Reserved order application idea...
Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 10:50 am
Hello,
I'm looking for a way to implement a system on my small business site where a customer could sign up for an email notification of when the back ordered item they want is available. This would be completely independent of any shopping cart application. Please review my concept below and let me know if there is already a package that does this (I don't want to reinvent the wheel), or if you have any good information on code samples that might help me build this puppy.
Here's the basic concept:
A link would be provided on the product page to take the customer to the reserved order sign up page automatically passing the item number. The customer would then enter their name, email address, and an optional comment and submit the request. A confirmation email would be sent to the user with an email verification link to validate the address they provided. Once verified, the system would send a final confirmation of the order reservation, a link to the product page, and a link and instructions on how to cancel the reservation if they need to do so. The customer request would be stored in a SQL (or more likely MySQL) table with a special stock item number (as a reserved item) for later use in the system when the item becomes available. The request would be marked as 'pending' at this point.
When the stock is replenished, the administrator will log into the system and provide the number of items available and the system will send notification to the first x customers in the queue based on when they submitted their request (first in, first out). The email notification to the customer will include a link to a reserved item page in the application which will provide instructions and links for ordering. The request would be marked as 'active' once the notification is sent.
When they click the 'add to cart' or 'buy now' button on the instructional page, the system will mark the request as 'completed' and optionally send the customer a thank you email. If the customer uses the cancellation feature, the request would be marked as 'canceled' with an optional email sent to the customer which might include a link to change their mind within a specific period of time to re-activate the request.
Additional features would include:
Timing out requests when they have been sent out and have had no response from the customer in x days so that the item can be moved to general stock or the next customer in the queue. This would mark the request as 'inactive'.
Optional notification frequency to re-send the email every x days while the request is active (notification sent, but no response).
Full historical audit details on the request actions, providing details appropriate for either customer or administrative persons.
Maintenance scripts that can be scheduled via cron for redundant notifications, timing out requests, etc.
That's it in a nut shell, but a pretty good project for my first PHP endeavor, unless there's already a system like this. Please let me know what you think.
I'm looking for a way to implement a system on my small business site where a customer could sign up for an email notification of when the back ordered item they want is available. This would be completely independent of any shopping cart application. Please review my concept below and let me know if there is already a package that does this (I don't want to reinvent the wheel), or if you have any good information on code samples that might help me build this puppy.
Here's the basic concept:
A link would be provided on the product page to take the customer to the reserved order sign up page automatically passing the item number. The customer would then enter their name, email address, and an optional comment and submit the request. A confirmation email would be sent to the user with an email verification link to validate the address they provided. Once verified, the system would send a final confirmation of the order reservation, a link to the product page, and a link and instructions on how to cancel the reservation if they need to do so. The customer request would be stored in a SQL (or more likely MySQL) table with a special stock item number (as a reserved item) for later use in the system when the item becomes available. The request would be marked as 'pending' at this point.
When the stock is replenished, the administrator will log into the system and provide the number of items available and the system will send notification to the first x customers in the queue based on when they submitted their request (first in, first out). The email notification to the customer will include a link to a reserved item page in the application which will provide instructions and links for ordering. The request would be marked as 'active' once the notification is sent.
When they click the 'add to cart' or 'buy now' button on the instructional page, the system will mark the request as 'completed' and optionally send the customer a thank you email. If the customer uses the cancellation feature, the request would be marked as 'canceled' with an optional email sent to the customer which might include a link to change their mind within a specific period of time to re-activate the request.
Additional features would include:
Timing out requests when they have been sent out and have had no response from the customer in x days so that the item can be moved to general stock or the next customer in the queue. This would mark the request as 'inactive'.
Optional notification frequency to re-send the email every x days while the request is active (notification sent, but no response).
Full historical audit details on the request actions, providing details appropriate for either customer or administrative persons.
Maintenance scripts that can be scheduled via cron for redundant notifications, timing out requests, etc.
That's it in a nut shell, but a pretty good project for my first PHP endeavor, unless there's already a system like this. Please let me know what you think.