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Setting Custom Offer Pricing

Custom offers allow you to set different pricing for each cycle, giving you complete control over your customer's pricing journey. This guide walks you through the step-by-step process of configuring pricing for Custom offers, including handling item variations.

How Custom Offer Pricing Works

In Custom offers, pricing is set at the cycle level, not the item level. Each cycle in your offer can have its own pricing configuration, allowing for sophisticated billing progressions like trial periods, graduated pricing, or product upgrades.

Key principle: You set the price customers pay for each cycle, and Vrio applies the pricing logic based on whether your item has variations.

Basic Pricing Setup

Step 1: Access Your Custom Offer Configuration

  1. Navigate to Offers in the main menu
  2. Find your Custom offer and click to Edit Offer
  3. Go to the Configuration tab
  4. You'll see your offer cycles listed with columns for Price, Charge Frequency, etc.

Step 2: Set Cycle Pricing

For each cycle in your offer:

  1. Locate the "Price" column for the cycle you want to configure

  2. Enter the amount customers should pay for this cycle

  3. Configure the charge frequency (how often they're billed in this cycle)

  4. Set the billing trigger (when the next charge occurs)


Example: Simple Monthly Subscription

Cycle 1:

  • Item: Subscription Box
  • Price: $25.00
  • Charge Frequency: Monthly
  • Customers pay $25 every month

Advanced Pricing Configurations

Trial-to-Paid Pricing

Create a trial period followed by regular billing:

Cycle 1 (Trial):

  • Item: Subscription Box
  • Price: $5.00
  • Charge Frequency: Current Day Plus 2 Weeks
  • Trigger: Time of Completed Charge

Cycle 2 (Regular Billing):

  • Item: Subscription Box
  • Price: $25.00
  • Charge Frequency: Monthly
  • Trigger: Time of Completed Charge

Result: Customers pay $5 trial for 2 weeks, then $25/month ongoing.

Adding Multiple Cycles

To create cycle progressions:

  1. Click "Add Cycle" in your offer configuration
  2. Select the item for this cycle (can be same or different)
  3. Set the Recurring Price for this new cycle
  4. Configure billing timing and triggers
  5. Mark as final cycle if this should end the subscription

Example: Product Upgrade Progression

Cycle 1:

  • Item: Starter Kit - $15.00 monthly

Cycle 2:

  • Item: Premium Kit - $25.00 monthly

Cycle 3:

  • Item: Deluxe Kit - $35.00 monthly (marked as final)

Customers automatically progress through products with increasing value and pricing.

Pricing with Item Variations

When your item has variations (size, color, etc.), Custom offer pricing follows a specific hierarchy:

Pricing Decision Flow for Variations

  1. Check for variation-specific pricing on the offer cycle
  2. If not found, use base cycle pricing
  3. If no cycle pricing, fall back to item's own pricing

Setting Variation Pricing in Custom Offers

Important: Variation-specific pricing for Custom offers is typically configured at the item level, not within the offer cycle interface shown in the video.

For items with variations:

  1. Set the base price for the cycle (this applies to all variations by default)
  2. Configure variation-specific pricing through the item configuration if needed
  3. The cycle price overrides the item's default pricing

Example: Size-Based Pricing

Cycle Configuration:

  • Base Price: $20.00 (applies to all sizes)

If you need size-specific pricing:

  • Small: Uses cycle base price ($20.00)
  • Medium: Uses cycle base price ($20.00)
  • Large: Uses cycle base price ($20.00)

Alternative with variation pricing:

  • Configure the item to have variation pricing

  • Set cycle base price to override item defaults

  • Variation price differences still apply relative to the cycle price


Pricing Strategy Examples

Graduated Pricing Strategy

Cycle 1-3: $19.99 monthly (introductory rate)
Cycle 4+: $24.99 monthly (regular rate)

Implementation:

  • Cycles 1, 2, 3: Each set to $19.99, Monthly billing
  • Cycle 4: Set to $24.99, Monthly billing (no final cycle marking)

Free Trial with Premium Upgrade

Cycle 1: $0.00 after 7 days (free trial)
Cycle 2: $29.99 monthly (premium service)

Implementation:

  • Cycle 1: $0.00, "Current Day Plus 1 Week"
  • Cycle 2: $29.99, Monthly billing

Seasonal Pricing Changes

Cycle 1: $25.00 monthly (regular season)
Cycle 2: $35.00 monthly (holiday premium)
Cycle 3: $25.00 monthly (back to regular)

Implementation:

  • Configure cycles with different pricing
  • Use "Time of Scheduled" trigger to maintain consistent billing dates
  • Set cycle duration to control when pricing changes occur

Price Overrides for Custom Offers

Sometimes you need special pricing for individual customers:

Admin UI Override

When creating checkout links or placing orders:

  1. Enter custom price in the price override field
  2. Override applies to the first purchase only
  3. Renewals use the configured cycle pricing

API Override

{
  "offers": [
    {
      "offer_id": 123,
      "order_offer_quantity": 1,
      "order_offer_price": 19.99
    }
  ]
}

Important: Overrides only affect initial purchase, not recurring billing.

Common Custom Offer Pricing Patterns

Payment Plans

Break large purchases into installments:

  • Cycle 1: $100 (first payment)
  • Cycle 2: $100 after 30 days
  • Cycle 3: $100 after 60 days (final cycle)

Loyalty Pricing

Reward long-term customers:

  • Cycle 1-6: $30.00 monthly
  • Cycle 7+: $25.00 monthly (loyalty discount)

Product Testing Sequence

Let customers try different products:

  • Cycle 1: Product A - $20.00 monthly
  • Cycle 2: Product B - $25.00 monthly
  • Cycle 3: Product C - $30.00 monthly

Best Practices

Pricing Strategy

  • Start simple: Begin with basic pricing before complex progressions
  • Test thoroughly: Verify pricing works as expected across all cycles
  • Communicate clearly: Make sure customers understand pricing changes

Technical Considerations

  • Monitor cycle progression: Ensure customers move between cycles correctly
  • Test with variations: If using items with variations, verify pricing applies correctly
  • Check final cycles: Confirm subscriptions complete when intended

Customer Experience

  • Transparent progression: Customers should understand upcoming pricing changes
  • Value justification: Price increases should come with added value
  • Easy management: Provide clear communication about billing schedules

Troubleshooting

Wrong Pricing Applied

  • Check cycle configuration: Verify price is set at cycle level, not item level
  • Review pricing hierarchy: Understand how variation pricing interacts with cycle pricing
  • Verify cycle progression: Ensure customer is in the expected cycle

Pricing Not Updating

  • New transactions only: Price changes only affect future billing
  • Check scheduled transactions: Existing scheduled charges use old pricing
  • Verify cycle timing: Ensure pricing changes activate when expected

Variation Pricing Issues

  • Check item configuration: Verify variations are set up correctly on the item
  • Review pricing fallback: Understand the cycle → item pricing hierarchy
  • Test all combinations: Verify pricing works for all size/color combinations

Related Documentation

Updated 14 days ago