What it does. When the user wants to create, optimize, or analyze a referral program, affiliate program, or word-of-mouth strategy. Also use when the user mentions 'referral,' 'affiliate,' 'ambassador,' 'word of mouth,' 'viral loop,' 'refer a friend,' 'partner program,' 'referral incentive,' 'how to get referrals,' 'customers referring customers,' or 'affiliate payout.' Use this whenever someone wants existing users or partners to bring in new customers. For launch-specific virality, see launch. Part of coreyhaines31/marketingskills (marketing skills for agents) (coreyhaines31/marketingskills).

Upstream	coreyhaines31/marketingskills
Skill file	skills/referrals/SKILL.md
License	MIT
Author	Corey Haines
Fetched	2026-09-10

Install

• npx skills add coreyhaines31/marketingskills --skill referrals, or copy the skill folder into ~/.claude/skills/referrals/.
• Raw file: curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/HEAD/skills/referrals/SKILL.md

SKILL.md (verbatim)

name: referrals
description: "When the user wants to create, optimize, or analyze a referral program, affiliate program, or word-of-mouth strategy. Also use when the user mentions 'referral,' 'affiliate,' 'ambassador,' 'word of mouth,' 'viral loop,' 'refer a friend,' 'partner program,' 'referral incentive,' 'how to get referrals,' 'customers referring customers,' or 'affiliate payout.' Use this whenever someone wants existing users or partners to bring in new customers. For launch-specific virality, see launch."
metadata:
  version: 2.0.1

Referral & Affiliate Programs

You are an expert in viral growth and referral marketing. Your goal is to help design and optimize programs that turn customers into growth engines.

Before Starting

Check for product marketing context first: If .agents/product-marketing.md exists (or .claude/product-marketing.md, or the legacy product-marketing-context.md filename, in older setups), read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered or specific to this task.

Gather this context (ask if not provided):

1. Program Type

• Customer referral program, affiliate program, or both?
• B2B or B2C?
• What's the average customer LTV?
• What's your current CAC from other channels?

2. Current State

• Existing referral/affiliate program?
• Current referral rate (% who refer)?
• What incentives have you tried?

3. Product Fit

• Is your product shareable?
• Does it have network effects?
• Do customers naturally talk about it?

4. Resources

• Tools/platforms you use or consider?
• Budget for referral incentives?

---

Should You Engineer Virality First?

Before building a reward-driven program, check whether virality can be built into the product — often cheaper and more durable than paid referrals. But don't force virality where it doesn't naturally fit.

Place the product on the Viral Potential Spectrum:

• Natural (build for it): collaboration tools, communication tools, user-facing outputs — every use exposes the product to non-users.
• Limited (don't force it): backend, competitive-advantage, internal-only, and infrastructure products. Invest in referral programs, content, and partnerships instead.

If the product is on the natural end, consider product-embedded viral mechanisms (Powered By badges, exposure loops, social sharing, embeds, watermarks) before or alongside a reward program.

For the spectrum diagnostic, the 7 viral mechanisms, value-presentation and timing best practices, and affiliate power-law mechanics: See references/viral-mechanisms.md

---

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

Characteristics:

• 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
• Higher-ticket products that justify commissions

Characteristics:

• Affiliates may not be customers
• Ongoing commission relationship
• Higher volume, variable trust

---

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 rewards (referrer only): Simpler, works for high-value products

Double-sided rewards (both parties): Higher conversion, win-win framing

Tiered rewards: Gamifies referral process, increases engagement

Present the reward with the bigger-feeling number — "lead with the larger number" (say "$10 off," not "40% off," on a low-priced product). Reward at the aha moment or milestone, not signup. Reduce friction: one-click share, pre-written messages.

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

For product-embedded virality, value-presentation rules, and affiliate power-law mechanics: See references/viral-mechanisms.md

---

Program Optimization

Improving Referral Rate

If few customers are referring:

• Ask at better moments
• Simplify sharing process
• Test different incentive types
• Make referral prominent in product

If referrals aren't converting:

• Improve landing experience for referred users
• Strengthen incentive for new users
• Ensure referrer's endorsement is visible

A/B Tests to Run

Incentive tests: Amount, type, single vs. double-sided, timing

Messaging tests: Program description, CTA copy, landing page copy

Placement tests: 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

---

Measuring Success

Key Metrics

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
• Referral program ROI

Typical Findings

• Referred customers have 16-25% higher LTV
• Referred customers have 18-37% lower churn
• Referred customers refer others at 2-3x rate

---

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

---

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?"

---

Affiliate Programs

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

For affiliate power-law mechanics (buyout clauses ~12× monthly commission, the 20/80 super-promoter rule, launch-affiliate tactics): See references/viral-mechanisms.md

---

Task-Specific Questions

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

---

Tool Integrations

For implementation, see the tools registry. Key tools for referral programs:

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
Introw	Channel partner programs with tiers, deal registration, QBRs	introw.md
PartnerStack	Enterprise partner and affiliate programs	partnerstack.md

---

Related Skills

• launch: For launching referral program effectively
• emails: For referral nurture campaigns
• marketing-psychology: For understanding referral motivation
• analytics: For tracking referral attribution

Other files in this skill

• evals/evals.json
• references/affiliate-programs.md
• references/program-examples.md
• references/viral-mechanisms.md

references/affiliate-programs.md (verbatim)

Affiliate Program Design

Detailed guidance for building and managing affiliate programs.

Contents

• Commission Structures
• Cookie Duration
• Affiliate Recruitment
• Affiliate Enablement
• Tools & Platforms (Referral Program Tools, Affiliate Program Tools, Choosing a Tool)
• Fraud Prevention (Common Referral Fraud, Prevention Measures)

Commission Structures

Percentage of sale:

• Standard: 10-30% of first sale or first year
• Works for: E-commerce, SaaS with clear pricing
• Example: "Earn 25% of every sale you refer"

Flat fee per action:

• Standard: $5-500 depending on value
• Works for: Lead gen, trials, freemium
• Example: "$50 for every qualified demo"

Recurring commission:

• Standard: 10-25% of recurring revenue
• Works for: Subscription products
• Example: "20% of subscription for 12 months"

Tiered commission:

• Works for: Motivating high performers
• Example: "20% for 1-10 sales, 25% for 11-25, 30% for 26+"

---

Cookie Duration

How long after click does affiliate get credit?

Duration	Use Case
24 hours	High-volume, low-consideration purchases
7-14 days	Standard e-commerce
30 days	Standard SaaS/B2B
60-90 days	Long sales cycles, enterprise
Lifetime	Premium affiliate relationships

---

Affiliate Recruitment

Where to find affiliates:

• Existing customers who create content
• Industry bloggers and reviewers
• YouTubers in your niche
• Newsletter writers
• Complementary tool companies
• Consultants and agencies

Outreach template:

Subject: Partnership opportunity — [Your Product]

Hi [Name],

I've been following your content on [topic] — particularly [specific piece] — and think there could be a great fit for a partnership.

[Your Product] helps [audience] [achieve outcome], and I think your audience would find it valuable.

We offer [commission structure] for partners, plus [additional benefits: early access, co-marketing, etc.].

Would you be open to learning more?

[Your name]

---

Affiliate Enablement

Provide affiliates with:

• Unique tracking links/codes
• Product overview and key benefits
• Target audience description
• Comparison to competitors
• Creative assets (logos, banners, images)
• Sample copy and talking points
• Case studies and testimonials
• Demo access or free account
• FAQ and objection handling
• Payment terms and schedule

---

Tools & Platforms

Referral Program Tools

Full-featured platforms:

• ReferralCandy — E-commerce focused
• Ambassador — Enterprise referral programs
• Friendbuy — E-commerce and subscription
• GrowSurf — SaaS and tech companies
• Mention Me — AI-powered referral marketing
• Viral Loops — Template-based campaigns

Built-in options:

• Stripe (basic referral tracking)
• HubSpot (CRM-integrated)
• Segment (tracking and analytics)

Affiliate Program Tools

Affiliate networks:

• ShareASale — Large merchant network
• Impact — Enterprise partnerships
• PartnerStack — SaaS focused
• Tapfiliate — Simple SaaS affiliate tracking
• FirstPromoter — SaaS affiliate management

Partner Relationship Management (PRM):

• Introw — Full PRM with deal registration, commissions, tiers, QBRs, and partner engagement tracking (integration guide)

Self-hosted:

• Rewardful — Stripe-integrated affiliates
• Refersion — E-commerce affiliates

Choosing a Tool

Consider:

• Integration with your payment system
• Fraud detection capabilities
• Payout management
• Reporting and analytics
• Customization options
• Price vs. program scale

---

Fraud Prevention

Common Referral Fraud

• Self-referrals (creating fake accounts)
• Referral rings (groups referring each other)
• Coupon sites posting referral codes
• Fake email addresses
• VPN/device spoofing

Prevention Measures

Technical:

• Email verification required
• Device fingerprinting
• IP address monitoring
• Delayed reward payout (after activation)
• Minimum activity threshold

Policy:

• Clear terms of service
• Maximum referrals per period
• Reward clawback for refunds/chargebacks
• Manual review for suspicious patterns

Structural:

• Require referred user to take meaningful action
• Cap lifetime rewards
• Pay rewards in product credit (less attractive to fraudsters)

references/program-examples.md (verbatim)

Referral Program Examples

Real-world examples of successful referral programs.

Contents

• Dropbox (Classic)
• Uber/Lyft
• Morning Brew
• Notion
• Incentive Types Comparison
• Incentive Sizing Framework
• Viral Coefficient & Metrics (Key Metrics, Calculating Referral Program ROI)

Dropbox (Classic)

Program: Give 500MB storage, get 500MB storage

Why it worked:

• Reward directly tied to product value
• Low friction (just an email)
• Both parties benefit equally
• Gamified with progress tracking

---

Uber/Lyft

Program: Give $10 ride credit, get $10 when they ride

Why it worked:

• Immediate, clear value
• Double-sided incentive
• Easy to share (code/link)
• Triggered at natural moments

---

Morning Brew

Program: Tiered rewards for subscriber referrals

• 3 referrals: Newsletter stickers
• 5 referrals: T-shirt
• 10 referrals: Mug
• 25 referrals: Hoodie

Why it worked:

• Gamification drives ongoing engagement
• Physical rewards are shareable (more referrals)
• Low cost relative to subscriber value
• Built status/identity

---

Notion

Program: $10 credit per referral (education)

Why it worked:

• Targeted high-sharing audience (students)
• Product naturally spreads in teams
• Credit keeps users engaged

---

Incentive Types Comparison

Type	Pros	Cons	Best For
Cash/credit	Universally valued	Feels transactional	Marketplaces, fintech
Product credit	Drives usage	Only valuable if they'll use it	SaaS, subscriptions
Free months	Clear value	May attract freebie-seekers	Subscription products
Feature unlock	Low cost to you	Only works for gated features	Freemium products
Swag/gifts	Memorable, shareable	Logistics complexity	Brand-focused companies
Charity donation	Feel-good	Lower personal motivation	Mission-driven brands

---

Incentive Sizing Framework

Calculate your maximum incentive:

Max Referral Reward = (Customer LTV × Gross Margin) - Target CAC

Example:

• LTV: $1,200
• Gross margin: 70%
• Target CAC: $200
• Max reward: ($1,200 × 0.70) - $200 = $640

Typical referral rewards:

• B2C: $10-50 or 10-25% of first purchase
• B2B SaaS: $50-500 or 1-3 months free
• Enterprise: Higher, often custom

---

Viral Coefficient & Metrics

Key Metrics

Viral coefficient (K-factor):

K = Invitations × Conversion Rate

K > 1 = Viral growth (each user brings more than 1 new user)
K < 1 = Amplified growth (referrals supplement other acquisition)

Example:

• Average customer sends 3 invitations
• 15% of invitations convert
• K = 3 × 0.15 = 0.45

Referral rate:

Referral Rate = (Customers who refer) / (Total customers)

Benchmarks:

• Good: 10-25% of customers refer
• Great: 25-50%
• Exceptional: 50%+

Referrals per referrer:

Benchmarks:

• Average: 1-2 referrals per referrer
• Good: 2-5
• Exceptional: 5+

Calculating Referral Program ROI

Referral Program ROI = (Revenue from referred customers - Program costs) / Program costs

Program costs = Rewards paid + Tool costs + Management time

Track separately:

• Cost per referred customer (CAC via referral)
• LTV of referred customers (often higher than average)
• Payback period for referral rewards

references/viral-mechanisms.md (verbatim)

Viral Mechanisms

Virality can be engineered through product design, not just bought with reward programs. But don't force it — decide whether virality fits your product before building anything.

Contents

• Viral Potential Spectrum (the diagnostic)
• The 7 Viral Mechanisms
• Referral Best Practices (presentation, timing, friction)
• Affiliate Mechanics (buyout clauses, the 20/80 power law, launch tactics)

---

Viral Potential Spectrum

Before engineering virality, place your product on the spectrum. Don't force virality where it doesn't naturally fit.

Natural viral potential (build for it):

• Collaboration tools — value grows when you invite others (docs, whiteboards, project management)
• Communication tools — you can't use them alone (email, scheduling, messaging)
• User-facing outputs — every use produces something others see (design, video, forms, links)

Limited viral potential (don't force it):

• Backend / infrastructure — invisible to end users
• Competitive-advantage tools — users hide that they use them (their edge)
• Internal-only tools — never leave the org
• Infrastructure — plumbing no one talks about

If you're on the limited end, invest in referral programs, content, and partnerships instead of embedding viral loops that won't fire.

---

The 7 Viral Mechanisms

Most are non-incentive — the loop is built into the product, not paid for.

1. "Powered By" Badges

A small attributed badge on user-facing output ("Powered by [Product]"). Every page/form/widget a customer ships becomes an ad. Often free-tier only (paid tier removes it).

2. Exposure Loops

The product's normal use exposes it to non-users.

• Calendly / SavvyCal — every meeting invite you send shows the tool to the recipient, who often becomes a user.
• Superhuman email signatures ("Sent via Superhuman") — works as a status signal, not just attribution. The signature signaled early-adopter status, so recipients wanted it. Exposure loops are strongest when using the product confers status.

3. Social Sharing

Make output natively shareable with a branded hook.

• #MadeWithGlide — a hashtag turns every user creation into discoverable social proof.
• One-tap "share to X/LinkedIn" on any milestone, result, or artifact.

4. Embed Options

Let users embed their content elsewhere; the embed carries your brand and a link back.

• Notion, Figma, Loom — embedded docs, designs, and videos spread the product to every viewer on every host site.

5. Watermarks / Mandatory Badges

Like "Powered By" but harder to remove — baked into the output itself.

• OpusClips watermark on generated clips.
• "Made in Webflow" badge on free-plan sites. Free tier carries the mark; paid tier removes it. The free users become the distribution.

6. Referral Programs

Explicit incentives for referring. Covered in detail in program-examples.md and below. The one incentive-driven mechanism on this list — use it when the product itself doesn't naturally spread.

7. Product-Driven Word-of-Mouth

The purest form: the product is so good, novel, or useful that people tell others unprompted. Not a mechanism you bolt on — it's earned through the product experience. Engineering the other six makes this easier to trigger.

---

Referral Best Practices

Detail beyond the core referral loop (trigger → share → convert → reward).

Value Presentation: Lead With the Larger Number

Frame the reward with whichever number looks bigger.

• On a $25 product, say "$10 off" — not "40% off."
• On a $500 product, say "20% off" — not "$100 off" if the percentage frames better... but usually the absolute dollar figure wins for smaller prices.
• Rule of thumb: under ~$100, lead with the dollar amount; over ~$100, test the percentage. Always pick the bigger-feeling number.

Reward Timing: Fire at the Aha / Milestone

Trigger the referral ask (and reward) at the moment the user has just felt the product's value — the aha moment or a milestone (first success, upgrade, streak). Motivation to share peaks right after value is experienced, not at signup.

Double-Sided Rewards

Both referrer and referred get value. Higher conversion than single-sided, and gives the referrer a generous, non-selfish reason to share ("here's $10 for you too").

Friction Reduction

Every extra step kills share rate.

• One-click sharing — pre-generated link, no form.
• Pre-written messages — draft the email/DM/post copy so the user just hits send.
• In-product placement at the trigger moment, not buried in settings.

---

Affiliate Mechanics

Detail deferred from the partnerships side — for building an affiliate motion into a referral/partner strategy.

Buyout Clauses (~12× Monthly Commission)

For high-performing affiliates on recurring commissions, include a buyout clause: the right to buy out the affiliate's future commission stream for a lump sum, commonly around 12× the monthly commission. Protects margin on a customer the affiliate referred once but earns on forever, and gives the affiliate an attractive cash-out.

The 20/80 Affiliate Power Law

Roughly 20% of affiliates drive ~80% of results. Don't spread effort evenly across a long tail of dormant sign-ups. Identify super-promoters and invest in them — higher tiers, custom assets, co-marketing, direct relationship, early access. Recruiting 1,000 passive affiliates is worth less than activating 10 great ones.

Launch-Affiliate Tactic (Cometly / Demio)

Time affiliate promotion around a launch or a hard deadline to concentrate volume. Cometly drove $251K on a single launch day by mobilizing affiliates simultaneously; Demio ran launch-window affiliate pushes. The mechanic: give affiliates a shared date, shared assets, and a reason for their audience to act now (bonus, cohort, closing offer) so promotion stacks instead of trickling.

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