removing login info

Keep losing connection.:down:

You might want to rethink the JC Penney thing. The only things lacking on JC's "Checkout Now - Register Later" page is a password and an email preference.

Do you have to register? Technically no. Will you still receive email? Definitely. Will you have to enter all the billing information again if you ever decide to buy another item? Absolutely!

I still can't see the savings to you or the customer unless you're counting on just one sale from each customer.

If you feel so bad about the customer "having to log in", reward their having to pick a password with a 10% coupon on their next purchase. Might create a conversion and maybe even a repeat.

I do not want customer to be forced to make an account just to buy 1 item.. But on the other hand i like the idea forcing the customer to create a account becuase it is nice to have all the information from who bought from you. What would happen if someone spoofed the ip and just ripped your mouth out. just because they did not have to create an account.. I would like to atleast have somekind of information and a trace for security reasons.. (Granted they could as easly lie about everything, but i would atleast have something) <p> Offering a discount coupon would draw customers to think past the idaea of creating an account, like Dbltoe said... So I can go both ways on this.

dbltoe:

Keep losing connection.:down:

You might want to rethink the JC Penney thing. The only things lacking on JC's "Checkout Now - Register Later" page is a password and an email preference.

Do you have to register? Technically no. Will you still receive email? Definitely. Will you have to enter all the billing information again if you ever decide to buy another item? Absolutely!

I still can't see the savings to you or the customer unless you're counting on just one sale from each customer.

If you feel so bad about the customer "having to log in", reward their having to pick a password with a 10% coupon on their next purchase. Might create a conversion and maybe even a repeat.

I understand that the only difference is one field: a password.

I explained to them that the data at jcpenny was probably even saved in the same database with the only difference being a "yes" or "no" in the registerd acoount field.

They still would rather use it when checking out at a site, and feel that they would lose more customers from forcing them to login than they would get from repeat business.

For their target customer, I agree. Having an account is very unlikely to result in repeat business anymore than not having an account.

And if not having an account login causes them to lose even a few sales, they are behind because of it.

In any case, they are going to use the login/account because that is the only option with ZenCart and everything else has already been setup.

You're welcome to your opinion, it may be valid for your store and customer base. But I don't think it applies to this case.

Even with this one issue, ZenCart has been a great option and I would definitely use it again. Everyone involved with the development should be commended.

Hrere is a thought. Make the cart add a random character or string to their email when it goes to do the check and remove it when it inserts it into the database, thus bypassing the required login. I may seem like a hack and a waste but i can tell you that in my industry we lose business when a login is required, customers dont want that. And there are many many other carts that are well known that dont require logins.

Kamino,
Unless you are selling Gay Porn I cant believe the BS about LOSING customers if they have to create an account,

WHY would the MAJOR Players require an account if it was a turn off.
think about it, and before you say, well they are BIG stores, remember they started off with just 1 customer just like you did.

There are 2 reasons people DONT create an account
they are buying something they are ashamed of, Hence the Gay Porn statement ( not a slander I personally dont care )
or they are shady....

OK,
just say that YOU DONT WANT IT.
quit trying to sell the "Customer dosnt like it " line, its OLD and wornout.
Customers are PROGRAMMED to create accounts Just Like Pavlovs Dogs

Merlinpa1969:

Kamino,
Unless you are selling Gay Porn I cant believe the BS about LOSING customers if they have to create an account,

WHY would the MAJOR Players require an account if it was a turn off.
think about it, and before you say, well they are BIG stores, remember they started off with just 1 customer just like you did.

There are 2 reasons people DONT create an account
they are buying something they are ashamed of, Hence the Gay Porn statement ( not a slander I personally dont care )
or they are shady....

OK,
just say that YOU DONT WANT IT.
quit trying to sell the "Customer dosnt like it " line, its OLD and wornout.
Customers are PROGRAMMED to create accounts Just Like Pavlovs Dogs

Merlin,

Obvoiusly you have issues that you take comments personally. Its proven that customers who order water filters versus computers do not want to have to login as it slows them down or they forget their password and it frustrates them. We have hundreds of thousands of customers and i can tell you its the customers who dont want it. I has nothing to do with them being shady. Its both a privacy issue, since they dont want their information kept in someones database and a convenience issue.

Its both a privacy issue, since they dont want their information kept in someones database
and do you honestly think anyone is stupid enough to believe that you are NOT keeping their information

Sorry,
gotta go before someone thinks IM being grumpy again

Merlinpa1969:

and do you honestly think anyone is stupid enough to believe that you are NOT keeping their information

Look. The point is, i know we are not the only ones that have this issue with customers. And for all of you on the board that want the solution, i solved it a different way then i posted that makes it really easy for you. Just email me.

Just an FYI, I am in the process of setting up a Zen Cart store for a company that has been in business for close to 80 years. While it is true that a lot of people are accustomed to creating an account, I don't want to make it mandatory that they do, especially given the case that a lot of our customers are older and might not be comfortable shopping online anyways. The way I see it is the fewer questions that we ask of them the better experience they will have.

Do I wish that they would create an account? Heck yes, but I'm not willing to lose a sale if someone doesn't want to. So Kamino, please please please either email me the solution that you came up with ([email protected]) or post a reply to this forum so that anyone else who finds this thread will know how to do it also. Thanks in advance!

-Andrew Cannon

Be prepared for alot of problems with orders. Why not have a customer accounts? Your going to need their details anyway, such as their address etc. So if customers wont be willing to give you them, then theres no point in creating a online store... ?

The way I see it, it's a matter of salesmanship. Are you selling them a bucket of $#!* or a bucket of the finest fertilizer for their roses?

I think you would be better served to let your customers understand that some information has to be gathered in order to be able to properly protect their identity in a time when not only they but you are doing all in you power to prevent someone from stealing from them through identity theft.

Especially in these days and times when folks are willing to give up a little privacy for security.

Wow! This has been an exicting section of posts! I to, wanted to speed the process of customers purchasing products (usually under $5) along before they realized that the time involved wasn't worth the money. Developers of Zen Cart (who I really appreciate for their time and excellent product) don't have to back down from their original creation (which was obviously agreed upon as being a wonderful "child"), however, they should also realize that many (or most) "Zenners" aren't selling Rolex watches. I read somewhere that customer motivations are 90% want and 10% need, therefore when customers pause, even for a moment, they are calculating facts and figures "time equals money". The desire for a quick sale on the part of "Zenners" is not an attempt to undermine the process of Zen Cart, but rather to utilize known drives in humans...to change their minds incessantly, and work within THOSE known parameters.

I believe that another cart (not just adding a "buy now" button) eliminated the registration process, so that's an alternative you can look into. The Zen Cart is very nice, as this is my third cart and I'm sticking to it. I'm not a programmer, but I've changed a few of the "this and thats", but put them back as I want to leave room for "future" customers NEEDING to be registered (for shipping purposes).

Speaking for myself, I will maintain the registration process and will compensate with a new skill, ADVERTISING! If you can, like any good car salesmen, convince someone that your product is useful, unique and necessary for the betterment of his/her existence, then they'll not only take the time to register, they'll pay you for the priviledge.

Or maybe I'm full of s&*$t:smartass:

Merlinpa1969:

Kamino,
Unless you are selling Gay **** I cant believe the BS about LOSING customers if they have to create an account,

WHY would the MAJOR Players require an account if it was a turn off.
think about it, and before you say, well they are BIG stores, remember they started off with just 1 customer just like you did.

There are 2 reasons people DONT create an account
they are buying something they are ashamed of, Hence the Gay **** statement ( not a slander I personally dont care )
or they are shady....

OK,
just say that YOU DONT WANT IT.
quit trying to sell the "Customer dosnt like it " line, its OLD and wornout.
Customers are PROGRAMMED to create accounts Just Like Pavlovs Dogs

Dude, you dont seem to get it. You are trying to force your thinking on customers. It is the customer that is always right. You remind me of the old IBM insinuating vehemently that OS2 was better than Windows and that customers should buy it. Clearly customers disagreed.

Its ridiculous to assume that customers want something because its better for your business. Im sorry, Zencart is great but that is a major flaw in your thinking and design. You never even gave people the option of choosing a forced registration or not. Frankly, its stupid.

But what is more stupid is thinking that people DONT create accounts only if they are ashamed or shady. Thanks for ZenCart seriously. But your thoughts on this are over the top and out of touch with reality. People are being asked to create accounts every time they go to a site now. Its irritating to say the least. They just want to buy something and dont care about your database of info or attempts of getting them to come back. You lack creativity and entrepreneurialism if you cant find a way to do it! Creating a horrible buying experience is not a way to get them back.

MrBrightside,

This issue re-occurs every so often...

If you read this complete post, there were some relatively easy hacks to change required to not required in addition to the admin switches to turn off certian items.

For most, some information is required to allow shipping to somewhere, and even for "virtual products" to protect the seller, some information is required to prevent a download link from being diseminated across the web. i.e. only the account user that purchased the item can download it.

So without some type of accounting for who purchases what, how would you suggest that this be controlled?

"Register" is a term and this terminology can be changed i.e. "Create an Account" - "Provide Shipping Information" - "Download Tracking Info" - and/or any other terms that you might prefer.

Bottomline, to protect you for virtual products and/or to provide you with someplace to ship what is purchased, this function is important. For US based operations, this information tracking/substantiating of transactions is necessary for IRS if you are required to verify your sales.

Call it what you like, but this is a function that is necessary. Make it appear as un-imposing to your clientle as you want, and do not use it for re-contacting via mail or any other mode if this is your choice.

I am sure that your customers want to receive the items that they purchase and to do this they must provide some information and they know and understand this.

This information is the only requested upon checkout and a shopper is not required to supply it until they are prepared to make a purchase.

I get the point that you can change the wording of the log in. Still, having a customer remember an ID and password is what it is no matter what you call it. Its a nuissance to the customer.

thank you for the explanation. I read the whole thread and cannot find out how I can undo the login. I thought the address and contact info will be saved with every transaction. Is there not a database ID for the transaction that is linked to their info? If so, then why do you need a login? I guess Im missing something.

The point is that not every customer wants to have to login. So you give them a choice or you disable it. Not everyone wants to shut it off and thats fine. But for those of us who know what our customers want and know they dont want to have to login, then this is something we need. If you are still looking for the fix. PM me

Robert
Kamino84

Kamino84.

Kamino84:

And there are many many other carts that are well known that dont require logins.
Again this has been an issue before, this is how Zencart functions, as you seem to know of others that are more to your liking, look to them.

This is not an issue that can be altered easily if at all and the development team has addressed it many times. No need to continue flaming the issue.

You know your customer's sentiments best, so if required get them one of those other carts that meet the need.

See that again is the problem with those who think customers have to login. Why cant zen-cart be used if we dont want logins? It is a very very easy fix and while zen-cart developers may not want to make the change, for those who want it, it can be done with two very simple changes in two files and your done.

This is on the list of things to do ... it is not on Today's list of things to do ...

If you need it Today ... feel free to write this now for yourself or post in the Commercial Help Wanted and someone can write this code for you Today ...

But as to the Zen Cart Development Team saying "we won't do this" is not true ...

What we said was, we won't do this Today ... but you are free to do so at your leisure ... :cool:

Kamino84:

...But for those of us who know what our customers want and know they dont want to have to login, then this is something we need. If you are still looking for the fix. PM me

Kamino84:

It is a very very easy fix and while zen-cart developers may not want to make the change, for those who want it, it can be done with two very simple changes in two files and your done.

Why not post your recommended changes here?