If you’ve ever bought something online based on a friend’s recommendation because they claimed they couldn’t live without it, then you’ve experienced the key factor behind the success of ecommerce referral programs. Generally, customers rely on the opinions of others when determining their purchases.
According to Nielsen, gathering leads and expanding your customer base can be effectively achieved through ecommerce referral programs, which are considered among the most affordable methods. Approximately 84% of customers place higher trust in recommendations from their acquaintances compared to any other advertising type, relying on social proof to gain insights into the reasons for selecting a particular product or company instead of alternatives.
What are ecommerce referral programs?
Your online business can implement an ecommerce referral program that incentivizes customers to refer their friends and family. By offering a referral reward, customers are motivated to participate in this automated and efficient program. All you need is a referral code entered online to track and reward new sales for both existing and new customers, eliminating the need for extensive effort on your part to launch and manage this program.
If you have an ecommerce referral program, you provide your customers with an incentive, such as a cash reward, coupon, discount, free benefit or service, or gift card, in exchange for them referring new customers to your business.
In order to encourage them to recommend others, it is important to offer them a distinct link or code that they can share with their friends and family. This simplifies their task of spreading the message and enables you to monitor your conversion rate.
By utilizing referral software, the tally and monitoring of new leads and customers are automated, solely based on the referral link used. This convenient feature aids in accurately determining the effectiveness of your referral program and gauging the number of individuals visiting your site due to a referral.
What are the benefits of an ecommerce referral programs?
Ecommerce referral programs offer a multitude of advantages. In addition to increasing sales, they contribute to the long-term growth of your business by cultivating a loyal and committed customer base.
Ecommerce businesses can greatly benefit from referral marketing programs due to the multitude of advantages they provide.
- Referral programs leverage social proof and trust. As mentioned above, a huge majority of consumers read reviews and/or talk to friends before deciding to purchase a product or service. If someone hears about your company from a trusted friend, they’re much more likely to buy with confidence.
- They increase brand awareness. When you offer a bonus to customers who refer you, those customers will be more motivated to do so. They’ll tell their friends and family and may even share on social media to reach a wider audience. The result? Your products and services will get out there and more people will know about your brand in a positive light.
- They are more cost-effective than other advertising techniques. Ads and other campaigns will cost you money and come without guaranteed results. Referral programs, on the other hand, are inexpensive and much more likely to get results. After all, you’re spending your time and money on customers you already have.
- They are low-risk. You have to purchase a referral software to begin, but as soon as you have one in place, the only payment made is when someone makes a purchase. You’re not paying anything if you’re not getting results.
- They create customer loyalty. Thanks to social proof, referred friends aren’t just more likely to make a purchase – they’re also 18% more likely to remain a customer in years to come and make repeat purchases.
- They have the potential for viral growth. When one customer refers a friend to your company, that friend may also be inclined to share with their friends as well. Ultimately, this valuable word-of-mouth marketing can have an exponential growth effect for your business.
- They are easy to track. By attaching some simple KPIs, like how many orders are placed, how many customers are referred, how much money you make on referred orders, etc., you can easily track how well your referral program is working.
Referral programs offer numerous advantages, as evident from what can be observed.
Top Referral Marketing Software Tools to Look at in 2023
1. Referral Factory
Referral Factory has developed a remarkably user-friendly referral marketing solution designed to assist you in obtaining a greater number of customers through referrals. With their solution, you can effortlessly create your own referral program within five minutes. They provide access to a vast array of over 1000 existing referral program templates, which you can conveniently duplicate and personalize as your own. You have the option to either replicate a referral program from their templates or construct your own from scratch.
Referral Factory stands out for its ability to function without the installation of tracking scripts on your website. Consequently, marketers are not reliant on developers to execute their fundamental solution. The referral software includes a convenient ‘page builder’ feature, enabling users to create custom pages to gather referrals that align perfectly with their brand’s aesthetics and essence.
2. Refersion
Refersion serves as not only an affiliate marketing network, but also functions as a referral marketing tool and an influencer marketing platform. If you are engaged in eCommerce, you have the option to incorporate Refersion into your online store through a dedicated app (compatible with Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Magento, Stripe, and Chargebee) or via a personalized integration utilizing Refersion’s API.
After setting up an eCommerce integration, you proceed to input any current affiliates and influencers into Refersion.
Refersion offers a marketplace where you can post an “Offer,” providing details about your requirements and the payment you are willing to offer. The platform allows you to incorporate trackable links and coupon codes. Furthermore, Refersion assists in creating a customized landing page designed to target your audience effectively. It provides the flexibility to structure your offers according to each campaign’s specific needs. For instance, you can opt for a fixed commission rate or implement a sophisticated performance-based payment system with multiple tiers.
3. CrewFire
CrewFire is a SaaS platform that focuses on ambassador and influencer marketing, aiming to boost engagement on various social media channels such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. The platform engages brand ambassadors to create more excitement surrounding the brand, offering compensation for their efforts and nurturing a positive ambassador community that contributes to the company’s expansion.
CrewFire offers a range of services, with referrals and word-of-mouth marketing being one of their main focuses. In addition to affiliate marketing, CrewFire provides a comprehensive solution for managing your affiliate program and recognizing your team of ambassadors for their contributions, such as creating user-generated content, sharing resources, and engaging in your social media platforms.
4. Friendbuy
With Friendbuy, launching your referral program is made quick and effortless as it provides simple code snippets to promptly make your program operational.
The Friendbuy widget templates are designed to be mobile-friendly and are optimized to encourage and facilitate sharing. You have the flexibility to activate referrals on any section of your website or within your mobile application.
Friendbuy uses automation to handle fulfillment for various types of rewards, including coupon codes, account credit, loyalty points, gift cards, and more. It employs advanced fraud detection algorithms and adaptable reward criteria to carefully assess every purchase and guarantee that only eligible customers receive high-quality rewards.
5. InviteReferrals
InviteReferrals is a user-friendly referral program software that effectively aids in business growth and customer acquisition through referral marketing. It seamlessly integrates with various eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento, MailChimp, among others.
The Referral Program Widgets seamlessly function on all devices and platforms, as they instinctively adjust to the specific platform they are accessed on.
By utilizing the mobile application of InviteReferrals, customers are able to invite their friends to join the referral program. When these friends accept the invitation and proceed to install the mobile app, the referrer will receive coupons sent by InviteReferrals via email as a reward for successfully driving a referral install.
