Digital products are non-physical items that do not require shipping. Therefore, if you are selling digital goods or services on your store, the requirements to your checkout page should definitely be different.
Since it is a paramount to be focused on positive buyers' experience and on maximizing conversion rate, it is necessary to eliminate the elements which are not really necessary for successful completion of the order.
The checkout page for physical products usually requires:
to fill in shipping details (a delivery address that usually includes several fields and drop-down menus)
to pick a shipping option
to enter a billing address or to put a tick in the checkbox if it is the same as shipping
to pick a payment method
The checkout page which is optimized for selling digital goods requires only:
to add account information (could be represented by just one mandatory "Email" field)
to pick a payment method
This article explains how to leave only the essentials and get rid of the distractions when selling digital products.
In this article:
1. Adjusting the fields in the shipping form
Enter the form builder in the admin by clicking "Shipping" section on the left and selecting "Shipping forms" tab. It is possible to create as many custom forms as needed, which is good for A/B testing, but only one form can be active at a time. So, edit an existing one or create a new setup.
Work in the builder: leave one or several fields required for proper fulfillment of the order.
Example: The form in the builder with "Email" field (required) and a custom text field for collecting information from buyers (social media accounts)
2. Editing text elements
Customize text elements (wording) for your checkout. The texts can be customized in "Localization" section of the admin. Example: you may edit the standard "Shipping Details" element to custom text "Account Details", which is way more appropriate for the checkout designed especially for selling and delivering digital goods. Alternatively, just hide these two words (example is below).
3. Hiding unnecessary blocks
Such blocks as "Shipping Options" and "Billing Details" are not really relevant for the checkout page dedicated to digital products. Visit "Customization" section of the admin and manage the visibility of different blocks in "Advanced Options".
In case there is just one shipping rate created by you, it is free and you decided to hide the shipping options, as described above, then this rate will not be visible anywhere on the checkout and will not be transferred to Shopify (since it is free / zero-rate).
Do the similar operation for block names, if required. Find these customizations in the same section of the admin, scroll down to "Page Settings".
In general, we recommend to review and to evaluate every Customization carefully.
4. Activating express checkout buttons
The instant checkout buttons on Checkify's checkouts include PayPal Express button and / or solutions provided by Stripe's integration: Apple Pay / Google Pay / Microsoft Pay and Link. Visit "Payment Methods" section of the admin for more.
If you set up custom fields, like the one for buyers' social media accounts mentioned in the example above, it is recommended to place the express checkout buttons below the Shipping (address) block. This layout can be enabled in Customization options, Payment Settings.
If you intend to collect just an email or a phone at the checkout, then the flow of payment via express buttons will also be simplified and will not include shipping details and shipping method.
Example: Classical view (on the left) vs simplified view for digital products (on the right), when checking out via ApplePay
5. Testing and benefitting from increased sales
It is always advisable to test the checkout with friends and colleagues. Also, it is important to listen to your buyers' feedback and measure which setup is the best for your store.
If implemented correctly, the features and tools above could soon become a real revenue driver for your eComm business.