In this article:
Overview
The Make a purchase rule awards points when a customer buys something from your online store. It is the rule most of your customers will earn from, so the rate you set here decides how quickly anyone reaches their first reward.
Earning rate
The earning rate sets how many points a customer gets for each unit of your store's currency they spend. A store set to US dollars awards points per $1, a store set to euros awards points per €1, and so on.
Success tip: we advise setting this rule to give between 1 and 5 points per unit spent.
If you have tiers enabled, you can set a different earning rate for each tier.
The earning rate accepts decimals, so you can set a rate such as 1.5 points per unit.
You can award more or fewer points for particular products, collections or subscription items by adding a Points Modifier, which is available on Plus plans or as an add-on.
Point calculation
Point calculation decides which parts of an order earn points on the Make a purchase rule. You will find it on the rule itself, under Customer gets.
Award points for subtotal is always on and cannot be turned off. Points are calculated from the price of the items in the order, after any discounts have been applied.
Award points for tax decides whether the tax on an order earns points too. It applies whether or not the tax is already inside the item price.
Shipping never earns points, on any plan or platform, and there is no setting to change that.
Whether tax earns points
Award points for tax starts in a different position depending on your store, so check it before you launch:
Stores in US dollars or Canadian dollars start with it off, because those markets normally price tax separately.
Stores in every other currency start with it on, because those markets normally price tax inside the item.
On Adobe Commerce (Magento) it is always on and cannot be changed, whatever your currency.
A customer buys $100 of items with $20 of sales tax added on top, so they pay $120. With the setting on they earn points on $120. With it off, on $100.
A customer buys £120 of items with VAT already included in the price. With the setting on they earn points on £120. With it off, on £100.
Approval period
The approval period holds a customer's points in a pending state for a set number of days after their order is paid. Pending points are visible to the customer in their history, but they cannot spend them until the period is over.
This protects you from a customer spending their points straight after a purchase and then returning the order. The field is optional, and it is empty on a rule you create yourself. The Make a purchase rule created when your site was first set up carries 14 days.
Here is what the period does for your retention journey:
Your customer makes a purchase in your store.
Their points go into a pending state, so for the number of days you set they cannot use them.
Once the points are approved, a Reward available reminder goes out to let them know they can spend their points, which brings them back for a second purchase.
Success tip: we suggest setting the approval period to 30 days at most, either to match your store's returns policy or to shorten the time to the second purchase.
Changing the approval period only applies to new purchases. If you change it from 14 days to 3 days, orders placed before the change keep their original 14 days.
Set the approval period to match your returns policy. If you do not, a customer who spends the points from an order and then returns it can end up with a negative points balance.
Reward historic purchases
Reward historic purchases awards points for orders a shopper placed as a guest, once they create an account. It is no longer set on this rule: you will find it under Program settings, then Orders.
For how far back you can reward and how the points are worked out, see give points for previous guest purchases.
Stopping orders and products earning points
There are two ways to take something out of the points calculation: exclude a whole collection from the rule, or ignore orders carrying a tag you choose.
Exclude a collection
Exclude collection is only available on Shopify. It is also hidden if your program has Points Modifiers, because modifiers do the same job and more.
Exclude collection stops every product in one collection from earning points on the Make a purchase rule. Use it for a collection you do not want to reward, such as sale stock or a wholesale range.
Open the Make a purchase rule and scroll to Exclude collection.
Search for the collection by name and select it.
Click Save. The collection name now shows in the Exclude collection field.
You can exclude one collection. Excluding it covers every item in that collection, even if an item also sits in a collection you do reward.
If you have Points Modifiers, exclude a collection or product by adding a modifier and setting it to 0x points. That also lets you exclude more than one.
Ignore orders with certain tags
Order tags are a Shopify-only setting, available on every plan.
Every Shopify order flows into LoyaltyLion and earns points from your Make a purchase rule. Use order tags when some of them should not, such as wholesale orders placed through a separate channel, or orders created by a third-party returns platform.
Go to Program settings, then Orders.
In Ignore new orders matching tags, enter your tags separated by commas. The field holds up to 200 characters in total.
Save. Any new order carrying one of those tags is ignored from then on.
An ignored order does not just skip the Make a purchase rule. It triggers no rules at all, so your Points Modifiers and any product or collection rules are skipped too, and it is left out of your analytics.
The tag has to be on the order at the moment it reaches us. We check the tags once, when the order is first created, and never again. Adding the tag afterwards by editing the order does not work: that order has already earned its points, and we will not take them back.
If another system applies your tags, check that it tags the order as it is created rather than a moment later.
Capitals do not matter when we match a tag, and spaces around your commas are ignored.
FAQ
Can I give existing customers points for orders they placed before I installed LoyaltyLion?
Yes, with a points import. Customers already in LoyaltyLion have the points added to their existing account. Customers who exist in your store but not in LoyaltyLion are created and given the points you specify, as approved points, straight away.
See imports for how to prepare and run one.
Do customers earn points on shipping and tax?
Never on shipping. Tax depends on the Award points for tax setting on this rule, covered under whether tax earns points.
Why does my customer have a negative points balance?
They spent the points from an order and then returned it, so we deducted the points that order earned. Setting the approval period to match your returns policy is what prevents this.
My customer has not paid for their order yet, but they already have pending points. Why?
We create the pending points as soon as the order is created, so your customer gets immediate feedback that the purchase counted.
Those points stay pending until the order is paid and the approval period has elapsed from the time of payment. A customer paying in installments gets their points after the final payment.
When would I use the Approve button next to a pending order?
Rarely. It exists for the times your team wants to let a customer spend their points after they have paid but before the approval period is over, when you are confident the order will not be refunded and they want to buy again right away.
How is the points total for an order calculated?
From the price of the items after discounts, excluding shipping.
A customer adds $50 of goods to their cart and applies a 10% discount code, bringing the items to $45. Shipping adds $5, for a $50 order. They earn points on $45.
How do you round points?
We round to the nearest whole point. Anything from half a point up rounds up, and below half a point rounds down.