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# How to Create a Percentage-Off Promotion for Your Restaurant

# How to Create a Percentage-Off Promotion for Your Restaurant

Discounts are one of the quickest ways to fill tables, boost online orders, and bring back customers who haven't visited in a while. But a badly set-up discount can eat into your margins. This guide walks through creating a **Percentage Off** promotion in the Ressto dashboard, with tips on setting it up so it actually helps your business.

![](https://storage.crisp.chat/users/helpdesk/website/-/f/e/c/2/fec2bb2c3e13f800/screencapture-app-ressto-co-pr_1ymh5iv.png =900xauto)
### Step 1: Set the discount

This section covers how much customers save, and when.

**Discount %.** Enter the percentage you want to give off the order. Quick-select buttons for 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, and 50% are right below the field. For most restaurants, 10-20% is a sensible range. Deeper discounts like 50% are better kept for short, limited-time campaigns.

**Max Discount Cap (₹).** This optional field limits how much money a single customer can save. For example, 20% off with a ₹150 cap means a ₹2,000 order saves ₹150 rather than ₹400. The cap protects you from very large orders eating your margin.

**Minimum Order Value (₹).** Set the least a customer must spend to use the offer. The page itself suggests a minimum order (for example ₹25 in the tip box, so adjust to your menu) because it protects your margins and usually raises the average order value. If your typical order is ₹400, a minimum of ₹500 nudges customers to add a side or a dessert.

**When does it run?** Choose **Start now, no end** for an ongoing offer, or **Pick dates** for a fixed campaign, such as a festival weekend or a slow-month push. A time-limited offer creates urgency, so customers are more likely to act.

### Step 2: Choose how customers get it

Ressto gives you three ways to deliver the offer:

1. **Customer enters a code.** The offer is listed in your offers, and customers type or tap the code at checkout. This works well for public, always-visible deals.
2. **Applies automatically.** No code is needed. The discount is applied in the cart once the conditions are met. This is the smoothest experience, since customers can't forget or mistype anything.
3. **Secret code.** The offer is hidden from your website, and only people you share the code with can use it. This suits influencer tie-ups, newsletter subscribers, staff or corporate partners, and VIP customers.

If you pick a code-based option, fill in the **Promo Code** field. Use letters, numbers, underscores, or hyphens only. Make it short and memorable, like `SUMMER25` or `WELCOME10`, or click **Generate random** if you'd rather have one created for you. For secret codes, a random one is often the better choice.

### More options (optional)

The defaults work for most restaurants, but this section lets you fine-tune the offer. Each panel expands when clicked.

* **Usage Limits.** By default, uses are unlimited. Limiting total uses or uses per customer keeps a popular deal from getting out of hand.
* **Audience.** By default the offer applies to all customers, signed-in only. Use this to narrow who qualifies.
* **Mark promo as.** Controls how this promo interacts with others. The default is Exclusive.
* **Applicable Service Types.** Choose whether the offer applies to Delivery, Pickup, or both. For instance, you could run a pickup-only discount to cut delivery costs.
* **Schedule Availability.** Defaults to every day, all day. Restrict it to certain days or hours, such as weekday lunches or slow afternoons, to drive traffic when you need it most.
* **Applicable Payment Methods.** Limit the offer to specific payment methods if you want to encourage a particular one (for example, online payments over cash).
* **Promo image.** Uses a default banner unless you upload your own. A custom image that matches your branding makes the offer stand out.

### Check the preview, then publish

On the right side of the page, the **Customer Preview** shows what shoppers will see: a banner such as "20% OFF – On your order" with the "Use code" button. Below it, the **Summary** lists the discount, code, schedule, and service types in plain language. Make sure these match what you intended.