View Categories

Timezone Configuration

4 min read

Smart Cycle Discounts uses your WordPress site’s timezone setting for all campaign scheduling. Understanding how timezones work ensures your campaigns start and end exactly when intended.

How Timezone Works #

All campaign dates and times in Smart Cycle Discounts reference your WordPress site’s timezone setting, not the visitor’s local time or your browser’s timezone.

Example #

WordPress Timezone: America/New_York (Eastern Time)
Campaign Start: December 25, 2025 at 00:00

The campaign will activate at:
- 00:00 Eastern Time (New York)
- 21:00 Pacific Time (Dec 24 in Los Angeles)
- 05:00 GMT/UTC (Dec 25)
- 06:00 Central European Time (Dec 25)

Checking Your Timezone #

  1. Go to Settings → General in WordPress admin
  2. Scroll to the Timezone setting
  3. Your current timezone is displayed there

The Campaign Wizard displays your timezone for reference in the Schedule step.

Timezone Display in the Wizard #

The Schedule step (Step 4) shows your timezone in multiple places:

  • Timezone indicator: Shows current WordPress timezone (e.g., “All times in America/New_York”)
  • Current time display: Shows the current time in your timezone
  • Preview dates: All displayed dates reflect your timezone

Changing Your Timezone #

Steps to Change #

  1. Go to Settings → General
  2. Find the Timezone dropdown
  3. Select your desired timezone
  4. Click Save Changes

Important Considerations #

  • Existing campaigns: Scheduled times remain the same (the actual moment in time doesn’t change)
  • Display changes: Times will display differently after the change
  • New campaigns: Will use the new timezone for scheduling

Example of Timezone Change Impact #

Before change:
- Timezone: America/New_York
- Campaign shows: "Starts December 25 at 09:00"

After changing to America/Los_Angeles:
- Same campaign shows: "Starts December 25 at 06:00"
- The actual activation moment is identical

UTC Offset vs. Named Timezones #

WordPress supports two timezone formats:

Named Timezones (Recommended) #

  • Example: America/New_York, Europe/London, Asia/Tokyo
  • Automatically handles Daylight Saving Time (DST)
  • More accurate for long-term scheduling

UTC Offsets #

  • Example: UTC+5, UTC-8
  • Fixed offset, does not adjust for DST
  • May cause campaigns to start an hour early/late during DST transitions

Recommendation: Use named timezones (geographic locations) rather than UTC offsets to ensure DST is handled correctly.

Daylight Saving Time (DST) #

If your timezone observes DST, be aware of these considerations:

Spring Forward (Clocks Move Ahead) #

Example: March 9, 2025 at 02:00 AM becomes 03:00 AM

Campaign scheduled for 02:30 AM:
- Will effectively run at 03:30 AM (the 02:30 hour doesn't exist)

Fall Back (Clocks Move Back) #

Example: November 2, 2025 at 02:00 AM becomes 01:00 AM

Campaign scheduled for 01:30 AM:
- May run twice (the 01:30 hour occurs twice)
- Smart Cycle Discounts uses the first occurrence

Best Practice #

Avoid scheduling campaigns during DST transition hours (typically 01:00-03:00 AM on transition days). Schedule for times that won’t be affected.

International Customer Considerations #

If you serve customers across multiple timezones:

Single Timezone Strategy #

  • Set your WordPress timezone to your primary market
  • All campaigns run on that timezone
  • Simpler to manage

Marketing Messaging #

  • Consider noting the timezone in promotional materials
  • Example: “Sale ends December 25 at midnight EST”

“Follow the Sun” Alternative #

For different deals in different regions, create separate campaigns:

Campaign 1: "Boxing Day Sale - UK"
- Products: UK shipping only
- Start: December 26 00:00 (GMT)

Campaign 2: "After Christmas Sale - US"
- Products: US shipping only
- Start: December 26 00:00 (EST)

Common Timezone Scenarios #

US-Based Store (Eastern Time) #

Timezone: America/New_York

Black Friday Sale:
- Start: Nov 28, 2025 00:00 (midnight Eastern)
- West Coast sees: Nov 27, 2025 21:00 (9 PM Pacific)

UK-Based Store (London Time) #

Timezone: Europe/London

Boxing Day Sale:
- Start: Dec 26, 2025 00:00 (midnight GMT)
- US East Coast sees: Dec 25, 2025 19:00 (7 PM EST)

Australia-Based Store (Sydney Time) #

Timezone: Australia/Sydney

New Year Sale:
- Start: Jan 1, 2026 00:00 (midnight AEDT)
- US sees: Dec 31, 2025 08:00 (8 AM EST)

Troubleshooting Timezone Issues #

Problem: Campaign started at wrong time #

Check:

  1. Verify your WordPress timezone setting
  2. Confirm the server time is accurate
  3. Check if DST transition affected the schedule

Problem: Times showing incorrectly #

Check:

  1. Clear browser cache
  2. Verify WordPress timezone hasn’t changed
  3. Check for caching plugins that might show stale data

Problem: Campaign active when it shouldn’t be #

Check:

  1. Review the actual scheduled times in campaign edit
  2. Account for timezone differences between your location and WordPress setting
  3. Verify the server’s system clock is accurate

Server Time vs. WordPress Time #

Your web server may run on a different timezone than your WordPress setting:

  • Server time: The operating system’s clock (often UTC)
  • WordPress time: The configured timezone in Settings → General

Smart Cycle Discounts always uses the WordPress timezone, not the server timezone. However, if the server clock is inaccurate, all timestamps will be affected.

Verifying Server Time #

Use the Tools page (SC Discounts → Tools) to view system information including current server time and WordPress time.

Updated on February 14, 2026

What are your Feelings

  • Happy
  • Normal
  • Sad