How-to

Your first online order, from product to parcel

A step-by-step guide to selling with the free Shopping Cart: add a product with sizes and stock, set delivery, tax and payment, and follow one order from basket to tracking number.

By Darryl Waterhouse · · 3 min read

The first order is the one that teaches you everything. This guide follows a single order through the free Shopping Cart Tool, from adding the product to sending the parcel, so you know what each step looks like before your own customers arrive.

Our example is the made-up ACME Ltd, selling a set of ring spanners.

1. Add the product

Give it a name, pictures, a price and a description, and put it in a category. If it comes in sizes, add each one with its own price, SKU and stock count. A was price shows the product as on sale.

The product editor: name, pictures, price, summary, description, category and tags, and two sizes each with a price, SKU and stock

Shoppers get a proper product page: the pictures, the price, a choice of sizes, quantity and Add to basket.

A product page in the ACME Shop: pictures, the price, a choice of sizes, quantity and Add to basket

2. Set delivery and tax

Under Settings > Delivery, choose the countries you deliver to, one delivery charge per order and an amount over which delivery is free. Tick Offer collection if people can pick up in person.

Under Tax, set one rate, call it VAT, and say whether your prices already include it. The receipt shows the VAT either way.

3. Choose how people pay

Turn on Stripe for cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay, PayPal, or Pay offline for bank transfer or cash on collection. You can have more than one. Your keys are kept on the server and never shown again once saved.

Shop settings, Payment: Stripe and PayPal not switched on, and Pay offline called Bank transfer with the instructions for shoppers

ACME starts with bank transfer, so the order is placed as Awaiting payment and nothing is charged until the money arrives.

4. The shopper's side

The basket slides out over the shop, and shows how close the shopper is to free delivery.

The basket slid out over the shop: two items with quantities, free delivery reached and the Checkout button

Checkout is one page: the basket, a summary with VAT, their details, deliver or collect, and how to pay.

The one-page checkout: the basket, a summary with VAT, the shopper's details, deliver or collect, and paying by bank transfer

The receipt thanks them by name and, for bank transfer, shows your bank details with the order number to quote.

The receipt page after ordering: thank you, the bank transfer instructions with the order number, the items and the delivery address

5. Your side: from paid to posted

The order is waiting under Orders. When the payment arrives, mark it paid; when the parcel goes, mark it fulfilled and add the tracking number. Leave a staff note for whoever packs it. The history shows every step.

An order in the admin: fulfilled, the items with SKUs, totals, the shopper, the address with Royal Mail tracking, a staff note and the history

Quick checklist

  1. Add one product, with its sizes and stock.
  2. Set delivery, free delivery and collection.
  3. Set your VAT rate.
  4. Switch on at least one way to pay.
  5. Place a test order yourself and take it all the way to fulfilled.

When you want discount codes, delivery zones, your own order emails or digital downloads, Shopping Cart Pro adds them.

Explore Shopping Cart.

The screens above come from our made-up demo company, ACME Ltd.

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