> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.extole.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Tiers and Member Status

> The three distinct things Extole calls a tier, and how a membership tier can arrive so reward rules and targeting can read it.

## Overview

[//]: # "How do loyalty tiers work in Extole?"

"Tier" means three unrelated things across Extole. This page separates them, then covers membership
status: a named tier that travels with the participant and can change what they earn.

[//]: ___

## Three Meanings of Tier

| Name | What it is | Where it lives |
| :- | :- | :- |
| Advocate tiers | Reporting segments that classify advocates by how many successful activities they have driven. Descriptive only — they do not change behavior. | [Advocate Tiers](/guides/audiences-and-segmentation/advocate-tiers) |
| Tiered rewards | Reward rules that issue a different reward value depending on cart value, product type, referral count, or a profile attribute. | [Rules and Quality](/product/product-overview/rewards/rules-quality) |
| Membership tier | A named status the participant holds, such as Bronze or Gold, carried on their profile and used to target and to reward. | This page |

A program where Gold members earn at a higher rate can use a membership tier together with tiered
rewards. The tier records the status, and a reward rule can issue a different value because of it.

## Bringing a Tier into Extole

You can send the membership tier you want Extole to read. Two ways to send it are a profile
attribute and audience membership. Reward rules, trigger rules, and targeting can read the value
you send.

<Frame caption="A tier can arrive as a profile attribute or as audience membership. Reward rules, trigger rules, and targeting can read it.">
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/extole/l6gEwKmZ7QFtNnWB/images/extole/loyalty-tier-sources.svg?fit=max&auto=format&n=l6gEwKmZ7QFtNnWB&q=85&s=1d8ec57b80c70a801160da0b4a47d0c4" alt="A membership tier can reach Extole as a loyalty_tier profile attribute sent with an event, or as audience membership synced over the API. Reward rules, trigger rules, and targeting can read it." width="640" height="372" data-path="images/extole/loyalty-tier-sources.svg" />
</Frame>

### As a Profile Attribute

Prefix an event data key with `me.public.` and Extole writes the value onto the person's profile.
The prefix is stripped and the rest of the key becomes the attribute name, so `me.public.loyalty_tier`
writes an attribute named `loyalty_tier`.

Send the attribute alongside an event you are already sending, or send it on its own when the tier
changes. Campaign rules, audiences, and reports all read the resulting attribute. See
[Set Person Profile Data from an Event](/technical/integration-overview/set-person-profile-data-from-an-event).

A reward rule can read this attribute on the participant at the moment it evaluates.

### As Audience Membership

Extole supports partner-managed audience membership over the API, which is built for syncing groups
such as segments, subscription states, or loyalty tiers. You can create an audience for a tier and
sync membership from your side. See
[Receive Audience Membership from a Partner](/technical/building-custom-integrations/integration-types/integration-inbound-audience-membership).

This fits when tier lists already live in a CDP or CRM and you want to sync them in bulk.

<Tip>
  If the same tier is stored both as a profile attribute and as an audience, the two can drift. A
  rule reads the one it is written against.
</Tip>

## Rewarding on Tier

A reward rule can condition on a profile attribute and issue a different value for participants in
a given tier. A rule for participants whose `loyalty_tier` is `gold`, for example, can issue the
higher reward.

One way to set this up is a separate reward for each tier, with a rule matching that tier, on the
same event. The rules decide who receives which value.

Trigger rules can read the same attribute, so an event can fire only for participants in a given
tier. See [Common Trigger Rules](/guides/flow-campaigns/common-trigger-rules) and
[How to Set Up Reward Rules](/guides/flow-campaigns/how-to-set-up-reward-rules).

## Targeting on Tier

Tier is also a targeting dimension. A campaign can be targeted to an audience, so a members-only
offer or an early-access experience can be limited to one tier without changing the reward at all.
See [How to Target a Program](/guides/flow-campaigns/how-to-target-a-program).

## Tier Progression

<Info>
  **Planned capability.** PLANNED-CAPABILITY — a built-in tier engine that accumulates lifetime
  points, promotes participants across named tiers, prevents demotion, and applies a per-tier
  earning multiplier is not confirmed as an available feature. Confirm with Product before
  publishing.

  What you can do today is send the current tier on either path above. Reward rules and targeting
  read that value.
</Info>

## Related

* [Points and Balances](/technical/platform-integrations/extensions/reward-bank/points-and-balances)
* [Reward Bank Configuration Guide](/technical/platform-integrations/extensions/reward-bank/reward-bank-configuration-guide)
* [Set Person Profile Data from an Event](/technical/integration-overview/set-person-profile-data-from-an-event)
* [Rules and Quality](/product/product-overview/rewards/rules-quality)


## Related topics

- [Build a Loyalty Program](/technical/platform-integrations/extensions/reward-bank/loyalty-program-guide.md)
- [Redemption and Reward Options](/product/product-overview/programs/loyalty/redemption-and-rewards.md)
- [Points and Balances](/technical/platform-integrations/extensions/reward-bank/points-and-balances.md)
- [Member Experience](/product/product-overview/programs/loyalty/member-experience.md)
- [Advocate Tiers](/guides/audiences-and-segmentation/advocate-tiers.md)


This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.