Why are Gift Certificates subject to registration at SSD?

[adrianka]

I have a question.

Every time some of my friends outside SSD community wants to buy me a GC, they face the fact that they can't buy it without registering at SSD. Sometimes this is the reason why they decide not to buy it.

I do understand it; I don't like giving my details to a website I will never return to, either.

Is the registration really necessary? If the PayPal / credit card is OK, it would seem to me that this condition is totally redundant and, indeed, dissuasive.

[DeepGirl]

I completely agree with you. I also "lost" (at least) one GC as the person refused to register at the site... and the other person had to come a long way to finally register and buy me a GC :blink:

[adrianka]

I completely agree with you. I also "lost" (at least) one GC as the person refused to register at the site... and the other person had to come a long way to finally register and buy me a GC :blink:

Yup. I lost more than one. As a matter of fact, with the exception of two people (I don't count you, as you're a SSD member) everybody plainly refused to do so. Today I was able to talk a friend into it, but he was very, very unhappy with it (it was a Christmas gift, so it took him 4 months to give in). One friend did a transfer on my account so that I would spent the sum at SSD, but that was an exception, and I don't really like receiving money for birthday/Christmas.

What's more, if it was me, I would refuse as well. And I did in the past, I can't remember what product it was, but when I saw a registration was needed, I simply didn't do it.

[mummytothree]

the only thing that is really required at any digi store is a valid email....you can always use a fake name, address and phone number. And actually many many people set up "dummy emails" that are only use for digi stores so even then they could set up an alternative emal with hotmail, yahoo or gmail and then they could only use it when purchasing GC.

[adrianka]

But what's the point then? Why ask people for names and addresses, if they end up faking them? Why not just ask for the email?

[mummytothree]

I also just wanted to add that requiring registration may also have to do something with tax records here in the US. Being self employed a person may be required to "prove" where they are getting thier income from and that would require showing proof of actual people

[adrianka]

Aren't the PayPal / credit card transaction details containing real data sufficient for tax purposes?

[lauren grier]

I also just wanted to add that requiring registration may also have to do something with tax records here in the US. Being self employed a person may be required to "prove" where they are getting thier income from and that would require showing proof of actual people

this. :]

and I know this- as I was just audited this year .. and one of the things they requested was names attached to the orders from my personal store. pita.

Also.. it's an automatic thing with zen/x-cart etc.. I'm not actually sure it IS possible to remove fields. I always put in a fake phone # and usually addy

[mummytothree]

Aren't the PayPal / credit card transaction details containing real data sufficient for tax purposes?

I don't know as I'm not a shoppe owner nor self employed. All I know is I have no problem giving out basic information when a site is very reputable and reliable. SSD is both and would go to great lengths to protect me and my information, they do state this in their Privacy statement (https://www.sweetshoppedesigns.com/sweetshoppe/help.php?section=business)
Privacy statement
We respect your privacy!

Any and all the information collected on this site will be kept strictly confidential and will not be sold, reused, rented, disclosed, or loaned!

Our site is also SSL secured and PCI / DSS Certified so you can shop with confidence knowing your personal information is secure.

Any information you provide will be held with the utmost care and will not be used in ways that you have not consented to.

Customers known to engage in fraudulent activity on our site are not protected under this policy.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call or e-mail us.

I bolded the last line which states that you can contact them anytime with question so I guess i would suggest you have your friend do that and maybe Robin could personally assure them that their information will be safe.

[adrianka]

I don't know as I'm not a shoppe owner nor self employed. All I know is I have no problem giving out basic information when a site is very reputable and reliable. SSD is both and would go to great lengths to protect me and my information, they do state this in their Privacy statement (https://www.sweetshoppedesigns.com/sweetshoppe/help.php?section=business)


I bolded the last line which states that you can contact them anytime with question so I guess i would suggest you have your friend do that and maybe Robin could personally assure them that their information will be safe.

Problem is, that *I* know that SSD is totally OK, but my friends don't, and whatever I might say, they just won't do it. And I just won't talk them into using fake information. Moreover, this is more about not willing to give out personal information than not trusting SSD as such. There are people out there who are that way.

I can accept the reasons why it's necessary (taxes are taxes, I can't oppose there!), but still it's a pity to lose all those GCs that I'm missing this way.

Still I'm glad I asked and I know the "why".

Thanks for the answers!

[ColleenSwerb]

I'm not sure if you have this option overseas, but you can use a Visa giftcard in the store. If you can buy those in a regular store and they are ok with that, that would be another option. Then you can spend it here like you both want, and they don't have to worry about giving out personal information.

[rachaelsscraps]

I'm not sure if you have this option overseas, but you can use a Visa giftcard in the store. If you can buy those in a regular store and they are ok with that, that would be another option. Then you can spend it here like you both want, and they don't have to worry about giving out personal information.

Thats what my dad does... he doesn't want to register either, so if he wants to get me a GC for scrapkits for my birthday, he gets me a prepaid Visa gift card that I use here.

[adrianka]

I'm not sure if you have this option overseas, but you can use a Visa giftcard in the store. If you can buy those in a regular store and they are ok with that, that would be another option. Then you can spend it here like you both want, and they don't have to worry about giving out personal information.

I don't think this is a real option where I live (not sure 100%, but I never heard of this, and I normally know these things, but I can be wrong, of course). Still, thankieee. :-)

[heathergw]

well... speaking from experience... If my parents hadn't registered then I wouldn't have ever gotten my Christmas present from them... they printed up the email invoice for me and wrapped it up, showing that they had purchased it... but I never got the email with the code because they had my email addy wrong... so I was able to use the invoice number to get my code... if they hadn't had that invoice then I would have never known that I was supposed to have something and that they had typed in my email addy wrong... soooo, what I'm trying to say is that it protects the both of you in making sure you get what they purchased. If they don't have that info then how are they supposed to prove that it was actually purchased?

[crecia27]

Would you feel comfortable giving them your log in info? Maybe change the password while they shop then change it back after they made their purchase? I'm not really sure how GC work here so I'm not sure if that would work but it seems like it might help?

[adrianka]

well... speaking from experience... If my parents hadn't registered then I wouldn't have ever gotten my Christmas present from them... they printed up the email invoice for me and wrapped it up, showing that they had purchased it... but I never got the email with the code because they had my email addy wrong... so I was able to use the invoice number to get my code... if they hadn't had that invoice then I would have never known that I was supposed to have something and that they had typed in my email addy wrong... soooo, what I'm trying to say is that it protects the both of you in making sure you get what they purchased. If they don't have that info then how are they supposed to prove that it was actually purchased?

I was talking about real address and telephone number, not about email. Some people don't like to share them, including me. If someone asked me to buy them a GC somewhere and the store would ask for these details, I wouldn't buy it for them, either.

[adrianka]

Would you feel comfortable giving them your log in info? Maybe change the password while they shop then change it back after they made their purchase? I'm not really sure how GC work here so I'm not sure if that would work but it seems like it might help?

Yup, this is a cool one. Actually, this was one of the ideas I had and offered this as an option when writing a GC-themed email to my friends, but somehow nobody used it so far (maybe I should put it in bold next time). Seems the least complicated one to me, but maybe they just didn't want to invade my privacy, or whatever. But I wouldn't mind this one.

[lauren grier]

I was talking about real address and telephone number, not about email.

If this is the issue- I don't understand why you said you won't talk them into using fake info-- or is it that they refuse and I misread?

I wouldn't be comfortable with my customers allowing Other people access to their account. Who's to say someone else wouldn't download your purchases etc.. You may know otherwise- but myself, as a designer, I would just see multiple people accessing the same acct and worry about piracy & violations of our TOU's

The easier solution is just using a dummy phone # and addy. Instead of casting any doubt.

[eranslow]

Do they have paypal accounts? Because if they do they can send you a gift -then you can use that money to buy SSD kits. That might be a good option.

[4noisyboys]

Well, all the reasons for needing something sound valid here to me. I agree with the fact that you can use a fake name and address.

I guess they can always give you cash and you can spend it however you like though. I know cash works for me! :)

[adrianka]

Do they have paypal accounts? Because if they do they can send you a gift -then you can use that money to buy SSD kits. That might be a good option.

Most of my friends don't have a PayPal account. Some of them do though, so this is a good point. Thanks.

[Darcy Baldwin]

All x-cart stores have fields for putting in the information. It's not something that can be removed. Putting in dummy info is the easiest way to just fill it out everywhere without giving personal information.

I would be VERY uncomfortable giving anyone access to my account, friends or not.

[heathergw]

Most of my friends don't have a PayPal account. Some of them do though, so this is a good point. Thanks.

So, they would be using a CC? Don't all CC companies need valid addy in order to approve the purchase?

[ColleenSwerb]

I don't understand why it's an issue to use a fake address and telephone number. But, I do that all the time. :shrugs:
As long as it's the real name and email, so there is proof of a purchase (the invoice, lke Heather mentioned), then what does it matter what the address is?

[4noisyboys]

I would be VERY uncomfortable giving anyone access to my account, friends or not.

Me too D.

[adrianka]

If this is the issue- I don't understand why you said you won't talk them into using fake info-- or is it that they refuse and I misread?

I wouldn't be comfortable with my customers allowing Other people access to their account. Who's to say someone else wouldn't download your purchases etc.. You may know otherwise- but myself, as a designer, I would just see multiple people accessing the same acct and worry about piracy & violations of our TOU's

The easier solution is just using a dummy phone # and addy. Instead of casting any doubt.

I never looked at it this way. Fortunately I never gave anyone access to my account. Still, none of my friends would download anything as they don't have a clue about what this whole scrapbooking business is about! I would never give access to people who would do such a thing, believe me. The possibility of misusing it never came into my mind because it's really out of question with those people! But I respect your point of view, so I won't do it.

I'm kind of perplexed about one thing: if one needs the data for tax purposes, how do fake ones help there? Won't they cause more trouble than not? Or is it just necessary to have some name and address and nobody will check it (I guess nobody will, as it's not millions of USD we're talking about)?

About "talk into" -- I meant "insist on", "persuade" when using the word. I can mention to people they can use fake information, but I won't persuade them in case they don't want to, that's all. :-)

[adrianka]

So, they would be using a CC? Don't all CC companies need valid addy in order to approve the purchase?

They do. But I can see the difference between giving information to your bank and to some online shop (even though you're still giving it to them by using the card, heh). BTW, it's what I was talking about - why isn't it enough to use PayPal / credit card and skip the registration part...

[lauren grier]

I just needed a first and last name for all transactions for tax purposes :]

[adrianka]

All x-cart stores have fields for putting in the information. It's not something that can be removed. Putting in dummy info is the easiest way to just fill it out everywhere without giving personal information.

I would be VERY uncomfortable giving anyone access to my account, friends or not.

Oh. That's annoying. So using dummy info seems like the only option.

I wouldn't mind giving access to my account to friends, but I can easily see why it's not a likeable option. The only thing that would bother *me* would be that somebody might be curious and actually see how much money I spend on scrapbooking. :-)

[adrianka]

I just needed a first and last name for all transactions for tax purposes :]

Good to know! :-)

[Andrea Gourley]

I just needed a first and last name for all transactions for tax purposes :]

Oh my goodness, I hope that American tax man never checks up on my online purchases because just about the only thing that is real on my accounts is my email address. I often make up all the other details and mickey mouse and buzz lightyear often feature :lol:

[mummytothree]

Would you feel comfortable giving them your log in info? Maybe change the password while they shop then change it back after they made their purchase? I'm not really sure how GC work here so I'm not sure if that would work but it seems like it might help?

This is what my hubby does for me.....so if you look at my history....it looks like I've bought myself tons and tons of gift cards :D :D :D

[adrianka]

I don't understand why it's an issue to use a fake address and telephone number. But, I do that all the time. :shrugs:
As long as it's the real name and email, so there is proof of a purchase (the invoice, lke Heather mentioned), then what does it matter what the address is?

I guess the whole point is that registering somewhere takes time, especially if it's somewhere where you will never return. People don't like doing unnecessary things. That's the real issue here. According to my logic, it should be enough to proceed to payment without going through any kind of registration. Most people will stop there, believe me.

Also, to some people using dummy info might feel like lying, even though it's normally done on the internet (we're talking about people who have a CC, but normally don't shop online, or not too often).

I think the reasons why people don't want to register vary. What I was curious about was why couldn't the whole GC transaction be done without registering. Much more people would give me a GC if there weren't for this.

Now I've been told it's necessary, and I can totally respect that, but if someone tell me they won't bother to register, I won't be persuading them.

[BrattyMeg]

why not set up a gc username in the store and give that out?

like YOU set it up with Adrianka-SSDGC or something and an email addy you could check and just give that info to anybody wanting to buy you a gc? That way the gc goes on that acct and you can send it to yourself to save them the trouble, etc..then nobody has to register

[adrianka]

why not set up a gc username in the store and give that out?

like YOU set it up with Adrianka-SSDGC or something and an email addy you could check and just give that info to anybody wanting to buy you a gc? That way the gc goes on that acct and you can send it to yourself to save them the trouble, etc..then nobody has to register

Now you're talking... Why haven't I come up with something as simple and brilliant myself, he? :-)

You've made me very happy now. *loves* :-)

[BrattyMeg]

lol glad I could help :)

[ColleenSwerb]

A round of applause for Meg!

[Robin Carlton]

Hey girls,

My initial thoughts when reading this thread were that there might be complications with credit card transactions if the billing information wasn't here on the site, but I did some testing without an address or phone number entered and the transaction when through just fine.

I've adjusted the REQUIRED registration information so it only includes first and last name in addition to an email address to make things easier on customers who do not want to give address & phone number details. As we don't do any shipping from SSD and our payments are handled through Paypal and our credit card processor directly, the trimmed down information should not be an issue.

All of that said, we have gone to great lengths to protect your personal information and privacy. Our site is SSL secured so that when you (or your friends) register you should see the site switch over to https:// indicating that your personal information is being transmitted securely.

Hope it helps,
Robin

[adrianka]

A round of applause for Meg!

This was, indeed, a solution worthy of King Solomon. :-)

[ColleenSwerb]

Hey girls,

My initial thoughts when reading this thread were that there might be complications with credit card transactions if the billing information wasn't here on the site, but I did some testing without an address or phone number entered and the transaction when through just fine.

I've adjusted the REQUIRED registration information so it only includes first and last name in addition to an email address to make things easier on customers who do not want to give address & phone number details. As we don't do any shipping from SSD and our payments are handled through Paypal and our credit card processor directly, the trimmed down information should not be an issue.

All of that said, we have gone to great lengths to protect your personal information and privacy. Our site is SSL secured so that when you (or your friends) register you should see the site switch over to https:// indicating that your personal information is being transmitted securely.

Hope it helps,
Robin

That's awesome Robin, thank you! :)

[adrianka]

Hey girls,

My initial thoughts when reading this thread were that there might be complications with credit card transactions if the billing information wasn't here on the site, but I did some testing without an address or phone number entered and the transaction when through just fine.

Actually (a bit OT but still), the friend of mine who kept postponing getting me the GC since Christmas said to me he didn't dare to give fake address just in case there'd be a problem if it didn't match up with the billing information.

I've adjusted the REQUIRED registration information so it only includes first and last name in addition to an email address to make things easier on customers who do not want to give address & phone number details. As we don't do any shipping from SSD and our payments are handled through Paypal and our credit card processor directly, the trimmed down information should not be an issue.

This is so cool of you, Robin! I can't say "thank you" enough times for this. Yay! :-)

All of that said, we have gone to great lengths to protect your personal information and privacy. Our site is SSL secured so that when you (or your friends) register you should see the site switch over to https:// indicating that your personal information is being transmitted securely.

It's clear, and I do know that, but people who don't buy online too often are somehow mistrustful anyway.

Hope it helps,
Robin

You bet it does! You've made my day, Robin.

[crecia27]

why not set up a gc username in the store and give that out?

like YOU set it up with Adrianka-SSDGC or something and an email addy you could check and just give that info to anybody wanting to buy you a gc? That way the gc goes on that acct and you can send it to yourself to save them the trouble, etc..then nobody has to register

Brilliant!

[newfiemountiewife]

Robin, you are amazing! :)

[lovely1m]

Yay! Now maybe I can get some.

On a side note, I never give out my real name or address or phone number on a site until they are actually sending me products.

[[michele]]

That is really sweet of you Robin!

So am I the only loser that just lets the computer autofill all the fields with my real information? :p

[Jengerbread88]

Michelle, I always give my real info, too. Lol.

[neenee]

Case in point as to why this place ROCKS! Another score for our illustrious leader!

[jessica31876]

nope I always do too. In fact I had a c.c transaction not go through from a digi-scrapping site because something did not match my c.c. account. I dont think it was the site who kicked it back but my own c.c company and I was sort of puzzled why that happened until I noticed the address was different.

;639703']That is really sweet of you Robin!

So am I the only loser that just lets the computer autofill all the fields with my real information? :p