Campaign Not Activating

If your campaign isn’t activating when expected, this guide covers the most common causes and solutions. Follow the diagnostic steps to identify and resolve the issue.

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Quick Checklist #

Before diving deeper, verify these basics:

• ☐ Campaign status is “Active” or “Scheduled” (not Draft or Paused)
• ☐ Current date/time is within campaign date range
• ☐ Campaign has products selected
• ☐ Plugin is activated
• ☐ WooCommerce is active

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Common Causes #

1. Campaign Status is Draft #

Symptom: Campaign created but never published.

Check:

1. Go to SC Discounts → Campaigns
2. Look at the Status column
3. If “Draft,” the campaign was never finalized

Solution:

1. Edit the campaign
2. Complete all steps
3. Click “Publish” on the Review step

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2. Campaign is Paused #

Symptom: Campaign was active but is now paused.

Check:

1. Go to SC Discounts → Campaigns
2. Look for “Paused” status badge

Solution:

1. Click on the campaign
2. Click “Resume” button
3. Campaign becomes active immediately

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3. Start Date is in the Future #

Symptom: Campaign shows as “Scheduled” but isn’t active yet.

Check:

1. View campaign details
2. Check the Start Date
3. Compare to current date/time

Solution:

• Wait for the start date, or
• Edit campaign and change start date to now/past

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4. End Date has Passed #

Symptom: Campaign was working but now shows “Expired.”

Check:

1. View campaign details
2. Check the End Date
3. If in the past, campaign has expired

Solution:

1. Edit the campaign
2. Extend or remove the end date
3. Save changes

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5. Timezone Mismatch #

Symptom: Campaign activates at unexpected times.

Check:

1. Go to Settings → General
2. Verify Timezone setting
3. Compare to expected campaign times

Solution:

• Set correct timezone in WordPress
• Campaign times use site timezone, not visitor timezone

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6. WP-Cron Not Running #

Symptom: Scheduled campaigns don’t activate on time.

Check:

1. Go to SC Discounts → Tools
2. Run Health Check
3. Look for WP-Cron status

Why This Happens:

• WP-Cron runs on page visits
• Low-traffic sites may have delayed cron
• Some hosts disable WP-Cron

Solution:

• Set up server-level cron (recommended)
• Or use a cron monitoring plugin
• Or manually trigger: visit yoursite.com/wp-cron.php

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7. No Products Match #

Symptom: Campaign is active but affects no products.

Check:

1. View campaign overview panel
2. Check “Products Affected” count
3. If 0, no products match your criteria

Solution:

1. Edit campaign → Products step
2. Review product selection and conditions
3. Expand criteria or add specific products

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8. Another Campaign Taking Priority #

Symptom: Campaign is active but a different discount shows.

Check:

1. Go to SC Discounts → Tools
2. Use “Test Product” feature
3. Enter a product ID and see which campaign wins

Solution:

• Adjust priority levels between campaigns
• Higher priority number = takes precedence
• Or modify product selections to avoid overlap

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Diagnostic Steps #

Step 1: Check Campaign Status #

Go to: SC Discounts → Campaigns
Look for: Status column
Should be: "Active" with green indicator

Step 2: Verify Date Range #

Click on campaign to open overview
Check: Start Date and End Date
Current time must be between these dates

Step 3: Check Product Count #

In campaign overview panel
Look for: Products Affected
Should be: Greater than 0

Step 4: Test a Product #

Go to: SC Discounts → Tools
Use: Test Product feature
Enter: Product ID from your campaign
Result: Shows which campaign applies

Step 5: Check System Health #

Go to: SC Discounts → Tools
Click: Run Health Check
All items should be green

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Force Activation #

If Scheduled Campaign Won’t Start #

1. Edit the campaign
2. Change start date to a past date
3. Save and publish
4. Campaign should immediately activate

Clear Plugin Cache #

1. Go to SC Discounts → Tools
2. Click “Clear Plugin Cache”
3. Check if campaign now works

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Recurring Campaign Issues #

Recurring Discount Not Applying #

For campaigns running on a schedule:

1. Open the campaign’s Schedule step and read the preview — the plain-English sentence and next run dates show exactly what the engine will do
2. Check if today is one of the scheduled days (weekday chips or month days)
3. Check the current time against the daily time window, if one is set

Between Scheduled Days #

The discount applies only on the scheduled days and times — the campaign’s status stays Active in between:

Example: Weekend sale (active every Sat & Sun)
Monday-Friday: Campaign is Active, but the discount does not apply
Saturday-Sunday: The discount applies

Paused After the 2.2.0 Update #

Recurring campaigns created before version 2.2.0 are paused during the update to the rebuilt recurrence engine. Open each paused campaign, set its schedule with the new controls, and save to resume it. See the Scheduling Issues guide for details.

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Still Not Working? #

Enable Debug Mode #

1. Go to SC Discounts → Settings → Advanced
2. Enable Debug Mode
3. Save settings
4. Attempt to trigger the campaign
5. Check debug log for errors

Check for Plugin Conflicts #

1. Temporarily deactivate other plugins
2. Test if campaign works
3. Reactivate plugins one by one to identify conflict

Contact Support #

If still experiencing issues:

1. Go to SC Discounts → Tools
2. Copy System Report
3. Contact support with:
   • System report
   • Campaign settings (screenshot or description)
   • Expected vs. actual behavior
   • Debug log entries (if enabled)