Referral & Affiliate Programs

Design and optimize programs that turn customers into growth engines.

Before Starting

Product context: If .agents/product-marketing-context.md exists (or .claude/product-marketing-context.md in older setups), read it first and tailor output to it; only ask for what it doesn't cover.

Gather (ask if not provided):

1. Program Type — customer referral, affiliate, or both? B2B or B2C? Average customer LTV? Current CAC from other channels?
2. Current State — existing program? Referral rate (% who refer)? Incentives tried?
3. Product Fit — shareable product? Network effects? Do customers naturally talk about it?
4. Resources — tools/platforms in use or considered? Budget for incentives?

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Referral vs. Affiliate

Customer referral programs — best for existing customers recommending to their network, products with natural word-of-mouth, lower-ticket or self-serve products. Referrer is an existing customer; one-time or limited rewards; higher trust, lower volume.

Affiliate programs — best for reaching audiences you don't have access to (content creators, influencers, bloggers) and higher-ticket products that justify commissions. Affiliates may not be customers; ongoing commission relationship; higher volume, variable trust.

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Referral Program Design

The Referral Loop

Trigger Moment → Share Action → Convert Referred → Reward → (Loop)

Step 1: Identify Trigger Moments

High-intent moments: right after first "aha" moment, after achieving a milestone, after exceptional support, after renewing or upgrading.

Step 2: Design Share Mechanism

Ranked by effectiveness:

1. In-product sharing (highest conversion)
2. Personalized link
3. Email invitation
4. Social sharing
5. Referral code (works offline)

Step 3: Choose Incentive Structure

• Single-sided (referrer only): simpler, works for high-value products
• Double-sided (both parties): higher conversion, win-win framing
• Tiered: gamifies referrals, increases engagement

For examples and incentive sizing: See references/program-examples.md

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Program Optimization

Improving Referral Rate

Few customers referring: ask at better moments, simplify sharing, test different incentive types, make referral prominent in product.

Referrals not converting: improve landing experience for referred users, strengthen incentive for new users, make referrer's endorsement visible.

A/B Tests to Run

• Incentive: amount, type, single vs. double-sided, timing
• Messaging: program description, CTA copy, landing page copy
• Placement: where and when the referral prompt appears

Common Problems & Fixes

Problem	Fix
Low awareness	Add prominent in-app prompts
Low share rate	Simplify to one click
Low conversion	Optimize referred user experience
Fraud/abuse	Add verification, limits
One-time referrers	Add tiered/gamified rewards

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Measuring Success

Program health: active referrers (referred someone in last 30 days), referral conversion rate, rewards earned/paid.

Business impact: % of new customers from referrals, CAC via referral vs. other channels, LTV of referred customers, program ROI.

Typical findings: referred customers have 16-25% higher LTV, 18-37% lower churn, and refer others at 2-3x rate.

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Launch Checklist

Before Launch

• Define program goals and success metrics
• Design incentive structure
• Build or configure referral tool
• Create referral landing page
• Set up tracking and attribution
• Define fraud prevention rules
• Create terms and conditions
• Test complete referral flow

Launch

• Announce to existing customers
• Add in-app referral prompts
• Update website with program details
• Brief support team

Post-Launch (First 30 Days)

• Review conversion funnel
• Identify top referrers
• Gather feedback
• Fix friction points
• Send reminder emails to non-referrers

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Email Sequences

Referral Program Launch

Subject: You can now earn [reward] for sharing [Product]

We just launched our referral program!

Share [Product] with friends and earn [reward] for each signup.
They get [their reward] too.

[Unique referral link]

1. Share your link
2. Friend signs up
3. You both get [reward]

Referral Nurture Sequence

• Day 7: Remind about referral program
• Day 30: "Know anyone who'd benefit?"
• Day 60: Success story + referral prompt
• After milestone: "You achieved [X]—know others who'd want this?"

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Affiliate Programs

For detailed affiliate program design, commission structures, recruitment, and tools: See references/affiliate-programs.md

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Task-Specific Questions

1. What type of program (referral, affiliate, or both)?
2. Customer LTV and current CAC?
3. Existing program or starting from scratch?
4. What tools/platforms are you considering?
5. Budget for rewards/commissions?
6. Is your product naturally shareable?

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Tool Integrations

For implementation, see the tools registry. Key tools:

Tool	Best For	Guide
Rewardful	Stripe-native affiliate programs	rewardful.md
Tolt	SaaS affiliate programs	tolt.md
Mention Me	Enterprise referral programs	mention-me.md
Dub.co	Link tracking and attribution	dub-co.md
Stripe	Payment processing (for commission tracking)	stripe.md

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Related Skills

• launch-strategy — launching the referral program effectively
• email-sequence — referral nurture campaigns
• marketing-psychology — understanding referral motivation
• analytics-tracking — tracking referral attribution