20 Powerful Referral Marketing Examples
How often do you make a word-of-mouth recommendation or introduction?
Referral marketing is one of the most effective ways for service-based businesses to attract new customers. By leveraging the trust and relationships of your existing customers, you can generate high-quality leads that are much more likely to align with your values.
At face value, referral marketing — building more connections and expanding your network of referral partners — sounds like a piece of pie. Meet people, make friends, build network, and repeat.
But what if you're not getting any leads despite your best efforts?
As most of us entrepreneurs, asking for referrals isn't enough. And as it happens, the most successful referral programs actually utilize creative strategies and incentives to encourage and reward referrals—but not in an icky way.
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Do Referral Programs Work?
Our number one tactics for more referrals is to join a community of your peers who share similar values. But what if you want to go beyond the community and implement an official referral program? To help better illustrate referral marketing efforts at their finest, here are 20 powerful examples of referral marketing programs across a variety of industries, and insights as to why they work. Take notes!
E-commerce & Retail
1. Dropbox: Dropbox offers users additional free storage space for every friend they refer who signs up for the service. This simple, straightforward incentive has helped Dropbox achieve explosive growth through word-of-mouth.
2. Glossier: Beauty brand Glossier gives customers a unique referral link to share. For every friend that makes a purchase through the link, the customer receives a $10 credit. Glossier also prominently features their referral program on their website and in email marketing.
3. Outdoor Voices: Activewear brand Outdoor Voices offers a $20 credit to customers for every friend they refer who makes a purchase. They also make it easy to share the referral link on social media.
4. Casper: Mattress company Casper provides customers with a referral code to share. When a friend uses the code, both the referrer and the new customer receive $50 off their purchase.
SaaS & Tech
5. Slack: Slack, the popular workplace communication tool, offers users $100 in Slack credits for every new team that signs up through their referral. This provides a strong financial incentive for users to actively promote the product.
6. Calendly: Scheduling software Calendly gives users a free month of their premium plan for every referral that signs up and pays for a subscription. This rewards referrers with a tangible, valuable benefit.
7. Notion: Collaborative workspace tool Notion takes a unique approach, allowing users to share a personalized referral link that unlocks special features or upgrades for the new user.
8. Airtable: Airtable, a spreadsheet-database hybrid, provides a generous 30% commission to users for every new subscription generated through their referral program.
Financial Services
9. Wealthfront: Wealthfront, a leading robo-advisor, offers users a $5,000 managed for free bonus when they refer a friend who signs up and funds an account.
10. Transferwise: Money transfer service Transferwise lets users earn free international transfers for each friend they refer who completes their first transfer.
11. Acorns: Investing app Acorns provides users with a $5 bonus for every friend they refer who signs up and makes their first investment.
12. Affirm: "Buy now, pay later" platform Affirm gives customers $25 in Affirm credit for each friend they refer who takes out a new loan.
Health & Wellness
13. Tonal: Smart home gym Tonal has an innovative referral program that gives both the referrer and the new customer $100 off their purchase.
14. Peloton: Fitness brand Peloton offers riders $100 in credit for every friend they refer who buys a Peloton bike or treadmill.
15. Care/of: Personalized vitamin company Care/of rewards customers with a free 30-day supply of vitamins for each friend they refer who places an order.
16. Hims: Men's health and wellness brand Hims provides customers with a $30 credit for every friend they refer who signs up for their subscription service.
Professional Services
17. Gusto: Payroll and HR platform Gusto gives customers a $100 Amazon gift card for every referral that signs up for their service.
18. Pond5: Stock media marketplace Pond5 has a referral program that pays customers a 20% commission on the first year's sales of any new users they refer.
19. FreshBooks: Accounting software FreshBooks offers customers 20% of the first year's payment from any new customer they refer.
20. Vimeo: Video hosting platform Vimeo provides users with a free month of their Pro plan for each friend they refer who signs up.
What makes these referral programs so effective?
If you want to take a lead from one of these effective referral/ incentive programs, take note of the following themes that almost always lead to success:
Tangible, Valuable Incentives
The most successful programs offer referrers a clear, compelling incentive—whether that's credits, discounts, cash, or other valuable rewards. This gives customers a tangible reason to spread the word.
Ease of Sharing
These programs make it easy for customers to share referral links and codes, often with ready-made social media sharing tools. The more friction-free the sharing process, the more likely customers will do it.
Brand Alignment
The incentives and mechanics of the referral programs feel authentic and aligned with the brand's image and values. This helps the programs feel natural rather than gimmicky.
Ongoing Engagement
Many of these examples feature ongoing rewards or benefits, rather than one-time transactions. This encourages customers to continue referring new users over time.
You Can Do This, Too
By taking a strategic, customer-centric approach to referral marketing, these powerhouse businesses have all been able to leverage the power of word-of-mouth to drive significant growth. The key is creating a referral program that provides value to both the referrer and the new customer!
With the right mix of incentives, ease of use, and brand authenticity, any business can harness the potential of referral marketing to attract high-quality new leads—even yours. It's an acquisition channel that, when done well, truly benefits everyone involved. So get started!
