Overview
In Microsoft Commerce Server 2000, discounts have four parts. In addition, discounts can apply to either the entire order or to individual items in the order. The four elements of a discount are:
Requirement. Requirements are general conditions that must be true for the discount to apply. These are often target expressions that are evaluated based on the user profile and the context profile. An example of a requirement would be that the user be a preferred shopper.
Condition. A condition that must be true for the discount to apply. Conditions are evaluated on individual items in the order form. Expressions for conditions can be built with the product picker or the Expression Builder. A condition includes things such as a specific SKU, a product category, or a particular manufacturer.
Award. An award condition that must be true for the discount to apply. An award condition is evaluated for individual items in the order form. An award condition may be an expression, that the discount applies to any item, or that it applies to all items.
Offer. An offer that is applied if the requirement, condition, and award are met. An offer is what is normally thought of as a discount — a percentage or dollar amount off taken off the price of the product.
Discounts can be applied against an entire order (an order-level discount), or they can be applied against items in the order (an item-level discount). Free shipping is the only order-level discount built into Commerce Server. Other order-level discounts require custom programming.