I have been working on a new JL 2.5.6 VM 2.08c website since VM 2.0.6 (and upgraded along theway).
Now this website is info production, filled with all the products they need and payment can be done with iDEAL (dutch payment method).
But as this is a bakery and customer/visitor of the website www.123gebak.nl NEEDS to be able to select TIME & DATE of DELIVERY at checkout just as they had with their former JL1.0.x + VM 1.1 website / webshop.
This could be implemented the same way a customer needs to select a shipping method and payment method of fill in a coupon code !!
I have asked several virtuemart programmers but no one seems to be able to code this plugin for us.
I even think this should be part of the base virtuemart package, but as it is not (yet) we want to pay for the creation of this plugin.
Who can help ?
Hello -
Now if all you need is are very basic date and time fields, you can of course do that with VM 2.0 custom fields now. But it's when you need true Delivery date and time features that you will run into a problem. The reason there aren't many options by 3rd party extensions to handle Deliveries is that the number of clients needing this feature are very limited. The vast majority of VM stores are shipping goods or selling virtual products. It's only a small minority of VM stores that would be looking to buy a commercial extension to handle the delivery needs of stores like bakeries, flower shops, gift basket services, etc. I could be wrong, but I don't think you'll see it become part of the base VM code because the usage is so limited, probably less than 1% of VM stores, if even that. It just isn't a core functionality need.
For a bakery, I assume you want to control the Delivery options that a customer can choose from during checkout. You probably don't want customers to be able to just choose any open date and a time from a dropdown. For instance, you may need to limit the number of deliveries allowed for a particular date and time to avoid overbooking, you might need to exclude certain holidays from the available dates, and you may have different cutoff times as to how far in advance someone can place an order to choose a particular delivery date and time. If these types of Delivery features are what you are looking for, we can assist you with a custom VM2 plugin. We built several variations of Delivery modules for VM 1.1. If you are still looking for a development company to help you with this, please PM me or visit our site at www.PolishedGeek.com
Thank you Deb for your reply,
We are not on the same level here. I think that more than tthe one percent of the VM stores want that option.
As we inquired also with your firm, 1200 US dollar is way out of proportion as this is a small plugin added at the end of the checkout fase (or at the same location the coupon option is displayed).
We are willing to pay for the work but 1200 US dollar is too much. Please make this a more attractive package for us and for the VM2 community !
Kind regards,
Cornel Heijkoop
Owner CADS Internet Diensten
Hi, Cornel -
I really think for your needs, if they are indeed that simple (2 timeslots, 6 days per week, with no advance ordering cutoff, no holidays, no quotas, no configurable frontend, no excluded dates, no delivery charges, etc.) then you should be able to get a freelancer to do a one-off customization or basic hack for this. Perhaps you don't need a full shipping plugin extension to handle your Delivery options at checkout, which is what we quoted for you.
My 1 - 2% estimate is probably not too far off the mark regarding the number of stores who really need Delivery scheduling features during checkout, vs. displaying a simple calendar picker and dropdown field for time choices. I doubt we'll see even 30 people commenting on this thread in the next few months that they absolutely need a Delivery shipping plugin for VM2, and will commit to paying $50 for one. Based on what we've seen over the last 3 years as a web development firm, the market just isn't that big for this type of feature in VM2.
Now if there ARE 30 or more people out there who are interested, we'd really love to hear from you!
Please add your comment to this thread and let us know what kind of delivery store you have in VM2. Client demands drive development of key features and new extensions, so please do make your voice heard. Thanks in advance!
Hi Cornel,
Thanks for making this post,
Hi PolishGeek!
I am the first of those 30 interested.
It was on my "to do" list - yeah, I wanted to do it myself because I don't need full delivery system.
Here is what I would like to have on my shop.
- on the product page where I have lots of custom fields I want to give my customers an option to choose three delivery dates (yes, dates like 03 August 2012 - I want my system to calculate 3, 5 and 7 working days from current date)
- one delivery option will be standard and won't affect the price at all, other two options will increase the product price by percentage
- that's all
My clients will use standard delivery plugin and will pay depends on product size and weight during the checkout - standard vm delivery plugin will work well here.
As you see I have different needs because I am selling my service that has to be done on time and not products that I can simly take from the shelf or warehouse.
So if my clients want to get their orders done faster then they need to pay for express service.
If I won't be able to create above I will simply say 3, 5 or 7 days delivery without providing the right calendar date - I can leave without it :)
****************************************
But I will also need delivery options - probably more advances - for my Bakery client.
He has a website done on J1.5 and I will redesigning it to new joomla with vm shop.
He has next day delivery only but he has three different times, like from 6:00 to 7:30, from 8:00 to 9:30 and from 10:00 to 11:30.
He has his own customers (b2b only) who order day before delivery, then the bread is bake at night or early morning and is delivered in thre separated times and perhaps routes too.
I will be talking with him about what he needs exactly in next few weeks and if there will be a plugin like PolishGeek explained then I will be so happy to buy it.
I don't think my customer would like me to pay extra 1200 for this extra option so I will wait till the plugin will be done or will try to do what I can myself.
Thank you
****************************************
.... so who's next? we need another 29 people at least to motivate PolishGeek to work on it :)
Hi, easy - Thanks for posting here. It sounds like your simplest solution would be to have a small customization made to the standard delivery plugin to give you the extra options and configure the % surcharges. On the frontend the choices could be presented as:
(o) Get it in 3 days - $xx.xx (where the price equals the calculated shipping plus a % rush surcharge)
(o) Get it in 7 days - $xx.xx (where the price equals the calculated shipping plus a different % rush surcharge)
(x) Standard Delivery - $xx.xx (calculated shipping price, default option)
You might even be able to do this even less expensively. I wonder if you could achieve this by creating three *different* copies of the standard shipping module plugin and then having each present the shipping costs at checkout, as if they were three different shipping methods, rather than different options for the same method. A little tweaking of the frontend display could hide any redundant information so they look like one set of choices. Something to at least explore, I would think.
Oh, and please do share the full details of your bakery client's requirements once you have them. Thanks!
Yeah, it will work best and simplest this way probably,
but ...
I was thinking abou giving them (my clients) an option to order few items with different priority.
Hmmm, I have to re-think my idea again cause the simpler the better.
OFF THIS TOPIC <=> May I ask you of jumping to my another post? Maybe you have more great simple ideas, who know :) http://forum.virtuemart.net/index.php?topic=105790.0 (http://forum.virtuemart.net/index.php?topic=105790.0)
Thank a lot for your comments,
Hi, easy - I took a look at the demo page you have set up, and the thread you mentioned. I think you are going to have to get a small customization done to that CustomSize plugin to allow it to work the way you want. I can't think of an easy way to do the math the way you want. Not sure if that plugin is completely open source or not. The license says proprietary, not GPL, so you may be limited in what you can do without going back to the original author to commission the work.
Hi easy,
Check this little plugin: http://extensions.joomla.org/extensions/extension-specific/virtuemart-extensions/virtuemart-shipping/19911
Hi PolshedGeek,
Thank you for your time, I asked this plugin developer to do these changes asjed for the quote or so but no answer after few days waiting yet.
But we talked earlier and he said "We are fine when you adjustthe code for your personal purpose" so I can play around with it.
Thanks again!
Cornel,
Thank you for the link, it's not exactly what I need but it's worth to try and see what it can do, it's free :)
In terms of the delivery plugin for your bakery, do you really need the date picker?
I have no idea what for?
In most cases bakeries sell fresh products so maybe just option to choose the day of the week: Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun will be enough?
Do you sell your products to retailers? B2B only? I know some smaller shops do not order bread every single day and 3 times per week for instance.
And you could create seven, the same shipping option for each day, you could even create shopper groups like Everyday Delivery, Every 2nd Day Delivery, etc... and show or hide these shipping option ti the right group.
Do you have customers at present? If so you know best what you need to make them happy.
If your bakery is selling online to the end customer then I have no idea why date picker?
Good luck guys and see you here soon
You ask some good questions about delivery services. For bakeries, flower shops, gift basket delivery services, etc., it really all depends on how far in advance they want to allow scheduling of deliveries, and how complex the schedule is. If you will only take delivery order for the next few days, then it's simple to provide a drop down for the days and a few different times, and viola. It's when you need to allow people to schedule way in advance, or have a more complex set of delivery requirements, that it becomes more of a challenge.
I suppose a bakery that deals in delivering rolls and bread B2B probably doesn't need much advance scheduling. A bakery that sells more B2C probably needs longer advance scheduling (so people can order party cakes and such, way in advance). Balloon and gift basket services also like to be able to have people book way in advance for special occasions. So the needs are somewhat different. The B2C store might need something more like what we just built in VM 1.1.x for a supermarket store that offers delivery - http://docs.polishedgeek.com/wiki/display/DELIVERY/Delivery+Date+and+Time+Module+-+AJAX+Calendar+Grid . That client wanted their checkout to look professional and offer a lot of delivery features. A clickable grid was a good way to present the information during checkout in that case, as opposed to a normal calendar date picker and time dropdowns.
Hi PolishedGeek,
good few points and great plugin, I saw this before.
now, lets wait for Cornel's reply, I really want to see what does he need in his e-bakery
Cornel,
Nan you please what exactly do you need, what is enough and what not?
I'm not as good as PolishedGeek :) - I'll have similar project on my desk in the next few weeks so will be good to know more before
I am mentioning date picker as this is the name they call it on http://mootools.net/forge/p/mootools_datepicker/ and more specific http://aryweb.nl/projects/mootools-datepicker/Test/range.html
Yes, the bakery sells fresh products that needs to be delivered mostly the next day.... but an order can be booked in advanced to they could order a cake on monday and have it delivered to them on saterday of wednesday next week. They must be able to choose one of the days they like. Delivery is twice a day each working day between 08:00-10:00 and 10:00-12:00.
As virtuemart 2.0.x is all new I thought it would be fairly easy to extend current (shipping) offerings by adding a DATETIME to it and print in on the order. For a PHP programmer this would take 1, 2 or three hours to create.
And would the module from PolishedGeek be ready today, that would be the software we would be using (and pay for it...if the price was reasonable)
Now I think the easiest way to do this is to add a caption just above the "Notes and special requests" saying DELIVERY DATE (or Leverdatum in dutch) and add the datepicker from http://aryweb.nl/projects/mootools-datepicker/Test/range.html to it.
The notes and special requests are also printed on the order so printing the delivery date and add the entry to the database must be possible too. This is the option I will try to create myself. I am not a programmer so if anybody can help i am willing to pay the time needed to create the views etc.
This delivery option must be added to the site no later than august 15th as by that time the store will be open again after holiday.
Hope you guys can help !
Ok, I'm going to ask what may be a dumb question - I get to ask one a day, every day :)
Why are you not able to use the built in VM2 Shopper Fields custom fields feature to handle this? You could set up a field with "date" as the field type, "Shipment Form" as the place where it displays, required, etc. And then you could do a drop down right under that for the two time ranges. When you don't need the two fields to be dependent upon each other, and you aren't worried about lead times, holidays, etc. This might work fine for a dead simple delivery date and time capture.
Yes, that option had come across months ago. We cannot use the custom fields as that is an option for each product
This date selection must be done at checkout (not at product selection).
Or am i missing here something
Shopper Fields are different than Custom Fields. I'm attaching two images to show where Shopper Fields are configured on the backend, plus how a Shopper date field is displayed on the frontend during checkout.
The Shopper Fields are the fields I was asking about in my question above. After reading all of this discussion, I thought I would pose the question of whether those types of fields would be sufficient. You could always add two very simple date and time selection fields. They wouldn't be dependent upon each other, and to remove a non-delivery day of the week would require customization, but it's certainly an option for a store that doesn't need true delivery scheduling.
[attachment cleanup by admin]
I think it's great idea of using shopper fields, the only think they will need to feel/edit shipping details every time shopper place an order but it should not be a problem because it has to be done anyway even with the best calendar.
Cornel,
You don't need super advanced very big shipping / delivery plugin as we all thought earlier
I would discuss with PolishedGeek about possible options and their costs now.
... you can always use reservation/booking system instead of virtuemart if don't want to spend money and have better calendar options. http://extensions.joomla.org/extensions/vertical-markets/booking-a-reservations/booking/335 (http://extensions.joomla.org/extensions/vertical-markets/booking-a-reservations/booking/335). I believe that you need an online shop, I don't think you want to let your client to book a bread delivery or to reserve a cake for a party
@Easy, thank you for pointing out a good issue to keep in mind when looking at simpler solutions. You are right, the field will be pre-filled with the previous delivery date for repeat customers, since it would be stored with the shipping address.
Perhaps a simple post-order confirmation script could be triggered upon that event to clear the date field content after each order is paid? That kind of little quirk is one of the unfortunate disadvantages of not using a shipping plugin customized for delivery management. A shipping plugin wouldn't have that issue on subsequent orders.
There are pros and cons for each approach, and what's workable and acceptable will be very different for small stores making a few sales a week, versus stores that put through dozens of sales a day. A small store might be ok with doing some manual cleanup if a customer doesn't remember to choose a future date. Especially if the simple, bare bones approach saves them from having to invest in custom extension development.
Nice idea about the reservation system. I've seen a couple of wedding cake bakeries use a booking system, as they can only accept a limited number of wedding cakes per day due to the time intensive nature of decorating them, and the long delivery time needed for setup on the wedding day. :)
Thanks all for your thoughts and remarks.
Shopper fields will do fine when this Delivery date field can be changed/filled in the way I discussed earlier....right above the "Notes and special requests" textarea..... and NOT at the shipping address page.
Reason why is that customer can also choose to pick up their order at the store....whereas they do not have a shipping address.
So if someone can make it work using shopper fields with change option at the cart screen please quote me your price !
This would work if the position of this shopper field could also be placed elsewhere as on the place of the shipping or payment options.......
Searching for a solution (and for someone who wants to code this for a reasonable price).............
I have been following this discussion with interest.
QuoteShopper fields will do fine when this Delivery date field can be changed/filled in the way I discussed earlier....right above the "Notes and special requests" textarea..... and NOT at the shipping address page.
I am setting up a pizzeria take-away / home delivery and the idea here is to be able to tell the restaurant when you want to pick up or have delivered.
I have tried with the shopper fields, but there is no option for the check out page. Product custom fields do not work asik.
I hope someone comes up with a solution.
I played with Hikashop for a while and the business version has this functionality build in, but at a price ;)
In your case it is quite simple
Just two delivery options to choose from:
- collection
- delivery
That's all what you need
HI Easy:
QuoteIn your case it is quite simple
Just two delivery options to choose from:
- collection
- delivery
That's all what you need
I have those set up, but The client wants to be able to set at least the time for both delivery options. The date would be a nice touch as well.
Say I want to order a pizza at 12:00 but pick it up / have it delivered at 19:00.
This is not a great solution but will work for now.
In the language file section: COM_VIRTUEMART_COMMENT_CART I changed "Your comments" to "Please add desired delivery date and time".
I also changed: COM_VIRTUEMART_MAIL_SHOPPER_QUESTION accordingly.
I would prefer a more elegant solution though.
Hoi fintan,
We are working on a elegant (enough) solution, but that takes some programming and time. If it is done, i will post it here.
What is the live URL of your website ?
Hoi? ( Are you Swiss? ;) )
Great to hear.
My site is still very crude as I am testing:
http://www.fintan-gastro-consulting.ch/Pizza/
Please not that the vmshop is Shop2! Shop1 is a Hikashop (Free version) test.
Keep us posted, please.
Cheers
Fintan
I am allergic to cats. Can cats run/fix virtuemart???
Hello Cornel, please let me know if you have made the module with date and time advanced..
I´m trying to do this for a virtuemart 2 store for Gifts (flowers, chocolates, etc) on line where the date and time wi'll be customize.
Thanks a lot!!
Helo,
I have news for you, we just publish a plugin to add Product Delivery date for Virtuemart 2
http://www.cmsmart.net/virtuemart-extensions/product-delivery-date-for-virtuemart
(http://www.cmsmart.net/images/stories/virtuemart/product/ScreenShot079.jpg)
(http://www.cmsmart.net/images/stories/virtuemart/product/ScreenShot00188.jpg)
For any Virtuemart shop owners want to set up a delivery date (day/month/year) for your products ( food, flowers, bakery, gift...) then this plugin is for you.
This is a Joomla plugin, but work exclusively for Virtuemart. After install the plugin like normal Joomla extension, activate the plugin and now your shopper can chose a delivery date during the check out process.
How it works:
- Shopper select delivery date by a calendar window at check out page.
- Shoper does not have to log-in, still can chose the delivery date.
- Admin can see the Required Delivery date in the order.
- Delivery date can be displayed in the order confirmation email
- The plugin store delivery date time inside Virtuemart order database.
With this plugin, you do not have to change or edit Virtuemart code, you can update Virtuemart anytime you want.
This plugin is compatiple with Joomla 2.5.x and Virtuemart 2.x.x We also welcome to receive your request to develop more functions from this plugin or customization for your site, please send email to huy@netbase.vn
http://www.cmsmart.net/virtuemart-extensions/product-delivery-date-for-virtuemart
Demo:
Please visit our demo site at: http://www.joomlamodule.net and try to add any product, go to check out page and you will see the Delivery Date at the end.
Forum:
http://www.cmsmart.net/forum/virtuemart-plugin
Thank you
Huy Nguyen
@Huy Nguyen: Thank you for that. ;D
Now for the time. I really need that for my pizaa site.
Congrats on the release of your plugin. For store owners who only need simple delivery date selection, it looks great.
New development announcement -
We have an extension in limited field trials now that can provide the ability to choose different delivery dates for each product within the same order. Two example use cases are:
- A construction supply company that takes orders for building supplies to be delivered to a work site, where multiple delivery dates are needed on a single VM2 order (so foundation materials can be delivered on different days than roofing materials, for example)
- A catering company that serves large companies with multiple local office locations and meeting times, and allows a single order to include multiple lunch orders with different delivery dates and times on a single VM2 order.
We do this with a custom Breezing Form integration that embeds a Crosstec Breezing Form right into the product page, allowing the customer to enter any desired information and choose a delivery date and time prior to adding the item to the cart. Because it's a Breezing Form, you can make it as simple or complex as you wish, with database lookups and entries, or just a simple date picker. The options are endless. The fields you select are then pulled right into the VM2 cart and order as custom options. (And yes, you can even adjust the price of the final item if needed!)
We're looking for interested beta testers now. To qualify you need to have:
1) a development site in VM2 with at least one configured product
2) a completed Crosstec Breezing Form with the fields and information you want to capture for the product
3) time to perform beta testing in the next 7 - 10 days after this post date
If interested please contact us at info [at] PolishedGeek.com - Thanks!
Thanks for the update. Looks like just what I need.
But:
1) a development site in VM2 with at least one configured product (x)
2) a completed Crosstec Breezing Form with the fields and information you want to capture for the product
Does this mean I have to register with crosstec for a min. of $99 ?
3) time to perform beta testing in the next 7 - 10 days after this post date (x)
Yes, Crosstec Breezing Forms is required. However, I don't think you'll have to spring for the $99 (although it's well worth it). The fine folks at Crosstec have made their previous version available for free! http://extensions.joomla.org/extensions/contacts-and-feedback/forms/8001
From what we understand, the free version will mostly likely also work (but we have only QA tested with the latest 1.8 version ourselves). We'll be happy to work with you if you want to give the free version a whirl with our Breezing Forms Custom Fields extension and see if they are compatible.
Okay, got the version 1.7.5 and installed it. Have to play with this for a bit. so where do I get the Breezing Forms Custom Fields extension?
This:
http://docs.polishedgeek.com/wiki/display/BFCUSTOM/Breezing+Forms+Custom+Fields+for+VirtueMart+Documentation (http://docs.polishedgeek.com/wiki/display/BFCUSTOM/Breezing+Forms+Custom+Fields+for+VirtueMart+Documentation)
tells me it is not available yet, so I suppose there is a testing version link.
I would be happy to test this for my pizza site. GIve me a few pointers on how to set up breeze. It comes across a bit complicated.
Hi, Fintan - Sounds like you are making great progress. To participate in the beta, please open a ticket at https://polishedgeek.com/clients/submitticket.php?step=2&deptid=3 .
Be sure to provide a link to your VM2 product page in your dev site, plus the completed Breezing Form you want to embed in it. Once these have been validated as ready to test, we'll send you a copy of the extension and help you get it set up so you can beta test. Thanks!
Here is the link to the dev page:
http://www.fintan-gastro-consulting.ch/Pizza/index.php/en/unser-take-away-2/pizza-2 (http://www.fintan-gastro-consulting.ch/Pizza/index.php/en/unser-take-away-2/pizza-2)
Not sure how I am supposed to add the form.
I just made a simple form with date(calendar) and time (Text field) with its own menu item.
Ticket was created. Nr:#684433
Cheers