Building Viral Loops: How Every Redemption Creates a New Influencer

Why is Partiful the fastest-growing event platform despite having zero marketing budget?

Answer: Every invite creates a new inviter.

When you get invited to a Partiful event, you don't just RSVP—you're encouraged to invite your own friends. Each attendee becomes a mini-marketer, and the event grows exponentially without the organizer lifting a finger.

This is a viral loop, and it's the same mechanism powering Onlure's explosive growth.

Here's how we turn consumers into influencers with every redemption—and why that's the key to sustainable, scalable growth.

The Viral Loop Playbook

A viral loop is a self-reinforcing growth cycle where: 1. User A discovers your product 2. User A uses your product and gets value 3. User A shares your product, bringing in User B 4. User B repeats the cycle, bringing in User C 5. The loop continues without requiring paid ads

The math is simple: ``` Viral Coefficient (K) = (Invites Sent per User) × (Conversion Rate) ```

If K > 1, you have exponential growth. If K < 1, growth stalls.

Examples of viral loops:

How Onlure's Viral Loop Works

Here's the magic:

Step 1: Consumer Discovers a Drop

A consumer (let's call them Alice) sees a Drop shared by a creator:

FOMO is activated.

Step 2: Alice Redeems the Offer

Alice visits the yoga studio, scans the QR code at checkout, and redeems the Drop.

Result:

Everyone wins.

Step 3: The Share Prompt

Immediately after redemption, Alice sees a notification:

"You earned 5 coins! 🪙"

"Want to earn 5 more? Share this Drop with your friends and earn 5 coins per redemption!"

Two buttons:

If Alice clicks Share, she's now an influencer. Her unique link: `https://o.lure/c/{alice_share_id}`

The consumer-to-influencer (C→I) conversion happens at the moment of maximum satisfaction.

Step 4: Alice Shares, Her Friends Redeem

Alice posts the Drop to her Instagram Story:

"OMG just tried this yoga studio and it's amazing! Here's 50% off your first class [QR code]"

Her friend Bob scans Alice's QR code, visits the studio, and redeems.

Result:

Alice just became part of the viral chain.

Step 5: Bob Shares, and the Loop Continues

Bob sees the same share prompt after redemption:

"You earned 5 coins! Share this Drop and earn 5 more per redemption!"

Bob shares with his friend Carol. Carol redeems.

Result:

This is 2-level attribution, and it's how the viral loop compounds.

The Math: Why This Works

Let's model the viral coefficient:

Assumptions:

Wave 1 (Original Creator's Direct Shares):

Wave 2 (Secondary Shares):

Wave 3 (Tertiary Shares - Capped at 2 Levels):

The campaign nearly doubled in size without the business lifting a finger.

Viral Coefficient (K) = 1.96 → Exponential growth! 🚀

Design Patterns That Make Viral Loops Work

Not all viral loops succeed. Here's what makes Onlure's effective:

1. Immediate Value (No Delayed Gratification)

Bad viral loop:

Good viral loop (Onlure):

People share because they already got value, not because they're chasing it.

2. Mutual Benefit (Not Zero-Sum)

Bad viral loop:

Good viral loop (Onlure):

No one feels exploited.

3. Scarcity & FOMO

Onlure Drops have:

Scarcity drives urgency. Urgency drives sharing.

4. Frictionless Sharing

Bad viral loop:

Good viral loop (Onlure):

If sharing takes more than 5 seconds, people won't do it.

5. Social Proof

Onlure shows:

People share what they see others sharing.

Why Browser-First Beats App-Only

Onlure is browser-first (with PWA support). No app download required.

Why does this matter for viral loops?

Friction Kills Virality

App-only flow: 1. See a friend's shared link 2. Click the link 3. Get redirected to the App Store 4. Download a 50MB app 5. Create an account 6. Finally see the Drop 7. 80% of users dropped off by step 3

Browser-first flow (Onlure): 1. See a friend's shared link 2. Click the link 3. See the Drop instantly (no login required) 4. Redeem at the store 5. 10% drop-off

Lower friction = higher conversion = stronger viral loops.

Partiful figured this out. So did Linktree. So did TikTok (web viewer).

Apps are great for retention. Browsers are great for acquisition.

Real-World Example: The Queen West Cafe

A Queen West cafe launched a Drop: "Buy one coffee, get one free."

Wave 1 (Original Creator):

Wave 2 (Consumer Shares):

Wave 3 (2nd Level Shares):

Total redemptions: 61 (34 + 18 + 9)

Viral Coefficient: 1.79 → Growth without paid ads! 🎉

Future Enhancements: Gamification

We're planning to add:

Creator Badges:

Leaderboards:

Multipliers:

These mechanics amplify the viral loop even further.

How to Design Your Own Viral Loop

If you're building a product and want viral growth, ask:

1. Does your product create immediate value? (People won't share something they haven't benefited from yet) 2. Is there a natural sharing moment? (The best time to ask for a share is right after someone gets value) 3. Do both the sharer and sharee benefit? (Mutual benefit beats one-sided incentives) 4. Is sharing frictionless? (One tap > multi-step process) 5. Do you reward ongoing participation? (2-level attribution keeps people sharing long-term)

If you can answer "yes" to all 5, you have the foundations of a viral loop.

Why Viral Loops Beat Paid Ads

Paid ads scale linearly:

Viral loops scale exponentially:

Viral loops compound. Ads don't.

Join the Viral Loop

Ready to turn your customers into influencers?

Already a consumer? Start sharing and earning:

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*Want to discuss viral growth strategies? Email us at support@onlure.ca*