Tip #4 : Refer and Earn Workflow system for your Subscription Business

Tip #4 : Refer and Earn Workflow system for your Subscription Business

Hello everyone,

We've been coming up with a tip every week to address specific business scenarios which can be implemented for your business. In continuation to the previous post, this week we will be seeing about
how you can implement the Refer and Earn Workflow system to acquire more customers.

Why are Referrals important?


Customer Acquisition is crucial for any business to sustain itself in a constantly evolving

market. It involves persuading new consumers to purchase your products. Customers tend to buy products that are considered to be reliable and trustworthy. Therefore, it can be quite difficult to bring in new customers without proper marketing strategies.
 
Word-of-mouth referral campaigns is a proven strategy to help you acquire lots of customers effectively in a short period of time. 

What is a word-of-mouth referral campaign?

If a customer is satisfied with your product, he will become a regular subscriber to your product. He will eventually spread the word around. This is a free marketing strategy for your product. Once people start hearing positive feedback about your products, they will prefer your brand to your competitors. 

To make this strategy more effective, you can simply provide a referral incentive for your customers who are bringing in new customers through referrals. This will motivate them to spread the word and it will also help in customer retention.

A referral incentive can be anything from a discount (or) amount which you can credit to your customers who are bringing in new customers. Let us now see how we can implement a Refer and Earn workflow system in  Zoho Subscriptions.

Building a Refer and Earn Workflow system:


For this particular scenario, we will be raising a Credit Note (for fixed incentive amount) for a referrer who has referred a new customer. The Credit Note can be later applied during the next billing cycle of the customer. Let us look into a simple scenario to understand this better.


Assume that John is a long term subscriber for your product and he in turn is referring his friend Mark to your product. Here,

John -> Referrer
Mark -> Referred Customer

When Mark subscribes to your product, he will mention that John is the one who has referred Mark. Since John has made a successful referral, you will raise a credit note for John for a fixed incentive amount.

As you can see, the most primary requirement for this workflow is to identify the referrer. In this case, to identify the referrer, we will show a Custom Field of type Email Address in the Hosted Page, where the subscriber can mention his referrer's email address. Later when a new subscription is created, we will be using our Custom Function Workflow to raise a credit note for that referrer. 

The below explained custom function does the same.

Code Explanation:



You can refer to the code in this GitHub link. The code is written in Deluge Script which can be easily understood by non-programmers.

1) Paste your authtoken, Custom Field's label and incentive amount in their corresponding variables.

2) Once a new subscription is created, we can check if a referrer Email id is present. If it is present, we use that Email ID to get the customer (Referrer) details from our database.

3) Once the Referrer is identified, a credit note will be raised for the mentioned incentive amount.

 

4) In case, if the email address is not present in our database, the admin of the organization will be intimated with an Email regarding this.


Getting started with the Custom Functions:  

1. Go to Settings -> Automation -> Custom Functions. 


2. Create a new Custom Function. Provide a name for the function. 


3. Choose the module and event according to your need.


4. Copy the code which was given above. Do the necessary changes that are required.


5. Save the Custom Function and you are good to go.

Found this useful? Try it out and let us know how it works! If you have questions, do not hesitate to ask!


Cheers,

Sasidaran K,
Zoho Subscriptions.

    • Sticky Posts

    • Tip #4 : Refer and Earn Workflow system for your Subscription Business

      Hello everyone, We've been coming up with a tip every week to address specific business scenarios which can be implemented for your business. In continuation to the previous post, this week we will be seeing about how you can implement the Refer and Earn Workflow system to acquire more customers. Why are Referrals important? Customer Acquisition is crucial for any business to sustain itself in a constantly evolving market. It involves persuading new consumers to purchase your products. Customers

    • Tip #2 - Cancellation of Offline Subscriptions based on the Expected Payment Date

      Hello everyone, As you all know, we are coming up with a custom function workflow every week to address specific business scenarios. In continuation of this previous blog, this week we will be seeing about Cancellation of Offline Subscriptions based on the Expected Payment Date. Business Scenario: In general, for any business, the customers make payments via online as well as offline. In case of subscription where the automatic collection of charge is enabled (aka online subscription), the customer's

    • Tip #3 : Send SMS Reminders for your Subscription Business

      Hello everyone, As you all know, we are coming up with a tip every week to address specific business scenarios. In continuation to the previous blog, this week we will be seeing how you can use SMS reminders for your Subscription Business. Using SMS messages for your Subscription Business: While managing your subscription business, more often than not, you need to keep your customers informed about upcoming renewals, payment reminders and cancellations. By keeping them informed in advance, you can

    • Tips And Tricks - Announcement

      Hello everyone, Every business is unique and each of them follows a specific workflow. While managing your customers' subscriptions with Zoho, you might have some needs unique to your business. Custom Functions helps you address such needs. This is a start to a series of posts, where we will be coming up with a custom function workflow every week that addresses specific business scenarios. Watch this space for further updates! Also, if you have any specific business scenario which needs to be addressed,

    • Tip #6 : Accessing external URLs from Zoho Subscriptions

      Hello everyone, We have been sharing a tip every week to address specific business scenarios which you can implement for your subscription business. Last week, we shared a tip about implementing the Approval Workflow system. This week, let's look at how you can access external URLs with the help of Custom Link. Business Scenario: Every business functions differently and has its unique requirements. At times, businesses might want to access other websites or applications by appending specific information

    • Recent Topics

    • Introducing parent-child ticketing in Zoho Desk [Early access]

      Hello Zoho Desk users! We have introduced the parent-child ticketing system to help customer service teams ensure efficient resolution of issues involving multiple, related tickets. You can now combine repetitive and interconnected tickets into parent-child

    • Function #8: Add additional charges to invoices

      Here goes one of the highly sought-after custom functions in Zoho Books. If you find yourself needing to apply additional charges to customers on their invoices (say credit card surcharges, or fuel charges applicable to customers from a certain region,

    • Alternative / optional Position

      How do you create an alternative position or an optional position (article) in offers?

    • جمود في الصفحة عند حفظ عمل

      عندما اقوم باضافة ايقونة الى صفحة النموذج تجمد الصفحة ولا تعمل وتصبح مثل المظلة احدث الصفحة لا تعمل انتظر قليلا لا تعمل اقوم بنسخ رابط الصفحة والصقه في الرابط فيعمل

    • ZOHO Books Canadian payroll Integration

      Hello, I know ZOHO books doesn't have Canadian payroll and I dont believe its coming anytime soon. My question is there a Canadian payroll software that could be integrated with Zoho Books? Thank you HD

    • Create a draft in reply to an email via Emails API

      Hi, I’d like to use the outgoing webhook to automatically create a draft reply to incoming mail. How can I use the Emails API to create a draft reply that is linked to an existing email thread? I couldn’t find the relevant method in the documentation.

    • Zoho Desk Time Tracking and the Salary Privacy Issue

      Hello colleagues, Just wondering if anyone did hit the same wall? In the Desk, when the agent-specific hourly rates are enabled (Zoho Desk → Setup → Time Tracking → Billing Preferences), these Time Entries are being displayed in the Ticket History tab.

    • How to Delete, Disable, or Remove Streams from the Mail App?

      Is there a way to remove Streams from the mail app sidebar? I get too many notifications, it doesn't add any value to Zoho's functionality (especially since you can just make comments inside an email), and is distracting. I do not want notifications/alerts

    • Delay in MX updates

      Hi, I set MX Records 12 hours ago, and I am receiving email normally, but I still get notification MX record is not pointing correctly. Error: The MX records of your domain is not yet pointed to Zoho Mail. Why there is a delay in detecting MX records,

    • Bigin iOS and macOS app update: Link email messages to pipeline records.

      Hello everyone! In the latest version of the Bigin iOS(v1.11.9) and macOS(1.8.9) app, we have brought in support for an option to link email to pipeline records. This helps you to view emails specific to a deal, especially when a contact is associated

    • make.com integration

      Just wondering if anyone on Zoho One account connecting apps to Make.com We're on Canadian server (.com) and when connecting to Make.com, it keeps having error of Invalid Client ID. I have contacted both Zoho and Make and both sides said it's not an error

    • Article Numbers for KB articles

      Hello, I was wondering if it's possible to turn on article numbers/ part numbering for KB articles. If this is not already a feature, we'd like to request it. Frequently a solution will require multiple articles so tracking which articles are referenced

    • Refund Request ,Zoho Mail Subscription (zoho suport is not replying)

      Hi Zoho Team, I recently subscribed to the Zoho Mail yearly plan, but after evaluating it, I found that the interface does not suit my workflow. I’ve already canceled the subscription from my end. As I’m well within your 30-day refund window, I’m requesting

    • File Encryption - Zoho Desk iOS app update

      Hello, Everyone! We have now introduced the 'File Encryption' option within the Zoho Desk app as part of the HIPAA Compliance. This option allows the user to encrypt the attachments within the Desk mobile app, which acts as an additional layer of security.

    • Data encryption - Zoho Desk iOS

      Hello, Everyone! In the recent iOS version(v2.8.23) of the Zoho Desk app, we have supported data encryption. As a part of HIPAA Compliance, the Zoho Desk mobile app now allow users to encrypt the Desk mobile database as an additional layer of security.

    • Notify Admin when a user forgets to check-in or check-out at the designated time.

      Hello, I would like notify the Admin via email when a user forgets to check-in or check-out at the designated time. What is the best way to setup this email notification?

    • Assistance Needed with Prospect Conversion Issue

      Hi, I attempted to convert a prospect to an account, but received a pop-up notification indicating that the contact information matches an existing contact. I selected the option to add it to the existing contact, but it appears the prospect was not successfully

    • Mail Merge - unable to send more than 50 email

      Hi, I've subscribed to the pay email service because of the Mail Merge feature. However, I've found that this feature only allow to send up to 50 emails. I've to attach a screenshot for your reference. This limitation is not mentioned anywhere in service.

    • Zoholics Europe 2025: Your Ultimate Data Analysis (Zoho Analytics) Workshop Experience

      Why should you attend? This year, Zoholics Europe 2025 is putting data analysis centre stage. With a dedicated workshop designed to answer all your data-related questions, you’ll gain practical skills, real-time solutions, and expert insights that you

    • UK payroll entries

      Hey guys, Nett payroll payments are imported direct into the bank, using an external payroll system (will be glad for Zoho to have a UK payroll app) At present I have monthly recurring bills for HMRC which are auto entered & paid when due. This seems

    • Closing Accounting Periods - Invoice/Posting dates

      Hi, I have seen in another thread but I'm unsure on how the 'transaction locking' works with regards to new and old transactions. When producing monthly accounts if I close December 24 accounts on 8th Jan 25 will transaction locking prevent me from posting

    • Invoice status on write-off is "Paid" - how do I change this to "Written off"

      HI guys, I want to write off a couple of outstanding invoices, but when I do this, the status of the invoices shows as "Paid". Clearly this is not the case and I need to be able to see that they are written off in the customer's history. Is there a way

    • Reverse Charge Services (Non-EU) Showing Correctly in 84/85 and 67, But Missing in Box 46 - Germany

      Hi, I'm located in Germany and I’ve set up my expenses for non-EU services (e.g., OpenAI, DeepSeek) under the reverse charge mechanism (§ 13b UStG) in Zoho Books, and I noticed some discrepancies in the VAT Summary Report. What’s Correct: Reverse Charge

    • Zoho Live Chat/Support

      What is going on with Zoho support lately? I've tried to use the live chat feature 4 different times and it refuses to connect to any (despite waiting over 30 minutes one of the tries). I finally gave up and emailed my question nearly a week ago and still

    • Can we have a module to records Certificate No and TDS rates for Lower TDS Certificates by the vendors ?

      Can we have a module to records Certificate No and TDS rates for Lower TDS Certificates by the vendors ?

    • Tip #38- Track Organizational Changes: A Guide to Using Action Log Viewer- 'Insider Insights'

      Hello Zoho Assist Community! Ever needed to trace who did what and when within your remote support operations? Let’s say your support team is growing, and you want to monitor key activities like settings updates, user invites, module changes, or permission

    • Tip of the Week #67– Avoid confusion – Mark duplicate threads.

      When customers send the same message to multiple email addresses, such as support@ and sales@, your team may end up seeing the same message in different inboxes. This creates confusion, risks double replies, and clutters your workspace. Use the Mark as

    • Tax in Quote

      Each row item in a quote has a tax value.  At the total numbers at the bottom, there is also a Tax entry. If you select tax in both of the (line item, and the total), the tax doubles. My assumption is that the Tax total should be totalling the tax from

    • Final Reminder: Discontinuation of Older ASAP Widgets and Mobile SDK Support

      We launched the new ASAP Help Widget last year, introducing a unified and enhanced experience. Since then, older configurations have been placed in read-only mode, with all major updates and improvements built exclusively on the new version. As part of

    • Zoho Subscriptions -- Zoho Commerce integration

      Is there integration between Zoho Subscriptions and Zoho Commerce? I would like to create subscription plans in Zoho Subscritpions and list them for on my Zoho Commerce store.

    • Website show Blank white screen

      Customer called me to tell me my website is currently down upon review it shows a white screen however I can access everything via editor. JITCADCAM.com

    • How manufacturing analytics can transform your enterprise with Zoho Projects Plus

      Did you know that every single car is made up of 30,000 to 40,000 individual parts? All of these are manufactured meticulously in various facilities before being assembled into one. The global manufacturing industry spans a wide range from delivering

    • Projects custom colors replaced by default orange

      Since yesterday, projects uploaded to Zoho, to which I had assigned a custom color, have lost the customization and reverted to the default color (orange). Has anyone else had the same problem? If so, how did you resolve it?

    • Customize your SalesIQ live chat with Custom CSS and blend it with your website design

      Hi everyone. Hope you all are having a great day! SalesIQ offers various inbuilt customization choices for your chat widget and window like changes in colour, theme, font etc. Although these choices are many, sometimes they may not match with the design

    • From Email Address When Replaying to Missed Chats

      One of the most common things we do is follow up on every missed chat.  Missed chats are like money in the bank, people just waiting for your response and to start a relationship with our companies. However, SalesIQ only lets you respond from 1 email address from your entire account?! We have happily paid for 4 subscriptions, but our users cannot reply from their own email address?  How are we supposed to build customer relationships? The fix to this issue is so simple, just load in the logged in

    • how to treat a same person as customer and vendor in zoho

      hi team, in my company, few persons acting as creditors as well as debtors (which means sometimes we pay them... some times we paid by them). in that case i would like to maintain a same ledger for that person.in zoho books it is treating creditor and

    • Narrative 6 - The impact of rebranding

      Behind the scenes of a successful ticketing system - BTS Series Narrative 6 - The impact of rebranding Every organization has invested in branding to set itself apart, and that should be reflected in the help desk. Zoho Desk enables organizations to apply

    • custom color palette for picklist in Sheet

      Migrating over from Google Sheets and missing the ability to customize the individual item colors of my picklist/dropdown menus. Is this something that is possible? A search showed me creating a custom color palette in Analytics is possible but I am not

    • What's New - July 2025 | Zoho Backstage

      Start smart, end strong. From knowing who’s coming to celebrating who showed up, July’s updates help you run events that feel organized from the first invite to the final thank you. Planning an event used to be like writing a choose-your-own-adventure

    • Image Upload Field API get encrypted ID and sequence number

      Hello is there a way to extract the encrypted id and sequence number from image upload fields through the Zoho CRM API? I created a custom script with javascript within Zoho CRM, but I want to extract the encrypted id and sequence number for all my images

    • Next Page