Creating Promotions

There are two ways to create a promotion:

Creating Promotions via Templates

To create a promotion using a promotion template:
  1. Select the channel from the context selection box, then select Marketing | Promotions.
    This displays the list of all promotions in the current sales channel.
  2. Click New.
    This displays a list of available promotion templates.
  3. Select a template.
  4. Specify the requested information.
    1. Select a language and a currency.
    2. Assign the promotion to at least one application.
    3. Specify the required data, including name and ID, activation start/end date/time, minimum order value, discount action, message.
  5. Click Apply.
    This creates the new promotion, setting the following details:

    • Enabled

    • Priority

    • Calculation rules

    • Combination rule

    • Target group: customer segment "everyone"

    You are redirected to the promotion list. Selecting the new promotion from the promotion list opens the promotion detail view as described in Manually Creating Promotions.

Manually Creating Promotions

To manually create a promotion:
  1. Select the channel from the context selection box, then select Marketing | Promotions.
    This displays the list of all promotions in the current sales channel.
  2. Click New.
    This displays a list of available promotion templates.
  3. Select Customized Promotion.
    This displays the General tab of the promotion details view.
  4. Select the storefront language for which the promotion name and description should be defined.
  5. Specify general promotion information.
    Specify a promotion name, a unique ID string, and a description. The name will be used throughout Intershop Commerce Management to refer to the promotion.
  6. Select the storefront currency for which the promotion should be available.
    You can make a promotion available either for all storefront currencies or only for a particular one. Select the desired currency from the drop down list.
    Note: Once a currency has been set for a promotion, the currency cannot be changed again. If you want to define a budget for the promotion (described below), you must choose a specific currency.
  7. Define the promotion priority.
    You can either use the default priority or set a specific priority. For details on promotion priorities, refer to Promotion Priorities. Furthermore, it is possible to set up a promotion to stop all lower priority promotions during its period of validity. This can be achieved by checking Stop Lower Priority Promotions. Promotions with the same priority and later creation date will be skipped.
  8. Assign the promotion to applications.
    Select the checkbox next to the application for which you want the promotion to be displayed. You must select a least one application, otherwise the promotion will not be displayed in the storefront.
    Note: Content assigned to this promotion will only be visible in the applications that are enabled for this promotion.
  9. Select calculation model.
    Here you can define how the total discount is calculated in case more than one promotion applies.
    Table 1. Discount Calculation Models
    Option Description
    base cart price Discounts of all applying promotions are summed up and then applied to the basket's base price.
    discounted price Discounts of applying promotions are applied one after another in the order dictated by promotion ranking.
  10. Define combination rules.
    The settings grouped under "Combination" - equally to the promotion rank - affect the way promotions are applied if more than one promotion applies at the same time. See the following table for a description of the available options for combining promotions:
    Table 2. Combination Options for Promotions
    Option Description
    freely combinable The promotion can be freely combined with any other promotions. No restrictions apply.
    not combinable The promotion cannot be combined with any other promotions. This has the following implications on promotion ranking (when more than one promotion is applicable): If a not combinable promotion ranks highest, only that promotion is applied and all others are discarded. If the promotion does not rank highest, that promotion including any other lower ranking promotions are discarded. However, all other promotions higher than the ones discarded do apply.
    combinable with the following promotion types Allows you to define that only promotions of a certain type may be combined with the current promotion. Highlight one or more promotion types using the mouse, then click Add or Remove to select/de-select the highlighted promotion types.
    Note: You need to save the new promotion at least once before you can modify the combination settings. To save the promotion, click the Apply button.
  11. Assign promotion to a campaign.
  12. Schedule the promotion.
    In the Activation section, specify a start and end date/time for the promotion's redeem period. During the specified time, the promotion will be visible in the storefront.
    Note: When you have assigned the promotion to a campaign, the promotion's start and end time must be defined within the boundaries of the campaigns time frame.
  13. Define a budget.
    Each promotion can be assigned a budget. Once the budget is exhausted, the promotion is automatically taken offline, regardless of other settings, such as the schedule.
    Note: You cannot assign a budget if the promotion currency is set to All.
    To assign a budget, provide the following information in the Budget section:
    Table 3. Budget Settings for Promotions
    Option Description
    Amount A promotions budget can be set to either "unlimited" or to a specific amount you wish to allocate to the promotion. Based on the allocated budget and the discounts already redeemed by customers, the remaining budget for the promotion is calculated and the value displayed in the right hand corner of the section. Setting the budget to "unlimited" (the default setting) basically disables the budget feature. The promotion's visibility in the storefront is only determined by the schedule.
    Source Select an entry from the drop-down list to associate the promotion with a budget source. A budget source is like a tag you can use to categorize a promotion's budget. You may have defined a budget source for promotions aimed at partners, and another one set up for employees. Currently the budget source has no further effect on the promotion or its budget. The list of vailable budget sources can be edited in the promotion preferences. For details, see Managing Promotion Preferences at Channel Level.
    Take promotion offline when exceeded Select this option if you want to take the promotion offline automatically, when the specified budget limit is reached. Note that at the time the promotion goes offline, any already existing sessions are still eligible to receive the promotion regardless of the already depleted budget.
    Notification You may specify an e-mail address to be notified when the allocated budget has been spent or if the remaining budget drops below a certain user-definable percentage.
    Remaining Budget The field shows the difference between the allocated budget and any discounts already redeemed for the promotion.
  14. Enable the promotion.
    For a promotion to be visible in the storefront, you need to enable it by selecting the Active checkbox. As a security measurement, newly created promotions are deactivated by default.
  15. Click Apply to save changes.
    The promotion is created. You can now proceed with specifying promotion targets, promotion rules, and content relations. These tasks are described in the following sections: