Common questions: coupons, promo codes and gift cards

Short answers about coupons (also called promo codes or discount codes) and gift cards, for shop owners and for the questions their customers ask. Each answer points to the full article.

Finding coupons and gift cards

Where do I find coupons and gift cards?

Click Pricing in the left sidebar (it opens Pricing rules), then choose the Coupons tab or the Gift cards tab. There is no separate Coupons or Gift Cards item in the sidebar, and old links to those pages forward to the tabs. See Creating discount codes and Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Why can't I see the Coupons tab or the Gift cards tab?

The Coupons tab only shows for a role that includes the "View coupons" permission, and the Gift cards tab only for a role that includes "View payments". As shipped, Owner, Manager and Staff all have both. A link to a hidden tab opens the first tab, Seasonal, instead. See Creating discount codes.

Creating and changing coupons

How do I create a coupon?

1. Open Pricing, then Pricing rules, then the Coupons tab, and click + New Coupon. 2. Type the code, choose the Type (Percentage or Fixed Amount) and enter the Discount (%) or Amount ($). 3. Turn on Limit to a date range, Limit total uses or Limit uses per customer if you want those limits. 4. Click Create. The code works straight away unless you set a Valid From date in the future.

See Creating discount codes.

What is the difference between Percentage and Fixed Amount?

Percentage takes a percent off the price, and the form accepts whole numbers from 1 to 100. Fixed Amount takes a flat dollar amount off, from $0.01 up, and it can never take off more than the price, so a $50 code on a $30 order discounts $30. In the list a percentage shows as, for example, 10% and a fixed amount shows as a dollar figure. See Creating discount codes.

What can I use as a coupon code, and why does saving fail?

A code can be up to 50 characters, and Renta stores it in capital letters, so customers can type it in any case. Two coupons in one shop cannot share a code: the form shows "A coupon with this code already exists." If Renta cannot give a specific reason, the red box says "Couldn't create coupon" (or "Couldn't save coupon" when editing) and asks you to check the fields, or "Couldn't reach the server" if your connection dropped. See Creating discount codes.

What does "Limit to a date range" do?

Turn it on to enter a Valid From date and a Valid To date. The code only works between them, and the Valid To day counts through its last minute. Renta refuses to create a coupon whose Valid To date is before its Valid From date. With it off, the form says "Valid immediately and never expires." The check uses the day the customer enters the code, not the rental date. See Creating discount codes.

What do "Limit total uses" and "Limit uses per customer" do?

Limit total uses caps how many bookings can use the code across all customers (Max uses (whole coupon), at least 1), and with it off the total is unlimited. Limit uses per customer caps how often one customer can use it (Max uses per customer, which starts at 1 when you turn it on). A customer's cancelled or expired bookings do not count toward their own limit. Staff can override both limits on the booking desk. See Creating discount codes.

Can I limit a coupon to certain items or categories, or set a minimum spend?

The coupon form has no item, category or minimum-spend setting, and coupons have no minimum-spend field at all. A code created through Renta's API or through the MCP connection (the link that lets AI assistants work in your account) can carry item or category limits. When it does, every item in the cart must fall inside the limit, or the customer sees "This coupon is not valid for the selected items" and the booking desk says "Coupon is not valid for the selected items" or "Coupon is not valid for the selected category". See Creating discount codes.

How do I edit, pause or delete a coupon?

Click the coupon's row to open Edit Coupon, change what you need and click Save; turning off a limit's switch removes that limit. To pause a code without deleting it, turn Active off, and it becomes Retired and stops working at checkout. To remove it for good, click Delete and confirm, which cannot be undone. See Creating discount codes.

Reading the Coupons list

What do Available, Expired and Retired mean on a coupon?

Available means the coupon is switched on and its Valid To date has not passed. Expired means the Valid To date has passed. Retired means you turned Active off, and it shows even if the end date has also passed. The badge only looks at the switch and the end date, so a coupon that has not started yet, or has used up its total, still reads Available. See Creating discount codes.

What do the All, Active and Expired buttons show?

All shows every coupon, Active shows coupons that are switched on and have no end date or one still ahead, and Expired shows everything else, which includes retired coupons as well as ones past their end date. The list shows 50 coupons per page with Previous and Next buttons. When nothing matches it says "No coupons found." See Creating discount codes.

What does the Uses column count?

Uses counts the bookings that used the code, shown as "12 / 100" when you set a total limit. A use is counted as soon as the booking, or the reservation (the hold made at checkout before payment), is created, and a cancelled booking does not give the use back. Bookings made by the built-in practice customers are not counted. See Creating discount codes.

How coupons change the price

What do Stack and Exclusive mean?

The switch labelled Coupons + discounts at the top of the Coupons tab sets how a coupon works with automatic discounts (multi-day, seasonal, time-based and bundle). Stack, the default, applies the coupon on top of the automatic discount so both count. Exclusive applies only whichever saves the customer more, and a tie goes to the coupon. It is one setting for the whole shop, and saving it shows "Coupon stacking mode updated." See Creating discount codes.

Does a coupon come off before tax, and does it change Renta's fee?

The coupon comes off after add-ons and delivery are included and before tax, so tax is worked out on the lower amount. Renta's platform fee is also worked out after the coupon, so it shrinks slightly too. If you edit a booking that has a coupon, the edit screen says "Total recalculates on save" and the coupon is recalculated on the new amount. See How a price is calculated.

Coupons at customer checkout

Where does a customer type a coupon code, and can they use two?

On the review step of the booking page, the Have a code? box takes the code and the customer clicks Apply. A green line reads "Coupon CODE applied" with the amount saved, and the order summary shows a Coupon discount row with the code. A booking holds one code, so applying a new one replaces the old one, and clearing the box then clicking Apply removes it. See Creating discount codes.

Why does a customer see "Code not valid", "This coupon has expired" or "This coupon is not valid yet"?

"Code not valid" means your shop has no coupon with that code, or the coupon is retired. "This coupon has expired" means today is after its Valid To date, and "This coupon is not valid yet" means today is before its Valid From date. The message is a red line under the code box. Check the code for typos and check the coupon's status in the Coupons tab. See Creating discount codes.

Why does a customer see "Coupon has reached maximum uses" or "This customer has already used this coupon the maximum number of times"?

The first means the coupon's Max uses (whole coupon) total is used up, which the Uses column shows as, for example, 100 / 100. The second means this customer reached the Max uses per customer limit, and it can appear once Renta knows who the customer is. To allow more, raise the number in the coupon's edit form. See Creating discount codes.

Why is the Complete Booking button greyed out after a customer enters a code?

The review step greys out Complete Booking while the code box shows a red error. The customer can clear the box and click Apply to drop the code, or type a valid one. On the earlier step the main button reads Remove or fix the coupon when a rejected code is what is holding the customer back. See Creating discount codes.

Coupons at the booking desk

How do I apply a coupon to a booking I am creating?

1. On the new booking screen, add at least one item. With no items the desk says "Add items before applying a coupon". 2. Click the Coupon code box in the order summary, and a list of your active coupons slides out. Type to narrow it. 3. Click a coupon in the list, or type a code and click Add coupon. 4. The coupon shows as applied, with a Remove button beside it.

See Creating discount codes.

What do "Apply anyway", "Limit reached" and "Coupon is invalid or expired" mean at the booking desk?

"Coupon is invalid or expired" means the code does not exist, is retired, has passed its end date or has not started. If the customer has used the code as often as allowed, or the code's total is used up, a warning note appears (for example "This customer has used this coupon 1/1 times") with Apply anyway, which overrides the limit for this booking. The per-customer note only appears after you have chosen the customer. In the coupon list, Limit reached marks codes whose total is used up. See Creating discount codes.

Why is a coupon missing from the booking desk list?

The list only shows coupons that are switched on, not past their end date and already started, and it loads at most 200. A retired or expired coupon, or one whose Valid From date is still ahead, is left out, and used-up coupons stay in marked Limit reached. If nothing fits, the list says "No active coupons" or "No matching coupons". For a one-off discount that is not a coupon, see Adding a discount or an extra charge to a booking.

Gift cards: what they are and how customers buy them

What is a gift card in Renta, and is it a discount?

A gift card is a prepaid balance that pays part or all of a booking. It is a payment, not a discount, so it does not change what the rental costs. Until a card is used, its balance is money you still owe (a liability, not income), which is why Renta keeps it apart from your revenue. Each code is 16 letters and numbers shown in groups of four, such as ABCD-EFGH-JKLM-NPQR, and never uses the letters I and O or the digits 0 and 1. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

How do customers buy a gift card online?

The buy page is your Renta shop address followed by /shops/your-shop/gift-cards, or your own domain followed by /gift-cards. The customer picks $25, $50, $100, $150 or $250, or Custom from $1 up to $10,000, can add a recipient's name, email and a personal message of up to 450 characters, enters their own name and email and clicks Continue to payment. After paying they see the code on screen and get an email, and the recipient gets one too if an email was given. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Why can't a customer buy a gift card on my website?

If your shop is not live yet, the buy page says "This shop isn't taking online bookings yet." If card payments are not approved or are switched off for your shop, it says "This shop isn't set up to take card payments online just yet" or "This shop can't take card payments right now" and asks the customer to contact you. The page itself also refuses a missing name or email ("Your name and email are required"), a recipient email without a recipient name ("Add the recipient's name along with their email."), and amounts outside the limits ("Enter an amount of at least $1.00." and "Gift cards cannot exceed $10,000.00."). See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Issuing and selling gift cards in the admin

How do I sell or issue a gift card myself?

1. Open Pricing, then Pricing rules, then the Gift cards tab, and click Issue a gift card. 2. Enter the Amount (USD) (from $1.00 up to $10,000) and, if you like, the Recipient name (optional) and Recipient email (optional). 3. Under Payment, choose how it was paid. Cash is selected first. 4. Add an Internal note (optional) if you want, then click Issue card. 5. Give the customer the code shown on screen. It is shown once there, and you can find it again in the list.

See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

What do Cash, Other, Comp and Credit card mean, and how do I give a card away free?

Cash and Other (bank transfer, cheque, terms) record money you collected outside Renta, and the Amount collected (USD) box starts equal to the card's value. You may enter less for a discounted sale but never more. The option labelled Comp (free giveaway) records no money and does not count as revenue, so pick it to give a card away free. Credit card takes the payment through Stripe (the card processor), as described next. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

How do I take a card payment for a gift card, and why is the charge more than the card's value?

Choose Credit card under Payment, fill in the Purchaser name and Purchaser email (both are required), and click Continue to card payment. Renta's processing fee is added on top of the card's value, so the customer pays a little more while the card is still worth its full value and you still receive the full value. The Gift card value and Processing fee rows show the exact total before you click Charge. If the card was charged but the gift card could not be created, click Retry issuing the card and never run the customer's card again. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Do gift cards expire?

No. Cards you issue in the admin and cards customers buy online are created without an expiry date, and the screens say "never expires". Renta leaves expiry off on purpose because several US states restrict it, and these screens have no field to add one. A card that did carry an expiry date would be refused after that date ("That gift card's expiry date has passed"). See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Checking and using gift cards

How do I check a gift card's balance?

Open the Gift cards tab and read the Balance column on the card's row, where Face value shows what the card started with. The list has no search box, so find the card by its Code or its Recipient. After you apply a card to a booking, the screen also says how much is left on the card. Customers have no balance-check page of their own. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

How do I take a gift card as payment on a booking?

Open the booking, go to the Payments & Documents tab, and open Apply gift card in the Payment Log card. Type the Gift card code (capitals, dashes and spaces do not matter), enter the Amount to apply and click Apply to this booking. If you leave the amount blank it applies the full balance owed, which fails when the card holds less, so type the card's balance in that case. The section is hidden once the booking owes nothing. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

How does a customer use a gift card at checkout?

On the payment page, the Have a gift card? box takes the code and an optional amount, and the customer clicks Apply. Leaving the amount blank uses as much of the card as the booking owes, and the page then shows "Remaining balance to pay" for the rest. More than one card can be applied before paying the remainder by card. The box is hidden while the booking is still loading, and when payments are blocked or an identity check is in the way. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Why was a gift card code rejected?

The red message under the box says why. "That gift card code was not found" means a wrong code or a code from another shop, "That gift card has been voided" means the card was cancelled, and a currency message such as "That gift card is in USD, but this booking is priced in CAD" means the two do not match. A gift card also cannot be applied to a practice booking ("Gift cards are real money and cannot be applied to a practice booking"). Codes ignore capitals, dashes and spaces, but a character outside the code alphabet never matches. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Why does applying a gift card say it cannot cover the amount, or is more than the booking owes?

A message like "That gift card has $20.00 left; it cannot cover $50.00." means the amount typed is bigger than the card's balance. "That is more than this booking still owes" followed by the balance owed means it is bigger than the booking's balance. At checkout, "This booking has nothing left to pay, or the card has no balance to apply." means one of the two is already zero. Checkout allows 10 gift card attempts per 15 minutes from one internet connection, and after that the customer sees "Too many requests. Please try again later." See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

Reading the Gift cards tab

What do the Outstanding, Active, Voided and All buttons show?

Outstanding shows active cards that still hold money, Active shows every card that has not been voided (including empty ones), Voided shows cancelled cards and All shows everything. The list is newest first with 50 cards per page. When there is more than one page it shows a "Page 1 of N" line but no Next or Previous buttons, so use the filters to narrow it down. With no cards it says "No gift cards yet." See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

What do Confirmed, Returned and Cancelled mean in a gift card's Status column?

Confirmed means the card is active and still has a balance. Returned means the balance is $0.00, so the card has been fully used (Renta reuses the wording it shows for finished bookings). Cancelled means the card was voided. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

What do the Paid column and the Purchased online label mean?

Paid shows what you actually collected for the card: an amount, "Free (comp)" for a comp, "Not recorded" for older cards from before payment was tracked, or "$X of $Y" when you collected less than the face value. Purchased online appears beside the code of any card paid through Stripe, which includes cards bought on your website and cards you sold by credit card in the admin. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

What do the totals at the top of the Gift cards tab mean?

Outstanding gift card balance is what you still owe on active cards that carry a balance (a liability, not income), counting paid and comped cards alike. Under it, Sold, all time is the total value of every card issued (comps included), Redeemed is what has been spent on bookings, Returned to cards is money put back on cards by refunds, and Written off is the balance removed by voiding. In Reports, the same liability is Gift Card Liability and cash collected in a date range is Gift Card Sales. See Why gift cards show up as a liability and Gift card sales and liability.

Emailing, voiding and refunding gift cards

How do I resend a gift card email, and why is there no Send button?

A card with a recipient email is emailed automatically when it is issued or bought. Click Resend (or Send if it was never sent) in the card's row to send it again. No button appears when the card has no recipient email, and a second send within a minute is refused with "This card was just emailed". The recipient's email is titled "You've received a gift card from" plus your business name, and customers who buy online or by card also get their own copy. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

How do I void a gift card, and does the customer get a refund?

Click Void in the card's row, type a reason in the box that appears and confirm. The reason is kept with the card's history and whatever balance is left is written off. The button only shows on active cards, and a voided card shows Cancelled and cannot be used. Voiding sends no money back to the buyer, and this tab has no refund button for a gift card purchase. See Selling and redeeming gift cards.

What happens to a gift card when a booking paid with it is refunded?

Renta puts the part that was paid by gift card back onto the card first, and sends only the rest to the original payment. If that card has since been voided, its share goes to the original payment instead. The amount put back counts in the Returned to cards total on the Gift cards tab. See Refunds and cancellations.