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Managing the status of your referrals

Unlock the power of personalized control in your referral campaigns

Ana Rincon avatar
Written by Ana Rincon
Updated over 2 weeks ago

Introduction

Unlock the potential of hands-on referral management and discover the power of customization. In this comprehensive guide, we'll walk you through understanding referral statuses, managing referral workflows, and troubleshooting common scenarios. Whether you need to manually assign orders, unblock referrals, or understand why a referral was blocked, this guide provides the tools to tailor your strategy for diverse situations and individual preferences.

✨ Referral campaigns are available on the Scale and Plus plans. See pricing →


Understanding referral statuses

Every referral in your campaign has a status that indicates where it stands in the referral process. Understanding these statuses helps you manage your referrals effectively and identify when manual intervention might be needed.

Main referral statuses

Unclaimed
This is the initial status when a referral link is created. The advocate has shared their referral link, but the referred friend hasn't signed up yet. Referrals remain in this status until the friend creates an account using the referral link.

Pending
The referred friend has successfully signed up using the referral link, but they haven't made their first qualifying purchase yet. The referral is waiting for the friend to complete a purchase that meets your campaign requirements.

Completed
The referred friend has made a qualifying purchase, and both the advocate and friend have received their rewards. This is the successful end state for most referrals.

Blocked
The referral has been automatically blocked by our fraud prevention system. This happens when suspicious activity is detected, such as similar IP addresses or email patterns. Blocked referrals can sometimes be unblocked manually if the block was incorrect.

Ineligible
The referral was completed but didn't meet the specific requirements of your campaign after processing. For example, if the friend's order was later refunded or didn't meet minimum spend requirements.

Advocate reward statuses

In addition to the main referral status, each completed referral also tracks the status of the advocate's reward delivery:

Awaiting - The system is preparing to send the advocate's reward
Pending Fulfillment - The reward is waiting for the friend's order to be fulfilled before sending
Pending Verification - The reward is in a verification period before final delivery
Sent - The advocate's reward has been successfully delivered

💡 Pro Tip: You can view all referral statuses by navigating to Campaigns → Referrals and using the status filter tabs to see Completed, Pending, or Blocked referrals.


Why referrals get blocked

Our fraud prevention system automatically blocks referrals when suspicious patterns are detected. Understanding these reasons helps you determine when unblocking might be appropriate.

Common blocking reasons

Similar Email Addresses
The referred friend's email is too similar to the advocate's email or other referrals, suggesting potential self-referral.

Similar Signup IP Addresses
The friend signed up from the same IP address as previous referrals, which may indicate fraudulent activity.

Customer Already Exists
The referred friend already has an account in your store, making them ineligible for new customer referral rewards.

Advocate Excluded
The advocate has been excluded from the referral program due to previous violations or program rules.

Similar Order IP Addresses
The friend's order was placed from an IP address that matches previous orders, suggesting potential abuse.

⚠️ Important: These blocks are automatic and designed to protect your program from fraud. However, legitimate referrals can sometimes be blocked incorrectly. You can manually unblock referrals when you're confident they're legitimate.


Manually assigning referrals to orders

By default, referrals are automatically assigned to orders when the referred friend places their first order, but for added flexibility, you can manually assign referrals when needed. This is useful when automatic assignment fails or when you need to associate a referral with a specific order.

When to use manual assignment

• The referred friend made a purchase but it wasn't automatically linked to the referral
• You need to associate a referral with a specific order for tracking purposes
• Technical issues prevented automatic assignment
• You want to ensure proper attribution for a legitimate referral

Marking referrals complete

By default, referrals are automatically assigned to orders when the referred friend places their first order, but for added flexibility, you can use the option to manually assign referrals when needed. This ensures that your referral tracking remains adaptable to your specific needs.

  1. Go to Campaigns

  2. Click Referrals on the campaign you want to view

    Referral campaign list
  3. Enter the email of the advocate or the referred friend in the Search bar

  4. Click on the referral ID to open the referral details

  5. Click on Manually assign to Order on the upper right side of the page

  6. Enter the order ID as shown on your Orders page in the Shopify Admin

    Manually Assign Order to Referral pop-up
  7. Click Assign Order and Mark Complete to confirm.

📝 Important Notes:
• This action cannot be undone once completed
• You can only assign referrals to paid orders (not draft orders)
• The referral must not already be completed or have an assigned order
• Advocate rewards will be processed based on the order's fulfillment status
• You can still deactivate any reward issued by going to the Discounts page


Unblocking referred friends

When legitimate referrals are incorrectly blocked by the fraud prevention system, you can manually unblock them to allow the referral process to continue. This feature ensures flexibility in managing referral statuses while maintaining program integrity.

When to unblock referrals

• You've verified that a blocked referral is legitimate
• The blocking reason doesn't apply to this specific case
• You want to give the referred friend another chance to complete their purchase
• Technical issues caused an incorrect block

Unblocking requirements

You can only unblock referrals that haven't had their discount codes used yet. Once a discount code has been applied to an order, the referral cannot be unblocked.

Unblocking referred friends

Whether addressing specific scenarios or simply providing a more personalized experience, this feature ensures flexibility in managing the status of referred friends, allowing you to unblock friends when circumstances demand.

  1. Go to Campaigns

  2. Click Referrals on the campaign you want to view

    Referral campaign list
  3. Enter the email of the advocate or the referred friend in the Search bar

  4. Click on the referral ID to open the referral details

  5. Click on Unblock on the upper right side of the page

  6. Click Unblock and Process to confirm.

    Unblock Referral pop-up
  7. The referral status will change from Blocked to Pending. The referred friend will be able to follow the referral link again to claim their reward or you can manually assign the referral to an order.

📝 Important Notes:
• Once unblocked, the action cannot be reverted
• The referral status will change from Blocked to Pending
• The referred friend can use their referral link again
• You can still manually assign the referral to an order if needed
• Only referrals without used discount codes can be unblocked


Managing advocate reward emails

For completed referrals, you can manually send advocate reward emails when needed. This is useful when rewards are set to be delivered after order fulfillment or when there are delays in the automatic email system.

When to send manual reward emails

• The advocate hasn't received their reward email despite a completed referral
• Rewards are configured to send after order fulfillment
• You want to resend a reward email for customer service purposes
• Technical issues prevented automatic email delivery

How to send advocate reward emails

  1. Go to Campaigns

  2. Click Referrals on the campaign you want to view

  3. Find and click on the completed referral

  4. Click Send Advocate Reward Email if available

  5. Confirm the action to send the email

💡 Note: This option is only available for completed referrals where the advocate reward hasn't been marked as sent yet.


Tracking referral progress

Understanding the timeline and progression of your referrals helps you identify where intervention might be needed and track the success of your program.

Typical referral journey

1. Unclaimed → Advocate shares referral link
2. Pending → Friend signs up using the link
3. Completed → Friend makes qualifying purchase
4. Rewards Delivered → Both parties receive their rewards

Monitoring referral activity

• Use the status filter tabs to view referrals by their current status
• Check the referral details page for timeline information
• Monitor advocate reward statuses for delivery tracking
• Review blocked referrals regularly for potential unblocking

💡 Pro Tip: Regularly review your Pending referrals to identify friends who signed up but haven't made a purchase yet. Consider reaching out with targeted campaigns to encourage their first order.


Frequently asked questions

Can I assign a referral to a draft order?

No. You can only assign a referral to paid orders. Draft orders don't qualify for referral attribution since they haven't been completed by the customer.

Can I manually block a friend?

No. Referrals are automatically marked as 'Blocked' by our fraud prevention system when suspicious patterns are detected. You cannot manually block referrals, but you can unblock them if they were incorrectly flagged. Learn more about fraud prevention →

What happens when I unblock a referral?

When you unblock a referral, its status changes from Blocked to Pending. The referred friend can then use their referral link again to claim their reward, or you can manually assign the referral to an existing order.

Why is my completed referral showing "Pending Fulfillment"?

This means the advocate's reward is waiting for the friend's order to be fulfilled before being sent. This is a common setting to ensure rewards are only given for orders that are actually shipped to customers.

Can I change a referral's status manually?

You cannot directly change referral statuses, but you can influence them through actions like manual assignment (which marks referrals as completed) or unblocking (which changes blocked referrals to pending).

What does "Ineligible" status mean?

An ineligible referral means it was completed but later determined not to meet your campaign requirements. This can happen if the friend's order was refunded, didn't meet minimum spend requirements, or violated other campaign rules.

How long do referrals stay in "Pending" status?

Referrals remain pending until the referred friend makes a qualifying purchase or the referral expires according to your campaign settings. There's no automatic time limit unless you've configured one in your campaign.

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