Price List Hierarchy

When a customer is assigned to multiple price lists and Force Lowest Price is not enabled in [ System Values | Sales | Pricing ], Khaos Control follows a defined pricing hierarchy to determine which price should be used.
This article explains how the hierarchy works, how priorities are applied, and how promotional price lists are evaluated when more than one price is available.

Contents

  1. base-prices
  2. modifiers
  3. post-selection
  4. examples
    • example-one
    • example-two

How Price Selection Works

Khaos Control evaluates pricing in three stages:
  1. Base Prices are checked first to find the most applicable starting price.
  2. Modifiers are then applied, such as keycode discounts or customer discounts.
  3. Post Selection rules are applied last to validate or restrict the selected price.
For example, if Stop Structure Discounts is enabled, only the selected Stock Item base price may be used at that point in the pricing process.
In general, the higher the priority value, the more likely that pricing rule is to be applied.
Note
By default, percentage discounts on Sales Orders are either combined or the higher-priority discount takes precedence.
Alternatively, the Compound Discounts option in [ System Values | Sales | Pricing ] allows discounts to be multiplied together.
For example:
  • Keycode discount = 50%
  • Price list discount = 20%
The 50% discount is applied first, leaving 50% of the price remaining.
The additional 20% discount is then calculated from the remaining 50%.
Calculation:
50 + ((50 ÷ 100) × 20) = 60%
The total effective discount is therefore 60%.

Base Prices

Base Prices provide the initial price before any discounts or restrictions are applied.

Pricing TypePrice SourcePriority
Base PriceSpecial Offer10,000
Base PriceKeycode9,500
Base PriceUp/Cross Sell9,000
Base PriceCatalogue Price7,000
Base PriceCustomer / Stock Item6,000
Base PricePrice List / SCS Child Stock Item*5,002#
Base PricePrice List / SCS Parent Stock Item*5,001#
Base PricePrice List / Stock Item5,000
Base PriceCustomer / Stock Type4,000
Base PricePrice List / Stock Type3,000
Base PriceStock Item1,000

Modifiers

Once a base price has been selected, modifier rules are applied.

Pricing TypePrice SourcePriority
ModifierKeycode Discount8,000
ModifierBogof Discount7,000
ModifierCustomer Discount5,000
ModifierProcessing Charge1,000

Post Selection

Post Selection rules are applied after the price and discounts have been calculated.

Pricing TypePrice SourcePriority
Post SelectionStop Structured Disc7,000
Post SelectionGuide Prices5,000
Post SelectionLow Limit (Disabled)3,000

Promotion and Price List Priorities

When multiple qualifying price lists exist at the same level in the hierarchy, Khaos Control uses the promotion or price list code to determine which one takes priority.
The system compares codes using the following rules:
  1. The number 0 ranks higher than 9.
  2. Numbers rank higher than letters.
  3. Letters are evaluated alphabetically, regardless of capitalisation.

Example

If a customer is associated with the following price lists:
  • bct1
  • 8drt
The 8drt price list will take priority because numbers rank higher than letters.
This approach can be useful when designing promotional price lists that need to take precedence over others.
Note
Processing Charges and Guide Prices are not available on all systems.

Base Price Notes

SCS Parent and Child Pricing

* SCS Parent and Child priorities only apply where stock items are part of an SCS relationship. If an item is not part of an SCS relationship, these priorities are ignored.

Force Lowest Price Behaviour

# Force Lowest Price can affect whether the parent or child item price is selected.

ScenarioResult
Force Lowest ON, Parent Price lower than Child PriceParent Price
Force Lowest ON, Parent Price higher than Child PriceChild Price
Force Lowest OFF, Parent Price lower than Child PriceChild Price
Force Lowest OFF, Parent Price higher than Child PriceChild Price
Force Lowest ON or OFF, Parent Price onlyParent Price
Force Lowest ON or OFF, Child Price onlyChild Price

Examples

Example One

This example demonstrates how Khaos Control selects between multiple price lists.
A customer has access to:
  1. A Price List / Stock Item linked directly to their customer account.
  2. A Price List / Stock Item applied through a Keycode.
  3. A Mini Price List within the Keycode.
Note
The first two price lists occupy the same level within the pricing hierarchy.

Result

Khaos Control uses the price list with the highest alphanumeric priority.
Price lists associated with a Keycode are treated as additional price lists and not as Keycode prices.
If you need one price list to take precedence over another, consider using a code that begins with a number.

Example Two

A customer has two price lists assigned:
  1. A Price List / Stock Item with a 10% discount.
  2. A Price List / Stock Item with a 50% discount.

Result

  • When Force Sales Order Lowest Price is enabled, Khaos Control uses the 50% discount price list.
  • When Force Sales Order Lowest Price is disabled, Khaos Control uses the first qualifying price list in the hierarchy, which in this example is the 10% discount price list.

Additional Information

Understanding the pricing hierarchy can help when troubleshooting unexpected prices on Sales Orders. If a price appears different from what you expect, check:
  • Which price lists are attached to the customer.
  • Whether any Keycodes are being applied.
  • Whether Force Lowest Price is enabled.
  • Whether Compound Discounts are enabled.
  • Whether any Post Selection rules, such as Stop Structured Discounts, are affecting the final result.
  • The alphanumeric order of any competing promotional price lists.
Reviewing these areas will usually identify why a particular price has been selected.

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