[Feature Update] 🌟 Program Lifecycle 2.0

Hey it’s Mica,

Happy customers (regardless of their awesome experience) don’t always share your business. It’s a sad but true fact. That’s the problem we’ve been working on since the start of Referral Rock.

The hidden friction moving from a happy customer to an active sharer is real, but the friction doesn’t just lie on the customer’s side.

In the past, our product efforts mostly focused on the “Customer-side Challenges” (with great features like our seamless referral experience), while our services team has evolved to be hands-on with the Business-side Challenges.

This product update looks to address both sides and specifically, untangle the confusion with the member lifecycle. Overall, this approach aims to make it easier for businesses to get customers to share.

Now, let's dive in.

-Mica
Head of Operations

🤝 Engage members throughout their lifecycle

Members are no longer just “Enabled” or “Disabled” - we’ve added new member statuses to make it easier to manage members based on where they are in their lifecycle.

• Preapproved - lets you upload all of your business contacts without triggering any automated program emails (this is where you prep your list and go to run activation campaigns)

• Activated - shows who has engaged with your program, when they became activated, and their last active date

• Disabled - lets you control who has access to your program and manage your member limits

Breaking this down further, here’s a detailed review of the different member statuses.

💡 Questions on managing members & limits

What if I hit my member limit?

If you hit your member limit, then you can either add more members (paid add-on) or disable members that haven’t engaged with your program. 

Disabled members DO NOT count towards your member limits.

If you exceed your member limit, then all “new” members will automatically be disabled. Once the member limit is fixed, you can “enable” them (become activated). 

Can I upload my entire member list as preapproved members?

Yes, you can. Preapproved members will count towards your plan’s member limit. If you are concerned about members not engaging, then talk with your Referral Rock account manager about potential options.

What emails do preapproved members get?

Preapproved members only receive the activation emails (when you send them). No automated program emails are sent to preapproved members.

What happens if an activated member goes dormant?

Ideally, this never happens as your automated program emails should keep them engaged (more details below), but if a member becomes inactive, you can run a re-engagement campaign based on their last active date.

👋 Activate members & keep them engaged

You can’t get referrals unless you have engaged members.

Load → Activate preapproved members

First, identify the business contacts that you want to participate in your referral program. Then, determine how you are going to promote the program to them. 

1. Import contacts as preapproved members 

2. Create a member activation campaign targeting all or some of your preapproved members (i.e., target a particular list or have a more gradual rollout)

Keep activated members engaged

You want your referral program to stay top of mind. Keep activated members engaged and sharing with these automated emails:

• Monthly Summary Email - goes out the first full week of the month to all activated members, summarizing their participation in the program

• Referral Event Emails - triggered when a referral changes statuses, notifying the referring member (keeps the member informed and updated)

• Reward Emails - triggered when a member earns a reward (great reminder to keep sharing when member is at their happiest - they just got rewarded!)

Add program touchpoints for easy access  

The best referral programs have multiple access points located wherever you interact with your target contacts. See our promotion best practices for more details.

Here are the most common access points:

• Email newsletters

• Website (banners, site navigation, CTA buttons, etc.)

• Customer portal or behind a login (in-app)

• Checkout pages

• Mobile app

• Account notifications

• Transactional emails

• Business cards, postcards, or other printed material

• In-store signage

• Email signatures

✨ Coming Soon

Over the next few months, we’re releasing several new features to make it easier to activate and engage members throughout their lifecycle.

Send nicer emails from Referral Rock (better email editor)

• User-friendly email editor

• Optimized for mobile viewing

• Built-in sharing options and program stats

Easier to send member activation campaigns

• Bulk send activation emails to preapproved members

• Update messaging and brand settings

• Send test emails and get warnings before email is sent