Topic: Customer Management
Last Updated On: June 12, 2006
Applies to: MC Storefront Software, versions 4.2+

Summary

Based on a site's settings, a Store Admin can allow customers to checkout as guests or to register for an account.

What defines a Customer?

A customer has the ability to log in to their account on the store front to view past orders, update their profile, and view order tracking information. A site visitor can become a customer by registering through checkout or a Store Admin may also allow the ability to pre-register before checkout by changing the following setting, Settings >> Site Wide Settings >> Login & My Account (tab) >> Customers can Register before Placing an Order to Yes. When a customer enters checkout as a new customer or an international customer, the customer has the ability to register for an account by filling in all required information including a username and password. Listed below are the requirements for a customer account.

A customer must meet the following requirements:
  • First name, last name, email address, and password can not be blank.
  • Unique username.
  • Unique combination of first name, last name, and email address.
  • Unique combination of email address and password.

What is a Guest?

If the Store Admin allows customers to checkout as Guests, a customer will be able to place an order and not have to create a customer account. When a guest customer completes checkout the customer information is not stored in the Customer Manager. The customer information is only stored within the order and can be viewed in the Order Editor. When a customer places an order as a guest though, the customer will not be able to view any of their order details on the storefront after the customer has completed checkout.

Can Guests still sign up for the mailing list?

If a guest proceeds through checkout and selects the option to be added to the mailing list, their email will be added to the list if an email address is entered. To ensure that this is available, it is recommended that the Store Admin requires an email address. This can be done by setting Checkout >> Checkout Settings >> Email Address Field is Optional During Checkout Process to No.

Note: To allow Customers to Checkout as a Guest, the setting in Checkout >> Checkout Settings >> Global Settings (tab) >> Allow Guests to Checkout must be set to Yes.

Will Guest Customers be counted in the Customer Summary of the Admin Panel?

Version 4.2 added two new counters to the Customer Summary section of the Admin Panel home page. The statistics have been broken down so site administrators can get a better idea of how many Guest customers the site has had in comparison with Registered Customers.

Guest Stats
Registered Customers Today
This statistic measures the number of Registered Customers that have successfully completed checkout for the current day.
Registered Customers to Date
This statistic measures the number of Registered Customers for the site.
Guest Customers Today
This statistic measures the number of times a Guest Customer has completed checkout for the current day.
Guest Customers to Date
This statistic measures the total number of times a Guest Customer has completed checkout on the site.
Top