I’ve been debating with a client this past week about an event registration form. It is rather complex. They are having a conference with three events, as a customer you can only go to one of the three events. There are add-on options and to top it all off they are piggy backing on another event that happens right afterward that you can also register for. In total there are something like 20 different options a person could choose from. It is making my head spin trying to code a registration form while making it easy for the customer to understand. In the end I know I will be able to create a form that is easy to understand but it got me thinking about making it easy for customers to pay.
Linda, Tiffiny and I talked about this thought a bit more too. Linda and Tiffiny mentioned an organization that they are part of, which accepts donations. As part of the donations you can specify where your money goes. It is an interesting concept, unfortunately it has some issues. The organization only accepts checks and the donation forms only come pre-printed, they aren’t on the web site. That is why they are having trouble getting donations. Tiffiny suggested that they should make the donation form online, then use a service like PayPal. They will have to pay a small fee per donation but it makes it very easy for people to donate money. They don’t need to write a check, or remember to pick up a form. They can donate from the comfort of their home.
Just having a way to pay online, doesn’t mean it is easier. I’ve been to plenty of web sites that make it very difficult to give them money. Most web sites have this sort of process.
Add products to cart -> Sign up for the site (username,password,email) -> Check out – enter in shipping and billing information.
