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Activate Bold Memberships & Loyalty

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Written by Laurel Nash

Looking to get Bold Memberships & Loyalty set up and running? Follow this step-by-step guide to launch your plans.


Get Started

Install Bold Memberships through the Shopify App Store.

Once installed, you can choose from the following options:

  • Launch with an expert (recommended): This option allows you to speak with our team of experts for free personalized guidance, from idea to launch. Click Book a call or Start a chat.

  • Build it yourself: Click Start guided setup and follow the steps under Setup, below.

  • Have a shared plan? If you have another store using Bold Memberships and you want to extend those plans to this store, choose Connect a plan and add the Share Code from the other store. For more information, please visit Sharing Membership Plans Across Stores.


Setup

Follow the instructions below to work through each step of the Memberships onboarding.

Step 1: Free or Paid

This first step allows you to begin setting up your plan. You’ll name your membership plan and choose how members will enroll and be billed. Click Set Up on Step 1 and follow the steps below.

Name your membership plan

  1. Enter a membership Plan Name.

    Plan Name field
  2. Optional: Edit the Tag name as desired.

    Note: This tag is applied to customers who are enrolled in the membership plan. This option won’t appear if you select Free to subscribers in the next step.

Choose whether the membership is free or paid

  1. Paid: Members pay through your store and Bold Memberships handles the subscription or one-time charge.

    1. Enter a Price for the plan, select a Billing Cycle (recurring or one-time), and select how many times customers will be billed until their membership expires under Maximum Cycles.

    2. Optional: Check Offer a free trial if you want to let customers test out their membership before billing begins.

    3. Optional: Click Add Billing Option if you want to add more options, such as weekly or yearly.

  2. Free for all customers: All customers are automatically enrolled.

  3. Free for selected customers: Enroll customers for free if they meet specific criteria such as a minimum lifetime spend amount, opting into marketing, or both. You can set the minimum spend amount.

  4. Free to subscribers: Members are already billed by another app, Bold Memberships just unlocks additional perks. Membership syncs using the customer tag or metafield set by the other app.

    1. Under Choose the Shopify customer tag or metafield the other platform sets, select one of the following options under Sync Source:

      1. Customer Tag: Enter the tag name under Tag to sync.

      2. Metafield: Enter the Namespace, Key, and Value.

        Note: Use this instead of tags only if your other app adds metafields to customer objects.

Click Continue to move to the next step.

Step 2: Rewards & Benefits

This second step allows you to select each reward and benefit you want to offer with this membership plan. Click Set Up under Step 2 and follow the steps below.

  1. Select each member reward and/or benefit you want to offer.

    Member benefits selection
  2. Click Continue.

  3. Use the links below to understand and configure each reward or benefit.

Rewards

Loyalty Points

Loyalty Points lets members earn points on their purchases, which they can redeem for discounts on future orders. It's a flexible way to reward repeat purchases and keep members engaged over time.

Later, you can add extra ways to earn points, point expiry, and more, from the Memberships admin. Read more about this in Loyalty Points.

Setup

Choose a Reward Type

Under Reward Type, choose how members earn points:

  • Percent: Members earn a percentage of what they spend back in points.

  • Fixed Amount: Members earn a set number of points for every $1 they spend.

Set your Member Earnings

  1. Under Member Earnings, use the slider (or enter a number directly) to set your rate.

    • If you chose Percent, this sets what percentage of a purchase members earn back in points. For example, a rate of 3% means a member earns $3 worth of points for every $100 they spend.

    • If you chose Fixed Amount, this sets how many points are earned per $1 spent. For example, a rate of 3 points per $1 means a member earns 300 points on a $100 purchase.

  2. In Value per point, enter the dollar value of a single point. This determines how much members' points are worth when they redeem them at checkout.

  3. Optional: In Points per order, enter a flat number of points to award for every completed order, on top of what they earn from spending. Leave this at 0 if you don't want to offer a flat bonus.

  4. Optional: In Holding period (days), enter how many days points should be pending before members can redeem them. Leave this at 0 to make points available right away.

Live Preview

As you adjust the settings above, the Live Preview section updates to show how your rates would play out, including the earn rate, points earned on a sample $100 order, and roughly how many orders it would take a member to reach their first reward.

You can also enter a dollar amount in Reward Goal to preview how many points that reward would cost. This is for preview purposes only.

Below that, What your customer sees shows a preview of how points and rewards will appear to members in your storefront.

Finishing up

If you're configuring more than one reward, click Next Benefit to move to the next one. You can also click I'll configure later to set up this reward in the admin later.

Free Shipping

Free Shipping removes shipping costs for members at checkout, either on every order or only when certain conditions are met. No code is needed. It's a simple way to reduce friction for members and reward them for staying subscribed.

Setup

Order Minimum

Under Minimum Requirement, expand the dropdown menu choose how members qualify for free shipping:

Free Shipping configuration step
  • No Minimum: Free shipping applies to every order.

  • Minimum order amount: Enter a dollar amount in Minimum order amount. Free shipping only applies once an order reaches this amount.

  • Minimum quantity of items: Enter a number in Minimum quantity of items. Free shipping only applies once an order includes this many items.

Maximum shipping rate

  • In Applies to rates up to, enter a dollar amount to cap how much of the shipping cost is covered. Any rate above this amount is charged as normal. This is useful if you want to cover standard shipping but not express shipping. Leave this blank for no limit.

Destinations

Under Destinations, choose where free shipping applies:

  • All Countries: Free shipping applies everywhere you ship.

  • Selected countries only: Use the search field to choose specific countries where free shipping should apply.

Discounts

Discounts give members an automatic discount at checkout, either a percentage off or a fixed dollar amount off. Members don't need a discount code. It applies automatically when they qualify. New customers see it applied the moment they add the membership itself to their cart, so joining can save them money right away.

Setup

Choose a Discount Type

  1. Under Discount Type, choose how the discount is applied:

    1. Percentage Off: Enter a percentage in Discount Percentage.

    2. Fixed amount off: Enter a dollar amount in Discount Amount. You can also check Apply discount to each item to apply the amount to every qualifying item instead of splitting it across the order.

Choose what the discount applies to

Under Applies To, choose which products the discount covers:

  • All Products: Covers your whole catalog, including products you add later, so you won't need to come back and update anything.

  • Specific Products: Click Browse Products to search for and select the products the discount applies to.

  • Specific Collections: Click Browse Collections to search for and select the collections the discount applies to.

Minimum requirement

Optional: Under Minimum Requirement, choose whether members need to meet a minimum before the discount applies:

  • No Minimum

  • Minimum order subtotal: Set a dollar amount the order must reach.

  • Minimum item quantity: Set the number of items an order must include.

Discount Stacking

Under Discount Stacking, choose whether this discount can combine with other discounts on the same order.

  • Combine with order discounts

  • Combine with product discounts

  • Combine with shipping discounts

Store Credit (Recommended)

Store credit lets you reward members with credit toward future purchases, either as a one-time welcome bonus, a recurring perk for staying subscribed, or both. It's a simple way to encourage repeat orders and reward members for their loyalty.

Setup

Registration Bonus

To set up a one-time registration bonus, follow the steps below.

  1. Check Give a one-time store credit bonus at registration.

  2. Enter a Bonus Amount.

    Bonus Amount filled in
  3. Optional: Add Advertised text to promote it in the storefront membership widget. For example: "Join now and get $20 store credit!".

    Note: If nothing is added, benefits won’t appear in the storefront membership widget.

  4. Under Hold before issuing, enter a number of days after signup before the credit can be spent. Leave blank to award it right away.

    Note: Holding it past any set free trial ensures it won’t be spent before they can cancel. Members see it as pending.

Recurring Credit

To set up a recurring credit, follow the steps below.

  1. Check Give store credit on a repeating basis.

    Note: The billing cycles shown here come from the plan's billing settings. To add or change a cycle, edit your plan in the Memberships admin.

  2. Expand the dropdown menu under How often, and select one of the following options:

    How ofter dropdown menu
    1. Every billing cycle:

      1. Enter a Credit Amount for each billing cycle you’ve configured.

      2. Optional: Add Advertised text for each cycle to promote it in the storefront membership widget. For example: "Get $20 store credit monthly!".

        Note: If nothing is added, benefits won’t appear in the storefront membership widget.

      3. Under Hold each award, enter a number to wait this many days after each award before the credit can be spent. Leave it blank to award right away.

    2. On a custom schedule:

      1. Enter a Credit Amount and Period. For example, $50 every 6 months.

      2. Under Hold each award, enter a number to wait this many days after each award before the credit can be spent. Leave it blank to award right away.

Benefits

Exclusive Products

Exclusive Products & Content lets you restrict specific products, collections, pages, articles, and blogs to members only.

Each type works a little differently:

  • Products: Restricted products are hidden from non-members, so they can't see or buy them.

  • Collections: A restricted collection page is replaced with a message inviting non-members to join. However, the products inside the collection aren't hidden. You must restrict the products separately.

  • Pages: A gated page is replaced with a message inviting non-members to join.

  • Articles: A locked article shows a join prompt in place of the content, so a blog can mix free posts with members-only ones.

  • Blogs: Restricting a whole blog covers every article in it, including future posts, automatically.

Setup

Products, Collections, Pages, Articles, and Blogs each work the same way on this screen. For each type:

  1. Click Browse to select specific items to restrict to members.

  2. Or, check Apply to all to restrict everything of that type, including anything you add later.

    Exclusive Products & Content step

Exclusive Content

Exclusive Products & Content lets you restrict specific products, collections, pages, articles, and blogs to members only.

Each type works a little differently:

  • Products: Restricted products are hidden from non-members, so they can't see or buy them.

  • Collections: A restricted collection page is replaced with a message inviting non-members to join. However, the products inside the collection aren't hidden. You must restrict the products separately.

  • Pages: A gated page is replaced with a message inviting non-members to join.

  • Articles: A locked article shows a join prompt in place of the content, so a blog can mix free posts with members-only ones.

  • Blogs: Restricting a whole blog covers every article in it, including future posts, automatically.

Setup

Products, Collections, Pages, Articles, and Blogs each work the same way on this screen. For each type:

  1. Click Browse to select specific items to restrict to members.

  2. Or, check Apply to all to restrict everything of that type, including anything you add later.
    ​

    Exclusive Products & Content onboarding step

Hidden Pricing

Hidden Pricing lets you require membership before a product's price is shown. This is useful for wholesale pricing or member-only pricing tiers.

Non-members can browse the products freely, see photos, and read descriptions. Where the price would appear, they see a prompt to join instead. Once someone becomes a member, prices reveal instantly.

Setup

  • Click Browse Products to select specific products to hide prices on.

  • Check Hide prices on all products to hide prices across your whole catalog, including products you add later.

Hidden Pricing onboarding step

Purchasing Access

Purchasing Access lets you restrict specific products from being added to cart by non-members, or require membership before anyone can complete checkout on your store.

Hiding the Add to cart button still lets guests view the product, its photos, and its price. The button is simply hidden, and appears automatically once they sign in as a member.

Requiring membership at checkout replaces the checkout button with a View Membership Plans button, which takes them to your plans page to join. If a guest adds the membership to their cart, checkout becomes available for the whole cart, not just the membership, so they can join and complete their purchase in one order.

Setup

Gated add to cart

Choose which products to hide the add to cart button on:

  • Click Browse Products to select specific products where the add-to-cart button should be hidden from guests.

  • Check Hide add-to-cart on all products to hide the add-to-cart button across your whole catalog, including products you add later.

Gated checkout

Check Require membership at checkout to stop guests from completing checkout. Only members can check out.

Note: Requiring membership at checkout applies store-wide, to every product.

Custom Perks

Custom Perks lets you attach perks to a membership plan that you fulfill yourself, outside the app, like free coffee in a tasting room, early entry to events, or priority phone support.

There's nothing to set up in the app for this one. Selecting Custom Perks on a plan doesn't open a configuration screen the way other rewards do, since there's nothing for Bold Memberships to enforce or track.

To let members know about the perks, add them under Advertise your benefits, part of Final touches at the end of onboarding, or edit the plan from the admin later.

Step 3: Finish initial setup

This final step gets your plan live on your storefront: enable the app embed, add the plans widget to a page, and optionally link to it from your navigation. Click Set Up on Step 3 and follow the steps below.

Enable Bold Memberships app embed

  1. Click Open Theme Editor.

    Sync Source example
  2. Make sure the Bold Memberships app embed is toggled to the On position.

    Open Theme Editor button
  3. Click Save in the upper right corner.

  4. Return to the onboarding tab in your browser.

  5. Click Continue.

Display Plans Widget on Online Store

This widget shows your plans on the storefront so customers can sign up. Add the widget to a new dedicated page or choose an existing page. Follow the instructions below based on your choice.

Create a new dedicated page

  1. Under Page Title, enter a name for your plans page, or leave the default title shown.

  2. Optional: Uncheck Add link to store navigation if you don't want a link to this page added to your main menu.

  3. Click Create Plans Page.

    Create Plans Page button

Add to an existing page

  1. Click Add Plans to Existing Page. This opens the theme editor.

    Add Plans to Existing Page button
  2. Navigate to the page you want to add the plans widget to.

  3. In the left menu, under Template, click Add block.

    Add block link
  4. Click Apps, then select the Available Plans BOLD Memberships block.
    ​

    Available Plans block
  5. Click Save in the top left corner.

Click Start Free Trial to finish onboarding.


Finishing touches

Once Memberships finishes finalizing your setup, your membership is live.

You can polish your plan or add storefront functionality by completing any of the remaining items as shown below.

Add storefront functionality

Show Loyalty Points on product pages

The Loyalty Points block shows members how much they can earn on a purchase. Non-members will see how much they can earn if they become a member.

Example Loyalty Points display on the product page

Setup

To display the Loyalty Points block on the product page, follow the steps below.

  1. Click Add Block.

  2. Click Open Theme Editor.

  3. In the left menu, under Template, find the Loyalty Points block.

  4. From the menu, drag and drop the block to where you want it to appear on the page.

  5. Click Save in the top right corner.

  6. Close the tab and return to Memberships.

Show Loyalty Points in the cart

The Loyalty Points block shows members how much they can earn on a purchase. Non-members will see how much they can earn if they become a member.

Loaylty Points display on the cart page

Setup

To display the Loyalty Points block on the cart page, follow the steps below.

  1. Click Add Block.

  2. Click Open Theme Editor.

  3. The Loyalty Points block is automatically added.

  4. Click Save in the top right corner.

  5. Close the tab and return to Memberships.

Show member discounts on product pages

The Discount Benefit block shows members how much they save with their plan. Non-members can see how much they would save if they became a member.

Discounts display to non-members example

Setup

To add the Member Discount Benefit block to your storefront, follow the steps below.

  1. Click Add Block.

  2. Click Open Theme Editor.

  3. In the left menu Template section, find the Member Discount Benefit block.

    Member Discount Benefit block
  4. From the menu, drag and drop the block to position it on the page.

  5. Click Save in the top right corner.

  6. Close the tab and return to Memberships.

Show rewards on your Thank you page

Adding the Membership Rewards block on the Thank you page shows members and how much they saved or earned in points. Non-members will see what they could have saved or earned with a link to become a member.

Rewards benefit on the Thank you page

Setup

  1. Click Add Block.

  2. Click Open Checkout Editor.

  3. In the left menu, Main section, Click Add block.

  4. Click on the Membership Rewards on Thank You block.

    Membership Rewards on Thank you page block
  5. From the menu, drag and drop the block to position it on the page.

  6. Click Save in the top right corner.

  7. Close the tab and return to Memberships.

Enable the Customer Portal extension

The Customer Portal extension allows your members to view and manage their membership from their Shopify Customer account.

Memberships Customer Portal example

Setup

  1. Click Open Settings.

  2. Click Open Settings to open the customer account settings in the Shopify editor.

  3. Click the plus icon (+) next to Manage Membership Portal, then click on Accounts to add the page.

  4. Click Save.

  5. Find the option to create a menu item in the top left. Click Add to menu so customers can access it from their customer account.

  6. Click Save in the top right corner.

  7. Close the tab and return to Memberships.

Polish your plan

Add a plan image and description

Adding an image and plan description to your membership widget makes it more attractive to customers. Use an image from the gallery or upload your own for a custom feel.

Example plan image and description

Setup

  1. Click the Add Details button.

  2. Enter a description text into the Plan Description field.

  3. Add an image using one of the following options:

    • Upload Image: Select a custom image from your computer.

      Note: Supported formats are JPG, PNG, Web P (max 5MB), with a recommended size of 800 x 800 px.

    • Gallery: Select an image from the Memberships’ gallery.

  4. Click Save.

Set on POS & wallet passes

Selling on POS lets you sell your membership plans in person. Wallet passes let you issue members a branded digital membership card for Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, so they can show it at checkout to earn and redeem their rewards when shopping in-store.

Setup

  1. Click Set up POS.

  2. Check Show this plan in Shopify POS to add the plan to your POS product catalogue, so staff can sell memberships in person.

  3. Click Save.

Customize registration fields

You can add registration fields to collect extra information from members at signup, like a birthday for a birthday reward, or a shirt size. You can also require members to agree to terms and conditions before they join.

Example registration fields

Setup

  1. Click Customize next to Customize registration fields.

  2. Click + Add Field.

  3. Under Field Label, enter what you want to ask, like "Date of birth."

  4. Under Field Type, choose the type of answer you want to collect:

    1. Text: Collects a short written answer.

    2. Dropdown: Under Dropdown Options, enter a list of choices, separated by commas. Members pick one at signup.

    3. Terms & conditions: Under How should the terms be presented?, choose one of the following:

      1. Show the full text: Paste your terms in the provided field. Check Required at signup if members must fill in this field to join.

      2. Link to the terms: Enter the URL under Link to your terms. Check the box next to Must be accepted before checkout if members must agree before they can complete checkout.

  5. Optional: Click + Add Field again to configure more registration fields.

  6. Click Save.

Advertise your benefits

Advertise your benefits to tell shoppers what they'll get before they join. This is displayed as a short list of perks shown right in the membership widget on your storefront.

Advertised Benefits example

Setup

  1. Click Add Benefits.

  2. Enter a perk, like "Free shipping on every order."

  3. Optional: Click + Add Benefit to list more perks.

  4. Click Save.

Store Credit already has its own advertised text, set under its billing options, so you don't need to add it again here.

If you prefer to do these things later, click Proceed to Dashboard.

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