RWD Raffle Theme

The RWD Raffle Theme is the core behind every raffle website template in our store. Each template is a different design on the same engine, so everything in this manual applies to whichever theme you run: the same settings, screens, pages and behaviour.

The theme sits on top of WooCommerce and the WooCommerce Lottery plugins. The plugins own the competition mechanics (tickets, reservations, answers, instant wins, draws). The theme owns the design, the player journey, compliance tools and everything an operator needs to run a UK prize draw site. It never edits plugin files, so plugin updates stay safe.

If a required plugin is missing, the theme shows an admin notice naming it. The front end keeps working but competition features are hidden until the plugin is active.

1. Install the plugins. Plugins›Add New: install and activate WooCommerce, then WooCommerce Lottery, then WooCommerce Lottery Pick Number. Run the WooCommerce setup wizard and set the currency to GBP.
2. Set the site time. Settings›General → Timezone: London. Every countdown, draw date, spending-limit period and email uses this time.
3. Upload the theme. Appearance›Themes›Add New›Upload Theme: choose the theme .zip from your account downloads and click Activate.
4. Activate the licence. ‹Theme››Theme License: paste the licence key from your order email. See § 04.
5. Import demo content (recommended on a new site) from the same screen. See § 05.
6. Set permalinks. Settings›Permalinks → Post name, then Save.
7. Work through the first-run checklist in § 06.

The licence is signed and tied to your domain. It unlocks theme updates, the demo importer and support for the licence period.

‹Theme››Theme License → Import demo content. Keep the page open while it runs; large imports take a few minutes.

Do these before taking the first payment. The dashboard's Launch checklist ticks most of them off automatically from your settings.

WooCommerce Lottery needs two server cron jobs so competitions end exactly on time and relist automatically, even when nobody is visiting the site. WordPress's built-in cron only runs on page visits, so it isn't enough on its own.

wget -q -O - "https://yourdomain.co.uk/?lottery-cron=check" >/dev/null 2>&1

The Cron jobs box on the WordPress dashboard detects your host (cPanel, Plesk, DirectAdmin, hPanel, SiteGround, Cloudways, Kinsta and others), shows the exact commands for your domain and step-by-step instructions, and turns green once each job has run. No cron screen on your hosting? Use a free external service such as cron-job.org with the URLs.

A competition is a WooCommerce product with the type Lottery. Create one at Products›Add New → Product data: Lottery. Set a featured image and gallery for the prize.

Field reference

Lifecycle

1. ScheduledBefore start date. Countdown to open.
2. LiveOn sale. Progress bar and draw countdown.
3. Sold outAll tickets sold, waiting for the draw.
4. EndedClosed by cron. Winner drawn or failed on min tickets.

Paid orders for entries complete automatically because entries are digital. Cash on delivery orders are left alone. Public "Lottery" wording from the plugins is replaced with "Competition" across the site.

Theme pages are matched by their slug. Keep these slugs; change the titles freely.

Menus: Appearance›Menus has two locations, Primary Menu (header) and Footer Menu. Both show sensible fallback links until you assign your own.

All front-end options are in Appearance›Customize with a live preview.

1. BrowseHome, Competitions page, cards with live countdowns.
2. EnterCompetition page or quick entry popup: quantity, bundles, skill question.
3. BasketSlide-out drawer and branded basket. Limits checked.
4. CheckoutDOB check (18+), terms, free entry notice, any gateway.
5. Thank youTicket numbers per competition, instant win pop-up, games ready to play.
6. AccountEntries, prizes and claims, wallet, spending limit.

Every prize a player wins (main draw, instant win, spin wheel, scratch card) appears in My Account › My Prizes with its claim status.

Site credit ledger

• Prize names like "£5 Site Credit" are detected and credited
• One permanent ledger row per win: never paid twice
• Paid only once the order is paid
• Failed credits retry hourly
• Large or unclear amounts are held for review
• Refunded or cancelled orders are flagged, with a reverse option
• Scan past instant wins for missed credits
• Competition, spin and scratch credits in one log

1. Competition ends. The cron job closes it at the end date (site time).
2. Run your draw. Use the public entry list or the CSV export (streamed in chunks, fine for 100k+ entries).
3. Mark the winner. On the entry list, reveal the entry's details, email the winner and mark them in one step. Winner marks can be removed from the competition's Draw winners box.
4. Publish. Marking a winner creates a Winners draft. Add a photo and quote, then publish.

Public entry lists show names in your chosen format and never show email addresses. They load 25 rows at a time with counts cached, and are kept out of search results.

Legal shortcodes

The theme gives you tools, not legal advice. Have your terms reviewed for your own business.

Every WooCommerce email uses the theme's branded header, footer and layout, with competition wording instead of shop wording (tickets, spins, scratch cards or a mix).

Anything you type in WooCommerce›Settings›Emails is used as-is. Noisy default lottery emails are switched off on setup; you can turn any back on there.

• Custom login URL. Settings›Permalinks → Login slug. wp-login.php then returns a 404. Bookmark the new address.
• Branded login screen with an access warning and support contacts.
• Players are unaffected. They log in, register and reset passwords on My Account.
• Rafflie is sandboxed. It can't delete content or touch orders, payments, customer data, limits, claims or credits.

Add-ons are separate plugins built around the theme. When active, the theme styles them and adds them to the home page, Competitions page, basket, thank-you page, My Account, My Prizes and emails with no shortcodes.

When you contact us, include your domain, theme version (Appearance›Themes) and the steps to reproduce the problem.