4 Best Referral Marketing Software API

Word of mouth might be the oldest marketing tactic, but there hasn't been a better time to capitalize on it than in these modern times. With widespread connectivity and dynamic sharing, companies are registering massive returns on investments and unprecedented brand popularity.

Any startup regardless of its niche or capital resource can go global, as long as it harnesses technology to its advantage. For a referral marketing program to bring you growth, it should be managed smartly. With so much going on the side, let referral marketing software tackle your marketing campaigns to improve efficiency.

But what’s the best referral software for your enterprise? Seeing the popularity, many referral marketing solutions have risen to dominance in recent years, each driven towards a specific industry.  To know whether referral software is feasible for your business model or not depends on the API it harbors.

What is a Referral Marketing Software API?

API or Application Programming Interface is a designated code that sets off communication between two programming systems. With API, marketers can merge different platforms with each other and combine functionalities to carry out a common task.

In the context of referral marketing, API allows third-party developers or businesses to integrate the referral software into their existing tech systems or workflows and leverage its features within their own jurisdiction.

To put it simply, an API is like a tool that lets one software talk to another. Imagine you are running a referral program from your website, where customers endorse your business to friends and get rewards, but it’s turning into a hodge podge of leads. To streamline the program, you can simply use API to integrate referral software into your existing campaign, without starting from scratch.

How API Integration Helps a Referral Program?

Instituting API-based integrations in your referral program can bring about a series of benefits besides streamlining the campaign. API integration can improve the efficiency of your referral program in the following ways:

Seamless User Experience

API referral program integration allows businesses to embed referral program features directly into their websites, mobile apps, or software. New customers can easily access and participate in the program without being redirected to external pages or platforms, encouraging them to keep participating.

Real-Time Referral Tracking

Once integrated with a referral marketing API, you can track referrals and assign referral rewards in real time. When someone refers a friend or makes a purchase through a referral link, the data is instantly recorded and updated within the business's system, improving accuracy and transparency in the program.

Data Exchange and Personalization

API inherently bridges the gap between two programs - a referral system and a CRM system or email automation software. The shared data allows businesses to build accurate customer personas and personalize their marketing campaigns accordingly. From the product branding to the rewards offered for each share, businesses always tend to customer expectations.

How to Create a Referral Program with API?

Most referral campaigns on the internet are focused on a basic premise, “Refer your friends and you can both earn $20 credit on your next purchase.” But to institute it in your business, you first need to identify loyal customers - people who are ready to put in good word for your brand - and potential audience that they are most likely to pull in.

With the target demographic set and the audience shortlisted, you simply need to present them with your referral offers - a $25 discount credit on future purchases. Insert it as a referral widget to your homepage, share it on social platforms, and send targeted emails to potential referrers, utilize every tactic you have to announce your campaign.

Before going mainstream, it’s important to have referral-tracking software in place so you can start assigning unique codes to anyone who’s interested. These individual codes are then shared with contact lists of your existing clients to register their recommendations. When a person joins or places an order using that referral code, you qualify it as a successful referral.

Of course, managing every step manually requires superhuman effort. But platforms like Prefinery provide you with an easy way to execute your referral campaign while running the rest of your workflows in parallel.

4 Best Referral Marketing APIs in 2023

With an outbreak of automated referral platforms, marketers are often concerned about accessing the right API integration system. Being objective, a top-tier referral marketing API should be easy to integrate into a business's existing systems and workflows, while also providing clear documentation for seamless access.

Prefinery

Unlike many of its competitors, Prefinery automates your referral program from start to end, leaving nothing but supervision on your part. The platform equips developers and business owners with three smart API integrations to make the magic happen behind any referral campaign.

REST API

Instead of setting up your referral campaign with software from the ground up, Prefinery lets users read and write data to their Prefinery account from back-end code.

Every piece of information in a Prefinery-operated campaign, like a project or a user, has its own unique address on the internet. In case you’re relying on an existing referral template from Prefinery’s archive, you can easily mold it to your business model. If you want to add new information, change existing stuff, or remove something completely you can do it by inserting prompts to the API.

JavaScript Web API

Prefinery’s JavaScript API is inherently designed to add users, track and authenticate referrals, trigger rewards, and record impressions.

When you add a new user to your referral program, the API automatically verifies their identity for the current browser session, preventing all kinds of referral fraud. This means you don't have to manually authenticate them or provide a signature for future API requests.

As for the reward attribution, you can easily specify what reward referring or referred customers will receive when they complete a certain action such as referring a friend or purchasing the product. The JavaScript Web API can also help set up a leaderboard and record impressions of participants as they benefit through your campaign.

Webhooks

Imagine having a dedicated messenger that instantly notifies you when something important happens in your referral campaign. That's what Prefinery's Webhooks do. They're instant notifications that let your management software know about key events such as when a user signs up, invites a friend, or earns a reward.\

Prefinery’s webhooks API comes in handy:

• When a user joins your referral campaign
• If a user activates their account.
• When someone creates a referral.
• If a user decides to unsubscribe.
• When someone earns a reward.

Webhooks aren't just for one-way communication. They can also keep multiple systems working in harmony. For instance, when someone applies for your referral campaign, you can simultaneously add their details to your database and your CRM or email marketing software.

YotPo

The Yotpo Core API (version 3) is like a bridge that connects your online store to Yotpo, a platform that helps businesses gather customer reviews, ratings, and more.

Yotpo’s API lets you share important information from your store, such as orders, product details, and customer data. Why? So that you can use Yotpo's tools, like Reviews, Visual UGC (User-Generated Content), and SMS and email features, to make your business even better.

Besides the Core API, Yotpo also offers special APIs for specific tasks:

Loyalty & Referrals: If you want to create loyalty or referral programs for your customers, Yotpo has a special API just for that. It helps you integrate rewards into your business or app.

UGC (User-Generated Content): This API lets you grab information about reviews, products, users, and more. It's handy if you want to do more with the content your customers create.

If you're a developer or want to partner with Yotpo to build cool apps that work with their platform, you can access the "App Developer API". This can help you access and integrate publicly available apps that use Yotpo's features.

Extole

The Extole API is a versatile toolkit that empowers businesses to seamlessly integrate with Extole's platform, unlocking the full potential of referral marketing and customer engagement.

Extole's API integration methods are quick and flexible. Even startups with minimal technical resources can tailor an integration to their campaign objectives for long-term functionality. The platform’s API supports three different web integrations:

Extole’s JavaScript SDK

The JavaScript SDK is a popular integration method that seamlessly embeds Extole content and events directly into your website. It harbors a built-in Extole Core JavaScript Library that embeds into your website’s header, along with marketing and event-tracking tags to capture crucial program events and promote them.

With SDK, Extole’s users can access various functionalities like CTA delivery, share experience display, and referral event tracking. All you need to do is insert the extension to your webpage using a simple script tag.

REST API

The REST API complements the JavaScript SDK, allowing clients to establish a secure server-to-server connection for specific product launch events. The integration is ideal for sending secure or offline events to Extole, such as order shipments or financial account openings.

Not to mention, you can integrate with the Customer API, which is an end-user-to-server RESTful API, to build custom landing pages and experiences for your programs.

Files and SFTP Connections

If your business operates across multiple channels, including online, phone, and in-person, it is best to integrate with Extole by sending event files. The connection allows users to monitor and track various types of events simultaneously. Marketers can access complete flexibility to manually upload bulk event files or automate the process through My Extole or an SFTP server.

Referral Rock API

The Referral Rock API is a powerful tool that allows you to seamlessly integrate a referral program into your existing operating systems and workflows. Whether you're a B2C or B2B company, the API enlists smart built-in options to help you share referral data, track referral activities, enrich your referral program, and handle payouts effortlessly.

More importantly, it’s not exclusive to top-end clients. Anyone can access the robust APIs regardless of their subscribed Referral Rock subscription plan. Here’s what the Referral Rock API integration can bring to your business:

• Automatically add new advocates: As new advocates join your program, the API automatically creates and adds them to your referral program, reducing manual work and streamlining the onboarding process.
• Access referral lists for CRM integrations: You can retrieve a list of your referrals, sort them by creation date, or filter them based on specific referral programs and target demographics.
• Access performance data: Constantly monitor and review your performance through a designated dashboard. Gain insight into member’s sharing, referral, and reward activities and make improvements to your program accordingly.
• Automate Reward Triggers: With the Referral Rock API, marketers don’t need to verify and attribute rewards manually. You can trigger rewards based on changes in referral statuses without requiring intervention from your sales team.
• Personalize experiences for each advocate: Tailor the referral experience to your audience’s preference by creating a unique sharing experience. You can seamlessly embed the Referral Rock's Member Portal or Share Widget directly into your platform or app.

Closing Note

Referral marketing APIs are meant to empower businesses to boost their referral marketing efforts, boost brand awareness, and maximize their sales revenue in return.

Whether you're looking to automate referral mechanisms, gain valuable insights into your campaign fixtures, or seamlessly integrate with your existing workflows, the ideal referral API will set you up for growth. After considerable research and sifting through various referral platforms, we’ve outlined the top 4 referral marketing APIs you must incorporate into your business.

Understand that setting up a referral integration involves various technical viewpoints, each contributing to a particular faction. For SMBs looking to make it big, Prefinery supports robust, easy-to-use, and flexible integration systems that suit all niches.

FAQs

What is a referral marketing API, and how does it work?

A referral marketing API is a set of rules and protocols that allows businesses to integrate referral marketing functionality into their websites, applications, or systems. It enables the automation of referral programs, tracking of referrals and rewards, and the customization of referral experiences.

Why should I use a referral marketing API?

Using a referral marketing API can help your business leverage the power of word-of-mouth by launching a referral program. API integration automates the process of tracking referrals, issuing rewards, and analyzing program performance, ultimately driving customer acquisition and growth.