The Complete Discounts Guide

This guide shows how discounts work in Voucherify. Besides discount types, you'll learn how the app applies discounts to customers' orders and what discount campaigns you can launch in the dashboard. 

Contents:

1. Glossary
2. Creating Discounts
3. Discount Types
   1. Amount
   2. Percentage
   3. Fixed amount
   4. Unit
   5. Free shipping
4. Discount Effects
5. Creating Discounts
6. Validation Rules

Glossary

Here are some key definitions to grasp when working with discounts:

Discount Type

The app supports percentage, amount, free shipping, fixed-order-amount and unit discounts. The unit discount refers to item(s) you want to give for free when a customer redeems the discount. Fixed discount refers to the total amount and the discount value is counted dynamically based on the customer's order amount. 

Discount Effect

There are different effects to choose from depending on what discount type you create. In general, effects define how the discount is applied to the order (for example, per order or order items).

Validation Rules

Validation rules are optional limits attached to your discounts and checked every time a customer tries to make a redemption. 

Campaign Manager

The Campaign Manager enables you to create and attach discounts to particular incentives and campaign types. You can create discount coupons, auto-applied promotions, rewards, or referral codes with attached discounts for invited friends. 

Discount Coupon

Digital coupon represented by a unique code. Each coupon code in a single project is unique. Moreover, you can create standalone coupon codes for multi-use or bulk coupon campaigns where each digital coupon has a unique trackable code.

In-Cart Promotion

In-cart promotion applies discounts without codes. When a customer qualifies for a promotion, the discount can be automatically applied to the order. 

Referral Code

Referral codes are a part of a referral program setup. Each referral code is unique and needs to be published to a referrer (advocate). You can assign a discount to referral codes, and it will be applied to a referred customer's order when redeeming the code. 

Rewards

Rewards are a part of your referral and loyalty campaigns. You can offer material and digital rewards like coupon codes with a predefined discount. 

Creating Discounts

Go to the Campaigns section and open the Campaign Manager with the plus  .

You need to choose what campaign you'd like to create. To launch a campaign with discounts, you can choose between the following types:

• Coupon codes – discount is attached to unique codes or a single standalone code. Read more.
• Cart-level promotion – discount is applied automatically when a customer's cart meets promotion rules. Read more.
• Referral program – discount is attached to unique referral codes and is applied to order when the invited user successfully redeems referral code. Read more.

You can also create discount coupons that act as rewards in your loyalty and referral campaigns. Go here to learn more about creating rewards. 

Discount settings cover the discount type (1), effect (2), value (3), and validation rules (optional) (4). 

Discount Value

The discount value can either be a static or dynamic value. For a static value, simply enter the desired value in the discount value field.

To create a dynamic value, click on the plus next to the discount value field, define the formula, and add a fall back value. 

You can create formulas with mathematical and logical operators and assign a dynamic discount value for each of the discount types. Values will be calculated during redemption based on the provided formula and metadata values. The formula builder requires a fallback value in case the dynamic discount value cannot be calculated from the given parameters in the formula. 

You can either use the Formula builder utility with step-by-step dialogs that you fill out to build the formula from element building blocks or the Expression output with operators and operands. Read more in our dynamic discount value builder guide.

Formula Builder

Expression Output 

Discount Types

Campaign Manager supports amount, percentage, amount, fixed amount, unit, and free shipping discounts. 

Amount Discount

You can offer your customers a discount in any currency, for example, $20 off or £10 off. Before creating amount discounts, please visit Project Settings to set the proper currency for your discounts.

You can also create formulas with mathematical and logical operators and assign a dynamic amount value. Amount values will be calculated during redemption based on the provided formula and metadata values. Read more in our dynamic discount value builder guide. 

Percentage Discount

You can offer a percentage discount like 10% off or 50% off and secure your budget by defining an Amount Limit. 

You can also create formulas with mathematical and logical operators and assign a dynamic percent value. Percent values will be calculated during redemption based on the provided formula and metadata values. Read more in our dynamic discount value builder guide. 

Amount Limit

If the discount is applied to the total order amount, the Amount Limit is the maximum discount given per single order. If the discount is applied to specific items only, the Amount Limit defines the maximum amount of the discount given per discounted item subtotal. The detailed information on the ways the discount can be applied is described in Effects. 

Unit discount

Unit discount lets you offer items from your inventory for free. First, you need to decide on the discount effect (1). You can choose between  the following options. Then, you need to decide how many free items you want to offer with the coupon code (2) and finally, choose the free product (3). 

You can create formulas with mathematical and logical operators and assign a dynamic unit value. Unit values will be calculated during redemption based on the provided formula and metadata values. Read more in our dynamic discount value builder guide.  

Fixed amount

Fixed amount discount has two variants. Depending on the chosen discount effect Apply to order or Apply to items, you can set a fixed total amount or new price for particular items.

Fixed amount - apply to order

When redeeming this discount, the order total amount will be set to the value of the Fixed amount. The discount value is calculated during the redemption as it's a difference between the total amount of the customer's order and the Fixed amount.

You can also create formulas with mathematical and logical operators and assign a dynamic fixed amount value. Fixed amount values will be calculated during redemption based on the provided formula and metadata values. Read more in our dynamic discount value builder guide. 

Fixed amount - apply to items

When you choose apply to items effect, you need to define which order items will have new prices when redeeming the discount. You can add products from your list or choose collections with product filters. 

How to create static and dynamic product collections?

Click Add items and select items or collections of items that you wish to include in the promotion. Next, define a new price for each added item/collection. 

As a result, all added items will have a new predefined price when redeeming the discount. The total discount amount is calculated during the redemption and it's a difference between the initial item price and the item price set in the discount settings. Read more on applying discounts to cheapest or most expensive items here.

There is also a new capped by option. Capped by puts a limit on the number of order line items that can be discounted both on the line item and across all matched order line items. The limit can be freely set. Max units per order line option defines the maximum units of a particular product that are allowed to be discounted per order line. Max units combined for all matched order lines defines the maximum number of units that are allowed to be discounted combined for all order lines matching the constrained item. As a result, the discount is applied to predefined products, and each of them is discounted equally at most up to the maximum limit allowed. 

You can also create formulas with mathematical and logical operators and assign a dynamic fixed amount value for each of the items. Fixed amount values will be calculated during redemption based on the provided formula and metadata values. Read more in our dynamic discount value builder guide. 

Free shipping

You can also offer a free shipping discount to your customers.

Shipping is added as a built-in item in the Products section in your dashboard. 

Discount Effects

After defining the discount type and its value, you need to decide how the discount is applied to the cart. Here are the discount effects you can choose from.

Apply discount to the whole cart

Available for the amount, percentage, and fixed-order-amount discounts.

Discount is applied to the total order amount. Using validation rules, you can set the required cart structure and volume, but the discount will always be applied to the sum of all products in the order (total order amount). 

Apply discount to items

Available for the amount and percentage discounts.

Using this effect , the discount is applied only to particular items defined by validation rules. Each item subtotal is discounted equally.

When selecting discounted (included) items, you can choose to discount each item in the cart or only selected items defines by validation rules. 

Discount each item

If you decide to discount each item, discounts will be applied to every item in the cart excluding items selected in Exclude tab.

Discount selected items

If you choose to discount selected items, you need to define them using validation rules. You can do it when creating a new discount or by using the dedicated Validation Rules section in your dashboard. 

After choosing products or collections, you can decide if the discount will be applied to all qualified items or only to the cheapest or most expensive of the qualified products. Read more.

Note that you can add another component defining discounted items and combine many effects. For example, the discount can be applied to the cheapest and most expensive product in the cart.

Likewise, you can use the same methods to define excluded products. As a result, the discount won't be applied to the selected items.

After saving the campaign, Voucherify will store the list of selected/excluded products. During the redemption, the discount is applied only to items added to the discounted products list. 

Redemption example

During the redemption, the discount is applied to items defined in the validation rules. Each of the included items is discounted equally. Here's an example of a redemption of a $10 discount code (each discounted item is $10 off):

Apply discount proportionally to amount

Available for amount discounts only.

This effect splits and applies the discount to the chosen items proportionally to their share in the total discounted items amount. For example, if a coupon code gives $10 off, no matter how many discounted items a customer has in the cart, the total discount applied to a single order is $10.

Select items that qualify for a discount by using the validation rules - see instructions. 

Redemption example

During the redemption, the discount is applied only to items defined in the validation rules. The discount is divided and applied proportionally to all qualified items in the order. Here's an example of a redemption of a $10 discount code (three items are discounted, and the total discount amount is $10):

How to count the discount per item?

This effect splits the discount proportionally among the discounted products. For example:

• The order contains products A, B, and C.
• Product A and C are discounted.
• The discount applied to product A:  

Discount value x (Total amount of product A / (Total amount of product A + Total amount of product C))

• And the discount on product C:
  

Discount value x (Total amount of product C / (Total amount of product A + Total amount of product C))

Apply discount proportionally to quantity

Available for amount discounts only.

This effect splits and applies the discount to the chosen items proportionally to their share in total discounted items quantity. For example, if a coupon code gives $10 off, no matter how many discounted items a customer has in the cart, the total discount applied to a single order is $10.

Select items that qualify for a discount by using the validation rules - see instructions. 

Redemption example

During the redemption, the discount is applied only to items defined in the validation rules. The discount is divided and applied proportionally to all qualified items in the order. Here's an example of a redemption of a $10 discount code (6 items are discounted, and the total discount amount is $10):

How to count the discount per item?

This effect splits the discount proportionally among the discounted products. For example:

• The order contains products A, B, and C.
• Product A and C are discounted.
• The discount applied to product A:  
  

Discount value x (Quantity of product A / (Quantity of product A + Quantity of product C))

• And the discount on product C:

Discount value x (Quantity of product A / (Quantity of product A + Quantity of product C))

Add new order items

Available for unit discounts only.

Choosing this effect results in adding items to the cart in the number defined by unit value. For example, if the code adds one free t-shirt, then even if a customer has the t-shirt already in the cart, a free t-shirt will always be added to the order.

Add missing items

Available for unit discounts only.

This effect adds items to the cart only if a customer has fewer free items than offered by the code (items in cart < unit value). 

For example, let's assume that the code gives one free t-shirt:

• If a customer doesn't have the t-shirt already in the cart, then a free t-shirt will be added to the order and discounted. 
• If a customer already has this item in their cart, then the number of t-shirts already matches the units count. After applying the code, a discount will be applied to the item already in the cart, and no extra items will be added. 

When you offer coupons on more items, for example, four free item units:

• With the effect Add new order items, these four items will always be added (and discounted) to the cart even if a customer already has these items in the cart. 
• With the Add missing order items effect, items will be added in the number that results in four items in the customer's cart. If a customer has two discounted items in the cart, Voucherify will add two more; if a customer has no free items in the cart, Voucherify will add four items to the cart and discount them.

Add multiple item types

Available for unit discounts only.

Choosing this effect results in adding multiple items to the cart, each with a custom effect: either Add missing order items or Add new order items. 

Validation rules

If you choose to create more validation rules, all need to be met to apply the discount. Using order-related rules, you can set the required order volume or specify what items are required in the cart and what number. As a result, products will be discounted only if all rules attached to the discount are met. 

To create validation rules, you can use the basic builder:

Or change the builder to the advanced mode and add required limits:

Validation rules with discounted products and other limits can be set up when creating a new campaign in the Campaign Manager or by using the Validation Rules section in the dashboard. Read more here.