This is the third article in a five part series covering the process of building an allocation offer in Offset Commerce.
These articles are summarized in a webinar we recorded on 7/25/24, which can be viewed here: Creating an Allocation Offer Webinar
Table Of Contents
There are many global settings to update before the release to ensure a smooth checkout experience for your customers.
Get started by selecting the Settings tab in the upper right corner of your screen.
A. Transactional Emails
Select the Transactional Emails tab. Scroll down to the emails recommended below and add any new information. If your info is already filled out from the previous release, you can refresh or review your content for expired information such as release dates, messaging, or instructions.
Review the Subject and Message fields in the following sections:
Welcome > Sign Up Confirmation (Web)
This is the email that customers will receive when they sign up using your mailing list form on the Website. This can be a good place to announce an upcoming release to new subscribers, just remember to update this content when the release closes.
Orders
Standard Order Receipt (Sent to Customers after any purchase)
Order Cancellation (Sent after any Order is cancelled)
Allocations
Wish Grant Order Receipt (Sent after Wish is Granted)
Wish Only Order Receipt (Sent after Wish Only Request)
DEFINITION: A Wish Only order is when a customer places a separate wish request after they have already purchased or wished in a previous order.
Wish Only Grant Order Receipt
B. Ship-To States & Taxes
If you don’t anticipate any major changes, you can review the settings individually. If you need to update a bunch of states, you can save time by exporting all the State data and making your changes via import. Select the Ship-To States & Taxes tab to get started
Tax & Shipping Settings
Navigate to the Ship-To States & Tax Rates (United States) section
Click the Edit button to the right of the desired State
Selecting the edit button to edit the State settings
Review the Tax & Shipping Settings for each State and make adjustments as needed
Tax & Shipping Settings
(Optional) Update Requested Ship Dates by State
Add or Update any Requested Ship Dates by state using the Date Picker to select your desired ship dates for this State. Repeat the process for each State as needed.
NOTE: Adding dates to this field will enforce a limited selection of shipping dates when customers choose the particular State during checkout. This is a useful option for States where you plan to ship on a specific date. For example, if you plan to Ship orders to TX in the Fall when the weather cools down, you can set a date or dates for them to choose when they check out.
IMPORTANT: The State level dates will override any Global Requested Ship Dates. If all your States are shipping at the same time, save time by using the Global Requested Ship Dates discussed later in this article.
Selecting the date picker for State level Requested Ship Dates
Requested Ship Dates as they appear to customers during checkout
(Optional) Activate Shipping Methods by State
Check the box under the ACTIVE? Column to activate the Shipping Methods you would like to offer for the specific State.
NOTE: This will allow you to limit the options available for a particular State if needed. For example, if you only want to ship to FL with 2nd Day Air and do not offer a Ground option, you can select only 2nd Day Air as the active method for FL.
IMPORTANT: For any method you activate in the state, make sure to set the global Status of your fulfillment methods to Active by going to the Settings > Fulfillment Method & Rates page.
Check the box for all Shipping Methods you want to offer for the specific State
C. Content
The Active and Inactive Offering Messages are visible within the customer login and can be a great tool for an upcoming release.
Go to Settings > Content and scroll down to the Website Messaging section to update the following fields:
Active Offering Message
Update your messaging for when the release is live.
NOTE: This message appears when a customer is logged into their Account page and the offer is Active
DEFINITION: An Active Offering is any offer on the Groups page that has a Status of Active and is within the set dates of times within the allocation Timeline.
Active Offering Message as seen when logged into a customer Account page
Inactive Offering Message
Update your messaging for when the release has closed.
NOTE: This field can be used throughout the year. You may want to promote the upcoming release with a message like “Our next release begins on August 24th.” Don’t forget to update this message after the release closes with less date-specific messaging.
Active Offering Message as seen when logged into a customer Account page
D. Fulfillment Methods and Rates
Before launching any release it is important to have your Fulfillment Methods configured with the appropriate service level, codes, and rates. If you are new to Offset or you need a refresher, please refer to the Set Your Fulfillment Methods and Rates guide for step-by-step instructions.
Once your Methods are set up, there are some additional settings you will want to configure specifically for an Allocation Release. Go to the Settings > Fulfillment Methods & Rates page to get started.
Shipping Description
Updating your Shipping Description for a release is a great way to communicate any special information about shipping while the customer is checking out.
Under the Methods section, select the ellipses to the right of the desired Shipping Method
In the dropdown, choose Edit Method
Enter any additional information in the Shipping Description field
NOTE: Any messaging here will appear below the selected Shipping Method. Keep your message brief.
Repeat this process for each Shipping Method
Example of how a Shipping Description message appears at checkout for a Shipping Method Type.
Example of how a Shipping Description message appears at checkout for a 3rd Party Method Type.
(Optional) Discounted Shipping Rates and Flat Rate Shipping Charges
If you plan on offering a shipping incentive such as a discounted or flat rate, you will need to adjust your rate grids. Please refer to the Set Your Fulfillment Methods and Rates article and scroll down to step 28. (Optional) Set your "Flat Rate Shipping Charge"
(Optional) Shipping Notices & Global Ship Dates
Shipping Notices & Global Ship Dates
Use the date Picker to select your Global Requested Ship Dates
NOTE: Global Requested Ship Dates will display the picked dates on the Shipping Options tab during checkout for all States. This allows you to narrow down the ship dates to a pre-established date and time.
IMPORTANT: If you already set the Requested Ship Dates by State, the State setting will override the Global Requested Ship Dates.
Will Call Dates
Use the date Picker to select your Will Call Dates
NOTE: Will Call Dates will display the picked dates on the Pickup Options tab during checkout for all States. This is typically set to the date(s) when customers can pick up their wine from your onsite location like a winery or tasting room. Clients often set this date for a future party or pickup event.
3rd Party Dates
Use the date Picker to select your 3rd Party Dates
NOTE: 3rd Party Dates will display the picked dates on the Transfer Options tab during checkout for all States.
E. (Optional) Review your ShipCompliant Settings
If you are using ShipCompliant for compliance or tax rates, there are some settings in ShipCompliant and Offset that you will want to check before your release. If this is your first time setting up ShipCompliant, please start with our Add Your ShipCompliant Credentials article.
In ShipCompliant, you will want to ensure all your product SKUs are created, your label registrations are complete and your State rules have been acknowledged. In Offset start by going to Settings > More > ShipCompliant and check the following settings:
Sovos ShipCompliant
Switch on the Use Sovos ShipCompliant Tax Rates
This setting overrides the Offset Commerce Sales Tax rates on the Ship-To States & Taxes page and uses the zip code-based rates from ShipCompliant
Select the Save Changes button
Configure Backup Zip Based Tax Rate Collection
Switch on Enable Local Cache
Select the Clear Current Backup button to clear the existing backup.
IMPORTANT: There is no undo once this cache is cleared. Make sure to check the Sovos ShipCompliant status page to ensure that ShipCompliant is operating normally before clearing your backup cache. If there is an outage, you cannot download the updated backup rates.
Select the Get Latest Zip Based Tax Rate Backup to download the latest rates
IMPORTANT: This process can take a few hours to complete so make sure that you download your backup before your release day.
NOTE: When the process is complete, you can confirm that the download was successful by viewing the Last synced date.
The Last synced date after the backup cache has finished downloading