How to create a CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) coupon. This tutorial explains how to create a standard coupon for our site. There are other types of coupons. The two other types are created for the CoolSavings Marketing Network (CSMN) and our Link To Coupon (LTC) technology which allows clients to host our coupons on their site.

Locating materials

1. Open the tracker for the coupon. Find the coupon specifications in tracker.

   Here is an example:

   Coupon:
   MIN 00573
   FC 311
   VC 82
   OCR 23377
   NSC 3
   NCH check digit 2

   It is a good idea to create the graphics for the coupon first. See "Optimizing Images for Coupons" for more information.

2. Double-click the "CPNTemplate.exe" icon on your desktop. This will open the CoolSavings Coupon Template Maker program that you will use to make the coupon. The name "template" means that the information that appears in certain fields on the coupon can be changed by Production with no effort on the part of Creative.
3. Choose File > Open > Group_Directories > Client Services > Creative Services > Coupons > CPG > coupon.cpt
   The file extension ".cpt" is unique to CoolSavings technology and is standard for ALL types of coupon templates created for the site.
4. A coupon is now open and must be customized for the particular offer and advertiser outlined in the tracker.
5. Double-click on the existing logo graphic in the upper left-hand corner of the coupon. A dialogue box titled "Property Sheet" will open. The field name is LOGO. Click the "File Browse ..." button to choose the correct logo from the advertiser's resource folder which is located in the Templates folder. The logo must be in WMF format (see Optimizing Images for Coupons for more information on this topic). Choose the logo with appropriate name. For example you would choose graphic "lw012345.wmf" for the advertiser whose number is 12345
6. Double-click on the product graphic under the logo. A dialogue box titled "Property Sheet" will open. Make sure the field name is "prodshot". Click the "File Browse ..." button to choose the correct product shot from the advertiser's resource folder which is located in the Templates folder. The product shot must be in WMF format.
7. Look at the tracker coupon information. If there is a "NCH check digit" specified, you must manually enter this information into the coupon template. Double click on the second field above the first barcode. It is the field next to the first set of five numbers above the barcode. This field may be blank. A "Property Sheet" dialogue box will open. Enter a dash and then the check digit in the "Initial Data" field. In the example featured in step one, you would enter "-2" in the Initial Data field. BEFORE closing the Property Sheet dialog box, click the "text" tab and make sure the Horizonal Alignment is set to the first option, "Left."
8. The coupon is now ready to be saved and replicated. Save the coupon in the advertiser's templates folder and name it with the offer number and date. For instance a coupon for offer 10002345 created on September 4, 2003 would be named like this: 2003.09.04_10002345.cpt.
9. Notify the Production Coordinator via tracker.

Optimizing Images for Coupons

1. Create a "resource" folder in the Advertiser's Templates folder. This is where all graphics will be stored.
2. Create 100% jpg in Image Ready (100 x 100)
3. Import into CorelDRAW
4. Resize to 1" wide
5. Export as WMF. When saving the logo graphic, use the naming convention "lw012345.wmf" where 12345 represents the Advertiser's number. Product shots can be given descriptive names and do not follow a specific naming convention.
6. Import to Coupon Template maker as described in step 5 above.