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HCL Commerce is a high-availability, highly scalable and customizable e-commerce platform. Able to support hundreds of thousands of transactions per day, HCL Commerce allows you to do business with consumers (B2C) or directly with businesses (B2B). HCL Commerce uses cloud friendly technology to make deployment and operation both easy and efficient. It provides easy-to-use tools for business users to centrally manage a cross-channel strategy. Business users can create and manage precision marketing campaigns, promotions, catalog, and merchandising across all sales channels. Business users can also use AI enabled content management capabilities.
Operating
Topics in the Operating category highlight tasks that are typically performed by business users, customer support representatives, to complete their day-to-day tasks in the operation of the HCL Commerce site.
Management Center for HCL Commerce
The Management Center for HCL Commerce, is a suite of tools to support store management, merchandising, and marketing tasks for business users (Sellers, Marketing Managers, Product Managers, Catalog Managers, and others).
Promotions tool
Use the Promotions tool in Management Center to create and manage promotions that support the marketing campaigns for your site.
Managing promotions
Promotions are managed by Marketing Managers, to keep a site's promotional efforts organized.
Creating promotions
Use the Promotions tool to create promotions that offer your customers incentives to purchase. You can create a wide variety of promotions to meet the promotional needs for your store.
Creating catalog entry level promotions
You can create catalog entry level promotions with the Management Center. Catalog entry level promotions offer incentives that are based on the products, SKUs, and kits that customers have in their shopping carts.
Performance impact of "individual" catalog entry promotions
Promotion types that offer discounts on individual catalog entries can degrade site performance because of the amount of processing required while a customer checks out.

Documentation
HCL Commerce is a high-availability, highly scalable and customizable e-commerce platform. Able to support hundreds of thousands of transactions per day, HCL Commerce allows you to do business with consumers (B2C) or directly with businesses (B2B). HCL Commerce uses cloud friendly technology to make deployment and operation both easy and efficient. It provides easy-to-use tools for business users to centrally manage a cross-channel strategy. Business users can create and manage precision marketing campaigns, promotions, catalog, and merchandising across all sales channels. Business users can also use AI enabled content management capabilities.
- Getting started
  HCL Commerce has different advantages for business users, administrators and developers. HCL Commerce targets each of these roles with a tailored set of offerings so that each of your users can get maximum benefit.
- Installing and deploying
  Learn how to install and deploy HCL Commerce development environments and HCL Commerce production environments.
- Migrating
  Before you migrate to HCL Commerce Version 9, review this information to help plan and execute your migration.
- Operating
  Topics in the Operating category highlight tasks that are typically performed by business users, customer support representatives, to complete their day-to-day tasks in the operation of the HCL Commerce site.
  - Management Center for HCL Commerce
    The Management Center for HCL Commerce, is a suite of tools to support store management, merchandising, and marketing tasks for business users (Sellers, Marketing Managers, Product Managers, Catalog Managers, and others).
    - Management Center keyboard shortcuts
      Use the Management Center keyboard shortcuts to access user interface functions or complete tasks, using a single key or combination of keys.
    - Working in extended site stores in Management Center
      If your company operates an extended site, you can perform certain tasks directly from your extended site store within Management Center.
    - Manage content externally for use in Management Center
      If content management capabilities other than the functionality that is provided by default with HCL Commerce is required, HCL Commerce can be integrated with IBM Web Content Manager. If HCL Commerce is integrated with IBM Web Content Manager, you can use content from IBM Web Content Manager content libraries with Management Center objects.
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    - Management Center user interface
      The Management Center user interface provides a usable, intuitive, and efficient way to complete your business tasks.
    - Using the Management Center
      The starting point for all Management Center tasks is to open the tooling. Afterward, you can use several methods to complete a task: by selecting menu options, by clicking toolbar buttons, by right-clicking and selecting menus, or by keyboard shortcuts.
    - Catalogs tool
      Use the Catalogs tool in Management Center to manage catalogs, categories, catalog entries, merchandising associations, product attributes, and attachments in your store. The Catalogs tool lets business users create, and manage online catalogs. Catalogs provide a way of organizing the products that you want to sell. You define catalog data in groups of categories and products. Catalog data contains descriptions and pricing information for products and services.
    - Marketing tool
      Use the Marketing tool in Management Center to create and manage marketing campaigns and other store content, excluding catalog content. You can use the extensive precision marketing features in the tool to deliver targeted marketing messages to customers.
    - Promotions tool
      Use the Promotions tool in Management Center to create and manage promotions that support the marketing campaigns for your site.
      - Promotion type feature matrix
        The following table lists the promotion types that are supplied with the Promotions tool. For each promotion type, the table identifies the options and features of the promotion.
      - Managing promotions
        Promotions are managed by Marketing Managers, to keep a site's promotional efforts organized.
        Promotions
        Promotions provide you the ability to offer customers incentives to purchase. HCL Commerce supports numerous types of promotions. For example, price promotions that include offering simple discounts; merchandise specials such as gifts with purchase and buy-one-get-one. More service promotions are available that include offering reduced shipping costs.
        Coupon promotions
        Coupon promotions are a special promotion. Coupon promotions are designed to mimic the experience of when a customer clips a coupon from a newspaper, or something similar, and redeems it at a store. A coupon can apply to specific catalog entries or to the total purchase, depending on how the promotion is defined. Only the owner of the coupon can redeem the coupon.
        Best deal support for promotions
        You can enable a best deal feature to ensure customers who qualify for more than one promotion in the same promotion group receive the best deal. The promotion engine supports an optional best deal feature that automatically compares promotions with the same priority. The promotion engine applies them in the sequence that offers the lowest overall purchase price.
        Creating promotions
        Use the Promotions tool to create promotions that offer your customers incentives to purchase. You can create a wide variety of promotions to meet the promotional needs for your store.
        Creating order-level promotions
        You can create order-level promotions by using the Management Center. Order-level promotions offer incentives that are based on the total value of the order.
        Creating shipping promotions
        You can create shipping promotions by using the Management Center. Shipping promotions offer incentives that affect the price of shipping orders to customers.
        Creating catalog entry level promotions
        You can create catalog entry level promotions with the Management Center. Catalog entry level promotions offer incentives that are based on the products, SKUs, and kits that customers have in their shopping carts.
        Catalog attributes in promotion purchase conditions
        You can specify that a promotion applies only to catalog entries that have certain attribute values. Attributes are properties of SKUs in an online store, such as color, size, or manufacturer. In the promotion, you can specify any defining or descriptive attributes that you defined for catalog entries in the Catalogs tool. This option is available for promotion types that target specific catalog entries and categories.
        Comparison of "individual" and "subtotal" percentage off promotion types
        The Promotions tool supports promotion types that offer a percentage off either "individual" catalog entries or the "subtotal" of the catalog entries. There are specific reasons why you might choose one type over the other.
        Performance impact of "individual" catalog entry promotions
        Promotion types that offer discounts on individual catalog entries can degrade site performance because of the amount of processing required while a customer checks out.
        ... percentage off the subtotal of catalog entries
        This promotion type discounts the subtotal of catalog entries by a percentage when a specified number of the items are purchased in one order.
        ...amount off the subtotal of catalog entries
        This promotion type discounts the subtotal of a catalog entry by a specified amount when the specified number are purchased in one order.
        ... percentage off individual catalog entries
        This promotion type discounts a catalog entry by a percentage when a specified number of the items are purchased in one order.
        ...amount off individual catalog entries
        This promotion type discounts any selected catalog entries in an order by a specified amount when the order meets or exceeds a specified number of catalog entries.
        ... buy catalog entry X, get catalog entry Y free
        This promotion type gives a free catalog entry when an order includes some other specified catalog entry.
        ...buy catalog entry X, get additional X at a percentage off
        This promotion type makes extra catalog entries available at a percentage discount when an order includes some required amount of the specified catalog entries.
        ... buy catalog entry X, get a percentage off catalog entry Y
        This promotion type gives a percentage discount on a catalog entry when an order includes some other specified catalog entry.
        ... percentage off the subtotal of catalog entries from a category
        This promotion type discounts the subtotal of catalog entries from a category by a percentage when a specified number of the catalog entries are purchased in one order.
        ... amount off the subtotal of catalog entries from a category
        This promotion type discounts the subtotal of catalog entries from a category by an amount when a specified number of the catalog entries are purchased in one order.
        ...fixed price on the subtotal of catalog entries from a category
        This promotion type offers a specified number of catalog entries from a category at a fixed (discounted) price. The fixed price applies to the subtotal of the qualifying catalog entries, not to individual catalog entries. Typically, promotions of this type reduce inventory in a category by encouraging customers to purchase multiple items from the category in a single order.
        ...fixed price on individual catalog entries from a category
        This promotion type offers a specified number of catalog entries from a category at a fixed (discounted) price. The fixed price applies to each qualifying catalog entry, not to the subtotal of the qualifying catalog entries. Typically, promotions of this type are used to reduce inventory in a category by encouraging customers to purchase multiple items from the category in a single order.
        ...fixed price on the subtotal of catalog entries.
        This promotion type offers a specified number of catalog entries at a fixed (discounted) price. The fixed price applies to the subtotal of the qualifying catalog entries, not to individual catalog entries. Typically, promotions of this type are used to reduce inventory by encouraging customers to purchase multiple items in a single order.
        ...fixed price on individual catalog entries
        This promotion type offers a specified number of catalog entries at a fixed (discounted) price. The fixed price applies to the individual of the qualifying catalog entries, not to subtotals of catalog entries. Typically, promotions of this type are used to reduce inventory by encouraging customers to purchase multiple items in a single order.
        ... percentage off individual catalog entries from a category
        This promotion type discounts the catalog entries from a category by a percentage when the total number of catalog entries from the category meets or exceeds a specified threshold.
        ... amount off individual catalog entries from a category
        This promotion type discounts any catalog entries from a selected category by a specified amount per item.
        ... buy catalog entries from category X, get catalog entry Y free
        This promotion type rewards a purchase of a catalog entry from the selected category with a free catalog entry.
        ... buy catalog entries from category X, get additional catalog entries from category X at a percentage off
        This promotion type discounts any item from a selected category by a specified percentage when the order contains catalog entries from that same category.
        ... buy catalog entries from category X, get a percentage off catalog entry Y
        This promotion type gives a percentage discount on a catalog entry when an order includes catalog entries from a specified category.
        ...buy A (and B and C), get a percentage off Y
        This promotion type offers a percentage off catalog entries from a category when the promotion purchase conditions are met.
        ...buy A (and B and C), get an amount off Y
        This promotion type offers an amount off catalog entries from a category when the promotion purchase conditions are met.
        ...buy A and B, get a percentage off both
        This promotion type offers a percentage off a specific combination of items when the order contains all the items.
        Combine active promotions
        If your store has multiple active promotions, shoppers can qualify for multiple promotions at a time. Each of your promotions has a setting, called Combination with other promotions. This setting governs if promotions are applied when a shopper qualifies for more than one promotion.
        Archiving promotions
        You can archive inactive promotions and remove the promotions from displaying when you browse the Promotions tool to make finding new, active, and any remaining inactive promotion easier. When you archive a promotion, the promotion is automatically removed from the list of promotions for your store and from any promotion folder that included the promotion.
        Importing promotion codes
        You can import your own set of unique promotion codes from a comma-separated values (CSV) file.
        Exporting promotion codes
        You can export your own set of unique promotion codes into a comma-separated values (CSV) file.
        Finding promotions
        You can find promotions in the Promotions tool by browsing the promotions list for your store, the promotions calendar, and promotion folders. You can also find a promotion by searching for a specific promotion.
        Copying promotions
        You can duplicate promotions to quickly create similar promotions. After you copy a promotion, you must give the copied promotion a new name before you save it.
        Changing promotions
        You can update your promotions to correct errors, adjust strategy, or to realign dates. You can change any promotion property, including the promotion name.
        Viewing which activities and folders reference a promotion
        Certain promotions might be referenced directly in marketing activities. You can open a promotion and click the References tab to view a list of those marketing activities that reference the promotion. You can also change whether the promotion is referenced directly from this References tab, if required.
        Deleting promotions
        You can delete promotions from Management Center if they are no longer used on your store, or if the promotion is incorrect.
        Activating or deactivating promotions
        Promotions can exist in the store in three states; active, inactive, or suspended. You can edit only inactive promotions. When the maximum redemption limit for a promotion is reached, the promotion moves to suspended state. Change any promotions in suspended state to inactive state before you edit them.
        Advertising your promotions on the storefront
        You can advertise promotions on your site by using web activities. Advertising promotions can help drive business by raising customer awareness.
        Organizing promotions with folders
        As a Marketing Manager, you can group promotions in folders within the Promotions tool to make browsing for and managing your promotions easier.
    - Attachments tool
      As a Product Manager, Marketing Manager, or Category Manager, you can use the Attachments tool to manage URLs that point to marketing image files, catalog image files, PDF documents, and multimedia files that you use in marketing campaigns.
    - Catalog Filter and Pricing tool
      Use the Catalog Filter and Pricing tool in Management Center to create and manage catalog filters, price lists, and price rules. Sellers, Sales Managers, and Account Representatives can use the tool's flexible features to implement catalog filtering and pricing strategies that meet the site's business needs over time.
    - Installments tool
      Use the Installments tool in Management Center to create and manage installment rules that support the payment methods for your site.
    - Commerce Composer tool
      Create pages and build layouts for your store directly in Management Center without involving IT by using the Commerce Composer tool. Take advantage of the tool's page design and management functions to improve your productivity and give you more control over the customer experience.
    - Store Management tool
      As a Seller, Site Administrator, or Channel Manager, you can use the Store Management tool in Management Center to manage your stores. The Store Management tool in Management Center replaces all of the store management features in HCL Commerce Accelerator, except store creation and the ability to suspend and resume stores.
    - Workspace Management tool
      The Workspace Management tool is a graphical user interface tool that is used to manage workspaces and workspace-related activities. It provides a single view across all workspaces and all tasks in the workspaces where managers can see how work is progressing.
    - Previewing a store
      Preview your store to ensure that changes made in Management Center show up in your store as expected. You can use store preview in production, authoring, and staging environments.You can use store preview within the authoring instances for any of your environments. Do not use store preview within the live instance of your HCL Commerce on Cloud environments.
    - Management Center frequently asked questions (FAQ)
      Find answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about the Management Center.
    - Management Center Troubleshooting
      If you encounter issues with the Management Center that are not related to any specific tool, review this troubleshooting topic to solve common problems.
  - HCL Commerce Accelerator
    Use the HCL Commerce Accelerator to maintain online stores.
  - HCL Customer Service for HCL Commerce JSP stores
    HCL Customer Service for HCL Commerce provides customer service enhancements that enable a customer service representative (CSR) to resolve common issues and capture orders. These capabilities are built into the HCL Commerce Aurora storefront and enable a CSR to complete key tasks on behalf of a guest and registered customers for both B2B and B2C stores. Customer Service for HCL Commerce is offered for both Professional and Enterprise editions.
- Integrating
  Topics in the Integrating category highlight the tasks that are commonly performed for using HCL Commerce in combination with other products.
- Administering
  Topics in the Administering category highlight tasks that are typically performed by the Site Administrator, to support daily operations of the HCL Commerce site.
- Customizing
  The topics in the Customizing section describe tasks performed by an application developer to customize HCL Commerce.
- Tutorials
  HCL Commerce provides many tutorials to help you customize and understand your HCL Commerce instance and stores.
- Samples
  Topics in the Samples category highlight the various samples that are provided with HCL Commerce.
- Compliance
  The following section describes how you can leverage HCL Commerce features and functionality to help your site be compliant with different privacy and security standards.
- Securing
  These topics describe the security features of HCL Commerce and how to configure these features.
- Performance
  Topics in the Performance section describe the means by which to plan, implement, test, and re-visit the optimization of HCL Commerce site performance.
- Troubleshooting
  Topics in the Troubleshooting section highlight common issues that are encountered with HCL Commerce, and how they can be addressed or mitigated.
- Reference
  Topics in the Reference section contain all of the HCL Commerce reference documentation.

Performance impact of "individual" catalog entry promotions

Promotion types that offer discounts on individual catalog entries can degrade site performance because of the amount of processing required while a customer checks out.

By using promotion types that apply to categories or subtotals, instead of promotion types that apply to individual catalog entries, you can reduce the performance cost for evaluating promotions. The evaluation of these individual catalog entry-based promotions is impacted by the quantity for the catalog entries in an order. The following promotion types offer discounts on individual catalog entries:

If you use one of these promotion types, and a customer purchases many catalog entries (hundreds or more) that qualify for the promotion, the promotion engine processes adjustments on each item individually at checkout. As a result, site performance can be degraded during this processing. Site traffic and system capacity are other factors that affect site performance in this situation. When you are creating a promotion that is based on an individual catalog entry, consider specifying redemption limits to limit the quantity for catalog entries. By limiting the quantity for catalog entries, you can limit the performance impact when you use promotion types that are based on individual catalog entries.

To avoid the potential performance impact of individual catalog entry promotion types, consider creating promotions that offer discounts on the subtotal of all qualifying catalog entries. The following promotion types offer discounts on the subtotal of all qualifying catalog entries:

Using these alternative promotion types means that any Redemption Limits or Maximum Discount Amount properties you set apply at the order level rather than to each individual catalog entry. However, this trade-off can be worthwhile to ensure that site performance is not impacted. For more information, see Comparison of "individual" and "subtotal" percentage off promotion types.

The administrator can configure order boundaries to prevent unbound exceptions. For information, see Configuring Order boundaries to prevent unbound exceptions. You can limit the maximum quantity in a shopping cart; then, the site can use "individual" type promotions.