Skip to content
English
  • There are no suggestions because the search field is empty.

How to Configure Storefront Rewards

Set up branded, login-free reward redemption for your advocates, from your custom domain to your automations.

Overview

Storefront Rewards gives each advocate a unique, personal redemption link where they can see their balance and choose the reward they want. There's no portal login required, which makes redeeming quick and easy for your advocates.

This article starts with a checklist you can use to track your progress, followed by step-by-step instructions for each item.

Before you start

  1. Storefront needs to be included in your Ambassador plan. If you don't see it under Fulfillment Methods, reach out to support@getambassador.com and we'll help you check.
  2. Most steps are completed by an Admin or other user on your team with applicable Edit permissions. A few involve others: your Domain/DNS administrator for step 1, and the Ambassador team for step 9 (and step 10 if you need a custom webhook).
  3. You can work on step 1 alongside everything else. It just needs to be finished before you fulfill your first reward with Storefront.

Configuration checklist

  1. Create a custom Storefront domain (recommended), such as rewards.yourdomain.com.

  2. Enable Storefront as a Fulfillment Method.

  3. Configure Storefront Settings for verification and display.

  4. Create a Reward Rule for each campaign with a reward expiration period, and assign it to the campaign.

  5. Configure the Reward Catalog items you want to offer, such as gift cards, coupon codes, PayPal, Shopify gift cards, or custom items.

  6. Create a Payment Vault for each reward type and assign it to the right campaigns.

  7. Set up low-balance notifications for Tango.

  8. Create your Email or SMS templates.

  9. Configure your Automations with the Ambassador team.

  10. Configure the Fulfillment Completed webhook (optional).

Step 1: Create a custom Storefront domain (recommended)

A custom subdomain lets you brand the Storefront redemption link so it matches your website. For example, rewards.yourdomain.com, or rwrd.yourdomain.com if you'd like something shorter. Without a custom domain, your advocates will see an Ambassador domain in their Storefront link.

For instructions, see How to set up a custom Storefront domain.

Step 2: Enable Storefront

  1. Go to Rewards & Payments > Fulfillment Methods.
  2. Find Storefront and click the toggle to enable it.

If Storefront isn't listed, contact support@getambassador.com. We'll confirm whether it's included in your agreement and just needs to be turned on, or whether it requires an upgrade.

Step 3: Configure Storefront Settings

Once Storefront is enabled, click Settings to set up verification and customize how Storefront looks. These settings apply to every campaign that fulfills rewards with Storefront.

Two-Factor Authentication

Choose the contact field(s) an advocate must enter to verify their identity before redeeming. We recommend Email. Advocates can't change their own email address. Only a team member with the right permissions in Ambassador, or someone using your API credentials, can update it.

Note: The security question is optional, but we highly recommend it as an extra layer of protection. Without it, a person or bot that gets hold of a valid Storefront link could redeem the available balance and view reward credentials (such as gift card details) in the Transactions tab. If you choose not to use a security question, we strongly recommend turning off the Transactions tab so those credentials stay hidden.

Storefront Logo

Upload your logo to brand the verification screen and the Storefront experience.

Customize Dashboard Tab (Reward Metrics)

Choose which reward metrics appear on the Storefront Dashboard tab based on your reward type (cash or points), and customize the labels if you'd like. Keep in mind that points, coupon codes, and custom items always calculate to a cash value based on your points-to-dollar setting, Reward Catalog item settings, and currency.

Customize Display Options

  • Theme: Choose light or dark mode.
  • Title for Transactions Tab: Keep this enabled to show advocates a history of their earned and redeemed transactions, or disable it to hide the tab.
  • Show Logout Tab: Keep this enabled to give advocates a way to log out. If it's disabled, they'll be logged out automatically after 30 minutes of inactivity.
  • Link Color: Match the links in Storefront to your brand colors.
  • Login:
    • Custom Copy: An optional short message shown on the login screen, above the login fields. Use it to thank your advocates or explain where to find their reward details.
    • Colors: Apply your brand colors to the Storefront verification and code screens. Even if you don't expect advocates to see these screens often, we recommend branding them just in case.

Click Save when you're done.

Step 4: Create a Reward Rule for each campaign

Reward Rules let you limit how much someone can earn in a campaign and set an expiration period, so unused Storefront cash or points return to your budget.

Each campaign that uses Storefront needs a Reward Rule with an expiration period of no more than 365 days. Most teams choose 183 days (6 months) or 365 days (12 months).

Keep in Mind:

  • The expiration period starts when a cash or points reward is fulfilled with Storefront.
  • Each campaign needs its own Reward Rule. Rules can't be shared or reassigned, but you can clone an existing rule for another campaign.

To create or update a Reward Rule:

  1. Go to Rewards & Payments > Reward Rules.
  1. Check the table for an existing rule for the campaign you plan to use with Storefront.
    • If one exists, select it and click Edit next to Contact Limits.
    • If not, click Create Reward Rules. Name the rule after your campaign and add a description.
  2. Scroll to the Reward expiration field, enter the number of days before unused rewards expire, and click Save.

To assign a new Reward Rule to a campaign:

  1. Go to Programs & Campaigns, select your Program, then select your Campaign.
  2. Click Edit. In the modal, click Rewards at the top, then click the Reward Rules section to open the dropdown.
  3. Select the new rule and click Save.

Step 5: Configure your Reward Catalog

Next, set up every type of reward you want to offer in Storefront across all of your campaigns. This might include Tango gift cards, coupon codes, PayPal, Shopify gift cards, or custom items.

  1. Go to Rewards & Payments > Reward Catalog.
  2. For each reward type, click Configure and follow the prompts.

Keep in mind:

  • Configure everything you might want to offer in any campaign. You'll narrow down which rewards each campaign can access with Payment Vaults in the next step.
  • For Tango gift cards, select all the cards you want available. You can limit specific cards per campaign in your Payment Vault settings.

Step 6: Create a Payment Vault for each reward type

Payment Vaults control which rewards are available in each campaign. Create one vault per reward type (Tango, PayPal, Shopify, Custom, and Coupon Codes), then assign each vault to the campaigns that should have access.

  1. Go to Rewards & Payments > Payment Vaults and click Create Payment Vault.
  2. Follow the prompts to select your reward items and set any rules.
  3. Click Save.
  4. Go to each applicable campaign and assign the vault in the Rewards tab, using the same path you used for Reward Rules in step 4.

Keep in mind:

  • To limit a reward to specific campaigns, assign its vault only to those campaigns.
  • You can also set a budget and rules within a vault that apply when advocates redeem rewards from it, such as:
    • An all-time maximum redemption amount per contact
    • A minimum balance required before an advocate can redeem
    • A low-budget alert amount, if you've set a budget

Step 7: Set up low-balance notifications

Low-balance notifications give your team plenty of time to add funds before you run out.

By default, you can set a low-balance threshold for Tango in the Reward Catalog. When your Tango balance reaches that amount, Ambassador emails the Primary Account Owner and shows an in-app notification.

To notify other team members too:

  1. Make sure each person is added as a team member in Admin & Configuration > Users & Roles.
  2. Go to Admin & Configuration > Notifications and click Add a Notification.
  3. Select Email, then Every Time.
  4. Under When this Happens, select Tango available balance reaches.
  5. In Balance Threshold, enter the dollar amount that should trigger the notification.
  6. In Email, select the team members who should be notified, then click Save.

Note: Low-inventory notifications for Coupon Codes and Custom Items are coming soon.

Step 8: Create your Email or SMS templates

If you're using Ambassador to send Storefront notifications, you'll need a few transactional templates. We recommend starting from our templates, since they already include the required merge tags, and customizing from there. In step 9, you'll connect them as outcomes in your Automations.

Note: Send gift card deliveries by email rather than SMS. They include detailed instructions and brand disclaimers that would be split across multiple text messages for a single delivery.

Where to create templates

  • Email: Go to Communication Channels > Emails and create a new email from a template or from scratch.
  • SMS: Go to Communication Channels > SMS and create a new message from a template or from scratch.

Message 1: Storefront Fulfillment Notification

This message lets advocates know they have a reward waiting. It should include their Storefront link, reward amount, expiration date, and instructions for redeeming. At a minimum, include these merge tags:

  • {storefront_link_url} is the advocate's unique Storefront link.
  • {fulfillment_total_amount} is the amount fulfilled to Storefront in this transaction.
  • {expiration_date} is the date unused reward credits from this transaction will expire.

Also recommended: {first_name} and your share link tags ({var.sharelink.1}, {var.sharelink.2}, {var.sharelink.3}, {var.sharelink.4}) to encourage more referrals.

Message 2: Storefront Redemption Delivery Notification

Create one for each reward type offered in your Storefront. This message delivers the reward the advocate chose, or, for PayPal and Custom Items, lets them know how they'll receive it. Here are the required and recommended merge tags for each type:

  • Gift Card: Required: {card_name}, {card_amount}, {card_credentials}, {card_instructions}, and {card_disclaimers}. Recommended: {redemption_date}.
  • Coupon Code: Required: {coupon_code}. Recommended: {reward_item_name}, {reward_item_value}, {redemption_date}, and instructions for using the code.
  • PayPal: Recommended: {reward_item_value} for the amount redeemed and {redemption_date}. We also suggest including a message like this: "You'll receive a separate email from PayPal to accept and deposit this amount into your account. Be sure to accept it within 30 days, or PayPal will cancel it."
    • This notification is optional, but recommended. PayPal sends its own email to the advocate's PayPal email on file in Ambassador, or to their contact email if there isn't one. Sending a notice from your brand lets advocates know to expect PayPal's email, so they don't mistake it for phishing.
  • Custom: Recommended: {reward_item_name}, {reward_item_value} for the amount redeemed, and {redemption_date}. We also suggest explaining how and when they'll receive the item, such as by mail or as a credit to their account.

Also recommended: {first_name} and your share link tags ({var.sharelink.1}, {var.sharelink.2}, {var.sharelink.3}, {var.sharelink.4}) to encourage more referrals.

Message 3: Unredeemed Reward Reminder (recommended)

Send an automated reminder to advocates with unclaimed Storefront rewards, such as "You have rewards expiring in 30 days." The tags you need depend on how the reminder is triggered:

  • When a reward is about to expire in X days, or is still unredeemed X days after fulfillment:
    • Required: {storefront_link_url}, {expiring_reward_balance}, {reward_expiration_date}
  • On a specific date, for all advocates with unredeemed Storefront rewards:
    • Required: {storefront_link_url}, plus {cash_balance} or {points_balance}
    • Recommended: {next_expiring_reward_balance}, {next_reward_expiration_date}. If an advocate has unredeemed rewards with different expiration dates, these tags show the balance and date that expire next.

Also recommended: {first_name} and your share link tags ({var.sharelink.1}, {var.sharelink.2}, {var.sharelink.3}, {var.sharelink.4}) to encourage more referrals.

Step 9: Configure your Automations

Once your templates are ready, the Ambassador team will work with you to set up Automations that fit your program. These typically cover:

  • When to create rewards (cash or points)
  • When to approve or deny rewards, if that isn't handled in the same Automation that creates them
  • When to fulfill an approved reward with Storefront and send a notification by email, SMS, or webhook
  • When an advocate redeems their Storefront balance, so they receive a delivery notification with their chosen reward (we recommend email for this one)
  • When to send reminders for unredeemed Storefront rewards that are about to expire

Step 10: Configure webhooks (optional)

If you'd like to deliver or store Storefront links in your own application, your IT team can use the Fulfillment Completed webhook. It triggers whenever a reward is fulfilled, and for Storefront fulfillments it includes the advocate's unique Storefront link.

You have two options:

  • Standard setup: Go to Admin & Configuration > Notifications, create a new webhook that triggers any time a reward is fulfilled, and complete the configuration.
  • Custom setup: If you need to customize when the webhook triggers or what it sends, the Ambassador team can help your IT team set up an Automation with the right trigger, such as "When a reward is fulfilled."

Test before you go live

That's it, you're all set up! Before fulfilling real rewards, we recommend running a quick end-to-end test. Fulfill a test reward, open the Storefront link, verify, redeem, and confirm each notification arrives as expected.

Note: Testing with cash items like gift cards, PayPal or Stripe ACH requires real funds, so we recommend testing with a small $1 reward.

Tax Form Management

Are you fulfilling rewards in USD and planning to issue $2,000 or more to an advocate in a calendar year? If so, you may need Tax Form Management. Learn more about Tax Form Management, and talk with your Ambassador team to make sure you're in compliance.

Questions? Email support@getambassador.com.

Related articles