Read this page as a quick path: scan the headings, use the step blocks, and escalate if the expected result does not happen.
Referral Factory uses specific terminology throughout the platform. Understanding these terms — and how they map to the language your industry uses — will help you navigate support, help guides, and your own campaign setup.
Core terms used in Referral Factory
| Referral Factory term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Referrer | The person sharing their referral link — typically your existing customer, partner, or employee |
| Lead | The person who was referred — the new potential customer coming in through the referral |
| Referral link | The unique, trackable URL each referrer uses to share your program |
| Qualification | The event that marks a referral as successful (e.g. a purchase, sign-up, or deal close) |
| Reward | What the referrer (and optionally the lead) receives when a referral qualifies |
| Users | All participants in a campaign — both referrers and leads combined. This is the total shown in analytics and the count used for plan limits (e.g. "up to 950 users"). |
"Referral code" vs "referral link"
Referral Factory is primarily a referral link platform. Each referrer gets a unique URL, not a code they type in at checkout.
If someone asks how to get their "code", they may mean:
If the distinction is unclear, ask whether the person wants something to share (referral link) or something to use at checkout (promo code).
- Their referral link (the shareable URL) — this is what Referral Factory provides
- A promotional discount code that gives a buyer a price reduction at checkout — this is a separate feature and a different concept
Industry-specific terminology
Customers in different industries use different words for referrers and leads. All of the terms below appear regularly in support conversations.
Who the Referral Factory "referrer" might be called:
- Partner (common in B2B and trade businesses)
- Affiliate (sometimes used when the program is commission-based)
- Ambassador
- Advocate
- Agent (financial services)
- Policy holder (insurance, when they refer others)
Who the Referral Factory "lead" might be called:
- Prospect (finance, insurance, professional services)
- Friend (consumer programs: "refer a friend")
- Referee (industry standard term — same as "lead" in Referral Factory)
- Buyer / Seller / Renter (real estate)
- Policy holder (insurance, when they are the person being referred)
- Contact (CRM-native language)
- User (SaaS and apps)
A note on "referee"
The term referee is widely used in the referral marketing industry and means the person who was referred — not the person doing the referring. In Referral Factory terms, a referee is a lead.
A note on "partner"
Partner programs often have fewer referrers making many more referrals, compared to customer referral programs where many customers each refer one or two friends. Referral Factory supports both models — the underlying mechanics are the same.
Old Referral Factory terminology
If you used an earlier version of Referral Factory, you may have seen different labels:
| Old term | Current term |
|---|---|
| Person referring | Referrer |
| Person invited | Lead |
| User (for both) | Referrer or Lead (distinguished). Note: "Users" is still used in analytics and plan limits to refer to the combined total of referrers and leads. |