Merchandise is a great way to increase a participant’s basket value and engage with your customers. eventrac provides all the tools you need to quickly create and sell products/services during, after, and even independently of the event entry flow.
Locating the Products Dashboard
Dashboard > Merchandise Setup > Products > View All Products
Creating a New Product
Click Add Product in the top menu.
Product Details
Enter the basic information about this item.
Name: The name of the product will be visible to participants, but also used by you for later internal reference. Accordingly, you may want to include the year - if, for example, the product is linked to a specific event that takes place annually - in order that you can differentiate between past/future products.
Product Category: This option is used for filtering/categorisation if you later create a Shop. You can select a category from those available, or create a new one via Merchandise Setup > Product Categories > Add Product Category.
Description: Your description will be visible wherever you choose to display the product, so whilst it should be informative, you should consider the effect of a long description on your entry form (specifically when viewed on a mobile, for example) and keep it concise.
Ordering Options
Provide specific details about the item.
Always send a confirmation email: If a participant purchases a product whilst registering for an event, a summary of the item will already be included in their booking confirmation. Enable this option if you would prefer a separate confirmation of the order to be sent anyway (already the case for purchases made independently of event entry).
Hide this product from the merchandise tab of occasions: Products linked to an event will automatically be displayed on the Merchandise tab of the event landing page. If you prefer the item to be hidden from this tab, and displayed on the entry form only, enable this option.
If you hide a product from the Merchandise tab, participants will only be able to purchase this item during registration, and will be unable to do so later. If you wish to restrict this product to participants only, but still allow them to purchase later if they change their mind, use the option below.
Only allow this product to be purchased by participants of the event: Enabling this option will ensure that only participants can purchase the item by obscuring it on the event Merchandise tab, and directing them to do so via the Add Items to Booking button - visible when viewing their event entry in their account. This ensures all sales of the product are linked to a participant, and will prevent anyone who hasn’t registered for the event from purchasing it independently.
This product is mandatory when attached to an entry form: Enable this option if you require every participant to select this item.
Doing so will display an additional Minimum Order Quantity option for you to configure as necessary. If you are offering a free item, you would set this to 1 for both Minimum/Maximum.
If you are utilising mandatory products for free items (offering inclusive t-shirts but requiring the participant’s size, for example), you may prefer to add a custom question to the entry form instead. If you have enabled self-management of participant details on the event, however, you will need to consider that participants will be able to change their size by later editing their response to the question - up until the deadline for them doing so.
If you do not want participants to change their variation after purchase, or plan on using the eventrac Scanning App to manage collection of the item at the event, we suggest you create it as a mandatory (but free) product instead.
Maximum order quantity: This is the maximum quantity you wish to permit each participant to purchase in a single transaction.
Maximum order quantity strategy: Relevant only if the product is linked to multiple races being offered as a Series entry, use this option to configure whether a participant can still only purchase the Maximum order quantity specified above in total (Default), or whether they can book this quantity for each race (Combined).
Priority: Where multiple products are linked to an event, use this field to change the order in which they appear on the entry form.
Allow customers to add a note…: Enabling this option will display a text field in which the buyer can provide additional details. You will need to specify the details you require them to provide (if any) in the Description (above).
Provide a QR code…: Providing a QR code is necessary if you expect to utilise the Scanning App to manage collection of the item at the event - for orders not already linked to a participant. If the order is already linked to a participant’s entry, the QR code from their booking confirmation (if enabled) will suffice.
If you are unsure whether you plan to utilise the scanning app for a future event, we recommend enabling the QR code anyway - since you will otherwise need to re-send confirmation emails should you later decide to enable it, having not done so initially.
Set a time limit on how long products can be held in a users basket…: Without a basket time-limit configured on the product, customers can add an item to their basket and leave it indefinitely without completing checkout, reducing the remaining inventory available for purchase by others. Enabling this is therefore recommended - we’d suggest using the same time-limit as the events (if any) to which the product is linked - to automatically expire orders if they remain incomplete, releasing your inventory for sale.
Stock & Inventory
Products can be configured as a basic item with a single variation (e.g., a medal or a cap), or one with multiple variations (e.g., a t-shirt available in multiple sizes and/or colours etc.).
Single Variation
Selecting to configure the product as having a single variation will present additional fields that allow you to set your Current Inventory, the threshold at which you will be notified of a Low Inventory (below which a customer will also see how many you have remaining), and the Item Price (excluding fees/delivery).
Multiple Variations
Selecting to configure the product as having multiple variations will present additional fields that allow you to set defaults for both the Item Price (excluding fees/delivery), and the threshold at which you will be notified of a Low Inventory (below which a customer will also see how many you have remaining).
Selecting to configure the product as having multiple variations will create additional Attributes(Size/Colour etc.) and SKUs (Stock-Keeping Units) tabs once the current page is saved/submitted. Details on configuring these pages can be found below.
Your item will not be available for purchase until you configure your attributes and generate inventory on the SKUs tab.,
Shipping
Buyer address: If the item is deliverable, enable this option to require the buyer submit an address during purchase. If the item is being purchased as part of the event entry flow, the address provided with their event registration will be used, otherwise they will be asked for their address separately.
Collection: If you intend for the item to be collection only (e.g., on event day), enable this option and add a short description of where buyers can expect to collect it (e.g., at registration, or at the finish) to mitigate any subsequent queries.
Delivery Fee: If there is an additional fee for delivery that is not already included in the Item Price, enabling this option will allow you to set the appropriate charge, and also whether it is applicable per item, or per order (i.e., multiple qty of the same item).
If you want to list a single product with both delivery and collection options, you will instead need to create a Collection/Delivery Attribute (see below), and manually adjust the price of each of the variations that include delivery.
Rates & Fees
The same Service/Payment fees applicable to event registration also apply to any product sales, and can also be configured to be ether paid by the customer, or included in the price of the item.
Payment Account: Your default payment account will already be selected as the one to which funds received for this item will be directed, but if you have other accounts connected you can select your preferred account as necessary.
Application Service Fees: Enable this option to pass the eventrac fees on to the customer.
Payment Fees: Enable this option to pass the Payment processing (Stripe) fees on to the customer. The typical Stripe fee is 1.5% + 20p base charge.
If you suspect the overwhelming majority of sales for this item will take place as part of the entry flow (as is typically the case), we would suggest leaving the base amount at £0.00 to avoid overcharging customers, since it is only charged once per transaction. If you intended to pass on the rest of the fee you will still need to ensure the percentage field is set to 1.5%.
Custom Fee: You can enable and configure this option if you wish to apply an additional % and/or fixed amount fee onto the customer.
Do not allow Payment Plans: If you are utilising Staged Payments to offer participants the opportunity to pay in instalments, any products purchased at the same time as entry will be included in the total amount then calculated to be paid in instalments. If you prefer this item to be excluded from the instalment calculation, such that payment for this item is required in full in addition to the first instalment, enable this option.
Adding Products to your Registration/Booking Flow
Depending on whether you have already created any events, membership categories, or shops - you can link the item to the respective booking flow. You can also link an existing product to any event, membership category, or shop - during setup, or when later editing - without having to revisit this product configuration page.
Events
Select the events to which you wish to link the product, it will then appear on both the entry form and the Merchandise tab on the event landing page (subject to it not being hidden using the relevant option above).
Membership Categories
If you also offer membership, select the membership categories to which you wish to link the product. It will then appear on the membership registration form.
Shops
If you have already created a shop to offer your products to everyone, you can additionally select any in which you wish the product to appear here.
Archiving a Product
If you wish to end the sale of an item, we recommend that it be archived. Doing so will ensure that customers can no longer finalise any orders that had previously remained incomplete in their basket - nor revisit the product listing page (e.g., from a saved bookmark) to purchase at a later date - after you expect sales to have already ended.
You can schedule the date/time at which a product is archived in advance, using the Automation Settings when configuring the product.
If preferred, a product can instead be archived manually (e.g., at the time you export your final sales or participant report), via the Merchandise Setup > View All Products page.
Whether archived manually or automatically, the following actions will be performed.
All inventory will be set to 0.
The product will be removed from any Events, Membership Categories or Shops to which it was initially linked.
Any pending or incomplete orders will be removed from customer baskets.
The item will be moved to the Archived Products tab (on the View All Products page). A product can later be unarchived, but would need to be re-linked to the relevant Events/Membership Categories/Shops, and the inventory for each variation updated.
Adding Images
Once you have submitted the basic product details, an additional Images tab will appear, within which you can add images to your product. Images are recommended since customers are more likely to purchase add-on items if they can see what the item will look like.
Whilst you can upload multiple images, only the first will appear on the entry form itself. Any further images will only be visible on the product page - accessible via the Merchandise tab on the event landing page, or when viewed in any shops to which the product has been linked.
If you wish to show multiple views of the product on the entry form, we suggest creating a gif with multiple images and uploading it on the images tab such that they cycle when viewed on the entry form.
Click Add Image
Enter an Image Name (for internal reference), and select file from your computer to upload. We recommend images with dimension of 500x500px
Product Attributes
If you have configured the product to offer multiple options, an additional Attributes tab will be visible. You will need to define the attributes (e.g., Fit, Colour, Size etc.), and their variations (e.g., Men/Women, Red/Blue, S/M/L/XL etc. respectively).
Before configuring your attributes, consider the order in which a customer would typically search for their preferred variation in the list of options. If you are offering a single t-shirt that has multiple fits (Men/Women), colours (Red/Blue/Green) and sizes (S, M, L, XL), a customer would typically first search for their fit, then their preferred colour, and finally the correct size. You should create the relevant attributes in this order, so when you automatically generate your inventory (details below), the list of variations will appear in the optimal order.
If you are offering gender specific products, multiple colours, or products that are inherently different, you may prefer to create them separately, since the number of variations offered for a single product can otherwise become quite long.
Add your first attribute by clicking on one of the available examples on the right. Anything other than Size or Colour can be configured using the Custom Attribute option.
Update the label (if necessary), but these should be a single word where possible.
Add (Add Option+), remove (X), or rename existing options as necessary. The order of options can also be arranged by hovering over the blank space to the right of the option name and dragging up/down as necessary.
Add and configure further attributes as necessary, ensuring you save the form before leaving the page.
You can remove, edit, or copy an existing attribute using the symbols in the top-right of the attributes box.
With multiple attributes, you should end up with something similar to the below. You can now generate your SKUs automatically on the next tab.
If you don't expect some of the options to be available (e.g., you offer sizes XS to XL for Women, but S to XXL for men), you should still include all options in the relevant attribute, since those that are not required can be individually removed as necessary once the full set of variations has been generated.
SKUs (Stock-Keeping Units)
Using the configured Attributes, you can now generate your individual SKUs (the specific variations of your product that a customer can purchase) and set the inventory. You can do this manually, but it is generally quicker to do so automatically.
Generate All Combinations: This allows you to automatically generate all permutations of the attributes configured on the previous step. Set the Default Inventory and Low Inventory Threshold first to apply these values to all generated options.
Performing this action with Colour (Red/Blue) and Size (XS/S/M/L/XL) attributes, for example, will return the below outcome.
This is now a list of the variations that will be available to those viewing the item, including the SKU name on the left, the current stock remaining, and the current item/shipping price.
If you later need to adjust the inventory for a specific SKU, we recommend you first View All Products and expire any pending orders that currently remain incomplete in customer baskets, else your inventory will be increased by 1 for each of these incomplete orders that subsequently expires and is released back into your inventory.
You can Remove individual SKUs using the relevant button if it is one you don’t expect to offer for sale, or Hide an option (to remove it from this view, and that of the customer) if it is no longer for sale, but has been ordered in the past (so can no longer be removed).
You can also +expand SKUs if you need to individually edit the details - including the current inventory, the low inventory threshold, and the item and/or delivery price - if different from the others.
If you need to re-order the SKUs, check the Enable Drag and Drop box before dragging them up/down as necessary using the hamburger symbol next to the SKU name, and check the Display Hidden SKUs box to show any SKUs previously hidden, as mentioned above.
You can manually add an additional SKU (e.g., one removed by mistake, or originally deemed unnecessary) using the Add New SKU button. You can then select the correct option for each of the available attributes, and +expand to adjust as necessary.
At this stage, your product is now ready for sale.
Managing Existing Products
You can filter, search, and view a summary of your existing products via Merchandise > products > View All Products.
From here, you can edit the current product settings via the blue Manage button, and also Copy, Archive, or Delete it using the attached drop-down arrow. Note that a product can only be deleted if it has never been purchased.
This page also offers an overview of each SKU, the remaining inventory for each, the number sold and any incomplete orders remaining in baskets. If you need to update the inventory for an SKU (via the SKUs tab when editing the product), we recommend you first check whether there are any orders in basket - which should first be cleared by selecting one or more checkboxes and clicking to Expire Orders from basket. This request runs in a job queue, so can take a couple of minutes to update.
Switching to the Archived Products tab again allows you to edit the product settings via the blue Manage button, but you can also un-archive (if previously archived) or delete (if never purchased) one using the attached drop-down arrow.