Configure fixed and percentage discounts, early bird pricing, and promotional codes.
A discount is a special transaction type that reduces the registration balance due. Discounts can be configured so that they are automatically applied to eligible registrations, or as a code entered by the guest when they register online, or as a manual entry by your registrars.
This article covers the following:
- Fixed or percentage - types of discounts
- Multiple discounts - how they are applied
- Enable discount codes - entered by guest on registration form
- Exclude transaction categories - from percentage discount
- Discount preferences - behavior of discount codes and early bird
- Reporting - Registrations, Transactions, Accounting Report
Fixed or percentage
Two types of discounts may be configured - fixed and percentage.
A fixed discount is a dollar amount that is applied to reduce the registration balance due. Consider a registration that includes transactions of $1000 for tuition, $500 for lodging, and $500 for meals - a registration total of $2000. If a fixed discount of $200 is applied, the new registration total will be $1800. The fixed discount will be listed on the guest statement as a separate transaction line item.
A percentage discount also reduces the registration balance due, but it is applied to each eligible transaction on the guest statement - it does not appear as a separate line item. Consider a registration that includes transactions of $1000 for tuition, $100 for lodging, and $300 for meals - a registration total of $1400.
Let's assume that you have configured the transaction categories for tuition, lodging, and meals to be eligible for percentage discounts. We'll talk about eligible transaction categories later in this article.
If an early bird percentage discount of 10% was applied, the guest statement will show a 10% discount for each line item, and a registration total of $1400 - $140 = $1260. Taxes are calculated on the discounted amounts to yield a $1325.70 invoice total.
If this person is also eligible for the local resident $100 fixed amount discount, the fixed discount will be applied to the total after the percentage discount is applied.
On the guest statement shown above, the registration total before discount is $1400. The 10% early bird is calculated first, to yield a discount of $140. Then, the $100 fixed discount and taxes are applied to yield an invoice total of $1225.70.
Multiple discounts
One fixed and one percentage discount
If a guest's registration is eligible for a percentage discount, and a fixed discount is also applied, the percentage discount will be calculated before the fixed discount is applied. See the previous section for an example.
Two percentage discounts
If a guest's registration is eligible for two percentage discounts, only the larger percentage discount will be applied. If you offer a 20% early bird discount and a 10% locals discount, a registering guest will not be offered 30% off. Only the larger of the percentage discounts, the 20% early bird, will be applied to the registration.
Two fixed discounts
If a guest's registration is eligible for two fixed dollar amount discounts, both fixed dollar amount discounts will be applied. For example, a guest is eligible for your $50 early bird discount and during online registration, the guest enters the discount code SENIOR that you created as a $100 discount. A total of $150 in fixed discounts will appear on the guest statement - the $50 early bird plus the $100 SENIOR discount.
Enable a Discount Codes - a special Question
The special Question named Discount code by default (with a slug of discount-code) must be enabled for a given program before any discount codes will be accepted on the online registration form for that program.
You can view this question at Questions > (choose the question that is identified by a slug of discount-code) > Edit Question.
To enable the Discount code question for a program, go to Programs > (choose a program to edit) > Registration > Registrations Questions and check the box next to Discount code.
Discount codes
Configure at Settings > Discount > Discount and Promotion Codes.
In the image above, the SENIOR65 discount code is configured as a 10% discount, the STUDENT code as 20%, and the NONPROFIT code as 20%. The LOCALS code has been configured as a fixed amount discount of $100.
You can set a maximum quantity for each discount code, in addition to a time range for which the code is active. In the example above, the LOCALS code is only active for one year - between Aug 29, 2020 and Aug 28, 2021.
You can make the discount codes applicable on a program-by-program basis at Programs > (choose a program to edit) > Pricing > Discount Codes > Per-Program.
Exclude Transaction Categories from percentage discounts
You may exclude one or more Transaction Categories from having percentage discounts applied at Settings > Discount > Discount Exclusion.
These exclusions apply only to percentage discounts - fixed dollar amount discounts are not affected by these exclusions.
Discount Preferences
At Settings > Discount > Discount Preferences, you may configure certain behaviors for Discount Codes and Early Bird Discounts.
Discount Codes
- Limit to One - if a fixed amount discount code is entered, it will be applied only once. For example, multi-person registration is enabled and I register for myself and my partner on the same online registration form. As the registering person, I enter the SENIOR65 discount code that offers $100 off. Only one person (me) will receive the SENIOR65 discount - my partner will not. The behavior of percentage discounts is not affected by this setting.
- Per Guest - if a fixed amount discount code is entered, it will be applied for each guest being registered. For example, multi-person registration is enabled and I register for myself and my partner on the same online registration form. As the registering person, I enter the SENIOR65 discount code that offers $100 off. The $100 off will apply to me and to my partner - we will both receive $100 off. The behavior of percentage discounts is not affected by this setting
Early Bird Discounts
- Limit to One - if the early bird discount is configured as a $100 fixed amount discount, it will be applied only once. For example, multi-person registration is enabled and I register for myself and my partner on the same online registration form. Only one person (me) will receive the $100 SENIOR65 fixed amount discount - my partner will not. The behavior of percentage discounts is not affected by this setting.
- Per Guest - if the early bird discount is configured as a $100 fixed amount discount, it will be applied for each guest being registered. For example, multi-person registration is enabled and I register for myself and my partner on the same online registration form. The $100 off will apply to both me and my partner - we will both receive $100 off. The behavior of percentage discounts is not affected by this setting.
- Legacy - the default behavior for fixed amount discounts varies depending upon the Pricing Method configured for the program. (This setting is provided for centers who established early bird discounts prior to the update of this feature - those that wish to continue previous feature behavior).
- Simple pricing - one fixed amount discount per guest.
- Shared-style lodging - one fixed amount discount per guest.
- Hotel-style lodging - one fixed amount discount per room.
Reporting on Discounts
Registrations view
Go to Questions > (choose the question with slug = discount-code) > Edit Question > Display > Reporting and check the box next to Registrations View.
Then, in Registrations view, check the box in Screen Options next to Discount code.
In the Filters and Reports section of the Registrations view, enter a discount code in the Discount code filter box. For example, if you wish to report on the use of the SENIOR65 discount code, you would enter SENIOR65 in the Discount code filter box.
Alternatively, you may enter the word ANY in the Discount code filter box to report on the use of any discount code, or enter EMPTY to view only registrations that do not have a discount code applied.
Export Results to download this view as a CSV file for external analysis in Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.
Transactions view
To see discount transactions in the Transactions view, check the applicable Transaction Categories in Filters and Reports. For example, the Transaction Category Discount. In Screen Options, check the box next to Discount.
The resulting view will show the discount amounts in the Discount column, and identify the discount code (for fixed discounts only) in the Description column.
Export Results to download this view as a CSV file for external analysis in Microsoft Word or Google Sheets.
Transactions view summary
In the Transactions view, enable Show Totals & Summary in Filters and Reports to view discounts totals. The discounts shown in this summary include earlybird.
Accounting Report
The Accounting Report is available as part of an advanced features package available for Enterprise-level centers. For more information on the Accounting Report, please please use the chat bubble on this page or contact your friendly support guru.
Discounts
The Accounting Report includes a section for Discounts.
On the Accounting Report, Discounts section, you may click on any transaction ID (like 7142 or 7167 in the image above) to view the details for that transaction.
Sales
Fixed amount discount codes are also included in the Sales section of the Accounting Report.
Realized Revenue
When the sales are realized, the associated discounts will appear with those sales in the Realized Revenue section of the Accounting Report.
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