49 replies to this topic

[14steve14]

A free item can have a weight and require a shipping cost..

[strub]

Ah yes that is also an option.

For a better overview, I did a short table:

Hope I didn't forget a thing:

[img]http://www.conspicuous.ch/osc_smartcheckout/documentation/products_options.jpg[/img]
is the img tag not working???


As virtual products need to have an account in order to download it, I will include the create account option in the checkout page but only if there are virtual products. Otherwise, it will be an option in the checkout_success.php page.

Edited by strub, 03 May 2012 - 02:53 PM.

[strub]

New progress:

Now working is:
- virtual products: need to create account and payment options for checkout
- virtual free products: need to create account, no shipping and payment options
- virtual mixed: need to create account, need only payment options
- free products: need only shipping options

I did a new category "free products" so you can see that in real.

The best thing is though that you can easily set up your own products types and what you want to show in order to procceed checkout.


Edit:
Furthermore, free shipping is working (order total modul) and shipping calculations should also work properly.


Still have to do:
- Account creation in checkout_success.php (should be fairly easy though)
- See if taxes are activated if it works properly.

Edited by strub, 04 May 2012 - 05:41 PM.

[strub]

Ok to create an account in checkout_success.php is almost finished but was more complicated as expected.

what's happening in checkout_success.php page:

1. the customers account data gets deleted.
2. If you want to create an account: data from orders db are used for the new account and order table gets updated with the new customer_id.



Any feedbacks would be really nice. I am on the right track with this new checkout process?

[strub]

Hi,

I'm testing paypal standart. But I'm having problems with the paypal conncetion. Somehow it is not the whole url send. I get just connceted to: "https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" instead of sth like this "https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_flow&session=353635634.....".

Does anyone have any hint what goes wrong here. Do I miss something? Thanks in advance.

[nobodyfamous]

all I can offer as help with PayPal is test it using the sandbox.  To do this you need to:
1. sign up for paypal sandbox  https://developer.paypal.com/
2. Create a Seller, use the seller log-in email in your osC PayPal Standard as the email
3. Create a buyer, use the buyer email to log in to PayPal Sandbox to "make Payments"

Thats all I know.

[strub]

Hey thanks for your help.

Yes, I know. I have already a sandbox account. But testing with a real account first as not to login all the time.

By the way, It works know with sending all the data. I am about to write the contribution and solve the last minor bugs.

[cannuck1964]

I have simplified the checkout to 3 pages (2 if already logged in).

One page to either login or create account, second page combines all payment, shipping, loyalty points, coupons and voucher selections.

Last page to confirm everything.

Confirm and all done.

To push all to one page without the confirmation page, I do not believe is the way to go.


This simplifies the entire process though.

If anyone is interested, let me know.

cheers

[strub]

I think I will do a second page to have an overview like the confirmation page as you suggested. Also It would solve many problems with different payment modules to work. What do you think?

[cannuck1964]

The goal of the checkout is to capture the information needed, let them review it, and finish off the order.

I see no reason to keep both shipping and payment on two different pages, nor do I see a real need for a complete page to be used for the create account success if being redirected to the checkout area.  A simple in the page header message could be used in it's place.  Giving the site owner the ability to display this or not from a simple configuration setting.

I set up the site to take one address (two can be captured with a small code change using a java form) use it for both shipping and payment.  Then allow for the combined change of address edit, shipping, payment etc as a combined page.

This stream lines the checkout and have plans for using java to open page tabs so the entire page is managed in sections ie:

• points / coupons / voucher /
  
• payment methods / edit address
  
• shipping methods / edit address

last page is pretty much standard osC again.

Error checked with the same logic as standard osC with some custom work.

It is not all that hard to do in reality, I can supply the create account page without any issues, other pages are too customized to offer here.  The login / create account page is the start of the checkout, and if already logged in, then is skipped.  No create account success is generated.

The idea of having a checkout without account is flawed in my opinion and is not something I advocate people using.  This idea gives the customer the impression you are not capturing their data, when in fact you are, additionally, order tracking is lost to the customer to return them to the site, which is where you want them coming to for information ( even for downloads ).

cheers

Edited by cannuck1964, 14 May 2012 - 10:11 PM.

[mattjt83]

@cannuck1964 I think the guest checkout can work well depending on what you are selling.  It works well on my site where people are just making a quick one-off purchase.  They have the option to automatically create an account if they check a box during the checkout otherwise they can checkout as a guest.

As far as checking their order status they still get email updates and I have set it up so they can use their email address and invoice number to check their order status.

All in all I think you have to use the right checkout for your site.  It all depends on your particular customers and the items you are selling.  If you were to go with a multi page checkout I would think the type you suggested (created) would be a great way to go.

[strub]

Hey thanks both of you for your hints

@cannuck1964
I think a success page is an important page. For example, I give on some shops for the first order made a coupon code on the success page as a gift for the order. Or you can ask for signing up a newsletter and so on.

In this Smart Checkout though, you can if you want create an account on the success page by just providing a password.

@mattjt83
I think a guest account is a must have nowadays (you can read in many ecommerce magazines).

Edited by strub, 15 May 2012 - 05:51 AM.

[cannuck1964]

Not quite sure what the guest account is, I have never really installed or set up one for clients.  A guest account to me is a one off sale and I can not really think of any item I would only want to sell once and never try to have another sale with the customer.  Repeat sales are important.

As for the success page, again, these messages for coupon codes etc can be added to the page where the coupons, payment and shipping is done already.

As for newsletters, I found putting it on the checkout success page works well and allows for further marketing on that page.  My system, just auto generates a password for them to use, if they plan to return and use the site again, they can switch it to whatever they like using the password function.

This idea that an account is created or not really is miss leading.  Even in guest checkout (I am assuming) the customers details are gathered and saved, thus there is really no difference in the data saved between the two.  the guest idea would lead me to believe that my data was not saved, which is not the case.  

If it just means that they do not pick a password when they enter their data, then not really a guest checkout.  Heck I could call mine that too, and just not send them a password and it would be the same thing.

Edited by cannuck1964, 15 May 2012 - 11:25 AM.

[mattjt83]

I think the guest checkout could be considered misleading to some customers but most understand it to mean that they just don't have to login to place an order and they will always have to put in all their address data etc to place their order.  I have set my shop up so customers can either create an account and get some extra benifits like points and rewards or just checkout as a guest as many times as they would like.  Guests can leave reviews and I also can send guests review request emails.  Guest users can also sign up for my newsletters.

Some customers just don't like the idea of having to create another account for another shop that they aren't sure if they will shop at again.  I have had several customers come back and create an account on their second order placed through us.

If the customer chooses to create an account they have the option of the site automatically creating the password for them or they can create it themselves.

[strub]

Not quite right. The data of a guest account is only stored in the order table and as soon as you delete the order in admin there is no data anymore.

Furthermore, if I buy things Online, I don't like giving away to much data, only the neccessary. And I am really fed up creating an account on sites so I just doesn't order something or look on another site. But that's just me.

So in this smart checkout there is no option in creating an account only after the order is placed in checkout_success.php so there is no more misunderstanding.

Edited by strub, 15 May 2012 - 02:53 PM.

[ggrant3]

strub, on 15 May 2012 - 02:46 PM, said:

Not quite right. The data of a guest account is only stored in the order table and as soon as you delete the order in admin there is no data anymore.

Furthermore, if I buy things Online, I don't like giving away to much data, only the neccessary. And I am really fed up creating an account on sites so I just doesn't order something or look on another site. But that's just me.

I am the same way.  If I come across a store that forces me to create an account, I leave, and find someone else that sells the same item without the account issue.

[burt]

Interesting.  I do like the idea of asking for the customer data and then at the end asking if they want to insert a password.

IMO the general idea is not to take the checkout and make it all on one page.  It is to take the checkout and make it as usable as possible, but as lean as possible.  For me, that means removing superflous "create_account" questions, removing extra pages such as the two *_success pages and so on.

As shopowners, you should be advising the customer that csutomer data is needed for the order to be placed and sent etc.  I suppose that if the person chooses not to store a password (and therefore make an account), the customers data could be easily removed from the customers_* tables (as the required data for order processing is stored in the orders_* tables...

Thoughts?

[Mort-lemur]

I think the customer data for the order needs to be retained for a time period, to enable handling of warranties etc.

[Juto]

Some thoughts:

A checkout procedure should be as easy as possible regardless of customer type.

When a customer click on checkout, the next step should be "confirm order". That's it.

Presenting all possible options for payment, shipping and so on at that stage is not good at all.

A guest should only be forced to fill in e-mail address and the shipping address, in case it's a gift.
A gift is the most likely scenario for a guest.
As payment method there should be only one, namely payment by card, hence the card holders address is also needed.

Further, there's no need to store a password for guests, as a password can always be send by "forgotten password".

When a customer takes the time to create an account, there should be possibilities to choose prefered
shipping method for physical goods and prefered payment method.

Also, as a bonus for registered customers, there should be options for invoice and "recurring billing".
For admin this means checking up on the customer, just to be safe. Recurring billing doesn't exist in osC at all.
The customer then needs to be notified of approval or denial.

The possibility to choose a different invoice address than the primary address, is madness wrt possible fraud.
This just means extra job for admin, the recipient must be notified so he/she can approve/deny it.

So when a registered customer wants to checkout, the only option the customer have is the shipping address.
In case a customer want's to send a gift. For a this customer it's a list of the customers address book.

The shipping address for a guest account is already in place, see above.

Both the guest and the registered customer should have a list of what's in the cart and a possibility to change
the carts content. That is, number of products, delete a product, change its options (attributes).

If nothing is changed, then it's just a click to confirm the order.

Of course, the order must be kept int the db, in case of returns/warranties and if a guest is returning
for example to register. In this case the guest data can be retrieved.

Just my thoughts, keep up the good work!

Sara

Edited by Juto, 16 May 2012 - 07:39 AM.

[14steve14]

Designing a checkout will never be easy. Different people want different things.

A customer wants the checkout to be as simple as possible with only the minimun infomation given and in as few steps as possible.

A store owner wants as much infomation as possible saved to facilitate correct delivery and the ability to keep the infomation for future marketing.

Best of luck trying to keep everyone happy.