Why most programs fail
A referral program sounds simple on a slide: "every client becomes a business introducer". In practice, it usually ends up as a spreadsheet, forgotten commissions, referees who don't know a bonus awaits them, and an accounting team grumbling every quarter.
We decided to ship a program that requires zero manual effort.
One link, one landing
Every Espero-Soft user has a unique referral link in their workspace. Sharing is one click: copy-paste, pre-configured social buttons (LinkedIn, WhatsApp, email), downloadable QR code. The tool tracks everything: impressions, clicks, conversions.
The link lands on a dedicated landing page that automatically shows the referrer's name and the referee bonus. No blind form, no generic campaign vibe: the visitor feels expected.
Referee bonus on signup
A referee signing up via a referral link immediately gets a welcome credit on their first subscription. The condition is simple (activate the account, confirm the email), automatically verifiable — so applied without human intervention.
In our internal tests, the referred landing converts 2–3× better than the generic landing.
Commission credited on paid invoice
On the referrer's side, the mechanic is critical: the commission is credited when the referee's invoice is paid, not on signup. Why? Because that's the only event that protects against abuse (dummy signups, unrenewed trials) and guarantees money going out maps to revenue actually collected.
Technically, as soon as an invoice flips to PAID and comes from a client brought in by a referrer, the commission lands automatically in their balance. A detailed history is available, invoice by invoice.
Proofs and history
Every event is recorded: link click, signup, first payment, commission credited, payout made. Two purposes:
- Trust — the referrer sees exactly what they earned, when and why.
- Audit — accounting can justify every euro paid out during a control.
Multilingual emails out of the box
Six transactional emails shipped in three languages (FR / NL / EN): referee welcome with bonus, referrer account activation, new referee signup notification, commission credited notification, monthly recap, payout confirmation. They're styled in the Espero-Soft brand and editable by admins.
Setup in five minutes
- Enable the program from the "Referral" tab in your workspace.
- Set the referee bonus and referrer commission (% or flat).
- Copy your link, share it.
No technical integration, no SDK. If you already use our invoicing module, commissions credit with zero extra setup.
What's next
Upcoming iterations: tiered commission (more you bring, higher the %), co-branded programs for large partners, and native integration with our contract module to auto-sign the referral agreement.
