Would you like to run a rewards program in your Easy Digital Downloads store? RewardsWP connects to Easy Digital Downloads (EDD) to award points on purchases, show points on download pages, and turn redeemed rewards into EDD discount codes.
This guide walks you through what the integration does, from the download page to the payment receipt.
- Checking the Integration Status
- Showing Points on Download Pages
- Awarding Points for Payments
- Reversing Points for Refunds
- Earning Points for Product Reviews
- Turning Rewards Into Discount Codes
- Showing Rewards on the Payment Receipt
- Turning Customers Into Advocates
- Qualifying Members for VIP Tiers
- FAQ
Before you get started, make sure RewardsWP is installed and activated on your WordPress site, along with the Easy Digital Downloads plugin.
Checking the Integration Status
The EDD integration turns on by itself. When Easy Digital Downloads is active, RewardsWP detects it and enables the integration, with no setup step.
RewardsWP works with one eCommerce plugin at a time. If WooCommerce is also active, RewardsWP uses WooCommerce. The EDD integration needs WooCommerce deactivated.
To confirm the status, go to RewardsWP » Settings in your WordPress admin sidebar. Then click the Integrations tab.
The site in this example runs WooCommerce, so its Easy Digital Downloads toggle is off.
In the Easy Digital Downloads section, the message under Integration Status tells you whether the integration is running:
- Automatically enabled: The integration is running, and nothing else is needed.
- Can’t be used because WooCommerce is active: RewardsWP is using WooCommerce. To have RewardsWP use your EDD store, deactivate WooCommerce.
- Asks you to install Easy Digital Downloads: RewardsWP can’t find Easy Digital Downloads. Install and activate it first.
The toggle in this section is locked, because RewardsWP sets it for you. To stop the integration, deactivate the Easy Digital Downloads plugin itself.
Once the integration is running, RewardsWP shows points on your download pages.
Showing Points on Download Pages
When a customer views a single download page, RewardsWP shows a banner after the download content. The banner tells them how many points they earn by buying that download.
The number comes from your earn rate, which you set in RewardsWP » Settings » Points.
The banner appears when the download earns more than zero points. A free download shows no banner. Neither does a download that the Earns on setting keeps from earning.
The banner’s message depends on who is looking:
- Logged-in member: “Earn [number] points when you buy this item.”
- Guest, with guest participation on: the same message as a member.
- Non-member, with the program for members only: “Sign in to earn [number] points when you buy this item.” The Sign in text is a link.
Awarding Points for Payments
When a customer checks out, RewardsWP records the purchase points as pending. It approves them when EDD marks the payment as complete. To learn what each status means, read Understanding points statuses.
EDD uses that single completion step for every payment gateway. So points arrive in the same way for each kind of payment:
- Credit card payments: when the gateway confirms the payment.
- PayPal payments: when PayPal confirms the transaction.
- Manual payments: when you mark the payment as complete yourself.
RewardsWP tracks which payments it has already credited. That way, a payment never earns its points twice. If a payment ends unpaid, for example when it fails or is cancelled, RewardsWP removes its pending points.
Points count the payment’s subtotal after discounts, without tax. Points round down to a whole number.
To choose which downloads earn points, use the Earns on setting of the Make a purchase action on the Points tab. It can name downloads, categories, or tags. Items outside the rule earn nothing.
To set it up, read Excluding products from rewards and points.
Reversing Points for Refunds
When you refund a payment in Easy Digital Downloads, RewardsWP takes back the points that payment earned. It works with the refund system in Easy Digital Downloads 3.0 and later.
- Full refund: RewardsWP takes back the payment’s own purchase points and first order points. Birthday and referral points stay in the customer’s balance.
- Partial refund: RewardsWP deducts the points the refunded downloads earned. Refunding a download that earned no points deducts nothing. However many partial refunds you make, RewardsWP never deducts more than the payment earned.
- Refunding the rest of a payment: after a partial refund, refunding what’s left takes back only the points that remain.
- Refund while points are pending: a partial refund updates the payment’s pending points. When the payment completes, RewardsWP approves only the points for what the customer kept.
Each reversal appears in the customer’s activity log. That gives both you and the customer a clear record of the change.
Earning Points for Product Reviews
On Easy Digital Downloads, review points work with the EDD Reviews extension. With it active, customers can review the downloads they bought inside the rewards widget. RewardsWP awards points when a review is approved. The EDD Reviews extension decides whether a review is approved at once.
Customers find the review list under Ways to earn in the rewards widget. On Leave a review, they click Review to see the downloads they bought.
On an Easy Digital Downloads store, the review form in the rewards widget also asks for a title.
Reviews in the rewards widget need the EDD Reviews extension. If your downloads allow comments, the review action stays in the widget. Customers write the review outside it. In your WordPress admin, the Write a product review drawer says that the EDD Reviews extension is required.
RewardsWP gives the same points for any review, whatever the rating. Disclose that reviewers earn points, near your reviews and average rating. For the rules, read the FTC’s Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule questions and answers. This is not legal advice.
To set up review points and see what customers see, read Earning points from product reviews.
Turning Rewards Into Discount Codes
When a customer redeems points for a reward, RewardsWP creates a native EDD discount code. These codes appear in your Downloads » Discounts list next to the discounts you create yourself, with a description that says RewardsWP generated it.
Each reward type maps to an EDD discount type:
- Fixed discount: a flat amount, such as five dollars off.
- Percentage discount: a percentage, such as ten percent off.
To set up each reward, read Setting up a fixed amount discount reward or Setting up a percentage discount reward.
Every code RewardsWP creates follows these rules:
- Single-use: the code works for one order.
- Limited by the reward’s rules: if the reward has a Minimum spend, such as a referral reward, the code carries the same minimum. If the reward’s Applies to setting names downloads, categories, or tags, the code covers only the matching downloads.
- Easy to find: codes start with the name of your points, such as “points-“. Each code is also linked to the member’s RewardsWP activity log.
Choosing Which Downloads a Reward Covers
Fixed and percentage discount rewards have an Applies to setting. To find it, open the reward’s drawer. This works for a reward in Ways to Redeem on the Points tab, a referral reward, or a VIP entry reward. The setting offers two choices:
- Entire order: every download in the cart gets the discount, except the items under Exclude. Choose this to keep a few items, such as gift cards, out of the discount.
- Specific items: only the items you pick get the discount. Choose this for a reward on one category or a few downloads. Applying a reward to specific items is available on the Plus and Pro plans.
On an Easy Digital Downloads store, the search box under Exclude finds downloads, categories, and tags.
Each item you pick appears under Exclude. A category covers every download in it, including downloads you add to it later.
At checkout, only the matching downloads get the discount. If no download in the cart matches, the customer sees a message that explains why.
Note: A fixed discount reward keeps its discount on the matching downloads with Easy Digital Downloads 3.5.1 or later. Older versions spread the discount over the whole cart. On those versions, the reward’s drawer shows a warning.
For every rule and option, see Excluding products from rewards and points.
Showing Rewards on the Payment Receipt
After a customer completes a purchase, RewardsWP adds a rewards section to EDD’s payment receipt page. The section appears after the standard receipt content and shows:
- Points earned from this purchase.
- Current balance, including the new points.
- Pending points, if any are still waiting for approval.
The section reminds customers that every purchase earns rewards, right when they finish buying. That gives them a reason to come back for their next purchase.
Turning Customers Into Advocates
The EDD integration can turn customers into advocates for your referral program after they complete a purchase. It uses the same trigger as points: EDD marking the payment as complete.
Once converted, the customer gets their referral link and can start referring friends to your store. This happens one time. A customer who makes several purchases is converted on their first qualifying order.
See Setting up advocate rewards.
Qualifying Members for VIP Tiers
The VIP Program runs on Easy Digital Downloads as well as WooCommerce. When members qualify by total amount spent, RewardsWP uses each customer’s lifetime value in Easy Digital Downloads, which already subtracts refunds. Running VIP tiers is available on the Pro plan.
RewardsWP checks a member’s tier again whenever a purchase completes or is refunded.
See Understanding When VIP Tiers Update.
To pick how members qualify, read Choosing How Members Qualify for VIP Tiers.
That’s it! Your rewards program runs on your Easy Digital Downloads store, from download pages to payment receipts. Next, to set how many points each purchase earns, read Earning points from purchases.
FAQ
Below, we’ve answered some of the most common questions about the Easy Digital Downloads integration.
Can I switch from WooCommerce to Easy Digital Downloads?
Yes. RewardsWP uses one store at a time. To switch, deactivate WooCommerce and activate Easy Digital Downloads. RewardsWP detects the change and enables the EDD integration. New redemptions then create EDD discount codes.
Coupons created earlier stay in your WooCommerce coupon list. They don’t work as EDD discounts. Point balances and member records stay the same.
Your rewards keep their item rules and free product picks. Those work again if you switch back. Until then, a Specific items rule with WooCommerce items matches nothing. An Entire order rule skips its WooCommerce exclusions and covers the whole order.
Can I use RewardsWP with the EDD Reviews extension?
Yes. When the EDD Reviews extension is active, RewardsWP awards points when a product review is approved. Customers can also write the review inside the rewards widget.
For the details, see Earning Points for Product Reviews above.
What happens to points when I refund a payment?
RewardsWP takes back the points a refunded payment earned. A full refund takes back the payment’s purchase and first order points, never birthday or referral points. A partial refund deducts only what the refunded downloads earned. A download that earned nothing takes nothing back.
See Reversing Points for Refunds for every case.
Can I offer free shipping rewards on Easy Digital Downloads?
Free shipping rewards are part of the WooCommerce integration, for stores that ship orders. On Easy Digital Downloads, use a fixed or percentage discount reward instead. The same goes for VIP entry rewards.