Coupons

Coupons allow you to create and apply codes to bookings in order to alter the payment due, apply a voucher, or create a 'buy x get y' scenario. This is a great way to drive business, or simply give special offers to your customers.

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What's covered in this article:

• Different types of coupons
• Creating a coupon campaign
  • Discount Coupon
  • Unlock Coupon
  • Voucher
  • Buy x Get y
• Editing a coupon campaign
• Applying a coupon or Voucher
  • Coupon
  • Unlock Coupon
  • Voucher
• Removing a coupon or voucher from a booking

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DIFFERENT TYPES OF COUPONS

Discount coupon

Discount Coupon codes are the traditional dollar amount or percentage off coupon. Five dollars off per booking, 10% off during the holiday season, you know the drill. These can be applied during checkout or to an existing purchase.

Unlock coupon

When entered, Unlock Coupon codes allow you to specify an arbitrary price (pre-tax) for a booking. For example, when your mom comes to town you want to give her a special discount on the price of an experience at your establishment. An Unlock Coupon code would allow you to take the price from $120 down to...whatever price you deem fit for Ma. You could even make the price $0 if you would like.

Voucher

Vouchers are similar to coupons in many ways, the key difference being that vouchers are applied as a payment method while other coupon types are applied as a discount. The main difference to note about this is how taxes are handled when a voucher is applied to a booking. 

This makes vouchers a great way to handle campaigns from daily deal sites like Groupon.

Buy One Get One

Buy One Get One coupons (BOGO) are a great way to incentivize group bookings for your customers while also offering a discount. This article will walk you through how to create and redeem BOGO coupons through Xola.

 

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CREATING COUPON CAMPAIGNS

Create A Discount Coupon

1. Navigate to the Marketing tab and select Coupons.
2. Select the green Create a Coupon button, located on the right-hand side of the screen.
3. Choose Discount.
4. In the Campaign field, give your campaign a name. This name will not affect your coupon's code(s).
5. If you'd like to automatically generate a tag for bookings made with a code from this campaign, you can designate tags in the Tag bookings with field.
6. Set your coupon's Terms. In this section, you'll need to choose per person or per outing booking discounts, which demographics your coupon can be applied to, and how many demographics must be booked in order for a booking to qualify for a discount.
7. Specify whether or not you would like to Remove Taxes and Fees from a booking when the coupon is applied.
8. Click Next, and you will be taken to the Restrictions page:
   • Purchase Window: Limits the dates within which this code can be applied to a booking.
   • • Example: You want to make a code that can only be redeemed during the month of November. After November is over, you don't want customers to be able to apply the code anymore. Here you would set your start date to 1 November and your end date to 30 November.
     • Blackout dates: by adding a blackout date, you can specify dates and times that the coupon cannot be redeemed.
   • Arrival Window: Limits the start date and start time of the events that this code can be applied to.
     • Example: You want to incentivize customers to book trips that occur next summer, so you would set your start date to 1 June and your end date to 31 August of next year. You can specify even further by placing restrictions on which day of the week and time of day your coupon can apply to.
     • Blackout dates: by adding a blackout date, you can specify event start dates and start times that the coupon cannot be redeemed.
   • Select Listings: Select if you would like this coupon to be applicable to all listings, or select individual ones.

   

9. Click Next, and you will be taken to the Codes page:
   • Here you'll create the actual code that must be entered while making a booking to provide the value you have just created.
   • Type your desired code text into the box, it can contain any combination of letters, numbers, and special characters. Your code may not contain any spaces. You can create more than one code for the same campaign.
   • Choose between One Time Use, Limited Use, and Unlimited Use.
     • After a One Time Use coupon is applied to a booking, its status will change from 'Active' to 'Void' and will not be able to be used again.
     • If you select Limited use, the number you specify as the usage limit will be the maximum number of times that each code in your campaign can be used.

   

Tip: Add multiple codes at once by entering text separated by commas, or on separate lines

CREATE AN UNLOCK COUPON

1. Navigate to the Marketing tab and select Coupons.
2. Select the green Create a Coupon button, located on the right-hand side of the screen.
3. Choose Unlock.

Often referred to as the "family and friends coupon", Unlock Coupon codes should be for staff use only and should not be shared externally with customers. For this same reason, do not use an obvious or easily guessable code. Below is an example of applying an Unlock Coupon.

Note: Unlock coupons can only be applied at the time of booking.

CREATE A VOUCHER CAMPAIGN

1. Navigate to the Marketing tab and select Coupons.
2. Select the green Create a Coupon button, located on the right-hand side of the screen.
3. Choose Voucher.
4. In the Campaign field, give your voucher campaign a name. This name will not affect your coupon's code(s).
   • Enter a Promotional Value. This is the maximum total amount that can be redeemed when using a code from this campaign for a booking that falls within your campaign's restrictions.
   • Enter a Purchase Price. This is the amount paid by your customer when they purchased this voucher deal. This is also the maximum total amount that can be redeemed when using a code from this campaign for a booking that violates your campaign's restrictions.
   • Enter the Number of demographics per code. This is the number of demographics that will receive a promotional price when booked using a code from this campaign. Each demographic will share the campaign's promotional value equally.

   Note: Demographics are the "spots" that are booked on your product offerings. Commons examples of demographics include "Adults", "Children", or "Guests". This article explains demographics in more detail.

   • If you'd like to automatically generate a tag for bookings made with a code from this campaign, you can designate tags in the Tag bookings with field.
   • You also must specify a Reported payment method. This is the value that will appear in the "method" column of your report exports for line items that reference an instance where a code from this campaign was used.
   • Specify whether or not you would like to Remove Taxes and Fees from a booking when the coupon is applied.

1. Before moving on to Restrictions, consider the following example of the above terms if you do not have taxes and fees removed.

   Promotional value vs. Number of demographics per code

   • This campaign has a promotional value of $100 and a number of demographics per code of 4.
   • This means that when a code from this campaign is redeemed, up to 4 demographics will receive $25 towards the booking.
   • If less than 4 demographics are booked, for example, if 2 demographics are booked. Those 2 demographics will receive $25 towards the booking and the code will carry $50 in value that would be applied if additional demographics are added to the booking via the change guest count function.

   Promotional value vs. Purchase Price

   • This campaign has a promotional value of $100, a purchase price of $60, and a number of demographics per code of 4.
   • This means that if a code from this campaign is used for a booking that violates the campaign's restrictions, for example, if it is used to book an event that falls outside of the arrival window, up to 4 demographics will receive $15 towards the booking. Notice that the number of demographics per code will always divide the redemption value equally.
2. Now that you have completed the description, let's move on to the restrictions:
   Here you can limit how and when your voucher code will be able to be applied.
   • Purchase Window: Limits the dates within which this voucher can be applied to a booking.
     • Example: You want to make a voucher that can only be redeemed during the month of November and after November is over, you don't want customers to be able to apply the code anymore. Here you would set your start date to 1 November and your end date to 30 November.
     • Blackout dates: by adding a blackout date, you can specify dates and times that the coupon cannot be redeemed.
   • Arrival Window: Limits the start date and start time of the events that this voucher can be applied to.
     • Example: You want to incentivize customers to book trips that occur next summer, so you would set your start date to 1 June and your end date to 31 August of next year. You can specify even further by placing restrictions on which day of the week and time of day your coupon can apply to.
     • Blackout dates: by adding a blackout date, you can specify event start dates and start times that the coupon cannot be redeemed.
   • Listing Restriction: Your voucher's terms and restrictions will only be applied to listings selected here.
3. Click Next, and you will be taken to the Codes page:
   • Here you'll create the actual code that must be entered while making a booking to provide the value you have just created.
   • Type your desired code text into the box, it can contain any combination of letters, numbers, and special characters. Your code may not contain any spaces. You can create more than one code for the same voucher campaign.
   • All voucher codes are One Time Use codes

CREATE A BOGO COUPON

1. Navigate to the Marketing tab and select Coupons.
2. Select the green Create a Coupon button, located on the right-hand side of the screen.
3. Choose Buy One Get One.
4. In the Campaign field, give your campaign a name. This name will not affect your coupon's code(s).
5. If you'd like to automatically generate a tag for bookings made with a code from this campaign, you can designate tags in the Tag bookings with field.
6. Set your coupon's Terms. In this section, you'll need to choose per person or per outing booking discounts, which demographics your coupon can be applied to, and how many demographics must be booked in order for a booking to qualify for a discount.
7. Specify whether or not you would like to Remove Taxes and Fees from a booking when the coupon is applied.

   

   Example:

   In this example, a 50% discount would be given to one demographic of equal or lesser value for every 2 adults that are booked. This account happens to have the demographics of Adults and Children. So, for every 2 Adults that are booked, the customer would get 50% off of either an additional Adult or Child.

   Note: Since BOGO coupons are configured as "For Every", this means that a coupon that's configured as "For every 2 Adults" could apply a discount after any multiple of 2 adults are booked. For example, the following discounts could occur:

   • 2 Adults at full price, 1 equal or lesser demographic at 50% off
   • 4 Adults at full price, 2 equal or lesser demographic at 50% off
   • 6 Adults at full price, 3 equal or lesser demographic at 50% off
   • etc...
8. Click Next, and you will be taken to the Restrictions page:

   Here you can limit how and when your code(s) will be able to be applied.

   • Purchase Window: Limits the dates within which this code can be applied to a booking.
   • • Example: You want to make a code that can only be redeemed during the month of November. After November is over, you don't want customers to be able to apply the code anymore. Here you would set your start date to 1 November and your end date to 30 November.
     • Blackout dates: by adding a blackout date, you can specify dates and times that the coupon cannot be redeemed.
   • Arrival Window: Limits the start date and start time of the events that this code can be applied to.
     • Example: You want to incentivize customers to book trips that occur next summer, so you would set your start date to 1 June and your end date to 31 August of next year. You can specify even further by placing restrictions on which day of the week and time of day your coupon can apply to.
     • Blackout dates: by adding a blackout date, you can specify event start dates and start times that the coupon cannot be redeemed.
   • Select Listings: Select if you would like this coupon to be applicable to all listings, or select individual ones.

   

9. Click Next, and you will be taken to the Codes page:

• • Here you'll create the actual code that must be entered while making a booking to provide the value you have just created.
  • Type your desired code text into the box, it can contain any combination of letters, numbers, and special characters. Your code may not contain any spaces. You can create more than one code for the same campaign.
  • Choose between One Time Use, Limited Use, and Unlimited Use.
    • After a One Time Use coupon is applied to a booking, its status will change from 'Active' to 'Void' and will not be able to be used again.
    • If you select Limited use, the number you specify as the usage limit will be the maximum number of times that each code in your campaign can be used.

Tip: Add multiple codes at once by entering text separated by commas, or on separate lines

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EDITING A COUPON CAMPAIGN

Created a coupon but need to make some adjustments? Xola makes it super easy to go back and make any sort of changes that you need to your coupon campaigns, from campaign name to codes to terms.

Tip: Don't know what campaign a given code applies to? You can search for the corresponding campaign by entering the exact code into the search bar located in Marketing > Coupons.

Edit Your Coupon's Terms and Restrictions
After navigating to Marketing > Coupons, select the coupon campaign that you would like to edit. You can edit your coupon campaign's Description, Restrictions, or Codes.

Void a Coupon
From the Codes section, select the gray arrow next to a code's status. You can toggle a code's status between 'Active' and 'Void'.

• Active: This code is able to be applied to a booking.
• Void: This code is not able to be applied to a booking.
• Booked: This One Time Use code has been applied to a booking, and will no longer work if entered.

Add More Codes to Your Campaign
You can add new codes to a campaign from within Codes by using the "new code" bar, or edit existing codes by selecting the pencil icon that appears when you hover over the list.

Tip: Add multiple codes at once by entering text separated by commas, or on separate lines

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Applying a Coupon

You've created a coupon campaign with terms and restrictions set to your liking, so it's time to start handing out some discounts! The instructions below detail how to use coupon codes in the Xola back

office and on your website checkout.

During checkout

1. Click Have a code? and enter in the coupon code. Click the green checkmark to apply it to the purchase.
2. You'll see the booking amount change accordingly and the coupon code recorded as a line item in the Payment Summary.

After checkout
For instructions on applying a coupon code to an existing purchase, check out our Apply Discounts, Coupons, and Gifts section. Note that unlock coupons can only be applied at the time of booking, and not after the fact.

 

Applying an unlock coupon

1. During checkout, click Have a code? and enter in the Unlock Coupon code. Click the green checkmark to apply it.
2. In the text box, enter the total amount that you would like to charge your customer before tax for this booking and click the green checkmark.
   Note: You may only enter an amount that is lower than the initial booking total.
3. You'll see the booking amount change accordingly and the coupon code recorded as a line item in the Payment Summary.

 

 

Applying a Voucher

You've created a voucher campaign with terms and restrictions set to your liking, perhaps to match a Groupon deal that you are running. Now it's time to redeem codes from your campaign! The instructions below detail how to use voucher codes in the Xola back office and on your website checkout. Voucher codes can be redeemed at the time of booking or applied to an existing purchase.

During checkout

1. Click Have a code? and enter in the voucher code. Click the green checkmark to apply it to the purchase.
2. You'll see the booking amount change accordingly and the voucher code recorded as a line item in the Payment Summary.

After checkout
For instructions on applying a Voucher Coupon code to an existing purchase, check out our Apply Discounts, Coupons, and Gifts section. 

Tip: Remove a voucher that you have applied by hovering your mouse over the line item and selecting the red x that appears.

Difference between Vouchers and Coupons

The difference between vouchers and coupons is that vouchers are a method of payment while coupons apply a discount to the booking total. Consider the following example, where we'll apply a voucher and discount coupon that are both worth $40.

Since vouchers are a method of payment, taxes and fees are calculated and assessed before the amount due for the booking is reduced. This means that and taxes and fees you have configured may still be owed after a voucher code is applied. If you would like taxes and fees removed from the voucher, you will have to go toggle this on in the Vouchers settings. 

Since coupons are applied as a discount to a booking's total value, taxes and fees are calculated and assessed after the amount due is reduced. This means that if you have a percentage-based tax or fee configured, its total will be affected by the discount coupon's application.

Note: Multiple Vouchers can be applied to a reservation, but are restricted from being applied to Packages at this time.

Removing a coupon or voucher from a booking

Whoops! Maybe you applied a coupon by mistake or entered in the wrong affiliate code. In Xola you can remove a code just as easily as you can add one. Details below!

1. In the Purchases tab, navigate to the customer purchase.
2. Locate the code that was applied (coupon or affiliate) under the Payment Summary.
3. Hover your mouse over the code and click the red X that appears.
4. You will be asked to confirm that you want to remove this coupon. Click Confirm.
5. The code will be removed from the customer purchase. If it is a coupon code or an affiliate code with a discount associated, the price will adjust accordingly.