Member Get Member in Italy: Turn Customers into a Growth and Loyalty Channel
What if one of your most effective customer acquisition channels was already inside your CRM?
A Member Get Member programme, commonly referred to as a referral programme, encourages existing customers to introduce new prospects or customers to a brand, usually in exchange for a benefit when predefined conditions are met.
The concept is simple. The strategic opportunity is much broader: referral can connect customer acquisition, CRM and loyalty within the same programme.
Why customer referrals deserve more attention
Word of mouth has always influenced purchasing decisions, but companies can now track referral behaviour much more accurately.
Recent research highlighted by Harvard Business Review, based on an analysis of more than 10 million consumers, suggests that referred customers can generate a disproportionately high share of the profits associated with new customers. They can cost less to acquire, remain customers longer and generate additional referrals.
Research published in the Journal of Marketing Research also identifies a “referral contagion” effect: customers acquired through referrals are themselves more likely to refer additional customers, creating potential downstream value that traditional acquisition metrics can overlook.
This makes referral more than a promotional tactic. It can become a measurable growth channel.
From “refer a friend” to customer acquisition
A successful Member Get Member programme should begin with a clear business objective.
What exactly should trigger the reward?
It could be a registration, a qualified lead, a quotation request, a subscription or a completed purchase.
The difference is significant.
Rewarding customers simply for supplying contact details can generate volume but limited quality. Linking the incentive to a genuine customer action makes it easier to evaluate conversion rates and acquisition economics.
The programme should therefore be designed around the customer journey rather than around the reward alone.
Choosing the right reward
Referral incentives can include loyalty points, vouchers, products, upgrades, additional services or exclusive benefits.
The best reward is not necessarily the most expensive one.
Its value should be proportionate to the expected customer value and the behaviour the company wants to generate.
This means evaluating the programme using metrics such as Customer Acquisition Cost, conversion rate, Customer Lifetime Value and incremental margin.
A referral programme should ultimately generate profitable customers, not simply a high number of invitations.
Connecting referral programmes with CRM
CRM is essential to understanding what happens after a referral.
Companies should be able to identify the referring customer, connect the new prospect to the referral source and follow the subsequent journey.
How many invitations become leads? How many leads become customers? What is their average value? Do referred customers remain active longer? Do they subsequently generate new referrals?
These questions turn Member Get Member from a short-term promotion into a customer value strategy.
Privacy also matters
Referral programmes require particular attention to personal data.
A customer having a friend’s email address or telephone number does not automatically mean that the company can use those details for direct marketing.
The Italian Data Protection Authority has clarified that businesses wishing to send promotional communications directly to an individual’s contacts must comply with the applicable consent requirements.
A more robust customer journey may therefore allow the existing customer to share a referral link or code personally, leaving the prospective customer free to decide whether to interact with the brand.
Specific prize promotion rules apply in Italy
International businesses should consider another important element: Italy has specific legislation governing prize competitions and prize promotions.
The main framework is Presidential Decree No. 430/2001 and the relevant procedures are overseen by the Italian Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, or MIMIT.
Depending on how the referral incentive is structured, a Member Get Member programme may qualify as a regulated operazione a premio or another form of prize promotion.
For example, Italian rules define certain guaranteed-reward initiatives as prize operations when a benefit is promised to everyone meeting the conditions specified by the promoter. The exact classification depends on the programme mechanics and should therefore be assessed before launch.
This is particularly relevant for international companies extending a global referral programme to Italian customers.
One programme, two objectives
Member Get Member can address acquisition and retention at the same time.
It brings new customers into the business through an existing relationship of trust while recognising and rewarding customers who actively advocate for the brand.
CWMedia supports Italian and international companies in designing and managing Member Get Member and referral programmes in Italy, combining acquisition strategy, CRM, loyalty, technology, data management and assessment of the applicable Italian promotional requirements.
Sometimes the most valuable new customer is introduced by the customer you already have.
