Configuring automatic product swaps for one-off, monthly, or sequential orders

Recharge offers Workflow templates that allow you to seamlessly configure product SKU swaps for your customers without requiring a third-party integration or a complex legacy workflow configuration.

This guide provides an overview of how each flow works, its limitations, and addresses common questions. 

Before you start

• Refer to Surprise and Delight or Rewards for more information if you're interested in offering a free gift on a specific order.
• The trigger product refers to the initial product that initiates a workflow. Avoid using the trigger product in multiple workflows. This can cause errors in the workflow. 
• The customer’s subscription history displays the workflow name anytime the customer purchases the trigger product.
• One-off SKU swap is compatible with prepaid products and will swap to the next full charge order. You cannot use the one-off SKU swap to swap a prepaid product to a monthly product. 
• Only active listed products will display in the workflow, and you must search for products using the product variant title. 

One-off SKU swap

One-off SKU swaps can be used at checkout or for specific recurring orders in stores that sell a primary product variant that is swapped for another variant. To automatically trigger a product swap when a customer previously purchased a specific subscription product, you can integrate with a third-party integration or manually set up a workflow.

To set up your One-off SKU swap workflow: 

1. Select Tools & apps in your Recharge merchant portal and click Installed apps.
2. Locate the Workflows by Recharge integration.
3. Scroll down to the One-Off SKU Swap section on your Workflows page and select View to start your configuration.|
   
4. Name the workflow and add an optional description.
5. Search and select the initial product variant as the workflow trigger. This product will trigger the SKU swap to the next product chosen. Click Confirm Selection. 
   • The product window displays six products by default. To add a product not listed, find the product using the Search product variants search bar.
     
6. Select the product variant the initial product will be swapped to. Once you select this product variant, you can optionally set the recurring price of the swapped product with the default or custom price or don't change options.
   • The product window displays six products by default. To add a product not listed, find the product using the Search product variants search bar and search for a specific variant by using the variant ID. 
7. Click Confirm Selection and Save the workflow.
8. Return to the Workflows page and enable your new workflow.

Monthly SKU swap

The monthly SKU swap is best suited for stores that offer a monthly, curated subscription experience, rotating through new products every month. This workflow will be initiated by the selected trigger product, switching to the next month's product on a monthly basis. Any product swapped in the new monthly SKU swap workflow template must have a subscription frequency of 1 month. 

For example, if a customer buys the trigger product today, after a month, the initial product will be swapped for the following month's chosen product. 

To set up your monthly SKU swap: 

1. Select Tools & apps in your Recharge merchant portal and click Installed apps.
2. Locate the Workflows by Recharge integration.
3. Scroll down to the Monthly SKU Swap section on your Workflows page and select View to start your configuration.
4. Name the workflow and add an optional description.
5. Search and select the initial product variant as the workflow trigger.
   • The product window displays six products by default. To add a product not listed, use the Search product variants search bar to find the product. Click Confirm Selection. 
6. Search and select products to be assigned for the following months. Optionally, update the product price for each product. 
   • The product window displays six products by default. To add a product not listed, find the product using the Search product variants search bar and search for a specific variant by using the variant ID. 
     
7. Click Confirm Selection and Save the workflow.
8. Return to the Workflows page and enable your new workflow.

After enabling your workflow, customers will receive a different product every month. If a customer skips a shipment, their subscription will continue as usual, with the next scheduled shipment arriving the following month.

Order sequence SKU swap

You can use the order sequence SKU swap to configure a string of product swaps across multiple customer orders. This automation is perfect for curating a subscription experience with products such as coffee blends, t-shirts, or consumables with different flavors. This can easily be configured for a quarterly subscription experience.

To set up your order sequence SKU swap: 

1. Select Tools & apps in your Recharge merchant portal and click Installed apps.
2. Locate the Workflows by Recharge integration.
3. Click Order Sequence SKU Swap on the Workflows page and select View to start your configuration.
4. Name the workflow and add an optional description.
5. Search and select the initial product variant as the workflow trigger.
   • The product window displays six products by default. To add a product not listed, use the Search product variants search bar to find the product.
6. Choose the order number for the swap, then select Swap to new product. 
   • If you choose the checkout order (first order) as the trigger, the workflow only triggers on a customer's first recurring order if the customer places their order through the checkout. The workflow does not trigger if the first order is added using the merchant or customer portals. 
     
7. Search for and select a product to which the initial product will be swapped. Once you choose the product variant, optionally set the recurring price of the swapped product with the default or custom price, or don't change options.
   • The product window displays six products by default. To add a product not listed, use the Search product variants search bar to find the product.
     

8. Optionally, select And... to add additional order sequence swaps. 

   

Operational analytics

Operational analytics provides key analytics that help you understand the data behind your workflows. Get insight into how much a workflow is used, which products trigger the workflows, and event outputs from orders.

To access your data: 

1. Select Tools & apps in your Recharge merchant portal and click Installed apps.
2. Locate the Workflows by Recharge integration.
3. Select an enabled workflow.
4. Click the bar chart to see your analytics.
   

Considerations

Consider the following when using Workflows to handle SKU swaps: 

Frequently asked questions