Pending Points

Understand how to set up a pending points system, creating a waiting period before points are usable, helping to prevent misuse and maintain program integrity.

Who can use Pending Points?

This feature is available for: Advanced and Enterprise plan.

Introduction

Dear our valued user 😻 Welcome to our guide on setting up Pending Points in Joy Loyalty! Pending Points is a powerful new feature designed to give merchants greater control over how customers earn and use points in their loyalty programs. Unlike the traditional system where points are immediately available after a purchase, Pending Points introduces a delay, helping to manage returns and prevent potential fraud.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the rules, how to set up Pending Points, and best practices to ensure smooth implementation in your store.

Understanding the rule

Pending Points is a system where points earned from a purchase are initially held in a pending state before becoming available to the customer.

Process:

Purchase: Customers make a purchase and earn Pending Points.
Waiting Period: These points remain in a pending state for a period set by the merchant.
Conversion: After the waiting period, Pending Points automatically convert into Available Points.
Use: Only Available Points can be redeemed for rewards or contribute to the customer's tier status.

This delay ensures that customers cannot immediately redeem points on purchases that they might later return, thus protecting your store from potential abuse and making point management more straightforward.

Set up Pending Points

Setting up Pending Points in Joy Loyalty is a simple process, but it requires contacting the customer support team since this feature is currently hidden.

Step 1: Open Joy Loyalty App: Log in to your Joy Loyalty application.

Step 2: Contact Support: Send a message to the Joy Loyalty customer support team requesting to enable Pending Points.

Step 3: Wait for Activation: The support team will enable the feature in your account settings.

Step 4: Set the Waiting Period: Once the feature is activated, configure the time period for Pending Points to convert into Available Points.

Best practice: Who should need Pending points feature?

The Pending Points feature is ideal for merchants who have a return policy or are concerned about potential fraud within their loyalty programs. Specifically, it is beneficial for:

For a wide range of merchants: Particularly those dealing with various types of products such as clothing, electronics, and more
Stores with a Return Policy: If your store allows returns or exchanges, Pending Points can help prevent customers from exploiting the system by earning points from purchases they later return. By delaying the availability of points until after the return period, you ensure that customers can't use points on items they may not keep.
Merchants Seeking Fraud Prevention: Pending Points can be an effective way to deter fraudulent behavior, such as placing multiple orders to earn rewards and then returning the products. This feature ensures that points only become usable after a set period, reducing the risk of such activities.
Businesses Requiring Better Point Management: For merchants who want more control over how and when points are awarded, Pending Points offers a structured approach that aligns with their business needs. It allows them to manage points distribution more effectively, ensuring that rewards are only given after certain conditions are met.

In summary, any merchant looking to secure their loyalty program from abuse, particularly those with flexible return policies, would benefit from using the Pending Points feature.

Example:

Problem: My Joy Loyalty store sells clothing and offers a free return policy within 7 days. Currently, our store has a rule where customers earn points upon successful purchase. Some customers are attempting to exploit this by placing multiple orders to earn reward points, redeeming high-value rewards, and then returning all the orders. This behavior negatively impacts the store's operations and goes against the principles of the loyalty program.

Solution: Implement the pending points feature with an 8-day period before points become available. Now, customers must wait until the return period has passed before they can use the available points to redeem rewards. This feature effectively prevents fraudulent activities by customers.

Conclusion

Setting up Pending Points is an effective strategy to secure your loyalty program and ensure that customers only receive points they have genuinely earned. By adding a waiting period before points become available, you protect your store from potential fraud and create a more reliable loyalty experience for your customers.

Get started with Pending Points today by reaching out to Joy’s support team and enhancing your point management strategy. For any questions or further assistance, our team is here to help!