X-Cart forums - Easy Checkout Mod for X-Cart 3.5.x and 4.0.x

X-Cart forums (https://forum.x-cart.com/index.php)

- Third Party Add-Ons for X-Cart 4 (https://forum.x-cart.com/forumdisplay.php?f=45)

- - Easy Checkout Mod for X-Cart 3.5.x and 4.0.x (https://forum.x-cart.com/showthread.php?t=9085)

Easy Checkout Mod for X-Cart 3.5.x and 4.0.x

I've redone the checkout process for both 3.5.x and 4.0.x versions of x-cart and provided it as a module for just $99.00.

You can view details here:
http://www.websitecm.com/store/customer/product.php?productid=69&cat=0&page=

It:

Works with your existing layout to use your custom look and feel.
Uses the language database for multilingual sites.
Easily integrates into heavily modded x-carts.
Works with both 4.0.x and 3.5.x versions of x-cart.

Outlines the checkout process with straight forward steps indicated with tabs across the top of the checkout process.
Streamlines the checkout process removing long, messy, and confusing pages.
Removes potential distractions during the checkout process by placing the checkout outside of the store layout.
Allows for a user login or a user registration on the same page, avoiding any confusion for visitors.
Upon login, it moves the user forward in the checkout process, instead of back a step to the cart like the default x-cart.

http://www.mixtapemp3.com/temp/screenshot1.gif

http://www.mixtapemp3.com/temp/screenshot2.gif

http://www.mixtapemp3.com/temp/screenshot3.gif

http://www.mixtapemp3.com/temp/screenshot4.gif

http://www.mixtapemp3.com/temp/screenshot5.gif[/url]

really nice jon! i like how youve streamlined the checkout.

It would be cool if you posted your template changes instead of charging $200+ but i understand :)

great job, looks very professional

Looks nice,

but you need to change those standard xcart buttons to match the custom ones you have.

See now that's the way to do it. Quite a few of the developers out there have hacked up the checkout so it works like that, it's much friendlier :)

X-cart should definately take note. They keep adding stuff but they never seem to refine what's needed. I'd trade all of the new features in x-cart 4.0 for a version of 3.5.X that was cleaned up it's of more value to both myself and my customers.

X-cart is great feature wise, but they've still not learnt to stop adding features and concentrate on the more important parts, there's still loads in x-cart that's been neglected in favour of adding another feature.

Areas that immediately jump to mind are:

- Custom Invoice and dispatch note printing that's easy for the *admin* to change

- Lable printing that's actually got a use

- Cleaner less clunky customer registration that doesnt fit everything everything onto one screen (these things put customers off)

- Friendlier Login screen with easy redirection to the page they came from or to one chosen by the admin

- Quit with the use of programmer terminology (example "Credit card checksum is wrong"... use words like "credit card number is not valid")

- CVV2 portion needs help links by default

- *cough* "your order is being processed in white screen unformatted times text" *cough* :wink:

- While the product screens in x-cart were reformatted to break them up they've managed to make product population that use those fields complete torture, it's far far far far too slow

- A check out like jons modification as standard or at least give the option of "nice checkout" or "original checkout" :D

Anyway nice work Jon.

Thanks for the comments and suggestions. I'm continuing to work on this as it's not live yet, and will change the buttons eventually :D

Another thing about the x-cart checkout process that's frustrating, is during checkout when they login they get put back into the cart, and essentially a step backwards in the checkout process, as opposed to a step forward. I've fixed that so they get moved forward. Considering checkout is one of the most important factors in determining a sale or a non-sale, this really is essential, and I'd be surprised if we didn't see this in a future version of x-cart ;)

Quote:

Originally Posted by EnriqueHavoc

really nice jon! i like how youve streamlined the checkout.

It would be cool if you posted your template changes instead of charging $200+ but i understand :)

great job, looks very professional

I've put all my mods free on the forums so far, the thing with this is that it's very involved. I started documenting all the changes to release the mod, but it was just too much. So in order to do it I would have to do the custom work myself and well I don't work for free ;)

You don't ever need to explain charging for your mods Jon. To an owner of a "real" store that does significant business, $200 for an improved checkout is peanuts.

^ Agreed. Just wanted to explain that I did originally intend it to be released though :)

Please pardon my ignorance... but I really don't see anything tremendously wrong with the checkout process. Perhaps I just haven't seen better.

Assuming you are logged in:

you put items in your cart
you press "Checkout"
you select your payment method
you enter the payment info
you press "Submit"

If the credit card transaction goes through, you are done.

Can someone show me how it can be done in a more friendly way?

^ Most of the difficulty occurs when your not logged in. The main difficulties I've found are: The register and login pages are seperate making them hard to find, so the login/registration process can be confusing, the pages are long and messy and once you login or register you get redirected back to your cart and out of the checkout process.

For technical users this isn't normally an issue because they can make sense of the junk on the screen, and when they get sent back to their cart they realize they were moved back so they click checkout again. Less technical users are easily confused and they are the majority of the market place so the easier and more straight forward you can make it the better.

nah- i completely understand.. like you said, when you put that much work into something its absolutely reasonable to charge for your time and effort...

Quote:

Originally Posted by chago

Please pardon my ignorance... but I really don't see anything tremendously wrong with the checkout process. Perhaps I just haven't seen better.

Can someone show me how it can be done in a more friendly way?

It's the way it's displayed, when you compare it to other systems out there, it's scary to the standard customer first coming to the net.

Buttons too small, order details displayed on every page, each page being a mile long, if your not logged in it takes you round in a little circle. Etc.

There's many many sites that make it much simpler and faster. X-carts checkout "works" but it certainly isn't visually user friendly.

How easy is it to simply remove the menus during the checkout process? Just read one of Jakob Nielsen's latest bulletins and it had this snippet:

Quote:

...during the checkout process on an e-commerce site, you should not distract users by including links to all possible site areas. Highlight the proceed to checkout button and provide only those additional features that users might need (such as return to shopping, privacy policy, and so on).

Not sure where to start on this one.

Thanks

Dan

It can't be that hard. You could wrap your side menus in code similar to that found in customer/home.tpl for the page titles. Like {if $main ne "cart}SHOW MENU{/if}.

Dunno, I'm sure Jon can expound further.

Thanks adpboss, just found this thread which I think will do what I want.

http://forum.x-cart.com/viewtopic.php?t=11543

Dan

An even easier way, which I've done, is to open cart.php

Find:
$smarty->display("customer/home.tpl");

Change to:
$smarty->display("customer/home_checkout.tpl");

Then save home.tpl to home_checkout.tpl and edit it removing all the access.

Thanks Jon, that method is a lot easier and more how I want it looking but am a bit confused about something. In my new home_checkout.tpl I have decided to use:

Code:

{if $main ne "checkout"}

{ include file="customer/categories.tpl" }{/if}

To NOT show the categories menu when the user checks out (and past the View cart stage). This works when a user is logged in but when an anonymous user comes to checkout, the menu is still present -am I missing something?

Thanks

Dan

OK, it's:

Code:

{if $main ne "anonymous_checkout"} 

{ include file="customer/categories.tpl" }{/if}

BUT, I seem to have problems writing an or statement like:

Code:

{if $main ne "anonymous_checkout" or $main ne "checkout"}



or



{if $main ne "anonymous_checkout" || $main ne "checkout"}

and other versions and they don't seem to work...any help?

Thanks

Dan

Code:

{if $main ne "anonymous_checkout" OR $main eq "checkout"}

{include file="customer/categories.tpl" }

{/if}

Should work with no problem.

If that is not working for you try

Code:

{if ($main ne "anonymous_checkout") OR ($main eq "checkout")}

{include file="customer/categories.tpl" }

{/if}

Thanks, I tried both but for some reason it only seems to want to process the first bit before the OR in both cases...very odd. I've sort of circumvented this so don't need it urgently now...be nice to know what the problem is though for future reference. :?

Thanks again,

Dan

Code:

{if $main ne "anonymous_checkout" AND $main ne "checkout"} 

Do this is it's not in the checkout phase

{/if}

Thanks Jon, that works. This begs the question, why didn't the others work? I would have thought the OR statement should have produced the same output :? unless my knowledge of boolean has gone awry!

Thanks!

Dan

When you go to the checkout page you'll get these two variables:

When it is an anonymous checkout then "main will not equal checkout"

When it is a checkout, then "main will not equal anonymous_checkout"

So no matter what, one of the ne statements will be true. You can't use the OR command then, because at any given time one of the statements will be true. If you use the AND then it will work.

Don't know if that makes sense or not :D

Gotcha, thanks Jon!

These edits I'm making to the checkout are a PITA! Be nice if you could easily alter the sequence or positioning of certain menus/buttons/descriptive text. Some of the buttons, IMO, are too far down or it's not immediately clear what the customer should do next.

Dan

OK, couple more questions Jon, if that's OK.

1. You said you'd sorted out the logging in at checkout mess, which now takes you back to the last stage you were at rather than back to the "View cart" screen -was that using the hack at http://forum.x-cart.com/viewtopic.php?t=3088?
2. What is common practice for the displaying of the cart contents at checkout i.e. when should the cart details "disappear" to give a cleaner look? Also, can the reference to showing the cart contents on the login/new member and payment details screens be deleted without affecting the overall checkout process?

Thanks

Dan

1) I didn't use that mod no. I just added a $redirect2 variable to the login and register pages and then modified /include/login.php and /include/register.php to do a header ("Location: /customer/cart.php?mode=checkout"); if that variable was set.

2) If you look at the screenshots on the first page, I just put a cart tab at the top and removed it from elsewhere in the checkout process. If they want to view their cart, they can click back. I also changed the checkout links on my site to point to cart.php instead of /customer/cart.php?mode=checkout so by default they are going to cart.php as the first phase of the checkout process.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanUK

There's no reason why you shouldn't be able to do that. It's all in the tpl files.

Thanks a lot Jon, I'm nearly there -nowhere near as nice as yours but it tidies up the existing process at least. I've got rid of the cart at the login/anonymous checkout pages and reintroduced it at the very final screen so they can check the order one last time before submitting -just copying Amazon's process!

I'm about to embark on the login/checkout hack. Your method seems to be far far easier. I think I've got the gist of it!

Thanks again,

Dan

^ The difficulty is just making sure variables are passed through cause smarty doesn't make it the easiest.

Can you PM me a link, I'd love to see your process and maybe steal some ideas ;)

Lol, I'll send you a pm when it's finished, but really it's nothing special at all, just based on the standard X-Cart look -I see it as more of a tidy up of what's there already! Your site is how I'd like mine to be if I had the time...I likke the Quickcart idea BTW.

Thanks

Dan

Here's an interesting article from SitePoint.
http://www.sitepoint.com/print/increases-online-sales

Quote:

Reduce Abandonment Rates

eMarketer report that over 65% of buyers leave their Shopping Carts in mid-purchase. To reduce cart abandonment rates, consider these points during the design phase:

Display Shipping Costs Shoppers donБ─≥t buy goods when they feel there are hidden costs involved in the transaction. They want to know all costs (including taxes) and how long will it take to deliver the goods before they begin the purchase process. If customers realize during purchase that they donБ─≥t know what these charges will cost them, theyБ─≥ll leave the shopping cart to find outБ─╕ and often wonБ─≥t return.
Build a Clear Interface Make sure the user can progressively add items to the basket during shopping; poor designs often display only the currently-selected item onscreen. This encourages users to leave before they reach the checkout, fearing that they might be double-billed, or that theyБ─≥ve done something wrong. On that point, hereБ─≥s a quick tip. When writing your error messages, always instruct the user what they should do next. Avoid criticizing them for hitting the Б─≤wrongБ─≥ button.
Multiple Windows Avoid designing shopping carts that float over the entire desktop. These perplex novice users and distract them from the purchase. Stick to the tried, trusted, and familiar display methods.
Customer Support The importance of excellent support is typically underrated. Always include telephone support numbers on the site. Amazon.com has a huge tele-center to handle phone calls -- it understands its users. Support numbers comfort people; novice users will leave the shopping cart to find these. DonБ─≥t let the user worry, Б─°Is anyone really behind this site?Б─² If you do, youБ─≥ll lose the sale. Use pre-defined templates to ensure that the support phone number is located on all sales pages.
Refine Shipping and Billing Pages Design forms so that users donБ─≥t have to key in their details repeatedly. Capture the data in the database, and avoid making the user leave the site to visit another Б─≤dedicatedБ─≥ shipping site; this makes the process exhausting and once fatigue sets in, the customer will quickly give up.

Improve the Purchase Process

Shopping carts can be sharpened up, checkout processes can be simplified, and buying online can be almost as much fun as the hype would have you believe!

To improve your ecommerce siteБ─≥s effectiveness, try these seven bulletproof pointers:

Link to the shopping cart from every page -- donБ─≥t make users struggle to find it. Use the word Б─≤BuyБ─≥ or Б─≤ShopБ─≥. Avoid witty puns, as non-native speakers probably wonБ─≥t understand your knife-edged humor.

Explain the ordering options in simple terms. Many users may be shopping online for the first time.

Include all necessary features in the shopping cart process, for example, the ability to modify or delete items from the basket.

Let users put items Б─≤on holdБ─≥ for future purchasing. Their credit card may not have the available limit during the session, but they might like to be reminded of the item when they return.

Number the pages in the checkout process, for example, 1-4, 2-4, 3-4, 4-4. Users feel more comfortable when they know their location in the overall process, and they have an idea of what lies ahead.

Create concise, usable forms. DonБ─≥t force users to re-enter information or provide superfluous data. Why does anyone want a customerБ─≥s fax number? Long, bloated forms smack of laziness and reflect poorly on your commitment to quality and customer service.

Guarantee security. Inform the user before they enter an SSL page. If this comes upon them out of the blueБ─■with a JavaScript popup screen warning them about securityБ─■some users will think that they have made a mistake and exit.

All these points will improve the shopping experience for users, and ensure you achieve more sales.

Quote:

Reasons shoppers abandon their carts

Б─■ 56% said shipping charges were too expensive
Б─■ 41% said the item was unavailable
Б─■ 29% said the site was too difficult to navigate
Б─■ 21% said the order wouldnБ─≥t go through
Б─■ 18% said the order form was too complicated
Б─■ 15% said they were unable to use coupons or discounts on the site

I've now made this a mod for purchase. You can view details here:
http://www.mixtapemp3.com/Easy_Checkout_for_XCart_35x-p-25.html

For the month of September I'm giving $25.00 off to x-cart forum members, just use the discount coupon: xcartforum

If anybody is interested in the mod for 4.0.x at the same cost, let me know and I will create it.

Interested in 4.0. I'd like to get all of these core mods done before I do any tweaking to finalise my 4.0 installation.

yes i am very much interested in this for 4.0! great work Jon, especially for providing the install instructions (now i can afford it) Thanks!

Alright, I'll have to setup a test store and will get to work on the 4.0

hey jon, how complicated or difficult do you think it would be to modify the easy checkout header to show some kind of visible completion % like amazon or other sites have?

http://images.amazon.com/images/G/01/x-locale/checkout/confirm-banner.gif

also this could be a dumb question, but does shipping options have its own step or where is it handled in the checkout process?

It would be real easy to do the completion %, the way I have it setup right now, is there are tabs. As you go across the tab your on becomes highlighted.

Shipping is handled in the Cart View same as it currently is, perhaps that could/should be changed too. Any suggestions?

Jon,

Hurry up and get the 4.0 version done so I can use your coupon for September! ;) LMAO

Suggestion

You might want to add the option to have the customer view or agree to either the full TOS or an abbreviated version. I have a mod like this and as a store owner, I cannot tell you how many idiotic questions it saves me having to answer. As my business grows, I look for aesthetically pleasing mods WITH value added. If you can make the customer experience better while easing the burdens of the store admins, you will be hitting grand slams everytime.

Code:

{math equation="x + y" x=$more_sales y=$less_headaches}



OUTPUT:



Happy Cart Owner

I'll see what I can do and may just extend u the coupon if need be :D

A mod to agree to the terms takes less than 2 minutes if you know what your doing, but to explain to somebody else how to do it takes a lot of instruction and could be very confusing to a novice user, so I don't want to add anything that's not necessary for installation purposes.

If you want that added and aren't sure how to do it I'll add that mod for u free of charge in your version.