Shopper groups

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Shopper groups allow you to make your website look different for different users depending on whether or not they have registered and their group membership. Depending on how groups are defined, shoppers may have to register in order to view prices and place orders, and even display different pricing structures.

Every shop initially contains two default groups:

· Anonymous - All non-registered visitors to your website.

· Registered - All registered shoppers.

You can change the default settings for these groups, but you cannot delete them.

Create as many new shopper groups as you require, but keep in mind that a shopper can only belong to one shopper group.

What are the benefits of shoppers logging in from the shop owner's perspective?

· Setting different prices for different types of users - Are you selling to retailers as well as individual consumers? If so, you can show them completely different prices by keeping them in different shopper groups with separate logins.

· Identify your shoppers - Keep track of who's visiting your shop.

And what's in it for shoppers?

· Privacy - Shoppers who log in to make purchases do so in a password protected area. Once their order is confirmed, they alone can review the details. Non-registered shoppers, on the other hand, would either have to contact the shop owner to review their order, or re-enter the URL where their order reached the checkout point. This is a less secure option than entering a password-protected area since URLs are easier for outsiders to work out than a username and password. What's more, even though shipping and billing information is obscured when reviewing a confirmed order by entering the URL, it can be easily be hacked into view.

· Convenience - Registered shoppers need only enter details such as their shipping address once, since the information is automatically saved to their user names. Registered shoppers can also review order information and change personal details in the 'Your Details' section of the website, whereas non-registered users cannot.

· Information - When registering, users can indicate whether or not they would like to join your online mailing list, should you choose to have one.

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