Stackable Promotions
Learn how to combine multiple promotions to offer additional benefits to your customers.
Last updated: 2025-01-26
Stackable promotions allow you to combine multiple offers in the same sale, offering additional benefits to your customers and maximizing the value of each purchase.
What are Stackable Promotions?
A stackable promotion is one that can be applied together with other promotions in the same sale, as long as all are marked as "stackable".
When a promotion is not stackable, it has exclusive priority and can block the application of other promotions.
How It Works
Stackable Promotions
If two or more promotions are marked as "Stackable":
- System evaluates all active promotions
- Applies all that meet their conditions
- Discounts are added or combined as appropriate
Non-Stackable Promotions
If a promotion is not stackable:
- It's evaluated first according to its priority
- If it applies, it can block other promotions of lower priority
- Only the highest priority promotion that meets conditions is applied
Example: Stackable Promotions
Scenario
You have two promotions:
Promotion A: "20% OFF on Clothing"
- Type: Percentage Discount
- Target: Category "Clothing"
- Priority: 10
- Stackable: Yes
Promotion B: "Discount on 2nd product"
- Type: Nth Discount
- N: 2
- Discount: 15%
- Priority: 5
- Stackable: Yes
Result
A customer buys 2 t-shirts at $1000 each:
- Promotion A applies: 20% OFF = $800 per t-shirt
- Promotion B applies: 15% OFF on 2nd t-shirt = $680
- Total: $800 + $680 = $1480 (savings of $520)
Example: Non-Stackable Promotions
Scenario
You have two promotions:
Promotion A: "2x1 on Beverages"
- Type: Buy X Get Y
- Priority: 20
- Stackable: No
Promotion B: "10% OFF on Beverages"
- Type: Percentage Discount
- Priority: 10
- Stackable: Yes
Result
A customer buys 2 beverages:
- Promotion A has higher priority (20 > 10)
- Promotion A is not stackable, so it blocks other promotions
- Only Promotion A (2x1) is applied
- Promotion B is not applied
Best Practices
When to Use Stackable Promotions
✅ Use stackable when:
- You want to offer multiple benefits
- Promotions are complementary (don't compete)
- You want to maximize perceived value by customer
- You're in liquidation season
When NOT to Use Stackable Promotions
❌ Don't use stackable when:
- Promotions are mutually exclusive
- You want to strictly control margins
- One promotion is more important than others
- You want to avoid excessive discounts
Stacking Strategies
Strategy 1: Category Stacking
Create stackable promotions for different categories:
- 20% OFF on Clothing (stackable)
- 15% OFF on Footwear (stackable)
- 10% OFF on Accessories (stackable)
Result: Customer can get discounts on multiple categories.
Strategy 2: Type Stacking
Combine different promotion types:
- Percentage Discount (stackable)
- Nth Discount (stackable)
- Buy X Get Y (stackable)
Result: Customer can get multiple types of benefits.
Strategy 3: Controlled Stacking
Use priorities to control what applies first:
- Main Promotion (priority 20, not stackable)
- Secondary Promotion (priority 10, stackable)
- Tertiary Promotion (priority 5, stackable)
Result: Main promotion always applies, and secondary ones only if it doesn't block.
Priority Configuration
Numbering System
Use spaced numbers to facilitate adjustments:
VIP Promotion: 30
Standard Promotion: 20
Basic Promotion: 10
General Promotion: 5
Priority Rules
- Higher number = Higher priority
- Non-stackable promotions block lower priority ones
- Stackable promotions are evaluated independently
Promotion Testing
Before activating stackable promotions in production:
- Create test sales with different combinations
- Verify totals to ensure discounts are correct
- Review margins to confirm they're sustainable
- Test edge cases (multiple products, different categories)
Monitoring
After activating stackable promotions:
- Review sales reports to see which combinations are used most
- Analyze impact on margins and volumes
- Adjust priorities according to results
- Deactivate promotions that don't generate expected results
Limitations
Technical Considerations
- Promotions are evaluated in priority order
- Promotion engine is deterministic (same result always)
- Discounts are applied as new lines in the sale
Business Considerations
- Multiple discounts can significantly reduce margins
- Customers may abuse extreme combinations
- Some combinations may not make commercial sense
Next Steps
- Promotion Types - Review available types
- Creating and Configuring Promotions - Learn to configure them