How to have discount code field appear before the checkout?

I need customers to be able to enter the "discount code field" as soon as they choose the product and not on the final checkout page.
All of them will be first time visitors so they want to see they are getting their discount right away. In current settings they have to choose the product, buy it, and when they want to checkout they need to create an account and then are asked about shipping address and on the very last page there is discount coupon code field. This is against marketing psychology. Zen cart is a very popular cart so there must be an add-on or a feature for this. I probably can't find it. Does anyone know? Thanks

To the best of my knowledge noone has done this.

Thanks for the reply. WOW! I cant't believe this. So on all Zen cart powered websites

1. there is no guest checkout
2. customers can only enter the coupon code on the last page where he enters the credit card info

Yes this really need improving. Apparently 30% of sales are lost if you don't have guest checkout.

I have tried many of times to try to get it to work, but have been unsuccessful I believe it should be applied in the shopping cart not at the checkout/payment page.

Im Curious,
where did you get this figure?
please quote source I would love to see this report

dsided:

Yes this really need improving. Apparently 30% of sales are lost if you don't have guest checkout.

Hello,
just food for thought, but when you go to the grocery store you ring up all the items and then scan the coupons....
Is this NOT the checkout process?

remember that you are using coupon codes or Giftcertificate codes....
these need to be added afterproducts are added to cart and in checkout at final total......

its the only logical place...

ryanb4614:

I have tried many of times to try to get it to work, but have been unsuccessful I believe it should be applied in the shopping cart not at the checkout/payment page.

dsided:

Yes this really need improving. Apparently 30% of sales are lost if you don't have guest checkout.
I am also curious about this. I know that some people do not want to enter personal information on a web site. I frequently run into people using phony e-mail addresses and telephone numbers. But you still need to capture personal information for credit card processing and if you do not save the information, you have no way to screen purchases for fraud.

You do need to capture names and addresses or you cannot ship products, even with a guest account.

Merlinpa1969:

Hello,
just food for thought, but when you go to the grocery store you ring up all the items and then scan the coupons....
Is this NOT the checkout process?

remember that you are using coupon codes or Giftcertificate codes....
these need to be added afterproducts are added to cart and in checkout at final total......

its the only logical place...

I understand what you are saying but many of the bigger companies that I have used their website to order from have it displaying the coupon codes to be applied in the cart. OR it would help having a apply button also where the coupon box currently is...

thisismyusername:

WOW! I cant't believe this. So on all Zen cart powered websites

1. there is no guest checkout

Not entirely true. Some Zen Cart site owners have installed mods to allow for guest checkout.

Merlinpa1969:

Im Curious,
where did you get this figure?
please quote source I would love to see this report

As all ecommerce sites are different, it's worth pointing out that no single figure is going to apply for everyone. A dvd or a card-sending website taking many repeat orders isn't likely to benefit much from a guest checkout. On the other hand, companies with no repeat business could benefit immensely, especially ones that sell very low-cost items. For example, in this case, they see a 45% increase in sales resulting in an extra $15 million a month. Granted, they probably don't sell low-cost items but that's not the point. So some people might try to determine an average figure but it's always going to be speculative.

Tech-E:

You do need to capture names and addresses or you cannot ship products, even with a guest account.

While it's true that the only real difference between a guest account and a normal account is that the guest account does not capture a password, it's all about perception.

1. They don't want a relationship with the company
2. It's one more account to have to keep track of
3. Chance of being spammed
4. Chance of identity theft
5. Chance of password being compromised
6. etc etc

As to discount coupons being applied prior to checkout, I don't believe it makes any difference.

@Steven300 - Interesting article.

I can see the password as being a nuisance issue with some people. But if you are shipping products, you still have to capture other information, such as name, billing address and shipping address. While you could skip capturing the e-mail and telephone number, you are playing with fire if you don't.

Last Christmas season close to 10% of the people ordering products on our site used invalid addresses, which required us to contact them. Part of the problem is that people are shipping gifts to other people and they take a guess at the shipping address. We don't see that problem during the rest of the year.

I could see a value with a guest account.

If it is not possible to put the discount coupon on the "my cart page" Would it be possible to put the shipping section on there? And everytime the a different shipping option is picked it refreshes or changes the price.... See attachment of what I am taking about.

Anyone any update about the possibility to appy the discount coupon on the shopping cart page? If visitors see what they actually have to pay, then they will make the purchase.

I just sent out a discount coupon over mailchimp. I am seeing multiple people come to my site, fill their shopping carts with product and then just sitting on the shopping cart page and leaving. I believe this is because they cannot find a place to enter the coupon code and do not want to press checkout without entering it.

Also a very important reason for the code entry box to be at the shopping cart:

Paypal express check out is used alot at my site, and you do not have an option to put in a coupon code if you select this way of paying. I use WPP and paypal requires you to have express checkout at the shopping cart. What to do?

chabates:

I believe this is because they cannot find a place to enter the coupon code and do not want to press checkout without entering it.You could start by adding a note to the Shopping Cart page text that tells them they'll be able to enter their coupon code during the checkout process.

chabates:

Also a very important reason for the code entry box to be at the shopping cart:

Paypal express check out is used alot at my site, and you do not have an option to put in a coupon code if you select this way of paying.
Yes, you do. When the customer returns to your site to complete payment, they'll be taken to the payment-choices page, where they can enter their coupon code just like if they had used the regular checkout process.
So, again, adding a note to the shopping cart page will be your fastest workaround.

DrByte:

Yes, you do. When the customer returns to your site to complete payment, they'll be taken to the payment-choices page, where they can enter their coupon code just like if they had used the regular checkout process.
So, again, adding a note to the shopping cart page will be your fastest workaround.

I just can't see anyone clicking on paypal express payment, paying full price and then after returning to my site being able to add a discount coupon.

I thought about adding a text description to my shopping cart but when I did it, for some reason I just didn't think i looked right.

My discount promotion does seem to be working well, but I beleive I'm losing some customers because the coupon is not at checkout.

yeah when i shop online i like to be able to enter in the coupon code on the cart page to see how much discount then proceed to checkout with entering in personal information.

i just tried out virtuemart templates and all of them have the coupon code on the cart page.

one thing i like about zen cart is the box at the bottom to subscribe to newsletter. virtuemart doesn't have that. i guess can't have them all!! nothing perfect.

I feel this issue is being brushed aside... With the ability to post on facebook to thousands of people and enticement of a coupon code is extremely effective. we have sent hundreds of people to our site to utilize a coupon code with very poor response.

if the customer cant see the coupon code in action before they fill anything out, the sale is pretty much dead.

it has to be on the cart page. i don't understand why it isn't. it just makes sense even better yet, on the product description page.

conversions will jump when this is possible. no one will check out on a $79 order when you have a coupon code to try it for 6.95. it looks like you are buying it at full price with nowhere to put in a coupon code. also the link in the information box is burried and hard to locate. on top of that hard to understand because you still dont see the price drop in the cart. Most people go straight to the product and look for the coupon code and when they dont see it, they add it to the cart, when they still dont see it, a select few may continue on to the next page and when there is still no coupon code box, they bail.

instead of trying to educate the customer on an awkward process that doesn't make sense, we need to fix the process to what the customer expects and is used to. when a customer gets what they expect, there is no interruption in the buying process.

very disappointed when i googled for a better solution to find there is none.

i absolutely love zen cart and am so impressed with how everything i have wanted to with my cart so far is achievable.

this is the only blockade that if can be fixed or addressed can seriously impact my marketing efforts in a big way and i think that goes for others, which in turn makes zencart even more totally awesome

i would love to see a resolution to this and would even pay to help the development if necessary :frusty:

yeah i tried searching for a module that does it but can't find one.

In v1.x there is no built-in logic for displaying the net-effect of any discounts on the shopping-cart page itself. All that logic exists in the checkout pages only.
So, to show the net effect of a coupon earlier in the process will require significant reworking of the logic for the shopping-cart page.
However, that doesn't prevent you from collecting the coupon code from the customer at anytime during their visit. If you collect it and set it as the relevant session variable, then it will automatically apply itself when the customer gets to the checkout-payment page, and the coupon effect will be visible to them at that time.

Fortunately, Zen Cart v2.0 has significantly reworked how the checkout pages flow, and will be able to show such discounts more intuitively, akin to much of the discussion above.