[quote name=‘pbannette’]My configuration is that the customer goes to the cart first. They can review and make what ever changes they want. Then they go to one page checkout. If paying by cc. they first go to Step 4 to review the cart and final cost and then click place order and go to the cresecure credit card page and enters credit card information. If at the previous step, 4, they want to make changes at this point, I have a link back to the cart. I don’t really need a persistent mini-cart.
Also, at least 25-30% of sales is via PayPal Std, express or Amazon and they would never see a mini-cart anyway.
I would just like to see the possibility of last minute changes in step 4 (review and place order).
Too many chances to bail out could cause abandon carts. If you keep asking, “Do You really want to buy this?”, “Are you Positive? " Is this your final answer”, then the sale could be lost.
Bob[/QUOTE]
I agree fully, there is fine line between giving customers what they really want & need to know and “information overload”, too much information can easily become as bad or worse than not enough, so don’t want to go overboard with this little issue. 
It’s pretty simple logic to make everyone happy.
If tthe checkout.checkout page is accessed from the checkout.cart page then the view of the cart in the checkout is collapsed. If they come directly to checkout then it will be expanded (or overriden by a new admin option).
There can be a single admin setting to display or not display the cart in a section on the one-page-checkout page (all or nothing).
This would entirely eliminate the desire of some merchants to take the user to the cart page irregardless of whether they clicked a Checkout link or not.
An option “could” be provided to set the state of the cart section to either expanded or collapsed when the user first comes to the checkout.checkout page.
[quote name=‘tbirnseth’]It’s pretty simple logic to make everyone happy.
If tthe checkout.checkout page is accessed from the checkout.cart page then the view of the cart in the checkout is collapsed. If they come directly to checkout then it will be expanded (or overriden by a new admin option).
There can be a single admin setting to display or not display the cart in a section on the one-page-checkout page (all or nothing).
This would entirely eliminate the desire of some merchants to take the user to the cart page irregardless of whether they clicked a Checkout link or not.
An option “could” be provided to set the state of the cart section to either expanded or collapsed when the user first comes to the checkout.checkout page.[/QUOTE]
PERFECT 
Oh, and it would actually be a one page checkout! 
[quote name=‘Flow’]Same as Struck. I am happy the way it is now.
Customer clicks checkout → Sees cart and can edit → fills in details and pays.
The way I see it, if you keep putting the cart in front of his/her nose the customer will only start having doubts and might click away from the shop.[/QUOTE]
If your customer has doubts then they had no intention on buying in the first place. Being a business owner is about giving the customer all the tools they need to make an easy and informed purchase. Not giving the customer the option to edit and see the cart at all times is bad business. This just increases returns.
The one page checkout needs a good amount of overhaul to get it on a competitive level in my opinion. If it was as simple as adding the mini cart to the side as in 2.0.12-15, then 2.1.4 would of included it. Bet we’re in for a complete re-working of the checkout. Which is good and much needed!
Stu
[quote name=‘pbannette’]Too many chances to bail out could cause abandon carts. If you keep asking, “Do You really want to buy this?”, “Are you Positive? " Is this your final answer”, then the sale could be lost.
Bob[/QUOTE]
I would rather lose the sale than to deal with returns and refunds all of the time.
[quote name=‘ogia’]PERFECT :D[/QUOTE]
Agreed!
Hi,
I never had more than one to three returns/refunds average per year over a 7 year period with a cart without a min-cart. CS-Cart has the ability to edit options and text boxes in the cart and this is a big improvement for me over the last cart that did not have this. I have not had a return/refund using CS-CART. Only using for about 5 months, so maybe not enough experience yet. I think going to the cart first helps eliminate problems.
Bob
[quote name=‘pbannette’]Hi,
I think going to the cart first helps eliminate problems.
Bob[/QUOTE]
Ditto.
I personally like it when a store brings me to the cart where I can review my order again, add or delete products, before I go to the payment stage (where I don’t see the need of reviewing my order again).
Don’t you HAVE to have the cart first if using PayPal Express and Or Amazon Payments? I would think if you use these methods you can’t use the default configuration which would take the customer directly to the one page or multi-page checkout.
As an aside, in the payment methods section of the one page checkout, it includes PayPal Express, which is annoying, and PayPal Standard (I am still using this method also), It does not show Amazon payments which I think is the way it should be.
Bob
Seems to me like we’re all saying the same thing. You can have cart first, no cart, cart only if not coming from cart, etc., etc., etc. with the proposal made to have the cart essentially be the first section of the checkout page with the couple of admin config options that have been mentioned. It won’t look “scabbed on” and will smooth out the workflow nicely.
Simply having a one page checkout that is one page and will support the requirements of different payment gateways and/or other checkout subsystems (like Google Checkout). But if those aren’t being used then this is a nice way to allow a customer to see/edit their cart contents at any time during the checkout process.
[quote name=‘tbirnseth’]It’s pretty simple logic to make everyone happy.
If tthe checkout.checkout page is accessed from the checkout.cart page then the view of the cart in the checkout is collapsed. If they come directly to checkout then it will be expanded (or overriden by a new admin option).
There can be a single admin setting to display or not display the cart in a section on the one-page-checkout page (all or nothing).
This would entirely eliminate the desire of some merchants to take the user to the cart page irregardless of whether they clicked a Checkout link or not.
An option “could” be provided to set the state of the cart section to either expanded or collapsed when the user first comes to the checkout.checkout page.[/QUOTE]
Ok, but what should we do with step 4 in this case?
For example, a customer adds a product and clicks the checkout button. Should he/she see all 5 steps or only 4 (without present step 4)? This is related to the case when you enable the option of displaying zero step:“view and edit cart content”.
P.S. I call it “zero step” only for better understanding.
I call it Step 0 because the shopping cart not a field that requires user information/intervention.
The customer would have already looked at the cart prior to arriving at the checkout page, therefore to label it a step is redundant.
This way you can remove the cart from checkout page via the admin console without interrupting the current display of steps/ajax routines?
[quote name=‘JesseLeeStringer’]I call it Step 0 because the shopping cart not a field that requires user information/intervention.
The customer would have already looked at the cart prior to arriving at the checkout page, therefore to label it a step is redundant.
This way you can remove the cart from checkout page via the admin console without interrupting the current display of steps/ajax routines?[/QUOTE]
That’s right. The discussed functionality will be available as an option in admin backend.
[quote]
Ok, but what should we do with step 4 in this case?
[/quote]
I would see no problem with some degree of reduncancy related to seeing cart before starting checkout steps and offering the ability to review the cart in the final step.
If possible, and the option to display the cart in checkout is checked, clicking the review cart link would simply go to the section of the checkout page that displays the cart (your step-0 for discussion purposes) with the section expanded and enabled for editing.
If the option to display the cart on checkout is not checked, then it should behave as it does now.
To me, that would meet everyones expressed needs while keeping the existing functionality and making it less confusing for the customer.
The other option would be that if the display cart on checkout option is selected, then Step 4 doesn’t have a review order option. But I think this would be least preferred since there are some who will not figure out they can click a previous step to edit the step.
[quote name=‘tbirnseth’]
The other option would be that if the display cart on checkout option is selected, then Step 4 doesn’t have a review order option. But I think this would be least preferred since there are some who will not figure out they can click a previous step to edit the step.[/QUOTE]
I think the last (review step should include the cart that is editable and the cart total) Other than that all sounds like we’re heading in the correct direction with adding options in the admin.
Good Work,
Stu
[quote name=‘derbytown502’]I think the last (review step should include the cart that is editable and the cart total) Other than that all sounds like we’re heading in the correct direction with adding options in the admin.
Good Work,
Stu[/QUOTE]
Dear Stu,
I think that it is not logically for a customer to fill in all the billing and shipping information i.e. he is almost waiting for his shipment:), and then we offer the last step with the ability to change the cart content.
I suppose tbirnseth suggested the most suitable solution. Zero step with the cart content will have some summary information if it is not expanded, and also there is the “change” link. So I think that customers will clearly understand what to do to change the cart content.
[quote name=‘imac’]Dear Stu,
I think that it is not logically for a customer to fill in all the billing and shipping information i.e. he is almost waiting for his shipment:), and then we offer the last step with the ability to change the cart content.
I suppose tbirnseth suggested the most suitable solution. Zero step with the cart content will have some summary information if it is not expanded, and also there is the “change” link. So I think that customers will clearly understand what to do to change the cart content.[/QUOTE]
I agree with tbirnseth as well.