There are two ways to add unique Magento Open Source and Adobe Commerce coupon codes to your Marketing campaigns: bulk coupons and dynamic content coupons. They're built for different kinds of campaign, so most stores use both.
The main question is whether you know who you're sending to before the campaign goes out.
Bulk coupons: you know your audience up front
Use bulk coupons when you're sending to a list or segment you've already chosen, such as a seasonal sale, a product launch, or a promotion to your whole customer base.
You generate the codes in Magento before you send. Each contact's code is saved to a data field in Marketing, and you add it to your campaign with personalisation. Codes are generated in batches ahead of the send, so bulk coupons handle very large lists and segments.
Dynamic content coupons: contacts join over time
Use dynamic content coupons in automations and triggered campaigns, where you don't know who'll receive the campaign until they enter it. For example, a welcome program or a birthday campaign.
Marketing requests a new code from your store each time it sends the campaign to a contact, using an external dynamic content block. This works well when contacts arrive a few at a time. For large sends, the number of requests to your store can cause code requests to time out.
Compare bulk and dynamic content coupons
| Bulk coupons | Dynamic content coupons |
Audience | A list or segment you choose before you send | Contacts who enter an automation or triggered campaign |
Best for | Promotional and broadcast campaigns, including very large sends | Automations and campaigns that send a few contacts at a time |
When codes are created | Before you send, in a coupon job | At send time, one request to your store per contact |
Where the code is stored | A data field on the contact's record in Marketing | Only in the campaign the contact receives |
Channels | Email and SMS, for contacts with an email address | |
Previews and test sends | The contact's code shows in previews and test sends | Codes only show in live sends |
Reminders | The same code is available in every campaign that uses the data field | Controlled by the Allow Resend and Cancel Send If Used settings |
Expiry | An optional expiry date for every code in the job | An optional number of days after the campaign sends |