IThe problem
Every year the company sends out a large number of PR packages to influencers, and the list grows every year. Sending everyone the same new launch didn’t work: the range is wide, and a product that doesn’t match an influencer’s style won’t get reviewed.
So influencers should pick their own products, just like a customer placing an order. But the company also needed control: a salesperson in charge of each influencer, a set number of products each one can choose, and a report of how many packages went out.
Shopify had no way to do this. It has no price tiers for different kinds of accounts. Its B2B Markets came closest, but it is built to ship to a company’s fixed address, not to hundreds of influencers at their own addresses.
IIWhat I did
- Influencer accounts with their own prices. A sponsorship account sees the store as usual, but every product is priced for PR and they shop and check out like any customer.
- A Go API behind every PR order. Built on Shopify’s Draft Order API, because Shopify Flow did not exist yet. It sets the order to $0.00 and the shipping to free, through the shipping integration.
- Allowances checked before checkout. The API stops an influencer from taking more products than their allowance, before the order is placed.
- The right person told, the order marked. The salesperson in charge gets an email, and the order is tagged SPRS-Processing so the sponsorship team can find it, pack it and report on it.
- One package per sponsorship. Once the order is in, the influencer’s account is tagged EX-SPRS and turns back into a normal customer account, so the free checkout can’t be reused.
IIIHow it works
Three layers. The influencer only ever sees a store; the rules live in the API, where they can’t be skipped.
- What the influencer seesInfluencer storefrontLogs in to a sponsorship accountPicks products like a normal customerChecks out at $0.00, no payment
- The rules, on every orderGo APIDraft Order API builds the orderOrder total forced to $0.00Free shipping via the shipping APIAllowance checked before checkout
- Keeping it tidy and fairAfter the orderSales rep in charge gets an emailOrder tagged SPRS-ProcessingAccount tagged EX-SPRS: back to normal
- $0.00every PR order
- Freeshipping, always
- Allowancechecked before checkout
- Onceper sponsorship, then EX-SPRS
IVScreen proof
Client names, server addresses and customer data are hidden. Clients stay confidential.
VWhere it ended
Influencers choose the products that suit them, check out themselves, and pay nothing. The company keeps control: every order is $0.00 with free shipping, never over its allowance, tagged for the team, and owned by a named salesperson.
It has run every year since 2020, sending out roughly 2,000 to 3,000 PR packages a year, all without anyone building an order by hand.
- Go
- Shopify Draft Order API
- Shopify
- Shipping API
- Email notifications