Knowledgebase

How do I use the Rewards Points Program?
 

The rewards points program allows you to offer points per dollar spent on your store to your customers records. The customer can then redeem the points for additional products at your store. This tutorial will give you a step by step process on how to setup and maintain your rewards points program.

This article contains the following sections. Please click on a link to see its respective topic.

Enable the Reward Points Program
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To enable the rewards point, follow these steps:

  1. Log into your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager
  2. Using the left hand navigation menu, go to Modules
  3. Using the search bar at the top, search for the "Reward Points for Customers" module to bring it up.
  4. Click on the "Settings" button of the module to review its settings.

You will see some settings in the module. These are:

  • Enable Rewards
    Placing a mark in this checkbox will turn on the Rewards Points module
  • Rewards Multiplier*
    This setting will determine how many points per dollar spent are awarded to the customer

*Additional Information
The Rewards Multiplier is the number of points awarded to the shopper per dollar spent on your store. It can take either whole or decimal numbers (tenths only). For example:

  • Multiplier of 0.5 - Customer spending $100 on the store gets 50 reward points
  • Multiplier of 1 - Customer spending $100 gets awarded 100 points. (this is default)
  • Multiplier of 1.5 - Customer spending $100 gets awarded 150 points
  • Multiplier of 2 - Customer spending $100 gets awarded 200 points
  • Etc.

Also note that option values will also be factored into the reward point calculation. So for example, if a product is priced at $100, the awarded points for the product will be 100 (if using the default multiplier). However, if the product has an option that raises the price of the item to $125, the awarded points will be 125 when the item is purchased with that option.

Important
Please note that reward points do not round up to the nearest dollar. This means that if you are using a reward multiplier of 1 and a customer spends $0.99 on an order, they will not receive any points. If they were to spend $1.98, they would receive 1 reward point.

  • Rewards Enabled for Phone Orders
    This setting will enable points to be accrued for Phone Orders as well.
  • Apply rewards only for orders in status:
    Specify which order status the order must be in before the reward points are enabled. For example, if you set this to "Shipped" status, then the customer will not get their reward points until the order is physically moved to shipped status.
  • Rewards point expiration enabled
    Mark this checkbox if you would like to set an expiration period for awarded reward points.
  • Days to expire
    If using the rewards expiration setting described above, set the number of days until the reward points expire here.
  • Send email before expiration
    Mark this checkbox if you would like to send an automatic notification message to your customers that their reward points are about to expire.
  • Days to Send Email before Expiration
    If using the email notification setting mentioned above, set the number of days - before expiration - when you'd like to have the email go out.

Additional Information
When reward points are redeemed, the store will use older reward points before newer ones. This way, it will use points that are closest to expiration while preserving newer points.

  1. Place a mark in the "Enable Rewards" checkbox.
  2. Set your Rewards Multiplier*
  3. Enable Rewards for Phone Orders if desired (optional)

Click Save Changes on the Module page and your store's Rewards Program will be active.

Once the module is enabled, your product listing pages will display how many points customers will accrue when purchasing the item.

Note
Below these basic settings, you will also see additional settings for Custom Event Points. Click here for information on using these settings.

Enabling Redeemable Products
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Each product must be manually set as redeemable for the rewards program by specifying how many points are required to redeem the items. To perform this function, use the following steps.

From your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager:

  1. Go to Products >Product List
  2. Locate the product you'd like to edit and click on its thumbnail, name or ID to open it
  3. In the Rewards Options section, set the amount of points that the product will be redeemable for. For example, if the customer must accrue a total of 100 points in order to redeem the product, set 100 in the Redeem Points field.
  4. Click "Save" at the top right to commit your changes.

Note
By default, all products will have a 0 as the default redeem points value. This means that products cannot be redeemable until actual redeem points are specified for the item(s). Redeem points can also be set via CSV import as needed.
(Please see the Rewards Program CSV header section of this article for more information)

Also note that redeeming products is based solely on the Redeem Points value entered for the product. It does not account for item options that increase the product's base value.

In other words, if a $5 item is redeemable for 50 points, then the customer will need to use 50 points to redeem it. This would apply even if they select an option that normally raises the item's price to $10.

Disabling Rewards on a Product
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You may have some products that you do not wish to have involved in the rewards program at all. Therefore, we have made it so that you can also selectively disable rewards on individual products. This will prevent the item from accruing points for customers when they purchase the item.

To disable rewards on a product:

  1. Go to Products >Product List
  2. Locate the product you'd like to edit and click on its thumbnail, name or ID to open it
  3. In the Rewards Options section, place a mark in the checkbox labeled "Disable Rewards" to prevent the item from accruing points.
  4. Click Save Changes

Note
In the example above, the item will not accrue points, but it can still be redeemed for points.

The Disable Rewards checkbox merely prevents points from being accrued on the item, but does not specifically prevent the item from being redeemed with points. If you would like the product to also not be available for redeeming, leave its Redeem Points field at 0.

Set a Custom Reward amount per Product
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You also have the ability to specify custom reward points for a product which will override the default rewards multiplier set in the Store Modules page. This can be useful if you'd like to specifically dictate the number of points awarded to purchasers of the product, regardless of how much money is spent on the order. For example, rather than awarding 50 points for $50 item, you can customize things so that the item accrues only 15 points.

To do this:

  1. Go to Products >Product List
  2. Locate the product you'd like to edit and click on its thumbnail, name or ID to open it
  3. In the Rewards Options section, set the Custom points to whatever you'd like the product to have as its reward offering.
  4. Click Save Changes

Tip
You can also award custom points based on the product's selected options, by using the Advanced Options feature. This feature is typically used when specifying individual costs, stocks and weights for product variations.

Additionally, when using advanced options on a product, you will also see a + icon at the far right of each advanced option variant. Clicking this icon will expand the view to include a section for Reward Points on the variant. This will allow you to award specific points to the product - when the individual variants are selected.

For more information on using Advanced Options, please click here.

Regardless of the dollar amount spent on the product, its awarded points will reflect the custom points instead. If the custom points field is set back to the default 0, then the product will accrue the amount based on the Rewards Multiplier* specified in the Store Modules page.

*Important Note regarding Custom Reward Points and Discounts
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Please take special note of the way custom reward points on the individual product level will work when it comes to the global multiplier and discounts.

As mentioned earlier, the global points multiplier will allow you to multiply the amount of points awarded to a customer per dollar spent.

To recap our previous multiplier example:

  • Multiplier of 0.5
    A customer spending $100 on the store gets 50 reward points
  • Multiplier of 1
    A customer spending $100 gets awarded 100 points. (this is default)
  • Multiplier of 1.5
    A customer spending $100 gets awarded 150 points
  • Multiplier of 2
    A customer spending $100 gets awarded 200 points

However, it is important to note that the global multiplier is also used to deduct discounts when calculating Reward Points after discounted dollar amounts are applied. This is to ensure that the customer is awarded the proper points based on the amount they spent.

In other words, let's say the multiplier is set to the default 1 to 1 ratio; the item/order is $100, but the customer was given a $20 discount, so they only paid $80. Therefore, they are awarded 80 rewards points.

This can yield seemingly unexpected results when using custom reward points because the multiplier is also being used to calculate the amount of custom points awarded to the customer.

So using the same example scale as written above, let's add the following variables to our scenario:

  • Product is $100 but it is set to award 20 custom points
  • Customer uses a $20 discount on their $100 order

Our rewards multiplier will now generate the following reward points calculation for the customer:

  • Multiplier of 0.5
    10 points are awarded instead of the 20 custom points.
    • $20 off, multiplied by 0.5 = 10 points deducted from rewards.
    • 10 points deducted from 20 custom points = 10 points
  • Multiplier of 1
    0 points are awarded instead of the 20 custom points
    • $20 off, multiplied by 1 = 20 points deducted from rewards.
    • 20 points deducted from 20 custom points = 0 points.
  • Multiplier of 1.5
    0 points are awarded instead of the 20 custom points
    • $20 off, multiplied by 1.5 = 30 points deducted from rewards.
    • 30 points deducted from 20 custom points = (-10) points, i.e. 0.
  • Multiplier of 2
    0 points are awarded instead of the 20 custom points
    • $20 off, multiplied by 2 = 40 points deducted from rewards.
    • 40 points deducted from 20 custom points = (-20) points, i.e. 0.

Therefore, if you plan on using custom reward points for your products, we recommend setting the global multiplier in the store modules area to 0 to help avoid these types of problems with custom reward points.

Reward CSV Headers
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Product Reward point settings and amounts can be imported to your store via CSV import. The following CSV Column Headers will be needed in the import file to add reward point details to your products.

  • reward_points
    Sets the number of custom rewards points on the product if the product is using custom reward points
  • reward_redeem
    Sets the number of reward points needed in order to redeem the item.
  • reward_disable
    Sets whether the product has Rewards disabled or not. This is a toggle variable so 0 for off an 1 for on to disable rewards.

Manually Adding Points to a Customer Account
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Normally reward points will be accrued by your customers as they spend money on your store. However, you can also manually award points to individual customer records as needed.

To do this:

  1. Go to Customers>Customer List
  2. Locate the Customer record that you'd like to edit and click on its name to open it
  3. Click on the Rewards Tab.

You will be presented with the customer's rewards point reports and information to their reward history on your store.

Towards the top of the page, you will see a button titled "Add New". Click on it to open a window:

  1. In the "Points" field enter the number of points you'd like to award (or remove by typing a negative value) to the customer.
  2. (If enabled in the module settings) In the "Expiration Date" field, enter the expiration date for the reward points.
  3. In the "Reference" field, enter a note specifying what the rewards points were for.
  4. Click Insert Points to add them to the customer's record.

Reward Point Report
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You will naturally want a way to track an individual customer's rewards history, the Online Store Manager also features a report for each customer account so you can better monitor and see this information.

To access it:

  1. Go to Customers>Customer List
  2. Locate the Customer record that you'd like to edit and click on its name to open it
  3. Click on the Rewards Tab.

The report will then contain the following columns:

  • Date - Displays the date this change in points was made to this customer
  • Awarded Points - This column will display the amount of points added or removed from the record. A solid number means points were added for this entry and were not used completely. A number that has been slashed through means the points had been used up fully. A number in red is used to highlight points being removed (either from customer use or expiration).
  • Reference - This column is used to highlight reference information. If changes were made via an order placed on the store, you will be able to see the Order Number here (you can also click on it to access the order directly). Any manual changes to reward points will also require a reference, and it will be logged here.
  • Expiration - Displays the expiration date for points added. Will be blank if expiration feature is not used.
  • Accumulated Points - Displays the current total for Reward Points on the Customer Account at the time of this entry. This allows for you to see previous totals for a customer's reward history at a specific date and time.

Preventing Customer Groups from Accruing Rewards
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Merchants can now prevent individual customer groups from accruing Rewards Points. This can be useful to prevent wholesale shoppers (who typically purchase in bulk and at a discount) from being able to use points to redeem additional items from the store.

To edit your customer groups so that they do not accrue points, follow these steps:

  1. Log into your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager
  2. Go to Customers >Manage Groups
  3. Click the name of the Customer Group you would like to edit
  4. Place a mark in the checkbox labeled "Disable Reward Points"
  5. Click Save

Users in this customer group will now be prevented from accruing Reward Points on their purchases.

Creating a Bonus Rewards Points Promotion
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Merchants can also create a promotion that awards bonus reward points to their customers.

Here, we will show you how to create a basic bonus reward points promotion. For more information on creating promotions, please review our Promotion Manager Guides located here and here.

To create a Bonus Reward Points Promotion:

  1. Log into your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager
  2. Go to Marketing >Promotion Manager
  3. Click on the "+Add Promotion" button

The page will now present you with the following options/fields to populate:

  • Promotion Name
    This will be the promotion's display name.
  • Promotion Description
    This will be the short description of your promotion
Note
When a promotion is applicable to your customer's shopping cart, the name and short description will appear on the cart along with the promotion's offering. (e.g. the discount amount or promotion specifics)
  • Start Date
    Use this to set the Promotion's Start Date
  • End Date
    Use this section to specify when the promotion will end. (If you plan to have the promotion last indefinitely, you can have its end date be several decades from now.)
  • Promotion Type
    How the promotion will be activated. Your choices are:
    • Automatic Promo
      The promotion will apply automatically when applicable to the customer's cart.
    • Coupon Promotion
      The promotion will only apply when the customer inputs a coupon code in the shopping cart. The text box next to Coupon Promotion is where the code will be configured by you.
  • Discount
    The amount of discount the promotion will apply to the customer's cart. This can be specified as either a dollar amount, or a percentage.

When these fields are populated, save the promotion.

  1. Click Save
Note
Upon saving the promotion, the Promotion Manager interface will display additional settings for the promotion. When first creating the promotion however, the interface will advise you that the promotion is not yet enabled (along with a link to enable the promotion). It is recommended to specify your additional settings before enabling the promotion.

For the purposes of this article, we will create a Promotion that will automatically trigger when a shopper places $500 or more in their cart. The promotion will then add an extra 100 bonus reward points to their customer record. Feel free to tailor these instructions to meet your needs.

To continue:

  1. Click on the Advanced button located to the right of "Promotion Rules" to expand that area of the page
  2. Configure the following settings shown below:
  3. Now click on the "Advanced" button located next to "Promotion Offers"
  4. Scroll down to the very bottom of the page where you will see "Bonus Reward Points:"
  5. Enter the amount of reward points you'd like to award recipients of this promotion and click save at the top right of the page.

With the promotion settings configured above, your shoppers will get the promotion automatically applied to their cart when they purchase $500 or more worth of product.

Furthermore, your customers will see the bonus reward points when they log into their My Account page to view their Reward Points balance. The bonus rewards will reflect the name of the promotion used at the time of purchase.

Your customers can also use this section of the My Account Page to redeem products using their rewards.

Redeeming a Product
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By enabling the Rewards Point Program on your store, your customers will now see a Purchase with Reward Points option on your listing pages along with the regular "Add to Cart" button.

This new button will only appear for customers who are logged into their customer profile. By clicking on this new button, your customers can then pay for the item using their accrued points (if they have enough points available)

Customers can also log into their respective accounts to view their accrued points browse redeemable items from their My Account page.

Additional Information:
Beginning with version 9.1.6, stores using a CORE Theme will also let customers sort the redeemable items list by name, part number, and number of points required to redeem (low to high, or high to low).

Important
Customers are unable to use reward points to purchase a product that is using recurring options. Please keep this in mind if utilizing these features.

Rewards Balance Smartlist
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Also introduced on Version 6 of the Shift4Shop Software is a new SmartList for marketing newsletters that will auto-populate a newsletter list with customers who have a remaining balance of accrued Reward Points.

More information on SmartLists can be found by clicking here.

To view, edit and use this SmartList:

  1. Go to Marketing >Newsletters
  2. Click on the "Actions" button at the top right and select "SmartLists"

Look for the SmartList Labeled "Rewards - All Customers with Active Reward Points" and click on its "edit" button

  1. Now click on the "Advanced" button to see the SmartList's SQL statement.

Our default Smartlist is set up to create a newsletter recipient list for any customers which have a number of reward points greater than 0.

See the final line of the SQL Statement which reads:

HAVING sum(customer_rewards.points) > 0

If needed, you can edit the last two characters of the Smartlist SQL statement to acheive different effects in the SmartList. Below are a couple of variations you can attempt:

  • Smartlist of Customers with less than 0 reward points. This can be used to reach out to customers who have not accrued any points yet. Introduce them to your rewards program and get them to accrue points by buying your products!

HAVING sum(customer_rewards.points) < 0

  • Smartlist of Customers with over 50 points. Use this smartlist to reach out to customers who have over a specific amount of rewards points and entice them to re-visit your store.

HAVING sum(customer_rewards.points) > 50

Custom Event Points

You also have the ability to award points for specific events like registering as a new customer, signing up for newsletters and more!

  1. Log into your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager
  2. Using the left hand navigation menu, go to Modules
  3. Using the search bar at the top, search for the "Reward Points for Customers" module to bring it up.

Underneath the regular reward points settings, you will see the following additional section and settings:

  • Enable Custom Event Points
    Mark this checkbox to enable the function
  • Reward Points for New Registration
    Enter the number of points a user will get for registering as a new customer on your store
  • Reward Points for Newsletter Signup
    Enter the number of points a user will get for signing up for the newsletter
  • Reward Points for Referral Link
    Enter the number of points a user will get for referring shoppers to your store. This can be used in conjunction with a promotion enticing anyone that they refer to purchase from your store.
    The store will generate a link directly to your store customized to the referring user (*See "Reward Referral Popup Text" section below). This way, they can share the URL with others and receive this number of points for each person they refer who purchases from you.
  • Reward Points for Review Post
    Enter the number of points a user will get for providing a review on a product of your store.

*Reward Referral Popup Text
When using the Referral Link custom point setting, users who are referred to the store will see a popup window notifying them who referred them and whatever actions (if any) they need to take to receive their promotional discount.

The text of this pop-up can be written in the "Reward Referral Popup Text" field.

Note that - should you elect to offer a promotion to the people who get referred to the store - you will also need to create the applicable promotion on the store in order for the user to receive their promised discounts.

Widget Script

To the right of the custom reward settings, you will see a widget code that can be placed on your store to notify users of these offers.

The widget will apper at the bottom of the page you place the code into and - when clicked upon - will generate a popup window instructing the user on how to receive the additional points.

You may edit the widget's code as needed for customization - as well as restore it to its default should the need arise.
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