Membership Programs: Auto-Enrollment Settings
Auto-enrollment lets you automatically place every new customer into a free membership tier the moment they join your store — no action required on their part. This is one of the most effective ways to give every customer a baseline membership experience and make it easy to upsell them into paid tiers later.
This article covers the Default Tier Enrollment setting: what it does, how to configure it, and how to choose the right timing for your store.
How Auto-Enrollment Works
When auto-enrollment is enabled, Rivo watches for new customers and automatically enrolls them in the free tier you’ve designated as the default. The enrollment happens in the background — customers receive their tier benefits without needing to visit your membership page or take any action.
A few important things to know upfront:
Auto-enrollment only works with free tiers. Paid tier enrollment always requires the customer to subscribe through your storefront. You cannot auto-enroll customers into paid tiers.
Auto-enrollment applies to new customers only. Existing customers are not retroactively enrolled when you enable this setting. To enroll existing customers in bulk, use the CSV import feature.
Each customer can only be in one tier at a time. If a customer is already enrolled in a tier, the auto-enrollment will not override it.
Setting Up Auto-Enrollment
Go to Memberships in the main navigation
Scroll down to the Program Settings section
Find Default Tier Enrollment and click Edit
In the Default Tier dropdown, select the free tier you want to use as the default
Under Enrollment Timing, choose when new customers should be enrolled (see below)
Click Update to save
To disable auto-enrollment at any time, open the same settings and set the Default Tier dropdown to None (disabled).
Enrollment Timing: Two Options
When setting up auto-enrollment, you’ll choose one of two timing options that control exactly when the enrollment happens.
Customer Creation
With this option selected, Rivo enrolls the customer as soon as their record is created in your store. This happens when a customer:
Places their first order (even as a guest checkout who later gets a Shopify account)
Creates an account on your store
Is imported into Shopify
This is the default setting and the most inclusive option — it ensures every customer who interacts with your store is enrolled immediately, regardless of whether they’ve set up a password or activated their account.
Best for: Stores that want the widest possible reach, or that don’t require customers to activate accounts before shopping.
Account Activated
With this option selected, Rivo waits until the customer has clicked the activation link in their Shopify welcome email and set up their password. Only after they’ve completed that step are they enrolled in the default tier.
This means a customer could place an order and not be enrolled until they go through the account activation flow. Customers who never activate their account will not be auto-enrolled.
Best for: Stores that want to ensure customers have an active, verified account before membership benefits are applied — for example, if your tier benefits include exclusive access that requires a working login.
How It Appears on Your Storefront
Once a customer is auto-enrolled, their membership is active immediately. Depending on your storefront setup:
The loyalty widget will show their current membership tier and any associated benefits
Any Shopify tags associated with the tier are applied automatically, enabling discounts, free shipping, or other Shopify-native benefits
Customers can view their membership details in your membership portal at
yourdomain.com/apps/ba-loy-dev/membership(they’ll need to be logged in)
Customers enrolled via the default tier setting are tracked with an enrollment source of “Default placement” in your Rivo admin, so you can distinguish them from customers who subscribed to a paid tier or were manually placed.
Tips and Best Practices
Use auto-enrollment as a gateway to paid tiers. A free default tier is an excellent way to introduce customers to your membership program. Once they’re enrolled and experiencing the benefits, they’re more likely to consider upgrading to a paid tier.
Keep your free tier benefits meaningful. Even a basic free tier with a small points bonus or early access to sales gives customers a reason to engage with the program.
Pair with a welcome email. Consider setting up a membership signup email that fires when customers are enrolled, so they know what benefits they’ve received.
Review before enabling. Before turning on auto-enrollment, make sure the free tier you’ve selected has its benefits configured exactly how you want them. All new customers will start receiving those benefits immediately.
FAQ
Q: Can I auto-enroll customers into a paid tier?
No. Auto-enrollment is only available for free tiers. Enrolling a customer in a paid tier always requires them to complete a purchase through your storefront membership page.
Q: Will enabling auto-enrollment enroll my existing customers?
No. Auto-enrollment only applies to customers created after you enable the setting. To enroll existing customers in bulk, use the CSV import feature under Settings > CSV Imports > Membership Tier Enrollments.
Q: What’s the difference between “Customer Creation” and “Account Activated”?
“Customer Creation” enrolls the customer as soon as their record exists in Shopify — this can happen when they place an order or create an account. “Account Activated” waits until the customer has clicked the activation link in their welcome email and set up a password. Choose “Customer Creation” for maximum reach; choose “Account Activated” if you want to ensure customers have a verified, active login before receiving membership benefits.
Q: What happens if a customer is already enrolled in a tier when auto-enrollment triggers?
If a customer already has an active membership enrollment, auto-enrollment will not override it. The customer stays in their existing tier.
Q: Can I see which customers were enrolled through auto-enrollment?
Yes. On each customer’s profile in your Rivo admin, the Membership card shows the enrollment source. Customers who were auto-enrolled show a source of “Default placement.”
Q: Can customers also join a free tier themselves from the storefront?
Yes. If you have a free tier enabled, customers can also join it directly from the loyalty widget on your storefront without going through your membership landing page. Auto-enrollment and self-enrollment are independent — both result in the customer being placed in the free tier.
Q: If I change the default tier, does that affect customers already enrolled?
No. Changing the default tier only affects new customers going forward. Existing enrollments are not changed.