How it works
Plan Anchors let you define fixed dates in the year, month, or week when deliveries should happen. Combined with cutoff days, you create a clear cycle:- Delivery anchors define when orders are fulfilled — for example, every Monday, or on the 1st and 15th of each month.
- Cutoff days define how many days before the delivery anchor a customer must have their selection finalized. After the cutoff, the order is locked in and prepared for fulfillment.
- Billing moment can optionally be tied to the cutoff date, so customers are charged when their selection window closes rather than on the delivery date itself.
Example
A weekly meal box delivers every Monday. With a cutoff of 3 days:- Customers have until Friday to choose their meals for the following Monday’s delivery.
- After Friday, the order is locked and billing occurs.
- On Monday, the box is delivered with the customer’s chosen meals.
Enable the Plan Anchors feature
Note: This is a preview feature that is currently staff-only. Please reach out to Firmhouse sales or support to have this feature enabled on your project.Once enabled by the Firmhouse team, you will see the Plan Anchors section when editing a plan.
Configure delivery anchors and cutoff days
1. Set the anchor type on your plan
- In the Firmhouse Portal, go to Plans from the sidebar.
- Open the plan you want to configure, or create a new one.
- In the Plan Anchors section, choose an Anchor type:
- Weekday — Anchors on specific days of the week (e.g. every Monday). The day value is 1 (Monday) through 7 (Sunday).
- Month day — Anchors on specific days of the month (e.g. the 1st and 15th).
- Year day — Anchors on specific day/month combinations (e.g. January 5, March 5, May 5). This is useful for bi-monthly or quarterly delivery schedules.
2. Add anchor dates
After selecting the anchor type, add one or more anchor dates:- For Weekday anchors: Add the day number (1 = Monday, 7 = Sunday).
- For Month day anchors: Add the day of the month (1–31).
- For Year day anchors: Add day and month combinations.
1.
3. Set cutoff days
Configure the Cutoff days before shipment date field on your plan. This determines how many days before a delivery anchor the customer must have their selection finalized. For example:- Delivery anchor: Monday (weekday 1)
- Cutoff days: 3
- Result: Customers must finalize their selection by Friday (3 days before Monday).
4. Enable billing on cutoff (optional)
Enable the Use cutoff days to determine billing moment option if you want customers to be charged when the cutoff date is reached, rather than on the delivery date. This is useful when you need payment confirmation before preparing the order.Customer experience in the Self Service Center
When delivery anchors and cutoff days are configured, customers see in their Self Service Center:- The next delivery date based on the configured anchors.
- A countdown or deadline showing when they need to finalize their selection.
- The ability to add, remove, or swap products in their subscription up until the cutoff date.
Combining with other bundle features
Billing Cutoff & Delivery Anchors works well in combination with:- Plan Product Quantity Range — Ensure customers have the right number of items in their box before the cutoff deadline.
- Tiered Discounts — Reward customers with higher discounts for larger boxes.