Coupon codes at the till, on invoices and online, plus a next-visit code

Who are coupon codes for?

Any business that hands out deals in flyers, messages, social posts or on the back of a receipt, and wants them to work the same way wherever the customer turns up: at the counter, on a trade invoice, or in the online store.

The difference from an ordinary promotion is simple. A customer offer applies by itself. A coupon code only applies when someone types it, so you decide exactly who gets the deal by deciding who gets the code.

What do coupon codes do?

• Turn any promotion into a code-only deal with the Customers type a code switch.
• Work at the till (Add a code), on invoices and the new-sale screen (Promotion code), and in your online store for spend deals.
• Say why a code cannot run, with numbers, instead of a bare "invalid".
• Limit use per customer, to a first order only, to a number of sales or to a budget.
• Print an optional one-time next-visit code as a barcode on till receipts.

How do I switch it on?

Codes are part of Customer offers, which is normally already on. You find them on the Codes tab. If the tab is missing, your EasyTaskr contact switches Customer offers on for you; businesses cannot turn add-ons on from their own Settings yet.

Only an owner, manager or sales manager can make codes and change the next-visit setting. Everyone else sees "Only an owner or manager can change this". Any cashier can type a code at the till.

How do I make a code?

Open Customer offers and the Codes tab, then press New code, or Make a code if you have none yet. This opens the same promotion editor used for every deal, with the Code section already switched on.

1. Pick the kind of deal: Buy X get Y free, Spend and save or Discount on products.
2. Give it a name your staff will recognise.
3. In Code, keep Customers type a code on and type the code, such as SPRING10.
4. Under Where it runs, tick Till, Orders, Invoices, and for a spend deal the online store if you sell online.
5. Under Limits, choose any of Uses per customer, First order only, Stop after a number of sales and Budget.
6. Set the dates under When, read the Summary, and press Create promotion.

The code appears on the Codes list with its status, where it runs and how many times it has been used.

What happens when a customer gives a code?

At the till, the cashier presses Add a code, types it into Promotion code and presses Apply. On an invoice or the new-sale screen, the Promotion code box has an Add button. Either way, EasyTaskr checks the code first and then prices the sale again on the server when it is saved, so the saving on the screen is the saving on the receipt.

If the code cannot run, the screen says why:

In the online store, refusals about limits use one neutral sentence, "This code can't be used on this order.", so nobody can use the code box to find out whether a phone number has ordered before.

Per-customer and first-order limits count named customers only, never the walk-in customer. If an order that used a code is cancelled, the use is given back.

What is the next-visit code?

It is a thank-you that brings people back. When it is on, a till sale that meets your minimum prints a fresh one-time code on the receipt as a barcode, starting with NV-. On the customer's next visit the cashier scans or types it and the saving applies.

Set it up at the bottom of the Codes tab, in Next-visit code on receipts:

• Switch on Print a next-visit code.
• Takes off: choose % off or Money off and the amount.
• Ends after (days): how long the code lasts.
• Only on sales of at least (optional): the smallest sale that earns a code.
• Next visit must spend (optional): the smallest sale the code can be used on.

Press Save. You see "Receipts now print a next-visit code". Each code works once, at the till only. The codes leave out letters that are easy to confuse, such as O and 0, so they are easy to type when a scanner is not to hand.

A worked example: you print a code for 10% off on sales of at least 3,000, valid for 30 days, and the next visit must spend 2,000. A customer spends 3,400 today and gets the code. They come back in two weeks and spend 2,600; the code takes off 260. If they come back with only 1,500 of shopping, the till says how much more they need.

Step by step: run a flyer code for one weekend

1. Open Customer offers, then Codes, and press New code.
2. Choose Spend and save.
3. Name it "Weekend flyer" and type the code WEEKEND.
4. In Customer spends, set the minimum, say 2,000. In Customer gets, choose Money off and the amount.
5. Tick Till and, if you sell online, the online store.
6. Under When, set Friday as the start and Sunday night as the end.
7. Under Limits, switch on Uses per customer and set it to 1.
8. Press Create promotion, then print the code on your flyer.
9. On Friday morning, test it at the till with Add a code on a sale over 2,000.
10. On Monday, open Promotions given report to see how many times it was used and what it cost.

What does it not do yet?

• Quotes (proformas) do not take codes.
• The trade counters with their own sales screens, such as paint, tile, print and sports counters, do not take codes.
• On online food orders, a code with a per-customer limit is refused, because guests cannot be told apart yet.

Is there a referral code?

Yes, as part of customer rewards. Each member gets a code to share; a new friend can get a first-order code, and the member is rewarded after the friend's first paid sale. Switch it on in Rewards settings, under Referrals.

Related features

Codes are built on customer offers, so everything about deals, limits and the report applies here too. Members-only deals and points live in customer rewards. For selling online, see online ordering. Our guide on how to price products helps you set a code that still leaves you a margin.