How to create automatic discounts

In TeleportHQ, an automatic discount applies on its own to every cart that qualifies: shoppers don't type a code. Switch on Automatic Discounts in E-Commerce Settings, click Manage Discounts → Add Discount, give the discount a name shoppers will see, choose what it takes off and which products it covers, add conditions like a minimum order value, and click Create discount.

Before you start#

• Your project needs an active store. See How to add a store to an existing project.
• Pick the right tool. An automatic discount needs no code. A discount code works only for shoppers who have it: see How to create discount codes. To lower one product's price for everyone, see How to put products on sale.
• To discount a whole category, sort your products into categories first. See How to organize products into categories.
• Automatic discounts are available on every plan.

Steps#

1. Turn on automatic discounts#

1. In the left sidebar, click E-commerce (the card icon).
2. At the top right of the E-Commerce panel, click the gear (E-Commerce Settings).
3. In the E-Commerce Setup panel, scroll to Automatic Discounts and switch it on. TeleportHQ shows "Setting up automatic discounts — creating the table your rules are stored in…", then "Automatic discounts are on. Nothing changes for buyers until you add a rule."
4. Click Manage Discounts, next to Automatic Discounts. The Automatic Discounts panel opens beside it.

2. Create the discount#

1. In the Automatic Discounts panel, click Add Discount.

2. In Name, type the name shoppers see on their order summary, for example Spend 50, save 10%.
3. Under Discount, choose a Discount type:
   • Percentage: type the value in Discount (%), for example 10.
   • Fixed amount: type the value in Discount amount. It's spread across the eligible products.
   • Free shipping: removes the delivery fee.
   • Buy X, get Y: type Buy (units) and Get free (units). For every group of X + Y eligible items in the cart, the Y cheapest are free.
4. In Applies to, choose All products, Selected products or Categories, then pick the products or categories. A category includes its sub-categories.
5. Check Starts and Expires. A new discount starts today and never expires. Set Expires for a sale that ends, for example on Sunday night.

6. Optional: under Conditions, set Minimum order value (the goods total, tax included, before any discount, for example 50), Minimum items, or switch on First order only.
7. Under Order and stacking, check Priority, Combines with other discounts and Active (see below).
8. Click Create discount. The message "Spend 50, save 10%" has been created. appears, and the discount shows in the list.

3. Publish#

The first time you switch Automatic Discounts on, publish your site so your live store starts applying discounts. Discounts you add or change later reach your live store without publishing again.

How several discounts work together#

• Order. Discounts apply from the top of the list down, each on what the ones above it left. A discount code is applied last. To reorder, use the arrows at the left of each discount (Apply earlier and Apply later), or type a Priority: lower numbers apply first.
• Combines with other discounts. On (the default), the discount adds up with the others. Off, the discount is exclusive: it never shares an order with another discount or a code, and its row shows Exclusive. The shopper gets whichever saves more: the exclusive discount alone, or the others together.
• Choose your discount. When an exclusive discount competes with others, checkout shows Choose your discount: "Only one of these can apply to your order. The one that saves you the most is selected." The shopper can pick another.

Check that it worked#

• In the Automatic Discounts panel, the discount shows with its status (Active, Scheduled, Expired or Disabled) and a summary such as how many times it was used.
• In the editor, open your cart page, click Cart above the canvas and add products that qualify. The canvas shows a Discount line with the discount's name.
• On your published site, the cart and checkout show the same Discount line.

Troubleshooting#

"Give the discount a name — customers see it on their order summary." Type a Name.

"The name says 30% but this discount takes 10% off…" This is a warning: the name states another figure than the discount. Fix the name or the value, so shoppers aren't confused.

"Select at least one product or category, or let the discount apply to all products." Pick products or categories, or choose All products in Applies to.

"The end date must be after the start date." Fix Starts or Expires.

The panel says "Your checkout page was built before automatic discounts existed, so it will not apply them." Click Recreate checkout page. It replaces the checkout page with a new one, so changes you made to the old page are lost. Then publish.

"Automatic discounts need a connected database. Enable e-commerce first." Your store's database isn't connected. Check Data Sources, or turn the store on again. See How to add a store to an existing project.

A discount doesn't apply Check its status in the list, its Starts and Expires, its Applies to, and its Conditions. First order only never applies to a customer who has already completed an order.

Good to know#

• Gift cards are never discounted. A gift card in the cart is skipped by every discount and code, and doesn't count towards Minimum order value or Minimum items. See How to sell gift cards.
• First order only checks the customer's account, or the billing email for guests.
• Free shipping has no effect when delivery is already free, for example above your free-delivery amount or for store pickup.
• Pause or delete. Switch off Active to keep a discount without applying it. The bin icon deletes it: "…will stop applying immediately. Orders that already received it keep their discount."
• Turning Automatic Discounts off keeps your discounts, and stops applying them after you publish.
• Up to 500 at once. A store can run up to 500 active or scheduled automatic discounts. Past that, save new ones with Active off.
• Live stores update on their own. Shoppers already browsing get your changes within about 5 minutes.