Option-Based Pricing

1. The group label is required.
2. Items in a group must all share the same "price type" (either "Base Price" or "Surcharge"). "Base Price" is the price of the item. A "Surcharge" is added to the "Base Price" to calculate the final price of a product.
3. Items in the same group must have identical group labels. We recommend using copy and paste to set the group label.
4. Only one group can be set as the "base price."

Example: If you are setting up a product like "Jet Tub" and it comes in three configurations you would do this:

All other options (such as color or texture) would be set as "surcharge." Note: If the product does not have different options for the base price, then you can enter the price for the item in the product price field and set all options as "surcharge."

 

Using the # sign in the option label makes it so if a user does not select a book, the "Select a Book" item does not get added to the cart. If you don't include the "#Select a Book" line, then the user is forced to choose one or the other.

1)      Menus Only: use this if you do NOT have an image for the option. For example: Small, Medium, Large

2)      Both: use this if you DO have an image for the option. For example: you have an image for the “Red” version of the item.

 

 

This configuration makes it impossible for the user to skip selecting a book; i.e., the user is forced to choose one or the other. (Notice there is no "#Select a Book" row.)

 

Including a Choose One Line

If you want to include a Choose One line on a required option (to make sure customers choose the option they actually want, rather than the default option), you must include an asterisk (*) in front of the group label.

One Item Required Options

If there is only one item in the group, you must add an asterisk (*) in front of the group label to indicated this is a required choice. With the asterisk the option is always added when this product is ordered. Without the asterisk, the user can optionally add this item when they order this product.

You can use the rules above to set up packages. For example, let's say you are offering the tub, a book, fixtures, and an optional candle set. You would do this:

 

Quantities may be added to any option. For example, if you wanted to give people a price break for ordering more candles you would do this:

 

 

Notice that you have to repeat each option for as many price breaks as you are offering. Also, if the quantity is set to zero it means up to any number.

If you have some choices that are only available if the user selects another choice, for example if certain sizes are only available in certain fabrics, you can set up a dependent choice. Setting up Dependent Choices is a two step process:

1. First enter the main choices and save. For example: 
 


 
2. Edit the product again, this time adding the "Parent" designation. For example:
 

The above settings would make these combinations available to order:

Red: Small and Medium

Blue: Medium and Large

Green: Small and Large

 

Note: if your site has inventory controls along with dependent choice options, you must enter an inventory quantity on the "Parent" line as well as the individual option line in order for any options for that parent to show on the site.

If you have pricing that is common to many products, you can "share" the pricing across products. This way, if you ever need to update the pricing, you only have to update it in one place.

1. Datahost will add a category in your Site Manager called "Shared Pricing."
 
2. Add an item to the category and give it a descriptive name, such as "Available Finishes" (using the tub example), then fill in the options grid. For example:
 
 
Be sure to check the "Include as Option" checkbox.
 
3. When you go to add other products you will see a checkbox above the pricing table that says "Available Finishes." If you check the box, then these options will show up on the website for the new product.

 

 

If a product has an extra finish available, in the new product you can use the same group label (in this example "Fixture") to set custom finishes that apply only to this product, but are grouped with the standard set. For example:

 

 

 

In this scenario the user would see a menu with the standard finishes (faux silver, faux gold, real silver, real gold) plus the product specific finishes (faux copper, real copper). If you have separate configurations that are frequently grouped together, you can create separate shared pricing options. For example, using the "finishes" scenario, you could create "Silver Finishes," "Gold Finishes," and "Copper Finishes" by using identical group labels in each option set. When adding a product you just check off which finishes this product comes in.