Discount rules and markdown cycles

You have two tools for automatic price changes: discount rules and markdown cycles. They solve different problems. This guide covers both.

---

The short version

Discount rules apply a fixed discount on a specific day or condition. You define the rule once; it fires automatically when the condition is met.

Markdown cycles drop the price incrementally over time until the item sells or hits a floor. Set it and walk away.

Use rules when you know the day you want a discount to kick in. Use cycles when you want to move an item before the sale closes no matter what.

---

Discount rules

What they do

A discount rule targets a group of items — by category, tag, or color — and applies a price reduction on a day you specify.

Examples:

• "All furniture priced over $50 gets 25% off on day 2."
• "Everything tagged 'electronics' is 15% off on Saturday."
• "Items with a red color tag drop to 50% off on the last hour of the sale."

The rule fires automatically. You don't touch anything on sale day.

How to create a discount rule

1. Go to /organizer/discount-rules.
2. Tap New Rule.
3. Name the rule — something you'll recognize: "Day 2 furniture markdown."
4. Set the target: All items / by category / by color tag / by price range.
5. Set the discount: percentage off or flat dollar amount.
6. Set the trigger: a specific sale date, a day number (Day 1, Day 2), or an hour window on a specific day.
7. Save.

The rule activates automatically when the trigger condition is met during your sale.

What discount rules are good for

• Category-based discounts on a scheduled day ("All clothing 50% off Sunday")
• Last-hour clearance across the board ("Everything 30% off the final two hours")
• Consignment markdowns on day 2 without renegotiating with each consignor

---

Markdown cycles

What they do

A markdown cycle drops an item's price on a schedule — every few hours, every day — until the item reaches a floor price you set.

Example: An auction item opens at $150. You set a cycle: drop 10% every 6 hours, floor at $50. If it doesn't sell by close, it'll have moved through five price points on its own.

How to set up a markdown cycle

You can set cycles at the sale level or the item level.

Per sale (applies to all items without an individual cycle):

1. Open the sale in /organizer/sales → Edit Sale.
2. Find Markdown Cycle in the pricing section.
3. Set the starting price basis (full item price or a custom starting point), the drop amount (percentage or flat), the interval (hours or days), and the floor price.
4. Save.

Per item (overrides the sale-level cycle for that item):

1. Open the item in your inventory.
2. Tap Edit → Pricing → Markdown Cycle.
3. Set the same fields as above.
4. Save.

Item-level cycles always win over sale-level cycles.

What markdown cycles are good for

• High-value items you want to sell before close rather than haul back
• Auction-style pricing for items where you don't know the right price
• Flea market or consignment runs where you'd rather move volume than negotiate

---

Discount rules vs. markdown cycles: which to use

| Situation | Use | |-----------|-----| | You know the day you want a price change | Discount rule | | You want to move an item before sale end, no fixed day | Markdown cycle | | You're discounting by category or tag | Discount rule | | You want incremental drops on a single item | Markdown cycle | | You're running a multi-day sale with a scheduled clearance event | Discount rule | | You're running a long consignment sale and don't want to reprice manually | Markdown cycle |

You can use both on the same sale. A discount rule might drop a category 25% on day 2. A markdown cycle on a specific piece of furniture might drop it an additional 10% every 4 hours regardless.

When both apply to the same item, the effective price uses whichever discount is greater. Check the inventory view before sale day to confirm effective prices.

---

Common questions

Do these fire automatically or do I need to start them? Both fire automatically once the sale is active and the trigger condition is met. You set them once.

Can I turn off a rule or cycle mid-sale? Yes. Go to /organizer/discount-rules or the sale's pricing settings and deactivate the rule or cycle. Prices stop changing from that point forward.

Will shoppers see the original price crossed out? Shoppers see the current effective price. Original prices are shown as crossed out when a discount is active, depending on your sale's display settings.

Can a markdown cycle go below my floor price? No. The floor is a hard stop. The price will not drop below what you set.

What if I set a discount rule and a markdown cycle on the same item? Both can be active. The effective price in the app reflects both. Review item prices in your inventory before the sale opens to avoid surprises.

Can I copy rules from a previous sale? Not automatically right now. You'll create rules fresh for each sale. If you run the same setup often, keeping notes on your standard rule configs speeds this up.

---

Related guides

• [Color rules: use tag colors for in-person sorting](color-rules)
• [Manage holds: approve, extend, and cancel](manage-holds)