When running an online store with Shopify, setting limits on purchase amounts can lead to more effective inventory management and promotional strategies. However, few store owners may know the specific steps for setting up such price limits.
This article clearly explains, using the Shopify app "RuffRuff Order Limits" — which enables all kinds of purchase limits — the steps for setting a price limit per order. We'll also look at various applications of price limits and the benefits of implementing them.
Introduction
What Are Price Limits?
A price limit sets a cap on the amount that can be purchased at one time for a specific product or service. Specifically, the following kinds of limits are possible:
- The target product can be purchased once the total reaches ¥2,000 or more
- The target collection can be purchased up to a total of ¥4,000
- Purchases are allowed with a subtotal between ¥3,000 and ¥6,000
- Store-wide, the total payment amount can go up to ¥50,000
Overview of the RuffRuff Order Limits App
RuffRuff Order Limits is a Shopify app that lets you centrally manage purchase limits for your products. You can easily set limits based on price, quantity, customers, weight, and more. For details, see the service introduction page.
Main Features
The main features are as follows. All of these can be achieved with a single app, letting you easily set purchase limits based on product price, quantity, customer tags, and more.
- Price limits
- Quantity limits
- Weight limits
- Bundle limits
- Customer limits
- Payment limits
- Delivery limits
- Access limits (view restrictions)
Pricing Plans
- Monthly billing: from $9.9/month
- Annual billing: from $99/year *2 months cheaper than monthly billing
How to Implement Price Limits
This section introduces the steps for implementing a price limit where "the target product can only be purchased up to a total of ¥2,000".
Step 1: Install the App
First, install RuffRuff Order Limits, introduced above, from the Shopify App Store.
You can find "RuffRuff Order Limits" by searching "ruffruff" in the Shopify App Store. Once you're on the RuffRuff Order Limits app page, click "Install".
Step 2: Select a Plan
The app requires a subscription to the Light plan. Choose between monthly billing and annual billing (2 months free) based on how frequently you'll use it.
(1) Click "Pricing plans" in the app
(2) Click "Change plan" for the plan you want to subscribe to
(3) Review the plan details and click "Approve"
Step 3: Create a Price Rule
Once you've enabled the embedded app, set up a price rule. Use the price rule to define "which products you want to apply what price limit to".
(1) Click "Price rules" in the app
(2) Click "Create rule"
(3) Enter any name in the title, for managing the rule within the app
(4) For the price type used to evaluate the limit, select "Item total (before product discounts)"
(5) Enter 2000 as the maximum price
(6) For applicability, select Variant
(7) In eligible items, select the products you want to apply the price limit to
(8) Add any text you like to the product message or alert message
(9) Click "Save"
Step 4: Enable the Embedded App
Enable the embedded app in your Shopify theme.
(1) In the Shopify admin, go to Online Store > Themes
(2) Click "Customize" for the theme you want to install the app on
(3) Select "Embedded apps" on the left side of the screen
(4) Enable the embedded app named "RuffRuff Order Limits"
(5) Click "Save"
Step 5: Verify It Works
Visit the configured product page to confirm that the product message displays correctly and that the price limit works as intended.
Confirm the Product Message Is Displayed
Visit the configured product page and confirm that the product message set in the price rule is displayed.
Verify the Price Limit Works as Intended
Since we've set a price limit so that purchases can't exceed ¥2,000, try adding ¥2,001 or more to the cart and check whether the alert message is displayed.
Various Price Limit Configuration Patterns
The setup above covered a "price limit of up to ¥2,000 per order". Here we introduce several other price limit configurations (mainly different price rule settings).
Setting a Minimum Price (Specific Products Starting at ¥3,000)
This pattern sets the minimum price to ¥3,000 and specifies the applicability as Variant. In this case, purchasing the specific product requires a payment of ¥3,000 or more.
Range Specification (Specific Products from ¥3,000 to ¥6,000)
This pattern sets the minimum price to ¥3,000 and the maximum price to ¥6,000, and specifies the applicability as Variant. By keeping the purchase amount within a set range, you can sell within an appropriate price band.
Product-Level Limit (Variations of the Same Product Limited to ¥4,000 Total)
This pattern sets the maximum price to ¥4,000 and specifies the applicability as Product.
When a product has different variations (such as size or color), you can limit the combined purchase amount across those variations to no more than ¥4,000 total.
Collection-Level Limit (Products in the Same Collection Limited to ¥6,000 Total)
This pattern sets the maximum price to ¥6,000 and specifies the applicability as Cart.
You can limit the combined purchase amount across products belonging to the same collection to no more than ¥6,000 total.
What to Do If the Price Limit Isn't Working
1. You haven't subscribed to the Light plan
Using the app requires a subscription to the Light plan. Even on a development store, you need to upgrade to the Light plan.
2. You're checking with Preview
Preview only shows the state at the time it was generated. After changing your settings, run the preview again.
3. The embedded app isn't enabled
In this case, access the theme editor for your Shopify theme, enable the embedded app, and check again.
4. The rule isn't enabled
In this case, check the status of the relevant rule on the rules screen. If the status is "Disabled", change it to "Enabled" and check again.
5. The collection linked to the rule isn't published
If you want to apply a price limit to products under a collection, the collection itself must be published. Publish the relevant collection and check again.
6. Caching is affecting the result
Shopify's own caching feature can sometimes delay how quickly changes take effect. In this case, wait a while and check again.
In Conclusion
This article walked through in detail how to set up price limits on Shopify using the RuffRuff Order Limits app. Introducing price limits can make your inventory management and marketing strategy even more effective. By following these steps, you can improve customer satisfaction and maximize sales.
Be sure to make use of this feature to build a more effective sales strategy.
