If you haven’t downloaded the Hopper App, use this link to start and get $25 off a hotel stay:

HOPPER REFERRAL CODE

Part of the way the travel industry advertises is by using rewards.  A lot of travel companies will offer free stays after booking so many stays.  Most offer some sort of loyalty payback program.  However very few offer a referral program.  A few years ago, AirBNB had a referral program that was very successful in launching them to the number 1 space for home rentals.  Hopper has taken the idea of a referral program and their program is changing the way people travel.

REFERRAL PROGRAM DETAILS

Everyone that signs up for Hopper is given a unique code that they can share with anyone they wish.  At first, this code gives a small reward to both the person with the reward and the person that receives it.  After a few shares, normally 10, the person sharing the reward enters the Hopper Partner Program.  Under the Partner Program, users are able to give new sign-ups $25 for a hotel stay.  When the person that receives the $25 books a hotel, the giver gets a whopping $50 in Carrot Cash.  Carrot Cash can be used for any form of travel on the Hopper App. This is by far the most rewarding referral program we have ever seen.

HOW MUCH ARE PEOPLE MAKING

When the program first started out, Hopper limited the referral bonus to $5000.  However, the program is now unlimited.  Hopper hasn’t said who are the top referrals and how much they are earning, but we have seen reports on Reddit of people making upwards of $10,000 off this referral program.  These reports are hard to verify but Hopper and Capital One have said that they are willing to give out a lot of money in referral bonuses so I don’t doubt that they are true.

WHAT HAVE BEEN THE RESULTS FOR HOPPER

Hopper is not a publicly traded company so its hard to say how this has affected their bottom line, but the app has moved from around 20 in the app store to the 1^st or 2^nd position in the last few months.  So, its fair to say the program is very popular and is shaking up the travel industry.

WHAT OTHER REWARDS DOES HOPPER OFFER

Hopper has really gamified the app in a way that is beneficial to the consumer.  They have a thing called Daily Gift.  Users log in every day and pick up a small balance that is applied to their Carrot Cash.  Over a week, users are given $7 in Carrot Cash.  It’s a way to keep users engaged on the Hopper App and bring the app to the top of their mind when they are ready to book, Hopper will be their only choice.  

Hopper also returns a portion of each booking back to the consumer in the form of Carrot Cash.  This percentage varies by type of travel.  Additionally, Hopper allows users to buy Carrot Cash.  So if a hotel cost $100, you may be able to buy $20 worth of Carrot Cash for $10.

DO THESE REWARDS EXPIRE

Yes.  The travel rewards expire after 6 months of not being used or gained.  This is part of Hopper’s strategy to keep users engaged with the app so that their rewards don’t expire.

HOW HAS THE COMPETION RESPONDED

So far, no other travel program has responded with anything this generous.  Other travel companies tend to spend their advertising monies on television and internet ads so we wouldn’t expect a shift to a referral program to come quickly for them.   I’m sure they are watching what Hopper is doing and will have some response.  Who knows, this Hopper Referral Code program may just spur other companies to launch their own competing referral programs.

WHEN WILL THE PROGRAM END OR CHANGE

Only Hopper knows and they haven’t said.  If you don’t have a referral code, you should download it from the link about and get started.  Summer is almost here and with things being more expensive this is a perfect opportunity to save some money on travel.