Associates

[silken]

Hi,
I am having a problem understanding the steps to set up an associate; well, not to set one up, I think that is pretty straightforward, but what to do afterward.

I have an associate who wants to sell one item that we carry. I have set him up as an associate and got the code to send him but...now what? Is there any way for him to just put an order anywhere button on his site so he can talk about the book, and then when they hit the add-to-cart button it adds it to our shopping cart? (We are doing the shipping.) Or,...what? I see that the instructions say to paste a link into the code, but nothing has worked for me. Sorry, I am feeling really stupid about this, as I am sure it is easier than it is seeming to me right now. I have read the documentation but it is not getting through.

Thanks in advance,
Debbie

Here is the code:

<a href="http://store.reelingsilk.com/cgi-bin/sc/ref.cgi?storeid=*-&name=-"> [Your link text or graphic goes here] </a> and the book he want to sell is http://www.plumpub.com/sales/kungfu/collbk_hunggar.htm#kh017.

[ShopSite Lauren]

When you setup an associate, you can say what the default landing page is. You could make the default landing page the Order Button URL. To do this, go to Merchandising > Order Buttons (or OrderAnywhere depending on your version of ShopSite) > find the product you would like > Show Code. At the bottom of the Show Code page, you can select different display types; select the "Show URLs" option. Then copy the Add To Cart URL.

Now you can go to Merchandising > Associates > Add. Setup the Associate how you want, but in the "Default Landing Page (full URL)" field, add the Add To Cart URL you had copied. Then click the "Create Link To Store" button at the bottom, and give your associate that code. It will be an add to cart link and will include the associates' information.

[silken]

Thank you, Lauren!! Helpful as always,
Debbie

[silken]

Hi Lauren,
OK, the good news is that it works...sort of. Indeed, clicking the add-to-cart button will add the product to the associate's account. But now, anytime anyone else also clicks that button on our own site (in other words, not through the associate's site) it also gets associated with his account. I need it to be only sales from his site, not sales anywhere else.

The other problem is this: if a customer orders 5 copies of the book, only one copy is getting assigned to the associate.

What to do?

For the time being, I have added a 'b' version of the sku to take care of the first problem, but what about the second? Also, I would prefer to not have to add a 'b' version if possible.

Thanks in advance,
Debbie

[ShopSite Lauren]

Can you give me the URL to where the link is on your website so I can test the first issue?

For the second issue, it should tie the order, the entire order contents, to the associate. It does not tie future orders to the associate if the customer places a second order, not using the associates link.

[silken]

Sure, thanks for the quick reply.

I have already added the b version of the code to the sku (kh017b) and re-saved his associate link, but feel free to change that for testing purposes, or let me know and I will. In other words, the page below is for the page on our site that is linked to kh017, and not kho17b. The associate name is hamby.

http://www.plumpub.com/sales/kungfu/collbk_hunggar.htm (It is the first book on the page)


This, below, is a page on our wordpress site and this add-to-cart button is linked to the b version:

http://wp.me/P1h1aG-Al


As for the second issue, you can test it yourself. If you put in a quantity of 5, using, for instance, the b version, he will only be credited for $8.00. It is supposed to be $8.00 per book (5 @ $8 = $40)

Let me know if I can help, or if this makes any sense!
Debbie

[loren_d_c]

The Associate's Commission is on the entire order amount, not just a single product. So if you have $8 set as the Commission amount, they get $8 per order (even if the shopper subsequently removes that particular product from the cart and orders something else instead). So if you want the Associate to get more if the shopper orders multiple books, then you will need to make the Associate Commission be based on a percentage instead. But again, this percentage will apply to the entire order, so if the shopper goes back to your store and adds other products to the order, the Associate will get a percentage credited for those as well.

-Loren

[silken]

Hmmm...thanks. That seems like a small flaw. Is there any way to edit the associate orders? And did you come up with any ideas (other than assigning a specific sku variation) to not having the sku trigger orders no matter where it was clicked?

So, basically, there is no way to limit the associate orders to just a particular sku?

Thanks for your help,
Debbie

[loren_d_c]

"And did you come up with any ideas (other than assigning a specific sku variation) to not having the sku trigger orders no matter where it was clicked?"

You should try clearing your cookies and try this again, because I don't see any way that this is happening unless you had previously clicked on this Associate's link in the same browser. When you click on the Associate link the associate info is stored in the unique shopping cart file created for your browser. You (your browser, that is) are (by default anyway) tied to this cart file by a cookie that contains the cart id. Unless you clear cookies and therefore get a new cart file, the cart file you are using will continue to contain the Associate info and any orders placed thereafter will credit the associate. So clear your cookies and try again.

"So, basically, there is no way to limit the associate orders to just a particular sku?"

No. And this is not a 'flaw', it just wasn't designed to work specifically that way. It was designed to give an Associate credit/commission for the entire purchase that a shopper makes after the Associate sends the shopper to your site via their unique link. It just so happens that you can make this unique link go to whatever landing page you want, including directly to a specific product's Add to Cart url, but that doesn't limit the Associate feature to just that product in any way.

-Loren

[silken]

Thanks, Loren. I understand, and I will try that.
Best,
Debbie