A BuzzLink is a unique-per-click affiliate link that solves the most common problem with permanent referral codes: code leakage. Instead of each member having a single permanent discount code that could end up indexed on coupon aggregator sites like Honey or RetailMeNot, BuzzLinks generate a brand-new, one-time-use discount code every time the link is clicked.
Members get one link to share. Each click triggers a fresh code generated on the fly. The link itself stays the same; the code behind it is dynamic.
How a BuzzLink works for the customer
When a customer clicks a member's BuzzLink, three things happen in sequence:
1. The customer lands on your store with a tracking cookie set in their browser.
2. A BuzzLinks popup appears, offering them a unique, one-time discount code (e.g., BUZZ-4818406280HXMM9-8395CCFE).
3. The customer can click to redeem the code (which auto-applies it to their cart) or dismiss the popup and continue shopping without it.
Whether the customer redeems the code or not, the tracking cookie credits the sale to the member. Even if the popup is dismissed and the code is never used, the order is still attributed via the cookie.
[ LINK: How order attribution works (all 5 tracking methods) ]
How to enable BuzzLinks on a program
In Buzzbassador admin, go to Programs
Click Edit on the program you want to update.
Scroll to the Affiliate Links section and toggle it on.
Select BuzzLinks (Recommended) as the link type.
Set the BuzzLinks discount type and value: Percentage, Fixed Amount, or Free Shipping. This is what customers will see when they redeem the one-time code.
Click Save Program.
[ SCREENSHOT: Affiliate Links section of program editor with BuzzLinks selected ]
[ LINK: How to configure your program settings ]
Required: Enable the BuzzLinks Popup in your Shopify theme
For BuzzLinks to work on your storefront, the Buzzbassador theme app extension must be enabled in your active Shopify theme. Without this step, the popup will not appear when customers click an ambassador's BuzzLink, and BuzzLinks attribution will not function.
To enable the embed:
1. In your Shopify admin, go to Online Store > Themes.
2. Click Customize on your active theme.
3. Open the App embeds panel in the left sidebar.
4. Find BuzzLinks Popup and toggle it on.
5. Click Save in the top right.
[ SCREENSHOT: Shopify theme customizer with the App embeds panel open and the BuzzLinks Popup embed toggled on ]
If the popup is not appearing on your storefront after enabling BuzzLinks on a program, this is the first thing to check.
[ LINK: How to customize the BuzzLinks Popup ]
BuzzLinks codes
BuzzLinks codes are stored under a separate Shopify discount rule that Buzzbassador creates automatically when BuzzLinks are enabled on a program, distinct from your referral rule. The rule's name is whatever you set as the Referral Rule Title in your program's Affiliate Links > Discount Settings section. Each click on a member's BuzzLink generates a new single-use code under this rule, so the list grows as customers click and redeem.
1. In Buzzbassador, go to Programs and click Edit on the program.
2. Note the Referral Rule Title in the Affiliate Links > Discount Settings section (this is separate from the Referral Rule Title in the Referral Codes section).
3. In Shopify, go to Discounts and search for that rule title.
4. Click the rule to open it.
5. Click View all codes to see every BuzzLinks code that has been generated for this program.
BuzzLinks codes follow the format BUZZ-[member-token]-[unique-suffix] (for example, BUZZ-4818406280HXMM9-8395CCFE). The [member-token] portion of the code corresponds to that member's buzz_ref token, so you can identify which member earned attribution from a given code.
[ SCREENSHOT: Referral Rule Title field in the Affiliate Links > Discount Settings section ]
[ SCREENSHOT: BuzzLinks rule in Shopify discounts list ]
[ LINK: Referral codes vs. discount codes vs. BuzzLinks codes ]
Customizing the BuzzLinks popup
The popup the customer sees when they click a BuzzLink can be customized from your Shopify theme editor. You can edit the prompt title, subtitle, colors, and font sizes; the font family is inherited from your Shopify theme.
[ LINK: How to customize the BuzzLinks popup ]
Known limitations
A few current behaviors are worth knowing about before launching with BuzzLinks:
Same customer can redeem codes from the same BuzzLink multiple times. Each generated code is single-use, but the BuzzLink itself can be clicked repeatedly by the same customer, and each click generates a new code. There is no per-customer cap on how many BuzzLinks codes a single customer can redeem from one member's link. A future update will introduce a true one-use-per-customer option for BuzzLinks.
Popup does not reappear in the same tab if dismissed. If a customer clicks a BuzzLink, dismisses the popup, then refreshes the page or navigates around within the same browser tab, the popup will not show up again in that session. The tracking cookie is still set, so attribution still works if the customer eventually places an order; however, to see the popup and generate a code, the customer would need to click the BuzzLink again from a new tab or new browser session.
What happens if your plan changes
If your account is downgraded to a plan that does not include BuzzLinks, programs currently set to BuzzLink mode will automatically switch to a different affiliate link type the next time the program is saved. Existing members' affiliate links regenerate to the new format. BuzzLinks codes that were already generated and redeemed by past customers remain in your Shopify discount rules, but no new BuzzLinks codes will be generated for that program.
Notes
BuzzLinks are recommended over UTM links and Referral code links for any program where code leakage to coupon sites is a concern. The trade-off is that the customer experience requires a popup interaction to redeem the discount, which adds one click compared to a Referral code link that auto-applies the code via URL.
When you switch a program's link type to BuzzLinks, existing members in that program get BuzzLinks automatically; you don't need to regenerate their links.
BuzzLinks work on mobile devices including the Instagram and TikTok in-app browsers, mobile Safari, and Chrome. The popup is fully responsive and behaves the same way across browsers.