Introduction
In this article we'll cover the different parts of the VIP tiers, settings that can be configured, and how to make your VIP program a huge success.
Overview
Tier Settings
Entry Method
Decide how you want members to enter into your VIP tiers.
Points Earned: Choose this option if you'd like customers to progress based on the number of points they've accrued through your loyalty program.
Amount Spent: This option allows customers to advance based on their total expenditure in your store.
Number of Orders Placed: Select this if you want the number of orders a customer places to determine their VIP tier.
Program Start Date
Determine a launch date for your VIP tiers.
📝 Note: we can only account for customer activity from the point when the app was installed.
Expiration
Set how long you will allow customers to achieve a VIP tier. You can choose from the following:
A Lifetime: Most customer friendly. Program members have a lifetime to achieve
a tier.
A Full Calendar Year: Customers have from January to December to achieve a tier. If your program begins in the middle of the calendar year, they will have the entire calendar year after to achieve the next tier. On January 1, the customer must start from zero to accumulate the required amount for the next tier.
Rolling Year: Customers have 12 months from joining a tier to achieve the next tier.
📝 Note: Customers are not downgraded to a lower tier upon expiration. Instead, their progress is reset, and they must start accumulating the required amount for the next tier from zero within the new time frame.
Calendar Year Tier Configuration & Behavior
Overview
The Calendar Year expiration model runs from 1st January to 31st December.
How Calendar Year Works
1. Program Starts Mid–Calendar Year
If a program starts after 1st January, customers receive tier benefits until the end of the next full calendar year.
Example
Program start date: 1st April 2025
Tier benefits valid until: 31st December 2026
On 31st December 2026, our system will evaluate activity from:
1st January 2026 to 31st December 2026
Based on this activity, the customer’s tier is continued or downgraded on 1st Jan 2027.
And “Tier milestone” criteria will be reset on the widget for the customer based on activity between 1st Jan 2026 to 31st Dec 2026.
2. Program Starts on 1st January
If a program starts exactly on 1st January, customers receive tier benefits for that same calendar year.
Example
Program start date: 1st January 2025
Tier benefits valid until: 31st December 2025
On 1st January 2026, our system will evaluate activity from:
1st January 2025 to 31st December 2025
Based on this evaluation, the customer’s tier is continued or downgrade on 1st Jan 2027.
And “Tier milestone” criteria will be reset on the widget for the customer based on activity between 1st Jan 2026 to 31st Dec 2026.
For Example
If a Brand set the following settings in Tiers:
Tier Start Date: 23rd October 2024
Expiration Type: Full Calendar Year
Tier Entry Method: Points Earned
Tier Structure
Base: 0 – 999 points
Silver: 1000 – 2399 points
Gold: 2400 – 2999 points
Platinum: 3000+ points
Customer Scenario Validation
Customer Signed up On: 24th October 2024
And Eaned points against the below activity
Sign-up Points: 24th October 2024 - 500 points
1st purchase: 25th October 2025 – 605 points
2nd purchase: 26th October 2025 – 749 points
3rd purchase: 27th October 2025 – 1025 points
Total points: 2879
Customers upgraded to the Gold tier on 27th Oct 2025 and enjoyed the benefits of Gold Tier until 31st Dec 2025.
On 1st Jan 2026 - our system will evaluate Customer activity between 1st Jan 2025 to 31st Jan 2025, which in this case is:
1st purchase: 25th October 2025 – 605 points
2nd purchase: 26th October 2025 – 749 points
3rd purchase: 27th October 2025 – 1025 points
Total Points earned = 2379
Hence, based on the above evaluation, our system will downgrade Customer from Gold tier to Silver Tier.
And the Tier Milestone is reset on the Widget for this Customer, as shown below.
Rolling Year Tier Configuration & Behavior
(Exact 365-Day Tier Benefits)
Overview
The Rolling Year expiration model grants tier benefits for an exact 365 days from the date a customer qualifies for a tier.
How Rolling Year Works
Tier validity is calculated on a rolling, day-by-day basis.
Each day, the system checks the customer’s activity from the previous 365 days.
If the customer continues to meet the tier criteria within this window, benefits remain active.
If not, the tier resets.
Example
A customer earns enough points to enter Gold tier on 24th December 2025.
Gold tier benefits remain valid until 23rd December 2026 (365 days).
On 24th December 2026, the system evaluates activity from:
25th December 2025 → 24th December 2026.Based on this evaluation, Gold tier benefits are either continued or downgraded.
For example
If a Brand set the following settings in Tiers:
Expiration Type: Rolling Year
Tier Start Date: 4th November 2024
Tier Entry Method: Number of orders placed
Tier Structure
Base: 0 orders
Silver: 2 orders
Gold: 3 orders
Customer Scenario Validation
Customer Sign-up on : 4th January 2025
And earned points against the below activity
4th Jan 2025 – $200.00 (1st order)
5th Jan 2025 – $949.95 (2nd order)
8th Jan 2025 – $699.95 (3rd order)
9th Jan 2025 – $885.95 (4th order)
Gold Tier Entry Date: 8th January 2025 (on completing 3 orders)
Customers upgraded to the Gold tier on 08th January 2025 and enjoyed the benefits for Gold Tier until 07th January 2026
Hence, based on the above evaluation, our system will downgrade Customer from Gold tier to Silver Tier.
And the Tier Milestone is reset on the Widget for this Customer, as shown below.
Adding VIP Tiers
Everyone will start with a base tier. All customers will automatically be put into the base tier unless you are migrating from another loyalty platform.
Typically, your base tier does not have a point multiplier - and customers in this tier will get points based on whatever points you have set for each purchase in your program setup. You can decide if the base tier will include other offerings or benefits. You should rename your base tier and add a different icon to fit your brand.
In the Tier Section, click "Add VIP Tier"
Name the Tier
Add the Tier entry threshold
Add an icon to match your branding
Configure VIP Tiers
Click "Edit" next to the tier name to configure tier settings.
Override Tier Goal
Use customer tags to automatically put customer groups into tiers. This feature can help you reward active subscribers or create a tier for your brand ambassadors.
Tier Benefits
Customers will be shown tier benefits to help motivate them to work towards the next tier. Benefits can be any type of reward you wish to offer to your customers. This could be early access to sales, an exclusive social media group, birthday gifts, and more!
📋 Note: Some bespoke perks (like early access to sales) are handled outside of your rediem program, so make sure it's something that you can set up within your store's promotional system
Free Shipping
Free shipping is a huge motivator as a VIP tier benefit. You can decide which tiers get this benefit and if a minimum purchase amount is required. You might offer the benefit to both the second and third highest tiers but have a lower free shipping spend threshold for the top tier.
Point Multiplier
Point multipliers are a great way to motivate customers to achieve a higher tier! This means that customers could get double or even triple the points for the same purchase by being in a higher tier. These are all based on the points for purchase settings you have for the loyalty program. If you have the program set up with 5 points for every $1 spent, that is what people in the base tier will earn. At a higher tier, if there is a 2x multiplier, members will earn 10 points for every $1 spent.
The most common setup is three tiers, with a 1.5x multiplier at the second-highest tier and a 2x multiplier at the highest tier.
Tier Tags
Once a customer enters a tier, the tier tag will be added to their rediem and Shopify profiles, as well as sync with third-party integrations. If the customer moves up or down a tier based on their spend or earning behavior, they will retain only the tag of their current tier.