Acq section 9- Detailing Referral / Partner design

Referral and partner programs leverage your existing users to bring in new ones, often through incentives like discounts or rewards.

For B2B products, referral programs may not always make sense. In such cases, partner programs can be a great way to leverage external networks for growth. Below is a step-by-step guide to building either a referral or partner program for your product.

Here’s how to proceed:

1. Identify Customer Touchpoints
   Start by mapping out the touchpoints where your customers experience an AHA moment—that moment when they realize the true value of your product. This is where you should build your referral or partner discovery process. Make sure you’re capturing users when they’re most excited about the product.
2. Define the Brag-Worthy Element
   Think about what makes your product stand out—not just what it does, but what makes customers rave about it. This is your brag-worthy feature:
3. • For Paytm, it’s cashback.
   • For Airbnb, it’s trip credits.
   • For cult.fit, it’s access to gym centers.
4. Define Your Platform Currency
   What will motivate users to refer others? This could be:
5. • Money (cashback or discounts).
   • Fame (social recognition, leaderboards).
   • Dopamine (fun, satisfying experiences).
   • Access (exclusive features, early access).
6. Determine Who to Ask for a Referral
   Review your product flows and identify the moments where users are happiest—these are the "happy flows." For example, after completing a key action or reaching a milestone. Print all your product screens and ask whether each flow is a happy flow. Once the user has experienced the core value proposition, that’s when you should trigger a referral request.
7. Referral/Partner Discovery
   How will users discover your referral or partner program? You can promote it through:
8. • In-app notifications.
   • Email or message communication.
   • Push notifications.
   • In-app features, like banners or pop-ups.
9. Referral Sharing & Communication
   Think about how users will share their referral link or voucher code:
10. • What communication channel will they use? (e.g., WhatsApp, social media, email).
    • What will the referral message say? Ensure the copy and creative elements are engaging, clear, and easy to understand.
11. Tracking Referrals
    Design a simple way for users to track their referrals. Focus more on the flow than the design:
12. • What will the referral tracking page look like?
    • How will referees know if their referrals were successful?
13. Design the Referral Landing Page for Non-Users
    How will a non-user experience the referral invite? Look at examples like Airbnb, where a referral invite is designed to entice non-users. Design a referral landing page that clearly communicates the value of signing up via the referral.
14. Encourage Continuous Referrals
    How will you encourage users to keep referring others? You can:
15. • Offer tiered rewards (the more they refer, the bigger the rewards).
    • Keep them engaged with reminders or bonus incentives after every successful referral.

Use Tools like Figma or Canva
You can use wireframing tools like Figma or Canva to design simple mockups for your referral flow. Remember, this is not a design competition—the goal is to clearly communicate the flow to your engineers so they can implement it smoothly.

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