Introduction
Your customers can have one of three loyalty statuses in Rivo: Guest , Member , or Excluded.
If a merchant is using Shopify customer accounts, this status is often the reason a customer can earn points but not get signup points yet, or why loyalty actions appear differently across channels.
This guide explains what each status means and how to troubleshoot common Guest/Member questions.
Guest vs Member vs Excluded
Guest : The customer is in your Shopify customer list, but they have not yet become a loyalty Member.
Member : The customer has become a loyalty member. This can follow account signup, a manual status update, or an eligible POS conversion.
Excluded : The customer’s loyalty status blocks participation. An exclusion tag can also block participation even if the displayed status remains Guest or Member.
What changes when a Guest becomes a Member
When a customer becomes a Member, they can qualify for member-only loyalty behavior (like signup rewards if enabled on your program).
Their status change date is also tracked, which helps with reporting and lifecycle views.
How Status Is Determined
Customers normally become Members through account signup. Other supported paths include manual membership updates and eligible POS conversion:
Account signup or a supported membership update can make a customer a Member
Customers who have not become Members remain Guests
Manual exclusion sets Excluded; an exclusion tag blocks participation without necessarily changing the displayed loyalty status
This means checkout-created customers can appear as Guests first, then become Members later. A Member status does not necessarily mean the customer has activated a classic Shopify online account.
Program Participant Settings (Important)
Your Program Participants setting controls who can participate in loyalty earning flows.
Go to Settings > General > Program Participants and choose:
All customers (members and guests)
Members (customers who have a classic store account enabled)
If you choose All customers , also enable:
Customers are eligible for all loyalty programs (VIP Tiers and Emails)
This broadens Guest eligibility for VIP tiers and loyalty emails while they are not yet Members. Each program’s enabled settings and email delivery requirements still apply.
Signup Points, Earning, and Redemption Timing
Signup points
Signup points are tied to becoming a Member.
If a customer is still a Guest, they should not expect the signup reward yet.
Other earning rules
Other earning actions (for example order-based earning) follow your participant settings.
If your program is set to Members only, Guest customers may not qualify for those earnings.
Redemption behavior
Customers who are Excluded cannot redeem.
For Guests, redemption availability depends on whether they have an eligible balance and whether their current channel/program settings allow those loyalty actions to appear.
POS-Specific Behavior
If you use Shopify POS, there is an optional setting:
Auto-convert POS customers to Members
When enabled, eligible Guest customers who place a new POS order are automatically converted to Member status. Excluded customers are not converted.
This is useful for stores where many customers join through in-store checkout first. POS rewards and some VIP features may depend on your Rivo plan and program setup.
Troubleshooting Examples
Customer is still Guest after migration
Check the customer’s current loyalty status first.
If they are Guest, review your participant settings and whether the customer has signed up or had their membership updated.
Customer placed an order but did not get signup points
Confirm the customer is Member (not Guest).
Signup rewards are tied to membership activation and require an enabled points program and an active signup earning rule. If the customer became a Member through an older migration or a manual update to their membership status, the signup reward may not be awarded automatically.
POS customer did not convert to Member
Verify Auto-convert POS customers to Members is enabled.
If you enabled this after historical POS orders were already placed, older customers may still need a manual review.
Customer cannot redeem yet
Check these in order:
Customer is not Excluded
Customer has enough points/credits
The reward is available to the customer and redemption is supported in the channel they are using
FAQ
Q: Do guest points expire before the customer becomes a Member?
Yes, if points expiry is enabled. Points earned as a Guest follow the same expiry method and period as Members’ points. There is no separate account-creation deadline: guest points can expire while the customer is still a Guest. Becoming a Member does not extend existing per-event expiration dates, although qualifying new activity, such as signup points, can reset the expiry date in bulk mode. See Points Expiry for details.
Q: Does switching to “All customers” turn Guests into Members automatically?
No. It expands participation eligibility, but Guest and Member are still different statuses.
Q: Can a customer be Guest and still appear in Rivo?
Yes. Guest is a valid loyalty status and is common for customers who have not yet signed up or had their membership updated.
Q: Why does a Guest show 0 points on the account page, but Klaviyo shows a balance?
Klaviyo can show a Guest’s stored Rivo balance. Guest status alone does not make that balance zero on the account page. Confirm that the shopper is signed in to the same customer account, compare that customer’s balance in Rivo, and check for exclusion or visibility restrictions. If the balances still differ, contact Rivo Support.
Q: Why do merchants see Guest customers after purchase?
A purchase does not necessarily enroll a customer as a Member. Account signup, a manual membership update, or an eligible POS conversion can change their status.