reward.

By following these steps, you can create a simple and effective referral flow that will help you acquire new customers and build loyalty among your existing community.