Before jumping in, be sure to read the Overview of Smart Links to understand the full benefits of Smart Links. This feature is currently in beta. If you don't see the Smart Link feature in your program settings, reach out to [email protected] to inquire about participating in the beta.
We’re excited to announce the beta release of Smart Links! This new feature is designed to give your ambassadors more flexibility and control over their referral links while providing brands with powerful tools to track performance and gain insights. Smart Links allow brands to create branded, data-rich referral links that are easy to share and track, offering greater insight into the impact of individual ambassadors.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Adding a Smart Link to a program will replace program members' existing referral links with Smart Links. Let's first navigate to the program settings where we'll configure each of these three parts of a smart link one at a time.
Sign into your Roster account.
Navigate to the program settings for the desired program.
Click on the Referral's tab.
Click on the Add Smart Link button within the Smart Link section.
🛑 If you don't see the Smart Link section in the Referrals tab, then your account isn't in the Smart Links beta program. Contact [email protected] for assistance.
Upon clicking the Add Smart Link button, the Smart Link modal will appear. It is comprised of three sections, which will go through on at a time.
Destination URL
Link Appearance
Customer Discount
1. Configuring the Destination URL
Destination URL: This is the website customers will land on when they click an ambassador’s Smart Link. Most brands set this to their store’s homepage, but you can use a collection, a product page, or any custom landing page.
Dynamic Path Parameters: You can append path parameters to the URL for dynamic routing. For example, if you wanted to have custom landing pages for each of your ambassadors, you could add
/{{FullName}}as a path parameter, which would redirect to a URL such ashttps://yourbrand.com/pages/AliceJones
URL Parameters: Add UTM and other URL parameters to help track the effectiveness of your Smart Links across different channels. Brands can add standard UTM parameters or custom key-value pairs to track specific metrics or to unlock additional parameter-driven functionality to referral links.
Dynamic URL Parameters: Similar to Dynamic Path Parameters, the Dynamic URL Parameters allow you to add ambassador-specific values to their destination URLs. Options include:
Ambassador ID - A unique, numeric identifier assigned by Roster to each ambassador. E.g. 21456.
Referral ID - A unique value that allows Roster to identify the owner of a referral link or smart link. See the options in the Link Appearance section for setting the Default Referral ID and determining whether ambassadors can further customize their referral IDs.
Full Name - The ambassadors full name, with spaces and special characters removed. E.g. A link belonging to Alice Jones would have a value of
AliceJones.
Attribution Window: Set the duration for which a click on a Smart Link will attribute conversions to the ambassador. By default, this is set to 30 days, but you can customize it on a program-by-program basis to suit your needs.
Destination URL Preview: This preview allows you to see how the final URL will appear, ensuring it is correct and includes all necessary parameters.
💡 If you are using the Roster short link option (see the Link Appearance section), the destination URL and URL parameters can be changed at any time without requiring ambassadors to update their social bios, LinkTrees, etc.
2. Configuring the Link Appearance
Link Appearance: This is how an ambassador’s Smart Link will appear when shared in social bios, Linktree, with friends, etc. Options for the link appearance include:
Roster Short Link: This is the recommended option, as it provides a compact, branded, and future-proof referral link. Roster's short domain is
rstr.co. The fully generated referral link includes your brand's handle and ambassadors' referral ID, e.g.,rstr.co/yourbrand/1234. Using the Roster Short Link allows you to change any of the Destination URL and Customer Discount options without affecting ambassadors existing links they may have shared publicly.Destination URL: Use the full destination URL for ambassadors, including all parameters. The main benefit of this option is that it uses your brands' domain as the referral link, e.g,
https://yourbrand.com) but comes at the cost of potentially long and unsightly links (e.g.,https://yourbrand.com/?rstr=12345&platform=roster&ls=avg2-fae5-7jeag&lv=avx&utm_source=organic-referral&utm_campaign=jane-doe-12345&utm_medium=ambassador.Brand Subdomain: Optionally, use a subdomain specific to your brand for a more customized link, e.g.,
https://ap.yourbrand.com/1234. Email [email protected] to inquire about using this option.
Default Referral ID: Define how the ambassador's initial referral ID will appear in their referral links. This setting will not override ambassadors' existing customized referral IDs, e.g., if Alice has already customized her default referral ID from 1234 to AliceJones, changing the Default Referral ID will not change her referral ID.
Unique Number (Recommended): This is the default option in Roster, which uses a unique numeric value to identify an ambassador. We recommend this as a good starting point, as it doesn't put any user-identifiable info in ambassadors' referral links.
Unique Letters & Numbers: Similar to Unique Number, but generates a unique string of numbers and letters.
Custom Value + Unique Numbers: Combine a custom value with unique numbers for added personalization. When this option is selected, you are able to provide a default or dynamic custom value, such as
ambassadoror{{FullName}}.
Customizable Referral ID: Allows ambassadors to customize their Referral ID with a unique alphanumeric value, such as their name, Instagram handle, or other self-identifying value. Examples of when brands have opted to prevent ambassadors from customizing their referral link include 1) a cell phone carrier who wanted ambassadors' referral IDs to be their 10-digit mobile number (to make it easy for ambassadors to remember their referral link URLs) and 2), a social networking app who wanted their ambassadors' referral IDs to be their network handle.
Link Preview: A preview showing how the referral link will appear, ensuring the branding and formatting are correct.
3. Adding a Customer Discount
Customer Discount: Decide whether to apply a discount for customers using an ambassador's Smart Link. This feature is currently available to Shopify stores using Shopify's Online Store channel as the storefront.
Don’t Apply a Customer Discount: No discount will be applied to purchase made from an ambassador's Smart Link.
Leakproof Code (Recommended): This is the recommended option to applying a customer discount if your brand has experienced unwanted leaking of ambassadors shareable (aka vanity) discount codes. When selected, Roster will automatically generate single-use, randomized discount code at checkout to prevent misuse and ensure discounts are only applied when intended.
Shareable Code: When selected, Roster will automatically ambassadors' program-level shareable code to customers' shopping carts. Prior to Smart Links, this option was available by enabling the "Automatically Apply Shareable Discount Code" on the Shareable Code setting itself.
Campaign Links by Veeper: Not to be confused with Roster's campaign feature, Campaign Links by Veeper is a feature offered by Veeper, a Shopify app that provides multiple options to combatting leaked discount codes. This is a great option if you already using Veeper or would like advanced code leaking features like preventing browser plugins like Honey from injecting discount codes into customers' carts at checkout.
4. Enable the Smart Link
Once all required sections are completed, you can enable the Smart Link for your program. This will automatically generate unique links for all ambassadors in the program.
Notifying Program Members
When a program's Smart Link is added or edited, you will be given the option to notify ambassadors of the changes via a pre-built email template. This ensures they have the most up-to-date links and can make any necessary updates to where their links are shared.
Ready to Empower Your Ambassadors?
We’re thrilled to see how you and your ambassadors make use of this powerful new feature. As this is a beta release, we’d love to hear your feedback and suggestions for improvement.
If you have any questions or need assistance, please reach out to our customer success team at [email protected].