Loyalty Points Earning and Tiers

AccuArk's loyalty program goes beyond simple point accumulation by offering a tier system that rewards your most loyal customers with accelerated earning rates. This guide explains how points are earned on each sale, how the tier structure works, how administrators can make manual adjustments, and how the system handles points reversal when refunds are processed.

How Points Are Earned

Each completed sale with a customer record attached earns loyalty points based on the Points Per Dollar setting configured in your loyalty program settings:

• When a cashier finalizes an invoice that has a customer record linked to it, the system calculates the qualifying sale amount and multiplies it by the Points Per Dollar rate.
• For example, if the Points Per Dollar rate is 1 and the qualifying sale amount is $47.00, the customer earns 47 points.
• Fractional points are rounded down. A $47.50 sale at 1 point per dollar earns 47 points, not 48.
• Points are credited to the customer's loyalty account immediately after the invoice is finalized. The customer's updated balance is visible on their next transaction.
• If the EarnOnDiscountedAmount setting is ON, the qualifying amount is the invoice total after promotions and discounts. If it is OFF, the qualifying amount is the original pre-discount total. Refer to the Loyalty Program Settings and Configuration article for details on this setting.

Tier Structure

The loyalty program uses a four-tier structure that recognizes and rewards customers as they accumulate more points. Each tier offers a higher earning multiplier, making the program progressively more valuable to frequent shoppers.

Bronze

Bronze is the default starting tier for every customer who joins the loyalty program:

• All new loyalty members begin at the Bronze level.
• There is no minimum point threshold for Bronze — every customer with a loyalty account starts here.
• Bronze members earn points at the base rate (1x multiplier). There is no bonus multiplier at this tier.
• Bronze serves as the entry point and baseline from which customers can progress to higher tiers.

Silver

Silver is the first upgrade tier, reached when a customer accumulates points beyond a configurable threshold:

• The Silver threshold is set in the loyalty program configuration. For example, you might set it to 500 points, meaning a customer is promoted to Silver once they have earned a cumulative total of 500 points.
• Silver members earn a 1.5x multiplier on points. If the base rate is 1 point per dollar, a Silver member earns 1.5 points per dollar (rounded down to the nearest whole number on each transaction).
• The multiplier is applied automatically. No action is required by the cashier or the customer — the system detects the customer's tier and applies the appropriate rate.

Gold

Gold is the second upgrade tier, reached at a higher cumulative point threshold:

• The Gold threshold is configured separately from Silver. For example, you might set Gold at 2,000 cumulative points.
• Gold members earn a 2x multiplier on points. At a base rate of 1 point per dollar, Gold members earn 2 points per dollar.
• The jump from Silver (1.5x) to Gold (2x) provides a tangible incentive for customers to keep shopping and reach the next level.

Platinum

Platinum is the highest tier in the loyalty program:

• The Platinum threshold is the highest of the four tiers. For example, you might set it at 5,000 cumulative points.
• Platinum members earn a 3x multiplier on points. At a base rate of 1 point per dollar, Platinum members earn 3 points per dollar.
• Platinum status recognizes your most valuable customers and gives them the best earning rate in the program. These customers accumulate points rapidly, reinforcing their loyalty and encouraging continued spending.

Tier Progression and Retention

Customers progress through tiers based on their cumulative earned points (lifetime total, not current balance). This means:

• Redeeming points does not reduce a customer's tier status. A Gold member who redeems 1,000 points does not drop back to Silver because tier qualification is based on total points ever earned, not the current unredeemed balance.
• Tier thresholds are evaluated after each qualifying transaction. If a purchase pushes a customer past the next threshold, they are promoted immediately and the new multiplier applies to that transaction.
• Tier demotion policies (if any) are configurable by the business. By default, tiers are permanent once achieved, but administrators can enable periodic tier reviews if desired.

Manual Point Adjustments

Administrators can manually add or subtract points from a customer's loyalty account when corrections or goodwill gestures are needed. Manual adjustments are a powerful tool that must be used responsibly.

Making an Adjustment

To adjust a customer's loyalty points:

1. Navigate to the customer's profile in the customer management section.
2. Open the Loyalty tab.
3. Click Adjust Points.
4. Enter a positive number to add points or a negative number to subtract points.
5. Enter a reason for the adjustment in the required reason field. The reason is mandatory and cannot be left blank.
6. Confirm the adjustment.

Permission Requirement

Manual point adjustments require the LOYALTY_ADJUST permission. Only users who have been granted this permission (typically administrators and senior managers) can access the Adjust Points function. Cashiers and standard employees will not see the adjustment option on the customer profile.

If a cashier encounters a situation that requires a point adjustment, they should escalate to a manager with the appropriate permission.

Adjustment Cap

Single adjustments are capped at 10,000 points to prevent accidental or unauthorized large-scale modifications:

• An adjustment of +10,000 or -10,000 points will be accepted.
• An adjustment exceeding 10,000 points (in either direction) will be rejected with an error message.
• If a larger adjustment is genuinely needed, the administrator must perform multiple adjustments of 10,000 points or fewer, each with its own documented reason. This creates a clear audit trail for large corrections.

Audit Logging

Every manual point adjustment is permanently logged with the following information:

• The customer's account and current tier at the time of adjustment
• The adjustment amount (positive or negative)
• The point balance before and after the adjustment
• The reason provided by the administrator
• The user account of the administrator who performed the adjustment
• The date and time of the adjustment

This audit log is accessible from the customer's loyalty history and from administrative reporting tools. It provides full accountability for every manual change to loyalty balances.

Points Reversal on Refunds (Clawback)

When a refund is processed on a sale that earned loyalty points, AccuArk automatically reverses the points that were earned on that sale. This clawback mechanism prevents abuse through buy-earn-refund-keep-points loops.

Full Refund

When a full refund is issued for an invoice:

• All loyalty points that were earned on that invoice are reversed (subtracted from the customer's balance).
• The reversal is recorded as a separate entry in the customer's loyalty history, linked to the original invoice and the refund transaction.
• If the customer's point balance would go below zero after the reversal (because they already redeemed some or all of the earned points), the balance is set to zero. The system does not create a negative point balance.

Partial Refund

When a partial refund is issued (only some items are returned, or a partial dollar amount is refunded):

• Points are reversed proportional to the refund amount. For example, if the original invoice was $100 and earned 100 points, and the customer returns $30 worth of items, then 30 points are reversed (30% of the earned points, matching the 30% refund).
• The proportional calculation ensures fairness — the customer keeps points for the portion of the sale they retained and loses points only for the portion they returned.
• As with full refunds, the balance cannot go below zero.

Why Clawback Matters

Without clawback, a customer could exploit the system by making large purchases, earning a significant number of points, and then returning the items while keeping the points. The clawback mechanism closes this loop automatically:

• Customers cannot profit from return cycles.
• Points accurately reflect actual spending retained by the customer.
• The business does not accumulate a growing liability of unearned points on its books.

Clawback is automatic and requires no cashier or manager intervention. The system handles it as part of the standard refund workflow.

What to Read Next

• Redeeming Loyalty Points at the POS — Step-by-step guide for cashiers on how customers redeem points for discounts, including stacking rules with promotions and coupons.
• Loyalty Program Settings and Configuration — Detailed reference for all loyalty settings including Points Per Dollar, Redemption Value Per Point, and thresholds.