Setting up Your Making Music Platform to Sell Merchandise

For all the set-up instructions below, ensure that you are logged into your Making Music Platform with a "Webmaster" level of access.

1.  Enable the Order module and set up payment options

Before merchandise can be sold from your website, the Order module must be enabled.  You must also select at least one payment method.  The payment methods available are:

• Credit card via a secure payment gateway. When a vistor uses this option to pay for their order, they remain on your website for the entire process (unlike PayPal, below). Making Music Platform currently has integrated support for Stripe. Please refer to our Payment Gateways page for more information.
• Credit card via PayPal.  Note that your group must have a PayPal account in order to enable this payment method.  These are free to set up, but note that PayPal takes fees on every transaction.
• Internet Bank Transfer. Your bank account details are displayed to visitors when they check out. They make a manual transfer via their own Internet banking system, and when your merchandise manager sees the payment in your group's bank account, they then manually mark the order as paid, and the goods can be shipped.
• Cheque/Money Order.  Your postal address is displayed to members when they received their invoice. They post a cheque, and when your merchandise manager receives it, they then manually mark the order as paid, and the goods can be shipped.

To enable the order module and set up payment options...

1. Click the "cog" icon in the top-right corner of the site
2. On the Website Setup and Configuration page, click the cog icon next to "Making Music Platform"
3. Click the Configuration tab
4. Tick the box at the top of the tab called Online Invoices/Orders/Tickets/Donations
5. Tick the box at the top of the tab called Merchandise
6. Click the Payments tab
7. Enter the details of at least one payment method.  For example, the bank account instructions may look something like this...

   Please pay funds into the following account:

   Bank: First Bank of Making Music
   BSB: 123456
   Account name: My Excellent Group Inc.
   Account number: 12345678

   ...while the cheque/money order instructions may look like this...

   Please make cheques payable to My Excellent Group Inc.
   and post to:

   My Excellent Group Inc.
   PO BOX 9876
   Mytown SA 1234

8. If you wish to allow visitors to pay for merchandise securely using a credit card, please refer to our Payment Gateways page for more information
9. Click Save at the bottom

2.  Nominate the person/position responsible for handling orders

In most groups, there is one person that is responsible for purchasing merchandise, as well as being notified of new orders.  In Making Music Platform, you must nominate who this person is before invoices can be sent.  This is done by selecting the "position" that the person holds, not the person themselves.  That way whenever a new person takes over that position, the system continues to function without modification.

It may be necessary to first create the "position" and assign a member to it.  Check the Officers or Management Team page (or look in the "Positions" database).  If the position doesn't exist, create it.  Ensure that a member is assigned to it.  Then...

1. Click the "cog" icon in the top-right corner of the site
2. On the Website Setup and Configuration page, click the cog icon next to "Making Music Platform"
3. Click the People tab
4. In the Receive merchandise purchase notifications drop-down list, select the appropriate position
5. Click Save at the bottom

Next, ensure that this person has administration rights over the merchandise database...

1. Click on the Admin link in the top-right corner to display the Administration Dashboard

2. Scroll down to the Members heading, and click on Logins in the far-right Database tables column

3. On the Logins Administration page, click the button to update the login record of the person holding this role
4. Ensure that their Access Level is set to at least Data Administration Access
5. If their Access Level is set to Data Administration Access, then you must ensure that at least the following databases are selected from the set of tickboxes below the drop-down list:
   • Merchandise
   • Merchandise categories
6. Click Save at the bottom

3.  Ensure that your merchandise is correctly set up

Now it's time to actually add the products that you wish to sell on your website.  Visit the Merchandise page, usually found in the Other menu across the top of the page.  If you can't see it there, it may be in one of the other menus. If not, please contact us.

If everything has been set up correctly, then when you visit the Merchandise page you should see no errors - perhaps just the message "There are no items to display".  There should also be some links at the top of the page that allow you to add new items and new merchandise categories.