Key features of the best Referral Marketing Software
Key features? You’ve got your referral tracking, customizable reward systems, and seamless integrations with your CRM and email marketing tools. Plus, analytics to measure performance and optimize campaigns.
Benefits of Referral Marketing Software
The main benefits? Increased customer acquisition, lower cost per lead, and higher customer loyalty. It’s like having a sales team that works 24/7 without the overhead and on a 100% pay-for-performance model.
Who uses Referral Marketing Software
Who uses it? Loads of companies. Many consumer brands and e-commerce businesses have been running referral programs for years.
In B2B, referral programs are becoming increasingly popular, especially with partners. SaaS companies are leading the charge here, with B2B companies in financial services and other industries following suit and running referral programs.
Basically, anyone looking to scale through word-of-mouth and customer advocacy.
Implementation of Referral Marketing Software
Implementing it? It’s usually pretty straightforward. Most platforms offer easy integrations and step-by-step guides. But, like any software, you’ll need to invest some time upfront to set it up right.
Comparing Referral Marketing Software
How do they compare? PartnerStack is great for all types of B2B partnership programs (including referral programs), Referral Rock is good for marketers at consumer brands looking to run customer referral and brand ambassador programs, SaaSquatch has been recently acquired by Impact to offer a referral point solution to complement Impact’s affiliate point solution, Ambassador is known for its focus on customer referral programs, GrowSurf is user-friendly and simple of refer-a-friend programs, and Extole is good for consumer enterprises looking for customer-led growth. Each has its own focus.
Pricing: the cost of Referral Marketing Software
Cost? It varies. You’re looking at anywhere from $50 to $2,000+ per month, depending on features and scale. Some offer tiered pricing based on the number of referrals or users. Always best to check for the latest pricing on their websites.
My experience with Referral Marketing Software
Iny my 10+ years as a B2B marketer, the last five or so years of my career have had a strong focus on referral marketing.
As a marketer at Influitive, I learned firsthand how their customer advocacy software focussed on the “three r’s” of advocacy: reviews, references, and referrals. As I saw many companies invested in customer advocacy software mainly get more customer referrals, I’ve also seen many customer marketers find it frustrating and challenging to run the transactional, revenue-focussed customer referral programs that many business leaders desire.
In contrast, in my 4+ years working as a marketer at PartnerStack, I’ve seen many partnership professionals and growth marketers find success running referral programs with a focus on partners like agencies, consultancies, and influencers. There’s still a component of customer referrals, but they’re not relied upon as the source of referrals. It’s one piece of a bigger puzzle.
In general, my advice would be to experiment with different referral motions manually before investing in technology. This enables you to find out firsthand whether you have a customer or partner base who is willing and able to refer business to you. If you find that one can and is, investing in referral marketing software is a no-brainer and worthwhile investment.
