Bundle deals and a free shipping bar in your store
How do you get a customer to buy one more product without lowering prices? A discount teaches customers to wait for the next campaign and cuts your margin. Two simple techniques are often better: a gift for a bundle and a clear message about how little is missing for free shipping.
Short answer: show the offer where the customer decides: on the product page, in the basket and right after adding to the basket. The gift must come without a code and leave stock correctly. A free shipping bar shows how much is missing.
Bundle deal: buy A and B, get a gift
In the NUNDINAE admin you create the offer yourself, with no developer needed:
- What the customer buys: at least two products that must be in the basket. For a product with variants, any variant counts.
- Gift: everything goes into the basket on its own, or the customer chooses from a set list.
- Small size: the gift can also be a smaller pack of a larger product, not sold separately.
- Dates: start and end. An empty field means immediately and with no end date.
Examples: in a bike shop, a helmet and a lock with a bottle holder as a gift; in a pet shop, food and a treat with a toy; in a flower shop, a bouquet and a vase with a card.
What the customer sees
On the product page there's a "Bundle deal" box: both products with an image and price, an "Add to basket" button for the missing product, and the gifts with their value. After adding to the basket, the box updates immediately.
In the basket there's a reminder "Add … and get a gift!" with a button. When the bundle is complete, the gifts are shown with a struck-through value and a price of €0.00.
If the customer takes one product out of the basket, the gift disappears on its own.
Stock is included
In many shops gifts are a discount code trick and someone has to remember whether there are any left. When the online store and stock are one, that's solved:
- The gift leaves stock like ordinary goods and comes back on cancellation.
- On the order and invoice it has a separate line "Gift: …" at a price of €0.
- A gift out of stock isn't offered. If all gifts are out of stock, the offer isn't shown.
- One offer gives the gift once per order.
- The list shows how many orders received the gift.
The free shipping bar
Free shipping is a strong reason to add one more product, but only if the customer knows how much is missing.
When you press "Add to basket", a confirmation window opens: the product with its image and price, the basket total and a progress bar with the message "€12.40 more and shipping is free!". If this very addition crosses the limit, the message is "Congratulations! Your shipping is now free.". At checkout, the customer sees the missing amount next to the shipping method.
Precision matters. The limit is the amount including VAT and is inclusive: with a €70 limit, a basket of exactly €70.00 gets free shipping. In the settings you choose whether the whole basket counts or only the goods lines, without services and gift cards.
The bar is currently visible in the add-to-basket window and at checkout, but not yet on the basket page.
I wrote about setting up shipping methods and prices in shipping setup in an online store.
How to choose the free shipping limit
Look at your average order. The general rule of thumb is to keep the limit slightly above it, so that many customers are only one small product short. Also calculate whether shipping costs and margin can carry it. Don't start by copying others, because every shop's goods and shipping costs are different.
Other tools in the same system
- Basket rules: conditions (amount, products, customer group), percentage, amount, free shipping or "buy X, get Y".
- Discount codes: validity period and restrictions. A cancelled order frees up the use of the code.
- Catalogue discounts: a lasting discount for a group, such as all products from one brand, with a preview.
- Campaign price for a single product.
- Gift cards in the online store and at the till.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a code to get the gift?
No. The gift goes into the basket automatically when the conditions are met.
Can a discount and a gift apply together?
Product discounts and bundle deals are separate rules. Before starting a campaign, test the result yourself with a basket.
Does this also work at the POS?
Bundle deals are built for the online store basket. At the POS you can give a discount as a line discount, but the POS doesn't read discount codes.
Can it be paused later?
Yes. An offer can be switched off with one tick, and orders that already included the gift stay unchanged.
What could you offer in your shop?
Describe what you sell and what your average order is. Order NUNDINAE or ask for a demo, and let's walk through one offer with your products.
