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Promo Codes

How to setup and manage promo codes in Duel

Promo codes are codes your advocates use or share: as referral codes, as rewards for reaching a tier, or as rewards for challenges. This guide covers the code types, how to set them up, and how to top up, expire or retract them.

On this page
Overview · Setup · Video walkthroughs · Managing codes · Expiring codes · Retracting a referral code

Overview

🚨 Set up every code in your online store first. Each code must be active in your store and tested by your team. Duel doesn't control a code's rules: the settings in your dashboard are for tracking and rewarding only.

Changing a code after it's set up can affect how your program works. Let your Programme Operator (PO) know about any planned changes first.

Types of promo codes

TypeWhat it is
ActionThe most common type. Codes are created in your store, then uploaded to Duel in batches. Each advocate gets one code per action, for example per tier reached or challenge completed.
PersonalOne code per advocate. Duel can create them automatically from each advocate's display name, with an optional affix.
Hyper PersonalizedEach advocate gets a code you choose, imported as a CSV of codes and advocate emails. See Hyper Personalized Referral Codes.
UniversalOne general-use code that every advocate with access shares.

How codes are given to advocates

HowWhere you set it upWhere advocates see it
Referral ruleAdvocates › Referrals & Affiliates, on the rule (see Referrals & Affiliates)The Referrals & Affiliates card under Overview in your portal
Tier rewardAdvocates › Groups › your group › Tiers › Post-unlock promotionsThe Rewards tab in your portal
ChallengeIn the challenge builder: Completion Settings › Promo Code › ConfigureWith the challenge

Promo Code with the Configure button under Completion Settings when creating a challenge

Setup

📚 Before you start, read Promo Code Creation Best Practices.

  1. Go to the place that matches how you want to give out the codes (see the table above) and add a promotion.
  2. Fill in the settings below.
  3. Click Save in the window, then Save at the top of the page.

Promotion window with Type, Discount type, Promo code creation and Redemption limit

The settings

Type: Action, Personal or Universal (see the types above).

Discount type: what the code offers.

  • Amount: a fixed amount off, in the currency you choose.
  • Percentage: a percentage off the order total.
  • Free shipping

Promo code creation: how the codes get into Duel.

  • Import from file: upload a batch of codes you've already created in your store, as a CSV with the word code in the first cell and one code per row below it.
  • Automatic: Duel creates the codes, with an optional prefix and the number of codes to generate. They then need to be set up in your store.

📄 Download the CSV template for importing codes.

Redemption limit (Per promo code): how many times Duel counts each code.

  • Unlimited: Duel tracks and rewards every redemption.
  • Fixed: Duel stops tracking and rewarding after the number you set.
  • Renew code after redemption limit is reached: for referral codes, advocates get a fresh code once theirs reaches the limit. This can help with code leaks.

The redemption limit only controls tracking in Duel. The code's real limits are set in your store, so we recommend matching them.

Start date and End date: when the promotion starts and ends in Duel, and codes go out to the right advocates.

Reusing a promotion on several referral rules

For Referrals & Affiliates, you can use the same batch of codes on several rules, so advocates keep the same code as they move up through the tiers.

  1. Create the first batch on one rule, as above.
  2. On each other rule, click Add promotion and choose Use existing promotion.
  3. Search for the promotion by name or ID, select it and save the page.

Add promotion window with Use existing promotion and a search for the promotion

Video walkthroughs

Setting up referral codes

For the full setup, see Referrals & Affiliates.

Setting up tier reward codes

  1. Make a CSV with the word code in the first cell and your codes below it. The codes must already be active in your store.
  2. Go to Advocates › Groups and open the group.
  3. In Tiers, find the tier and click Add promotion under Post-unlock promotions.
  4. Set the Type to Action and choose the discount.
  5. Choose Import from file, click Import codes (.csv) and upload your file.
  6. Set the redemption limit (for example Fixed with a limit of 1) and any start or end date.
  7. Click Save in the window, then Save at the top of the page.

When an advocate reaches the tier, their code appears in the Rewards tab of your portal.

Setting up Hyper Personalized referral codes

See Hyper Personalized Referral Codes for the steps, a CSV template and a narrated video.

Managing codes

Once your codes are set up, you manage them in Promotions.

🔔 There's a built-in Unredeemed promo code system notification that reminds advocates about older codes they haven't used. See Notifications.

Topping up codes

When a batch is running low, get a fresh batch of codes ready in your store, then add them to the existing promotion:

  1. Go to Promotions and open the promotion.
  2. On the Edit tab, click Import more codes (.csv) and upload the file.
  3. Click Save.

Expiring codes

⁉️ Speak to your Programme Operator (PO) before expiring or retracting any codes. If a code's terms change, it's usually better to update the rules in your store and keep the code in your program, because taking codes away from advocates can be a poor experience for them.

To expire a batch: go to where it was set up (see how codes are given to advocates), hover over the promotion and click the ❌. If codes from it have already been given out, Duel asks you to confirm, because removing the promotion retracts them.

To invalidate specific action codes in bulk: use Invalidate codes on the Promotions page. See Bulk Invalidate Promotion Codes with a CSV Upload.

Expired promotions are listed on the Expired tab in Promotions.

Retracting an individual referral code

If an advocate's referral code has leaked, for example on a coupon website, you can retract it.

  1. Go to Promotions and open the promotion the code belongs to.
  2. On the Code distribution tab, find the code with Search codes or Filter by advocate.
  3. Click the three dots next to the code, then Retract code.
  4. Choose Retract code to retract just the code, or Retract code and remove associated points/commission to also remove the rewards earned with it.
  5. Click Retract code to confirm.

🚨 This can't be undone. Retracted codes can't be reinstated, and removed points or commission can't be recovered. Act quickly when you spot a leak.

📚 To reduce leaks in the first place, see Reducing Referral Code Leaks.