These final setup steps are required after all discounts have been added and run through the configuration wizard:
Create discount categories and assign discounts to them.
Set the processing order.
Set up the discount sorting rule (applies only to grant discounts). This serves as a tie breaker for grant discounts with the same processing order.
Set up general ledger rules.
Tweak other parameters if needed.
Discount Categories
Discount Categories are used to group discounts to facilitate tracking a customer’s consumed and remaining usage against the discounts. Create discount categories to group similar discounts, for example, Anytime Airtime Minutes or Incoming Airtime. Discount categories are present on Unit Balance views on the customer account. Discount categories are also used for Usage Notifications and Usage Notification reports.
Notes:
If you offer AdvancePay service, you’ll want to separate those discounts from post-paid discount categories.
Give discount categories names that customers would typically use when asking for their unit balances.
You manage discount categories via the Discount Categories form. This form lets you add, edit, and delete discount categories, and then assign discounts to their respective categories. The Discount Categories form is available via the CostGuard Client Applications menu > Product Management > Discount Categories.
The Discount Categories form lets you see all the discounts you’ve created.
Note:
The discounts presented in the Assigned Discounts panel on the left and Unassigned panel on the right are based on the category selected in the drop-down menu. Selecting a different category changes the content of these lists accordingly.
Adding, Editing and Deleting Discount Categories
These functions are available via the unlabeled drop-down menu next to the Select Category drop-down menu.
When you add or edit a discount category you give it a meaningful Description and specify the Units Subtype. Subtype refers to the units being tracked under this category. The ID is assigned by the system. Select the Units Subtype according to the usage being discounted:
KBs are used for data.
Clicks are used for occurrence-based discounts.
Seconds are used for voice-based discounts.
Assigning Discounts to Categories
Select a category from the drop-down menu and then use the left/right arrow buttons to assign/unassign one or more discounts to the category as needed.
Note:
You can also assign a discount to a discount category by opening and editing individual discount catalog items.
Setting Processing Order
When an account or service has multiple discounts, you should establish the processing order to establish when a discount is processed in relation to all other discounts. The system processes the discount with the highest processing order first (1 = highest), recalculates the balance and then processes the next discount in the sequence against the new balance. Usually, larger (more impactful) discounts should be processed later so they take the biggest percentage off the smallest version of the amount, after all other discounts of a higher order (i.e., 1 or 2) have already reduced the total.
Processing order may be set initially via the New Discount form when you add the discount. The Discount Processing Order form lets you set the processing order across all discounts, rather than having to open and edit each discount. The Discount Processing Order form is available via the Product Catalog window icon tray.
Clicking this icon displays the Discount Processing Order form listing all existing discounts. From here you can right-click a row and select Edit, then enter the processing order number.
Processing Order – Volume Discount Example
Discount #1 takes 10% off balance
Discount #2 takes 20% off balance
When both discounts have the same processing order, the discounts are applied to the full charges and then added together:
Charges = $200
Discount #1 takes 10% off $200 (= $20)
Discount #2 takes 20% off $200 (= $40)
Total off = $60 = $140 new balance
When processing orders are different, the system recalculates a new balance after each discount is applied:
Charges = $200
Discount #1 (sequence 10) takes 10% ($20) off the initial charges = $180 new balance
Discount #2 (sequence 20) takes 20% ($36) off the $180 balance
Total off = $56 = $144 new balance
Processing Order – Grant Discount Example
There are two discounts:
Unlimited Nights and Weekends (UNLNW)
700 Anytime Minutes (700ATMIN)
Note:
For grant discounts you must also set up the Discount Sorting Rule, and the rule must include Processing Order. See Setting Up Discount Sorting Rule.
Make sure Discount Processing Order is included in the Discount Sorting Rules.
If both grants are set to the same Processing Order sequence, the system evaluates them based on their names, and would process the 700 Anytime discount first (numbers before letters), which could apply to nights and weekends minutes and could use up the bucket; then, when the 700ATMIN grant is exhausted, the rest of the nights and weekends calls would be free under the UNLNW discount, but there could still be overage charges for anytime calls that exceed 700 minutes.
If you set the order on the UNLNW discount to a lower value (e.g. 1) so it is processed first, the system will discount all nights and weekend calls down to zero, then whatever is left will process against the 700 bucket (e.g. processing order = 5).
Typically, you would want all Unlimited plans to have lower processing orders than any limited (specific number of units) plans to ensure usage goes against the unlimited plans before minutes buckets.
Setting Up Discount Sorting Rule (Grant Discounts Only)
For Grant discounts, processing order is determined by processing order setup in combination with a sorting rule as defined via the Discount Sorting Rule Icon on the Product Catalog window icon tray.
The Discount Sorting Rule lets you sort discounts by Expiration Date, Filter (usage type, distance type and time-of-day), Units Remaining, One-Time or Recurring, and Discount Plan. The rule must include Discount Processing Order; however, the actual order is set on an individual discount basis as described above. The Units Remaining, One Time/Recurring and Expiration Date rules serve as tiebreakers when Discount Processing Order is the same on all the discounts being evaluated. These factors may be included or excluded as needed.
To sort an item, move it from the Available box to the Selected box. Click the >> or << arrow to move all sorting rules from one side to the other. Click the > or < arrow to move one sorting rule at a time.
To change the order of the sorting rules displayed in the Selected box, select a sorting rule and click the ^ arrow to move the item up in the list or click the v arrow to move the item down in the list.
Once an item has been moved to the Selected column, double-click or right-click and select Edit to configure the item. Each rule has a different edit dialog.
Note:
The only criterion that cannot be edited or removed is Discount Processing Order. This is set via the Add/Edit discount form, or via the Discount Processing Order form.
Editing the Filter Type Rule
This lets you specify Usage Types, Distance Types and Time of Day as sorting criteria.
This dialog has three separate tabs. You may choose to sort by any combination of these criteria. They all operate in the same manner.
First choose to sort by All or selectively include or exclude specific items.
Choosing Inclusive or Exclusive enables the Add button and the associated fields.
If you know the IDs of the items you want to add, enter them directly in a comma-delimited list. Or you can click Add to display a list of available items. As an example the Usage Type list is shown below.
You can double-click to select an indivilual item, use the shift key to select a contiguous list, or ctrl to select a non-contiguous list.
Once you’ve established your list of items to sort by, use the drop-down menu to specify that discount plans matching the specified criteria be processed First or Last.
Editing the Expiration Date and Units Remaining Rules
For expiration date and units remaining you can choose the sort direction:
Ascending – Use the oldest minutes first.
Descending – Use the newest minutes first.
Ascending Current Period First – Use the minutes in the current period first, then use the oldest minutes next, and then work forward.
Editing the Discount Plan Rule
This option lets you select one discount plan to process First or Last.
Editing the One-time/Recurring Rule
This lets you choose whether to process one-time discounts or recurring discounts first.
Global Dialed Digits Numbers
The Global Dialed Digits Numbers table lists all phone numbers associated with the grant discount associative type = Global Exact Dialed Digits. This means when subscribers call one of the listed numbers, that call is free. The table is managed via the CostGuard Client Applications menu: Product Management > Global Dialed Digits.
The context menu for this table lets you add, edit, or delete entries in this table. The dialog for adding a number is shown below.
For each entry, the following information must be specified:
Global Dialed Digits Number – Exact phone number that can be called without a charge. It must be a 10-digit number within the NANP.
Start Date – First date the number can be called without a charge.
End Date – Date the number can no longer be called without a charge.This lets you choose whether to process one-time discounts or recurring discounts first:
From the Selected box, either right-click on the One-time/Recurring sorting rule or double-click on it.
Select One-time or Recurring from the drop-down list.
Click Save.
Other Adjustments
Set up general ledger and tweak other parameters via the Edit Discount form as needed.