Understand how referrals work

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How the referral flow works

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1. The advocate shares their referral link

The advocate shares their unique referral link with a friend.

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2. The friend claims their referral discount

When the friend clicks the referral link, they’ll see a prompt asking them to enter their email address. After entering their email address, the friend reward is sent to them by email. From the email, the friend can copy their discount code and use it on an order.

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3. The advocate earns their reward

When the friend makes a purchase, the advocate receives the referring customer reward configured for the referral program. The friend doesn’t need to create an account or use their referral discount to complete the referral. They only need to make a purchase using the same email address they used to accept the referral. The advocate receives their reward by email. The reward is also available from their loyalty panel or Loyalty Hub if enabled.

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How advocates can share their referral link

Advocates can access and share their referral link from different areas of your loyalty program.

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Loyalty panel

Advocates can access their referral link from the loyalty panel, as shown in the referral flow above. By default, the panel includes sharing options for Facebook, X, and email. The email option lets advocates enter a friend’s email address and send them a referral invite directly from the panel. Smile sends the invite on the advocate’s behalf. For details on this email and how to customize it, see Referral shared through Smile. On mobile, advocates can select More to see additional sharing options, including WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.

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Loyalty Hub

If your store has Loyalty Hub enabled, advocates can also access their referral link from the Referrals section. Here, they can see their referral link, the rewards available, and their referral history.

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Copy and share a referral link

Advocates can also copy their referral link and share it anywhere they’d like, such as through text messages or other social platforms.

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Referral rules

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How referral links work

An advocate can share their referral link with as many friends as they’d like. Each eligible friend who clicks the link and enters their email address receives their own one-time-use referral discount code. The referral offer is only available to friends who are new to the store. If someone has previously placed an order, including as a guest, they already have a record in Smile and won’t be able to claim the offer.

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How referral rewards work

Advocates earn a referral reward each time an eligible friend completes a referral. If multiple friends complete referrals, the advocate can earn multiple referral rewards. Referral discount codes are single use. Once a discount code has been used on an order, it can’t be used again. Referral discount codes cannot be combined with order discounts. Combining referral discount codes with shipping or product discounts is not enabled by default, but you can enable these options in your discount settings.