TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Introduction
- 'Type' Screen
- 'Description' Screen
- 'Details' Screen
- Promotion Conditions
- Promotion Dates/Times
- Editing Promotions
Introduction
A promotion is essentially a set of parameters that describe how, when, and how much an item (PLU); or set of items (PLU’s) will be discounted. The ‘Promotion Wizard’ is designed to be a user-friendly method for setting up promotions. This manual aims to provide a step-by-step guide on how to create your promotions using the promotion wizard. To begin using the ‘Promotion Wizard’ we must first locate it within the Merac back office software.
To open the ‘Promotion Wizard’ click on 1. ‘Setup’, then 2. ‘Pricing’ then 3. double click ‘Promotion Wizard’.
'Type' Screen
This section will explain each of the promotion types that can be set up using the ‘Promotion Wizard’, before moving onto the next phase of entering the promotion details. There are three types of promotions that can be created using the ‘Promotion Wizard’, these are:
- ‘Discount’ Promotions.
- ‘Multi-Buy’ Promotions.
- ‘Basket’ Promotions.
The ‘Type’ screen displays each of the three types of promotions
There is also a brief description of how each promotion type works.
The above promotion types are explained in the following pages.
Discount Promotion
A 'Discount' type promotion can be used to apply the following types of discounts to specified PLU’s:
- Price reduction by a specified percentage on a PLU(s).
- Price reduction by a specified amount on a PLU(s).
- Specific price on a PLU(s).
A 'Discount' type promotion can be triggered during a transaction and can fire in the following ways:
Everyone/Members/Staff/Managers/Account/Selected
The above ways of triggering the promotion are referred to as the ‘Promotion Eligibility’ and are covered later in this guide
N.B. for ‘Selected’ promotions you can specify ‘Promotion Conditions’ which must be met in order for the promotion to fire. These conditions specify the quantity of other PLU’s that must be sold before the promotion fires, e.g. you must by two ‘Adult Admission’ PLU’s before you can get 100% discount off a ‘Child Admission’ PLU. Setting up ‘Promotion Conditions’ are covered later.
To select this promotion type, click in the circle to the left of the ‘Discount’ text.
Once you have selected the promotion type, click on the ‘Next’ button.
Now go to Section 2 of this guide.
Multi Buy Promotion
Multi-Buy promotions are designed to discount a single item when one or more of that same item has been scanned or entered into the till basket. For example, imagine a café has excess stock of Mars bars and they want to setup a “buy two get one free” promotion on Mars bars. In this example the till software will automatically apply the discount but only if there are three Mars bars in the till basket. This is because the promotion conditions are not met until all three Mars bars have been entered or scanned into the till basket.
To select this promotion type, simply click in the circle to the left of the ‘Multi-Buy’ text.
Once you have selected the promotion type, click on the ‘Next’ button.
Now go to Section 2 of this guide.
Basket Promotion
Basket promotions are designed to discount a single item only after another item (or a group of items) have been scanned or entered into the till. For example, a café wants to setup a promotion that discounts a cup of tea by 100% for any customer that orders a breakfast with that cup of tea. In this example the till software will automatically apply the discount but only if both the breakfast and tea are in the till’s basket. This is because the promotion conditions are not met until both the breakfast and tea are in the till’s basket.
To select this promotion type, simply click in the circle to the left of the ‘Basket’ text.
Once you have selected the promotion type, click on the ‘Next’ button.
'Description' Screen
Now that we have covered the three types of promotions available, we can move onto the next step in creating our promotion. The ‘Description’ screen of the promotion wizard has the following sections
- Promotion Description Fields.
- Promotion Group.
- Promotion Eligibility.
Each of the above sections of this screen are explained in the following pages,
The location of each of these sections is shown below.
Key:
(1) Promotion Description fields.
(2) ‘Promotion Eligibility’ options.
(3) ‘Promotion Group’ selection (drop-down).
(4) ‘Promotion Group’ “Lookup” Icon.
Promotion 'Description' Fields
Once we’ve chosen a promotion type, we will need to provide a detailed ‘Description’ as well as a ‘Short Description’ for the promotion being set up. It is important to use descriptions that are easy to understand because they will be used in various places throughout the Merac back office software and when using the till software
The ‘Description Field’ will show in the relevant reports in Merac back office software.
The ‘Short Description’ field is the description printed on receipts and on the till’s rear display (if present).
Type in the required text in the ‘Description’ box.
Type in the required text ‘Short Description’ box.
Click on the ‘Next’ button once finished to proceed to the next step.
Promotion Eligibility
Promotion eligibility is crucial in determining how our promotion will work and unsurprisingly who will be eligible for our promotion. By default, every promotion is set with an eligibility of ‘Everyone’, this means all items associated with this promotion will be automatically discounted when it is scanned into the till basket.
The major difference between the ‘Everyone’ promotion eligibility type and all the others is that all other eligibility types require the promotion to be activated by a till operator. Meaning the till operator is required to do something that activates the promotion they wish to use (i.e. either press a button on the till or scan a coupon).
Please note that if you are setting up a ‘Multi-buy; or ‘Basket’ type promotion, then the promotion eligibility will default to ‘Everyone’ and cannot be changed. For a ‘Discount’ type promotion you must click in the circle to the left of the required option to select it.
Each of these promotion eligibility options are explained on the following page.
Once you the required ‘Promotion Eligibility’ is selected, click the ‘Next’ button to proceed.
Everyone:
This discount will be activated automatically when an item meeting the promotion requirements is added to the basket.
Members:
This promotion eligibility can automatically apply a discount when a member card is swiped or scanned at the till. Please note that this membership promotion will not function unless it has been assigned to the specific membership type(s) that this discount will apply to.
Staff:
This type of promotion is fired by pressing a specific button on the till. Please note that setting up till buttons is not covered in this manual but for your information the button that fires this promotion must be set up as a ‘Command’ button action, then select the ‘Staff Sale’ option from the drop-down list. Please note that only one staff discount scheme can be in operation on your tills at any time (on some versions). The specific staff discount scheme must be defined in the Merac back office software in the ‘System Options’ screen. This is found in Setup > System > System Options - under the ‘Accounting’ tab
Managers:
This type of promotion is fired by pressing a specific button on the till. Please note that setting up till buttons is not covered in this manual but for your information the button that fires this promotion must be set up as a ‘Command’ button action, then select the ‘Manager Sale’ option from the drop-down list. Please note that only one manager’s discount scheme can be in operation on your tills at any time (on some versions). this must be defined in the Merac back office software in the ‘System Options’ screen. This is found in Setup > System > System Options - under the ‘Accounting’ tab
Selected:
This type of promotion must be fired by pressing a specific button on the till (or by scanning a coupon that has a barcode on it that will trigger the promotion).
Please note that setting up till buttons is not covered in this manual but for your information the button that fires this promotion must be set up as a ‘Promotion’ button action, then select the required ‘Promotion Scheme’ and ‘Promotion Coupon’ from the relevant drop-down lists.
Promotion Group
Each promotion you create must be assigned to a Promotion Group. If a promotion group is not assigned to a promotion, then the discounted items will not be shown in the relevant reports. To set a promotion group we can choose from one of the default groups listed within the drop-down menu, or we can create a unique promotion group by selecting the “Lookup” icon.
Key:
(1) ‘Promotion Group’ selection (drop-down).
(2) ‘Promotion Group’ “Lookup” Icon.
'Details' Screen
The Promotion Details screen is where we will configure the discount details for all items we wish to include in this promotion. You may notice the ‘Product Groups’ have the same code and description as our ‘Analysis Codes’. This is because they are indeed the same, i.e. ‘Product Groups’ = ‘Analysis Codes’.
Key:
(1) Analysis Codes.
(2) ‘Discount Type’ selection.
(3) Discount percentage / amount entry field.
Discount Percentage
This discount type reduces an item or group of items by a percentage. Click on a product group in the left side of the screen to select that product group. The right side of the screen will now populate with all items within the selected product group.
If we want to apply unique discount values to every item, we must select each item individually, then enter an amount in the discount value field and click the ‘Apply’ button. Repeat as required until all items have the correct discount percentage assigned to them. Alternatively, we can click in the ‘Apply to all items in this view’ box so that this is ticked, then click on the ‘Apply’ button. This will apply the discount value to all items within the selected ‘Product Group’. Repeat as required until all the product groups have the correct discount percentage assigned to them.
Once all the promotion discounts have been assigned to the item(s) as required, click the ‘Next’ button.
Key:
(1) Admissions product group.
(2) Item showing a discount (15% discount).
(3) ‘Discount Percentage’ type selected.
(4) ‘Percentage’ discount amount entry field.
Reduce By
A ‘Reduce By’ type promotion will reduce an item by a set value (e.g. £1.00). The same instructions apply as previously detailed for applying the discount to an item(s) within a product group or applying the discount to an entire product group.
Once all the promotion discounts have been assigned to the item(s) as required, click the ‘Next’ button.
Key:
(1) Admissions product group.
(2) Item showing a discount (‘Reduce By’ £4).
(3) ‘Reduce By’ type selected.
(4) ‘Reduce By’ amount entry field.
Promotion Price
The 'Promotion Price' discount type is used to set the promotional price of an item. The same instructions apply as in the previous section for applying the discount to an item(s) within a product group or to an entire product group.
Once all the promotion discounts have been assigned to the item(s) as required, click the ‘Next’ button.
Key:
(1) Selected product group.
(2) Item showing a discount (‘Special Price’ £12.50).
(3) ‘Promotion Price’ type selected.
(4) ‘Promotion Price’ entry field.
Promotion Conditions
The 'Promotion Conditions' screen allows us to specify the number of items that must be purchased in order to enable our promotion. By default, only one item must be purchased to trigger any promotion.
Amend the ‘Qualifying Quantity’ (refer to description on the screen) as required for the promotion you are setting up.
Now click on the ‘Next’ button to proceed.
Key:
(1) ‘Qualifying Quantity’ number selection.
Promotion Dates/Times
This is where we will set the date and time parameters for our new promotion. The first step for setting these parameters is to select a date range. Selecting a date range can be done two different ways:
- Selecting ‘Valid From’ / ‘Valid To’ Dates.
- Selecting a Calendar.
Once the dates have been specified you can then also specify on which day(s) of the week and at which times of the day the promotion will work using the ‘Day and Times’ settings.
Key:
(1) ‘Valid From’ / ‘Valid To’ date selectors.
(2) ‘Use a Calendar’ tick box.
(3) ‘Days and Times’ settings.
Important: It is important to remember that both the ‘Valid From’ / ‘Valid To’ dates and the ‘Days and Times’ settings must be configured appropriately. By default, the ‘Promotion Wizard’ will have all days and times of the week selected. If the promotion must only work on certain days this must be specified in the ‘Days and Times’ settings.
Valid To/From Dates
Using the ‘Valid From’ and ‘Valid To’ drop-down menus is the easiest way to select the required start and end date for the promotion. Clicking the drop-down menu icons will pop-up a small calendar window that allows the user to select the date(s) rather than manually typing them.
Select the ‘Valid From’ and ‘Valid To’ dates as required, then click the ‘Next’ button.
Important:
Remember that this date range determines when this promotion will be start and end, so be sure to select the correct dates!
Using a Calendar
Using a calendar is very helpful if we already have a calendar period setup in within the back office software. If a calendar has already been set up then we can simply select the ‘Use a Calendar?’ check box and then select the appropriate calendar period from the drop-down menu. However, if we don’t have a calendar period setup already then we can create our own by using the ‘Lookup’ icon next to the calendar drop-down menu.
Select the required calendar then click the ‘Next’ button.
Key:
(1) ‘Use a Calendar’ check-box.
(2) Calendar selection (drop-down) and “Lookup” icon.
Days and Time Settings
This section of the ‘Dates/Times’ screen of the wizard is used to apply our discount to specific days of the week and times of the day. By default every day of the week is selected, so you will notice you the tick box to the left of each day is ticked. You can deselect a day of the week by clicking in the box to the left of that required day, so that it becomes un-ticked. This will mean the promotion will not be active on that day of the week.
By default you will also notice that for any day where the promotion is active the promotion ‘Start Time’ and ‘End Time’ cannot be changed. If you want change the start and end times for a promotion then you first need to click in the ‘All Day’ box next to the required day of the week so that it becomes un-ticked. You can now change the start and end time of the promotion to be as required by either typing in the required times (use the 24 hour clock format), or using the up and down arrows to increase or decrease the hours or minutes as required.
Key:
(1) Day and Times Settings.
Once all the required data has been enter click the 'Finish' button to save and add the promotion.
Editing Promotions
The Wizard is only used to add new promotions. To check / amend a promotion you need to go into the 'Promotions' screen. To open the ‘Promotions’ click on 1. ‘Setup’, then 2. ‘Pricing’ then 3. double click ‘Promotions’.
You would then need to first select the 'Promotion Type' of the promotion you want to find.
Then select the required promotion 'Description' to edit.
Please not all the fields you saw in the Wizard can be found on this screen.
But please note where the Wizard had screens then some of this content has a button to view it
For example the 'Details' button needs to be clicked to set up the promotion on each PLU/Analysis Code as required.
Click 'Apply' once any changes are made.
Then click 'Close' and remember to update your tills (Edit > Recreate Till Data) to send any promotion changes to your tills.