Product Categories in IZI CRM
Product Categories: How to Structure Your Club Catalog
Section titled “Product Categories: How to Structure Your Club Catalog”Product categories are the classification reference inside IZI CRM that organizes your bar and counter items into logical groups — Drinks, Food, Merch, Gaming Accessories, or any structure that fits your club. At the most basic level, a category answers one question for the system: which group does this product belong to? That single assignment then flows into three places simultaneously: it structures the product list that staff see at the counter when ringing up a sale, it organizes the menu that customers browse in the IZI mobile app when placing self-orders, and it determines how revenue rows are grouped in the bar sales report. The bigger your menu, the more impact this has — instead of scrolling through 80 items under pressure during peak hours, staff open the right group and find the product in seconds. Categories also make analytics actionable: when revenue is already split by group from day one, you can immediately spot which segment is underperforming without any export or manual re-sorting. Keep in mind that categories belong exclusively to products (food, drinks, merch) — gaming time tariffs are a separate entity and do not share this reference. Setup takes a few minutes and requires no technical knowledge — everything is done inside Club → Catalog → Products → Categories.
Where to Find This Section
Section titled “Where to Find This Section”In IZI CRM: Club → Catalog → Products → Categories — a sub-section within Products. This is a single shared reference used everywhere products appear: in the product creation form, on the sales screen, in the mobile app, and across all reports.
What the Categories Reference Stores
Section titled “What the Categories Reference Stores”Each category is a record with two fields:
| Field | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Name | Displayed to staff during a sale and to customers in the mobile app |
| Sort order | A number that sets the position in the list (lower = higher) |
Categories carry no financial settings — no tax rate, no markup. They are purely organizational: they structure the catalog and provide a filter in reports.
How to Create a Category: Step by Step
Section titled “How to Create a Category: Step by Step”- Go to Club → Catalog → Products → Categories.
- Click Add Category.
- Enter a name — keep it short and clear: Drinks, Snacks, Merch.
- Optionally set a sort number so your most-used groups appear first.
- Save. The category is immediately available in the dropdown when creating or editing any product.
After that, assign a category to each item in the Products section — every product has a Category field.
Business Case: Why the Owner Should Configure This
Section titled “Business Case: Why the Owner Should Configure This”Speed at the Counter = Revenue
Section titled “Speed at the Counter = Revenue”A staff member ringing up an order during peak hours should not scroll through 80 items looking for an energy drink. The Drinks category narrows the list to the right group instantly. Multiplied across all shifts in a month, the time saving is significant.
Category-Level Analytics
Section titled “Category-Level Analytics”The bar sales report in IZI breaks revenue down by category. This lets you ask the right questions:
- Which group drives the largest share of bar revenue?
- Is there a category with high margin but low volume — meaning it is not being offered proactively?
- Are there seasonal patterns — hot drinks in winter versus cold in summer?
A useful benchmark: if a category’s monthly revenue divided by total bar revenue is under 5%, either the items are unpopular or customers are not seeing them. That is a signal to review placement, pricing, or visibility in the mobile app.
Navigation in the Mobile App
Section titled “Navigation in the Mobile App”When the IZI mobile app is enabled, customers see products grouped by category. A clear structure reduces the friction for self-ordering — fewer questions to staff, and a higher average check through visible add-on items.
Low-Stock Filtering by Group
Section titled “Low-Stock Filtering by Group”Used alongside the minimum stock monitoring feature, categories let you quickly filter problem items: switch to a low-stock filter and see only the items in a specific category that need restocking.
How Many Categories to Create: A Parametric Guide
Section titled “How Many Categories to Create: A Parametric Guide”There is no fixed answer — it depends on your menu size. The working principle: a category is justified when it contains at least 3 items and staff regularly use it as a filter.
A typical structure for a club with a medium-sized menu (30–80 items):
| Category | Approximate item count |
|---|---|
| Cold Drinks | 10–20 |
| Hot Drinks | 3–8 |
| Food and Snacks | 5–15 |
| Merch and Accessories | 5–10 |
| Other | 2–5 |
If your total menu is under 20 items, 2–3 categories are enough. If you have over 100 items, you can go deeper — for example, split Drinks into Energy Drinks, Juices, and Hot Beverages.
Anti-pattern: categories with a single item. They add clicks without benefit. If Protein Bars is one SKU, it lives fine inside Snacks.
Managing Categories: Edit and Delete
Section titled “Managing Categories: Edit and Delete”Renaming — open the category, change the name, save. All products inside automatically reflect the new group name. Report rows for past periods update to the new name as well.
Deleting — only possible when a category has no active products. If products are still assigned, IZI shows a warning and blocks deletion. Correct sequence:
- Reassign all products to another category.
- Confirm the category is empty.
- Delete.
Reassigning a product — on the product page, pick a new category from the dropdown. You can move items between categories at any time; historical sales data for past periods is not recalculated.
Categories and Reports: How They Connect
Section titled “Categories and Reports: How They Connect”The categories reference is the single source for all bar analytics in IZI. When you view the product movement report or the sales breakdown, rows are already split by the groups you configured in the Catalog. That means:
- No manual grouping at export — data is structured from the start.
- If you rename a category, reports show the new name, including past periods.
- If you add a new category, sales recorded before the reassignment remain under whichever category the product was assigned to at the time.
This makes categories a critical decision at launch: the more deliberate your structure from day one, the cleaner your analytics for the entire lifetime of the club.
Related Sections
Section titled “Related Sections”- Products — Overview — create and configure items, assign categories, manage stock levels
- Product Discounts — discount rules by individual item or group
- Promotions — time-limited promo rules applied to products
- Bar Sales Report — revenue and unit count broken down by category
- Combo Sets — bundle products and tariffs into package offers
Frequently asked questions
Why do gaming clubs need product categories?
Categories group bar and counter items into logical blocks — Drinks, Food, Merch, Accessories. This speeds up item lookup during a sale, improves navigation in the IZI mobile app, and lets you analyze revenue by group in reports without any manual re-grouping.
How do I create a product category in IZI?
Go to Club → Catalog → Products → Categories. Click Add Category, enter a name, and optionally set a sort order number. Save — the category immediately appears in the product creation form.
How many categories should a club have?
There is no universal number — it depends on your menu size. For most clubs with 30–80 items, 4–8 categories cover everything: Drinks, Food, Snacks, Merch, Services, Gaming Accessories. More than 15 categories starts to slow down counter staff.
Do categories affect analytics?
Yes. The bar sales report under Analytics groups revenue rows by category. You can compare which group drives the most sales, identify underperforming segments, and adjust purchasing or pricing accordingly.
Can I reassign an existing product to a different category?
Yes. Open the product under Club → Catalog → Products, pick a new category from the dropdown, and save. Historical sales data for past periods is not recalculated.
Are categories in the Catalog the same thing used in reports?
Yes, it is one shared reference. The category assigned in the Catalog appears automatically in bar report rows and in order history. There is no need to maintain a parallel classification.
How do customers see categories in the IZI mobile app?
When the IZI mobile app is enabled for your club, products in the order section are grouped by category. Customers pick a group first, then a specific item — this speeds up self-ordering and reduces questions to staff.
What happens to products inside a deleted category?
IZI will not let you delete a category that still has products assigned to it — a warning appears. Reassign all products to another category first, confirm the category is empty, then delete.
Can I control the display order of categories?
Yes. When creating or editing a category you can set a sort number. Lower numbers appear higher in the list. Put your highest-selling group first for faster access at the counter.
What is the difference between a product category and a gaming time tariff?
Product categories apply to physical items sold through the bar and counter — food, drinks, merch. Gaming time tariffs are a separate entity in IZI that controls hourly billing for PC sessions. The two references do not overlap.