A common scenario: a school or community group is promised “20% off admission,” and the group brings adults and children. Or the discount is meant for “teachers and seniors.” Either way, one offer has to cover two price types, and the discount you set up in Altru only seems to apply to one of them at the register or online.
Below is how to think about it, what to test, and the workarounds that hold up when the setup won’t do exactly what you want.
First, decide what the discount is actually attached to
Most of the confusion comes from mixing up two different ideas:
- A discount on items. It reduces the price of specific tickets: certain programs, events, or price types. If it’s scoped to the “Adult” price type, a “Child” ticket in the same order won’t be touched.
- A discount on the order. It reduces the order total, no matter which price types are in the cart.
Before changing anything, write the offer down in plain language: “20% off every admission ticket in the order, adult or child, for this group, on these dates.” That sentence tells you whether you need an item-level discount that covers more than one price type or an order-level discount, and it will settle most debates on your team.
Check how your current discount is scoped
Open the discount record and review the settings that limit where it applies. Look for:
- Which price types it applies to. If only one is listed, that’s your answer. See whether the record lets you add a second price type to the same discount. Depending on how your Altru environment is set up, this may be possible directly. If you can’t find a way to do it, don’t assume it’s impossible; test in a sandbox or ask Blackbaud support to confirm for your version.
- Which programs or events it applies to. A discount can apply to the right price types and still miss because the program isn’t included.
- Which sales methods it’s available in. A discount that works at the daily sales desk may not be turned on for advance sales, group sales, or online sales. “It works for us but not on the website” is usually this.
- Whether it’s automatic or requires a code or manual selection. Staff sometimes apply the discount to one line item and miss the other.
Test before you trust it
Whatever you change, run a test order with one ticket of each price type in each sales method the discount should cover. Check the line-item amounts, not just the total. Then void or refund the test the way your finance team prefers so it doesn’t distort revenue reports. If you have a sandbox, do this there first.
Workarounds when one discount won’t stretch
Two discounts with one public name
Create one discount per price type, with the same percentage or amount, and give them names that make the link obvious internally (for example, “Teacher Week – Adult” and “Teacher Week – Child”). If the offer uses a code, see whether both can be triggered by the same code; if not, staff apply both. This is the most predictable option for item-level offers, and reporting stays clean because each discount shows up separately.
The cost is upkeep. When the offer changes or ends, you have to update both, so put matching end dates on them from the start.
Use an order-level discount instead
If the real intent is “this group pays less overall,” an order-level discount avoids the price-type question entirely. Watch out for orders that include items you didn’t mean to discount, like merchandise or a membership, and confirm how the discount is distributed across line items for reporting before you rely on it.
Create a dedicated price type
For recurring arrangements, such as a standing partner rate, a separate price type (“Partner Adult,” “Partner Child”) with its own price can be simpler than a discount. Staff pick the right price type and the math is already done. The tradeoff is more price types to maintain on every program and in every price list, so keep this for offers that will last.
Handle it as a group sale
For booked school and tour groups, setting the negotiated pricing on the group sales reservation is often cleaner than building a discount at all. Whether that fits depends on how your group sales pricing is configured, so check with whoever owns that area.
Keep reporting honest
Whichever route you pick, think about how you’ll answer “how much did we give away on this offer?” later.
- With two linked discounts, a revenue query filtered to both discount names gives you the total.
- With a dedicated price type, you’re comparing against full price, so record what the full price was.
- With an order-level discount, confirm the discount amount is reported the way finance expects before the offer goes live.
Write the setup in a short internal note: which discount records exist, which price types and sales methods they cover, and when they end. The person who inherits it next year will need it.
Quick answers
Why does the discount work on adult tickets but not child tickets?
Almost always because the discount is limited to one price type, or the child price type isn’t included for that program. Check the discount’s scope before anything else.
Can a single discount code cover both price types online?
Possibly, depending on how the discount and your web forms are configured. Test it with a real checkout in a sandbox or a test event, and confirm with Blackbaud support if the result isn’t what you expect.
Is it bad practice to run two discounts for one offer?
No. It’s common and easy to report on. Just name them consistently and give them the same end date.
