A referral text message taps into a powerful marketing secret: people trust recommendations from friends more than any advertisement you’ll create.
Your customers already have networks filled with potential buyers, and when you give them the right incentive and a simple way to share, they become enthusiastic advocates for your brand.
But how do you write a referral message to encourage your customers to recommend you? Join us below to discover examples, templates, and tips for making referral SMS a winning customer acquisition channel for your business.
Harness the power of referral text messages with Omnisend
Referral text messages are SMS promotions that ask customers to recommend your business to friends with a referral link or code.
How do they work? Your customer shares a text message containing your referral link or code with friends. The recipient clicks through to your store or uses the code at checkout, and both parties get a reward with the qualifying purchase.
Referral campaigns can grow your sales without additional marketing spend. Omnisend research shows that SMS marketing drove over $25 million in sales for US brands in 2024, with automated messages generating 18% of orders from just 9% of total sends.
Watch this video to discover how to get started with SMS marketing:
Referral text message examples
Check out these referral text messages to inspire your own:
Example 1: Recent purchase referral
The referral text above for an ecommerce store encourages engagement by using customer satisfaction, social proof, and mutual rewards. It refers to the customer by name to make it feel like a conversation and has a time limitation (31 March) to create urgency.
When to use
Following customer activity
During seasonal sales
When launching new collections
Example 2: Software subscription service referral
The referral SMS above is a retention tactic that incentivizes current customers to renew their subscriptions by offering a 20% discount if they refer a friend. It effectively reduces the renewal cost while expanding the customer base.
When to use
Approaching subscription expiration
During periods of low engagement
After significant product improvements
Example 3: Gym membership referral
This referral text transforms new gym members into active brand ambassadors with a tangible financial benefit and a desirable physical reward. A successful referral for a monthly membership will easily recoup the cost of the tee and discount.
When to use
After a new member completes their first month
When membership numbers are plateauing
During fitness-focused seasons (New Year, pre-summer)
Example 4: Travel booking referral
The referral SMS above for a travel company uses post-booking excitement to incentivize referrals by offering immediate, mutual value that enhances the travel experience for existing and new customers.
When to use
After a customer completes a booking
During peak travel planning seasons
When bookings meet a certain financial threshold
Example 5: Streaming platform referral
This referral SMS uses customer activity (watching Stranger Things) to create a hyper-personalized message. It provides a clear monetary benefit for referring a friend while creating a sense of excitement around a trending show.
When to use
After releasing new content
During peak viewership
When there’s a trending show
Example 6: Meal kit trial referral
The example referral text above references the customer’s journey (“Celebrate 3 months of meal kits”) and offers a substantial discount (40%) to refer a friend. It’s likely to convert as the promise of a free trial has minimal risk.
When to use
After your customer hits an anniversary
When trying to boost free trial signups
During seasonal transitions (summer grilling, holiday cooking)
Example 7: Pet care referral
This SMS transforms a referral from transactional to collaborative, positioning the offer as a shared financial benefit that empowers friends to make smarter, more cost-effective pet care choices together.
When to use
During annual veterinary check-up seasons
Around major pet adoption months
When pet supply costs typically spike (pre-winter, summer)
Example 8: Event signup referral
The event referral message above offers a high-value physical reward that transforms ticket purchasing into a shared experience with added collectible appeal. Customers will likely wear the hoodie to the event, raising awareness for general admission.
When to use
During the initial ticket sales window
When targeting fan communities
Ahead of franchise or genre-specific announcements
Example 9: Gaming competition referral
Rather than providing an immediate discount, this referral text message gamifies the process with an exciting grand prize of a $500 console. The addition of a submission deadline (10 Jan) encourages interaction.
When to use
During gaming hardware releases
Around popular gaming convention periods
When building your newsletter subscriber list
Example 10: Footwear quiz referral
The SMS referral example above uses customer satisfaction (“If you love your sandals”) and a 20% discount to encourage referrals. Clicking through takes you to the sandal quiz, which asks questions about colors and styles to gather feedback.
When to use
To collect information about customer preferences
During seasonal sales or new collection launches
When existing customers show signs of activity
Referral SMS templates
Use these referral message templates to create campaigns with high conversion rates:
Discount referral
Refer a friend to get 25% off (Product). Use code FRIEND25 when signing up, and you both save instantly.
How to customize
Pinpoint the most attractive feature of your product
Create a discount code that reflects your brand identity
Calculate an incentive that feels significant to customers
Experiment with different motivational language styles
Reward referral
Invite friends to (App). For each friend who signs up with your link, you both earn (Reward). Easy money!
How to customize
Select a reward that feels genuinely valuable
Calculate a referral reward that doesn’t strain your budget
Design a simple, transparent referral tracking system
Understand your target audience’s core motivations
Free trial referral
Have friends who might love (Product)? Refer them to our free trial by (Date) to get 10% off next month’s subscription.
How to customize
Determine the optimal trial length for your product
Identify the key features that will hook potential users
Create a frictionless signup process
Develop a compelling value proposition
Community referral
Help us grow (Brand) community. Refer friends, and the first 50 get VIP access. Your code REF(NAME)50 unlocks exclusive perks.
How to customize
Define what makes your community unique
Create tiered access levels with genuine benefits
Design an onboarding experience that feels exclusive
Understand the psychological appeal of limited memberships
Milestone referral
We’re celebrating (Milestone)! Refer friends via https://bit.ly/url for a $10 voucher. Every referral helps us reach our next goal.
How to customize
Choose a milestone that resonates with your audience
Connect the referral to a broader narrative
Make the referral process feel like a shared journey
Follow these steps to write referral texts that encourage engagement:
Keep it short and clear
Your referral text message should get to the point and deliver core information quickly. You could lead with “Refer a friend” or “20% off for you and your friend” to achieve this.
Your CTA should come immediately before a link or discount code and communicate the next steps. Examples include “Grab the code >” and “Follow the link >.”
Keep your CTA to three words, or make it part of the previous explainer. For instance, “Unlock your bonus. Claim now >” or “Earn instant rewards. Follow the link >.”
Connect with recipients by speaking directly about their experiences and motivations. Use names and reference past interactions and anniversaries.
Your text should feel like a personalized invitation from someone who understands their needs and wants to provide genuine value.
Highlight the incentive
Make your incentive stand out with ALLCAPS (“10% OFF”) or an emoji, such as 💲. Add pointers (“>”) to links and discount codes.
Your referral SMS should clarify for your subscribers what they stand to gain from referring a friend. They shouldn’t have to read it twice.
Create urgency
Time-sensitive offers — such as 24-hour discount windows — trigger immediate decision-making by introducing scarcity and potential loss.
Frame your referral as a rare opportunity. Communicate that waiting means potentially missing out on a deal that won’t happen again.
Benefits of referral text messages
Referral text messages get your existing customers to introduce your product to their network with an authenticity that traditional advertising can’t match. The result is high conversion rates and low customer acquisition costs.
Here’s why you should start sending referral messages:
1. High open and engagement rates
SMS messages reach customers instantly, making them the perfect delivery format for referral programs, where immediate visibility drives participation and conversion success.
Automated SMS text messages are particularly effective, delivering 147% higher click rates than standard campaigns. You could use this to your advantage by triggering personalized referral messages immediately after positive customer experiences.
2. Personal and trust-driven communication
Text messages are trustworthy because they arrive in the same inbox as messages from friends and family. They are also easy to forward and share without loading additional apps.
If your customers opt-in to receive your SMS messages, your text messages won’t be a surprise. Adding an “opt-out” to your message helps to reinforce trust even further.
3. Cost-effective and scalable marketing
SMS marketing can deliver exceptional ROI compared to traditional acquisition channels. Omnisend customers can purchase credits on the Free and Standard plan, and the Pro plan includes bonus SMS credits equal to your monthly price.
Scaling your SMS marketing efforts is straightforward with Omnisend. You can grow your list with popups and forms, segment by engagement level, demographics, and behavior, and create campaigns and automations that target the right customers.
Text-based referrals strengthen customer relationships with immediate, personal communication. Your engaged advocates will also develop deeper brand loyalty when they see tangible rewards for their recommendation efforts.
The more valuable your reward, the higher the chances of conversion. Dual incentives for both parties are best, such as “$20 for you and $10 for your friend.”
5. Seamless integration with email marketing
SMS referrals complement email campaigns rather than replacing them, creating a powerful multichannel approach to customer acquisition. Text messages drive immediate action, while emails provide comprehensive program details.
For instance, you could create an automated sequence to send a referral text message with a discount code to customers who browse your sales pages but don’t purchase. At the same time, an email with personalized product recommendations could go out.
SMS referrals are most successful when they have an authentic connection with your existing customers and clear incentives that motivate sharing.
Start small by testing one referral message template with your most engaged customers. Monitor which incentives drive the highest participation and which messages get forwarded most frequently.
Omnisend provides list-building and segmentation tools to group your subscribers for personalized messaging. Send bulk SMS campaigns to all contacts, target small groups such as VIPs, and monitor your open and click-through rates. Then, scale what works.
Join Omnisend to grow your sales with referral SMS campaigns
Bernard is the Sr. Director of Communications & Creative at Omnisend, with a passion for good research, helping ecommerce businesses with their marketing automation needs, and beating absolutely everyone in Mario Kart 64.
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