How To Put All Products On Sale In Woocommerce

How to Put All Products on Sale in WooCommerce: A Comprehensive Guide

Introduction:

Running a sale can be a fantastic way to boost revenue, clear out old inventory, or simply attract new customers to your WooCommerce store. While WooCommerce provides powerful tools for managing sales, sometimes you need a quick and easy method to put all your products on sale simultaneously. This article will guide you through several methods to achieve this, from the built-in WooCommerce features to code-based solutions, ensuring you find the approach that best suits your needs and technical comfort level. We’ll explore the benefits and drawbacks of each method, helping you make an informed decision. Let’s dive in!

Utilizing WooCommerce’s Bulk Edit Feature

One of the simplest ways to put all your products on sale is by using the bulk edit functionality within WooCommerce. This is a user-friendly approach and doesn’t require any coding knowledge.

Steps to Bulk Edit Products:

1. Navigate to Products: Go to Products > All Products in your WordPress dashboard.

2. Filter Products (Optional): If you want to target a specific category or product type, you can use the filter options at the top. This is useful if you only want to put certain products on sale.

3. Select All Products: Tick the checkbox at the top of the product list to select all products on the current page. If you have more products than displayed on a single page, you’ll need to increase the “Number of items per page” option in Screen Options (top right corner) or repeat the process for each page.

4. Choose “Edit” from Bulk Actions: Select “Edit” from the “Bulk Actions” dropdown menu and click “Apply”.

5. Set Sale Price: In the bulk edit screen, you’ll find a “Sale Price” field. Choose “Update” from the dropdown and then enter the sale price. Be very careful here! This will set a *fixed* sale price for *all* selected products.

6. Alternatively, Use Price Variations (Recommended): Instead of a fixed price, it’s usually better to set a sale price based on the regular price. You can achieve this by setting “Sale price” to “Change to” and selecting a method. For example, you can reduce the price by a fixed amount or a percentage.

7. Update Products: Click the “Update” button to apply the changes to all selected products.

Pros:

• Simple and easy to use.
• No coding required.
• Built-in WooCommerce functionality.

Cons:

• Limited control over individual product sale prices.
• Can be time-consuming if you have a large number of products and need to adjust the “Number of items per page”.
• Doesn’t offer advanced scheduling options.
• Setting a fixed sale price is generally not recommended, as it overrides the existing price structure.

Using a Plugin for Bulk Editing

Several WooCommerce plugins offer more advanced bulk editing features than the built-in functionality. These plugins can be particularly useful if you need more granular control or want to schedule sales in advance. Some popular options include:

• WooCommerce Bulk Edit Products: Offers a wide range of filters and editing options.
• ELEX WooCommerce Bulk Edit Products, Prices & Attributes: A powerful plugin for advanced bulk editing, including attributes and variations.

How to Use a Bulk Edit Plugin (Example):

The exact steps will vary depending on the plugin you choose. However, the general process typically involves:

1. Install and activate the plugin.

2. Navigate to the plugin’s bulk edit interface. This is usually located within the WooCommerce or Products menu in your WordPress dashboard.

3. Filter products. Most plugins offer extensive filtering options to target specific product categories, tags, or attributes.

4. Select products. Similar to the WooCommerce bulk edit feature, you can select all products or specific products based on your filters.

5. Edit sale price. Use the plugin’s interface to set the sale price. This often includes options to:

• Set a fixed sale price.
• Reduce the price by a percentage.
• Reduce the price by a fixed amount.
• Schedule the sale to start and end at specific dates and times.

6. Apply changes. Review your changes and apply them to the selected products.

Pros:

• More advanced filtering and editing options than the built-in WooCommerce functionality.
• Often includes scheduling features.
• Can save time when managing large product catalogs.

Cons:

• Requires installing a third-party plugin.
• May involve a learning curve to understand the plugin’s interface and features.
• Some plugins may be expensive.

Using Code to Update Sale Prices (For Developers)

If you’re comfortable working with code, you can use PHP to programmatically update the sale prices of all your products. This is a more advanced method, but it offers the most flexibility and control. Always back up your database before making any code changes!

<?php

// Function to put all products on sale

function set_all_products_on_sale($percentage_discount) {

$args = array(

‘post_type’ => ‘product’,

‘posts_per_page’ => -1, // Get all products

);

$products = get_posts( $args );

foreach ( $products as $product ) {

$product_id = $product->ID;

$product = wc_get_product( $product_id );

if ( $product ) {

$regular_price = $product->get_regular_price();

$sale_price = $regular_price * (1 – ($percentage_discount / 100));

$product->set_sale_price( $sale_price );

$product->save();

}

}

// Clear WooCommerce caches

wc_delete_product_transients();

delete_transient( ‘wc_products_onsale’ );

}

// Example usage:

// Put all products on sale with a 20% discount

// Call this function once (e.g., in your theme’s functions.php file or via a plugin)

// Then COMMENT OUT or REMOVE the line. Do not leave this running permanently!

// set_all_products_on_sale(20); // Uncomment to run this ONCE. THEN COMMENT IT OUT.

?>

Important Considerations:

• Run this code ONCE: This script will update the sale prices of *all* your products. You should only run it once and then comment it out or remove it to avoid accidentally overwriting your prices.
• Clear WooCommerce Caches: The `wc_delete_product_transients()` function and `delete_transient( ‘wc_products_onsale’ );` line clear WooCommerce caches to ensure the updated prices are immediately visible on your site.
• Error Handling: In a production environment, you should add error handling to this script to gracefully handle potential issues, such as invalid product IDs or database errors.
• Variations: This code does *not* automatically apply sale prices to product variations. You’ll need to modify the code to iterate through variations as well.
• Regular Price Check: It’s a good practice to add a check to ensure that `regular_price` is a valid number before calculating the sale price.
• Memory Limit: For very large product catalogs, you might encounter memory limit issues. You may need to increase your PHP memory limit or batch the update process.

How to Use the Code:

1. Add to functions.php (Not Recommended for Beginners): You can add this code to your theme’s `functions.php` file. However, this is not recommended for beginners because errors in `functions.php` can break your site.

2. Create a Custom Plugin (Recommended): The best approach is to create a simple custom plugin. This keeps your code separate from your theme and makes it easier to manage.

3. Run the Code: Uncomment the `set_all_products_on_sale(20);` line (or adjust the percentage). Load any page on your site to trigger the code.

4. COMMENT OUT THE LINE: Immediately comment out the `set_all_products_on_sale(20);` line after running it.

Pros:

• Highly customizable.
• Allows for advanced calculations and logic.
• Efficient for large product catalogs.

Cons:

• Requires coding knowledge.
• Can be risky if not implemented correctly.
• Requires careful testing and error handling.
• Modifying theme files directly is generally discouraged.

Updating Variation Prices (Code):

If your store uses product variations, the previous script will only apply to the parent products, not the variations. Here’s an updated script that includes variations:

<?php

function set_all_products_and_variations_on_sale($percentage_discount) {

$args = array(

‘post_type’ => ‘product’,

‘posts_per_page’ => -1, // Get all products

);

$products = get_posts( $args );

foreach ( $products as $product ) {

$product_id = $product->ID;

$product = wc_get_product( $product_id );

if ( $product ) {

// Handle simple/external products

if ($product->get_type() == ‘simple’ || $product->get_type() == ‘external’) {

$regular_price = $product->get_regular_price();

$sale_price = $regular_price * (1 – ($percentage_discount / 100));

$product->set_sale_price( $sale_price );

$product->save();

}

// Handle variable products

if ($product->get_type() == ‘variable’) {

$variations = $product->get_available_variations();

foreach ($variations as $variation_data) {

$variation_id = $variation_data[‘variation_id’];

$variation = wc_get_product($variation_id);

if ($variation) {

$regular_price = $variation->get_regular_price();

$sale_price = $regular_price * (1 – ($percentage_discount / 100));

$variation->set_sale_price( $sale_price );

$variation->save();

}

}

}

}

}

// Clear WooCommerce caches

wc_delete_product_transients();

delete_transient( ‘wc_products_onsale’ );

}

// Example usage:

// set_all_products_and_variations_on_sale(20); // Uncomment to run ONCE. THEN COMMENT IT OUT.

?>

Conclusion

Putting all your products on sale in WooCommerce can be achieved through various methods, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. The built-in bulk edit feature is suitable for simple sales scenarios, while plugins offer more advanced features like scheduling. For developers, code-based solutions provide maximum flexibility but require technical expertise.

Key Takeaways:

• Choose the method that best aligns with your technical skills and requirements.
• Always back up your database before making any changes.
• Test your changes thoroughly before applying them to your live site.
• When using code, run it only once and then comment it out.
• Clear WooCommerce caches after updating sale prices.
• Consider using plugins or coded solutions for applying sale prices to product variations.

By following the guidelines outlined in this article, you can effectively put all your products on sale and boost your WooCommerce store’s performance. Good luck!