When you ask someone to share your product, you're asking them to put their reputation on the line for you. That's a big ask, and it only works if you've earned that trust first.

Here's how users naturally progress from discovering your product to actively sharing it:

Stage 1: Problem Aware

They have the problem you solve, but don't know you exist

Your job: Get discovered when they're actively searching for solutions

Signals: They're asking questions, complaining about current tools, expressing pain

What NOT to do: Interrupt them with features or pitches

Stage 2: Solution Curious

They know about you but haven't committed

Your job: Remove friction and demonstrate immediate value

Signals: Signing up, asking questions, testing core features

What NOT to do: Ask for anything yet, they're still evaluating

Stage 3: Value Convinced

They get meaningful benefit from your product

Your job: Deepen engagement and increase switching costs

Signals: Regular usage, positive feedback, incorporating you into workflows

What NOT to do: Assume they're ready to share; they're still focused on personal value

Stage 4: Share Ready

They want others to experience the same value

Your job: Make sharing effortless and rewarding

Signals: Mentioning you unprompted, asking about sharing, expressing gratitude

What NOT to do: Overwhelm them with complex referral programs

Stage 5: Active Sharer

They proactively recommend you to relevant people

Your job: Support their sharing and amplify their efforts

Signals: Regular sharing, bringing you new users, defending you publicly

What NOT to do: Take them for granted or stop nurturing the relationship

Why people share: The three types of capital

Before diving into tactics, understand the psychology. People share products because they get something in return, and it's not always money.

Users only share products for 3 reasons:

1. Social capital

What it is: Sharing makes them look smart, helpful, or "in the know."

Examples:

• Sharing a creative video on TikTok that showcases their personality
• Posting a perfectly edited photo on Instagram that makes them look cool
• Being the first friend to discover a new app like BeReal

Folks on Twitter tweet about Cluely to feel like they’re “in the startup know”

2. Financial capital

What it is: They get money, credits, or discounts for sharing.

Examples:

• $10 credit for each successful Uber referral
• Free month of Spotify Premium when a friend signs up
• Cash rewards from Cash App referrals

3. Utility capital

What it is: The product becomes more useful to them when others use it.

Examples:

• Inviting friends to Venmo so they can split bills easily
• Adding contacts to their favorite messaging app
• Getting friends to join the same streaming service to share recommendations

The key insight: The best viral products tap into multiple types of capital. Someone might share your app because it makes them look creative (social), helps them connect with friends (utility), AND gets them premium features (financial).

This framework helps you:

• Identify if virality is viable for your product at all
• Understand which flywheel makes the most sense for your business
• Avoid wasting time on misaligned tactics

Reading the Signals: When and How Much to Ask for Shares

Most founders ask for shares too early because they can't read user signals. But it's not simply about "when" to ask—it's about how much you can ask based on where users are in their journey.

The key insight: How hard you push for shares should correlate directly with how deep users are in your product. The deeper they are, the more you can ask. It's a spectrum, not a binary decision.

Light Touch (Early Journey):

• Using your product occasionally
• Providing basic feedback
• Following your social accounts
• Opening your emails

Approach: Very soft sharing opportunities. Maybe a simple "Share this" button on content they created, but no active prompts or CTAs.

Medium Push (Engaged Users):

• Engaging deeply with advanced features
• Asking detailed questions about use cases
• Mentioning specific outcomes they've achieved
• Participating in your community

Approach: Gentle sharing conversations. Ask about their experience, mention that others find it valuable to share, but don't pressure.

Strong Push (Power Users):

• Posting about your product unprompted
• Recommending you in relevant conversations
• Introducing you to colleagues or friends
• Expressing genuine gratitude for your impact

Approach: Direct sharing asks. Referral programs, explicit CTAs, follow-up sequences—they're ready for it all.

Special Case: Network-Dependent Products

For products where sharing is part of the core value (social media, collaborative tools like Slack, Figma), you need to move sharing CTAs much earlier in the journey. Users get less value if their network isn't on the product, so asking them to invite others before they've experienced full product value is not only acceptable—it's necessary.

Examples:

• LinkedIn asks you to connect with contacts during onboarding
• Slack prompts team invitations as part of setup
• Figma encourages adding collaborators to projects immediately

Remember: Different viral loop types can happen at different points in the journey. Word-of-mouth can occur from the very first brand encounter all the way through power user status. The framework isn't about when sharing is possible—it's about calibrating your approach to match user investment levels.