One of the most powerful ways to boost AOV is by incentivizing customers to purchase multiple items through volume discounts (e.g., “Buy 2, Get 10% Off” or “Buy 3, Get 20% Off”). While Shopify is an incredible platform, this specific functionality isn’t built-in by default.
Fortunately, it’s incredibly easy to add. In this step-by-step guide, I’ll show you how to install, set up, and customize a volume discount strategy on your store in under 10 minutes using a simple app.
Why Volume Discounts are a Must-Have
- Boost Average Order Value (AOV): Directly encourages customers to add more items to their cart to unlock savings.
- Increase Total Sales: A higher AOV means more revenue from the same amount of traffic.
- Clear Inventory: An excellent strategy for moving older or slower-selling stock.
- Enhanced Customer Perception: Customers feel like they’re getting a great deal, which improves satisfaction and loyalty.
The Tool We’ll Use: Big Bulk Discount (BBD) App
We’ll be using the Big Bulk Discount app. It’s user-friendly, affordable, and most importantly, it adds a stylish, customizable widget right on your product pages to clearly communicate the discount tiers to customers.
- Price: Just $1.99/month after a 7-day free trial.
- Benefit: If it increases your AOV by even $5, it pays for itself many times over.
Step-by-Step Guide: Adding Volume Discounts to Your Shopify Store
Step 1: Install the Big Bulk Discount App
- Navigate to the Shopify App Store.
- Search for “Big Bulk Discount” or find it via the link provided by the developer.
- Click “Add app” and then “Install app”.
- The app will request permission to manage products and discounts. This is necessary for it to function. Click “Install” to proceed.
- You will see a subscription screen. Approve the $1.99/month charge (remember, you have a 7-day free trial to test it risk-free).
Step 2: Create Your First Volume Discount Rule
- Once installed, you’ll be taken to the app’s dashboard. Click on the button that says “Create Discount.”
- Name Your Discount: Give it a recognizable name like “Volume Discount” or “Tiered Bundle Deal.”
- Set Your Tiers: This is where you define your incentive structure.
- Tier 1: Set the quantity (e.g., 2 items) and the discount (e.g., 10% off).
- Tier 2: Click “Add tier” to create a better offer for larger quantities (e.g., 3 items for 20% off).
- You can create multiple tiers to incentivize larger purchases.
- Select Products: Choose where this discount will apply. You can select:
- Specific collections: Apply the discount to all products in a collection (e.g., “Summer Collection”).
- Specific products: Apply it only to individual products. For this tutorial, we’ll choose this. Click “Select product” and pick the product you want to add the discount to.
- Click “Save.” You’ll see a confirmation that your discount was created successfully.
Step 3: Test the Discount in Your Cart
Before adding the widget, it’s good to test if the discount logic is working.
- Go to the product page you just applied the discount to.
- Add the required quantity (e.g., 2 items) to your cart.
- Open your cart. You should see the discount automatically applied with the label “Volume Discount.”
- Test the next tier (e.g., 3 items) to ensure the higher discount applies correctly.
Step 4: Add the Discount Widget to Your Product Page (The Visual Hook)
The real magic is showing the discount to customers before they reach the cart. The BBD app provides a widget for this.
- From your Shopify admin, go to Online Store > Themes.
- Find your live theme and click “Customize.”
- Once in the theme editor, use the dropdown menu at the top to navigate to your Product page template.
- To ensure you’re editing the right product, click on the “Change” button next to the product preview and select the product you set the discount for.
- In the theme editor, find where you want to place the widget. A great spot is near the price or variant selector. Click on an “Add block” button (usually a + icon).
- From the list of blocks, look for an “App embed” or “App section” option.
- You should see “BBD Discount” in the list. Click on it to add the widget to your page.
- You can now click and drag the widget block to position it perfectly on your page.
Step 5: Customize the Widget’s Appearance
The widget is highly customizable to match your store’s branding.
- Click on the “BBD Discount” block you just added in the theme editor.
- A menu will open with various customization options:
- Heading: You can show or hide a section heading.
- Unit Text: Change “Item” to “Piece,” “KG,” “Unit,” etc.
- Colors: Modify the card background, border, text color, and badge color to match your theme.
- Badge Text: Customize the text on the discount badge from “Discount” to something like “Hot Deal” or “Bulk Save.”
- Play with these settings until you’re happy with how it looks.
- Click “Save” in the top-right corner to publish your changes.
You’re All Set!
That’s it! You’ve successfully installed a powerful sales tool on your Shopify store. You now have a professional, tiered volume discount system that works automatically and displays a clear incentive for customers to increase their order size.
Pro Tip: Monitor your store’s analytics in the Shopify Reports section over the next few weeks to see the direct impact on your Average Order Value.
Ready to boost your sales?
➡️ Try the Big Bulk Discount app with a 7-day free trial here: [https://apps.shopify.com/big-bulk-discount]