ecommerce recommendations and related topics
cookie
A message given to a Web browser by a Web server. The browser stores the message in a text file. The message is then sent back to the server each time the browser requests a page from the server.
Also see session cookie and persistent cookie.
The main purpose of cookies is to identify users and possibly prepare customized Web pages for them. When you enter a Web site using cookies, you may be asked to fill out a form providing such information as your name and interests. This information is packaged into a cookie and sent to your Web browser which stores it for later use. The next time you go to the same Web site, your browser will send the cookie to the Web server. The server can use this information to present you with custom Web pages. So, for example, instead of seeing just a generic welcome page you might see a welcome page with your name on it.
The name cookie derives from UNIX objects called magic cookies. These are tokens that are attached to a user or program and change depending on the areas entered by the user or program.
Also see Do Cookies Compromise Security? in the Did You Know . . . ? section of Webopedia.
opt-in e-mail
A term that refers to promotional e-mails that have been requested by the individual receiving them. Unlike spam promotional e-mails that get sent out to large lists of recipients without regard to whether or not they want the information, opt-in e-mails are only sent to people who specifically request them.
Opt-in e-mails are targeted and often personalized and carry information about specific topics or promotions that users are interested in learning about. Typical opt-in e-mails contain newsletters, product information or special promotional offers. For example, if a user frequented a Web site that sold books and music online, that user could "opt in" to receive announcements when his favorite author or musician released new material. The promotional e-mail may even present the recipient with a special promotional offer to purchase the product at a discount available only to those on the opt-in list.
Spammers, however, have found a way to use the opt-in feature to their advantage. Spam e-mails often come with opt-in features in fine print or obscured somewhere in the body of the e-mail with text that reads something to the effect of "Failure to respond to this e-mail will automatically opt-in the recipient to future mailings." The strategy of responding to the spam and asking to be removed from future mailings also has critics as some claim that responding to a spam e-mail with a request to be removed from the mailing list signals that the e-mail address is a working address and the address can then be passed on to other spammers.
Also see Getting Rid of Spam in the Did You Know section of Webopedia.
Anatomy of a Credit Card Transaction: The Basics
For a bigger understanding of a credit card transaction, the consequent is a
step-by-step breakdown: from the customer making a purchase using ECmerchant to
the merchant receiving an authorization on the value request. This not only
shows who is involved in this path , however it will highlight some considerations
in choosing an Internet value supply and establishing a merchant credit card
account.
Once the merchant account is in settle with an acquiring financial school
the merchant will desire to understand how money will be moved from the customers'
accounts to the merchant account. The best path to appreciate how an Internet
merchant gets paid is to follow a typical credit card transaction path . Fully
automated from end-to-end, in most cases it takes just seconds to entire.
1. A customer visits a web site, using average web browser software,
and fills her ECmerchant shopping cart.
2. The customer and ECmerchant exchange details online regarding
addresses, delivery and final value.
3. ECmerchant then displays the 'BUY' button to the customer, and a
transaction is initiated.
4. The customer clicks the 'BUY' button, prompting ECmerchant
to mail and electronic invoice.
5. ECmerchant provides transaction details in a form or the shopper's
browser automatically opens her online wallet, allowing her to select a value
instrument.
6. An encrypted charge value message is sent to ECmerchant.
7. When the server software receives the value message, it adds
merchant identification data.
8. The value request is encrypted and forwarded to gateway server
hosted by an ECommerce value supply corporation.
9. The gateway server decrypts the message and authenticates customers'
data and merchant validation.
10. A message is sent over secure, private financial networks to the
merchant's bank or authorized processor requesting charge approval.
11. Once the request is processed, a positive or negative response is
sent back to ECmerchant and on to the customer.
12. If the transaction is authorized, a digital receipt is delivered,
and the transaction is entire and captured.
