Akohub | Ako Marketing Help Center | Loyalty Program Checklist: Step-by-Step Guide

We’ve introduced a guided Loyalty Program setup checklist to make launching your loyalty program faster, clearer, and less overwhelming.

This checklist walks you through each required step so you don’t miss anything important. Instead of guessing what to set up next, you can follow a simple, step-by-step flow designed specifically for growing Shopify merchants. This guide helps you:

Launch with confidence
Avoid common setup mistakes
Turn one-time buyers into repeat customers more easily

How do I start setting up my loyalty program?

To get started:

Open the Ako Marketing app > Loyalty Program

Expand Complete your loyalty program setup to view the full checklist.

How does this checklist work with different Shopify account types?

Your Loyalty Program checklist adapts based on how your Shopify store is set up. Shopify currently supports two different customer account experiences, and your checklist will reflect the one you’re using. To see which Shopify theme you’re using, go to Settings > Customer Account.

1. Customer Accounts

If your store is using Shopify’s new Customer Accounts, you’ll see checklist steps that focus on the Customer Account experience. This setup allows customers to use a one-time code sent to their email when logging in.

This is the recommended setup for most growing Shopify merchants as it allows customers to use both store credits and points. Compare store credit vs. loyalty points to decide what works best for your store. Learn how to set up store credit and loyalty points in your loyalty program.

2. Legacy

If your store is using legacy customer accounts or relies on a theme-based setup, your checklist may look slightly different.

Customer Account - Follow the Checklist: What to Set Up and Why

Step 1 - Choose your reward types

Before choosing your reward type, Akohub requires merchants to confirm and understand which Shopify Theme you’re using: Customer accounts. This is important because Customer Accounts determine how customers can earn and redeem store credit and/or points at checkout.

Customer Accounts also allow you to activate their store credit program in their store, as shown in the next step.

Additionally, merchants can activate their points program to reward customers with points.

Step 2 - Earning rules

Earning rules define how customers earn rewards when they make a purchase with your store. In the first step, merchants can activate their VIP program to enhance customer loyalty.

Next, customers can earn points/store credits whenever they place an order. Learn how Place an order earning rule works.

Step 3 - Launch your loyalty program and notifications

Launch program and notifications checklist

This step ensures your loyalty program is visible, functional, and communicated clearly to customers. It includes:

Email Notifications: Automatically notify customers when they earn rewards, reach VIP tiers, or redeem benefits.
Customer Import: Import existing Shopify customers so they can start earning rewards immediately.

Learn how to customize loyalty email notifications and import customers into your loyalty program.

Step 4 - Setup your customer account

In this step, you’ll connect your loyalty program directly to your customer account experience. With Shopify’s new customer accounts, shoppers can easily check their rewards, track points, and manage their loyalty profile in one place. To complete this setup, you’ll install the following sections:

Loyalty Program Page: Where customers see rewards, earning rules, and available benefits.
Loyalty Program Status: Shows points balance, VIP tier, and progress.
Personal Details: Allows customers to manage their profile and loyalty-related data.

Finally we have 1-Click redemption. This feature lets customers apply points instantly at checkout, removing friction and increasing redemption rates. Learn how to enable 1-Click points redemption.

Important: 1-Click points redemption can only be enabled after your Points Program is activated, because customers need points available in order to redeem them instantly at checkout.

If your store is only using Store Credits, then 1-Click points redemption is not required.

What happens after I complete the loyalty program (Customer Account) checklist?

Once all steps are completed your loyalty program is fully live and you’ll unlock the Boost your customer retention checklist. This next checklist helps you:

Add more ways to earn rewards
Install loyalty widgets
Activate referrals and referrals reminder
Integrate with tools like Judge.me and Klaviyo

Legacy Account - Follow the Checklist: What to Set Up and Why

Step 1 - Choose your reward types

Before choosing your reward type, Akohub requires you to confirms your understanding about which Shopify Theme you’re using: Legacy accounts. Unlike Customer Account, the Legacy account doesn’t support store credit. Instead, you’ll be using points as rewards.