Hey there! It's been a couple of months since our previous "new functionality" article went out, and since we've added a ton of new functionality since then we figured it's time for another one!
So pull up a chair, sit back, and enjoy the updates! |
| Quick Overview |
Some of the different areas we'll covering include:
Feel free to skip to any section you're interested in, or simply read on for details on them all!
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| STOREFRONT UPDATES |
| Horizontal and Vertical Gallery Layouts |
This option has been frequently requested, and we're extremely happy to anounce that you can now choose between horizontal and vertical thumbnail layouts for your galleries! Since this setting is available on each gallery individually, you can pick and choose which option works best for each of your different sessions.
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| Requiring Client Crops |
Because not every image will fit comfortably into every print size you offer, you can now require that your clients select the crop area for each print they purchase. Or, if you would prefer to handle the crops yourself, you can set custom crops as optional, or even disable them altogether.
This setting is available in the "Storefront Category, Image, and Product Display" section within the Preferences page, and is labeled "Image Cropping Options."
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| Gallery Location Information |
Are you open to travel or do you have experience in a variety of different geographic locations? Let your clients know by simply enabling location information on your main gallery list.
This setting is labeled "Display Gallery Location", and it can be found in the "Storefront Homepage" section within the Preferences page of your account. Available options include: (a) City, State/Province, Country, (b) City, State, and (c) City, Country |
| Google Tracking & Analytics |
Ever wonder where your gallery visitors come from, what types of devices they're using, how they found your site, and how long they're spending looking at your images? Add Google Tracking to your account to find out!
Similar to the other settings mentioned here, this setting is labeled "Google Analytics ID" and it can be found in the "Storefront Misc Options" section within the Preferences page of your account. |
| Category Featured Images |
In addition to selecting Gallery Featured Images, you can now select Category Featured Images! And, just like the Gallery Featured Images, you can select the display positions for your Category Featured Images as well.
Category Featured Images can also be used in your email templates! For example, you can setup a Gallery Invitation email with the "gallery" featured photo in it, while also setting up reminder emails and sales notices that automatically contain your category featured images instead.
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| FULFILLMENT UPDATES |
| New Lab Partner : Bay Photo Lab |
We are extremely happy to have recently partnered with Bay Photo Lab! Bay Photo Lab is a very well known and respected professional photography lab, and we're excited to offer you their services.
To select Bay Photo Lab as your preferred fulfillment provider, simply head into the Lab Connections page within the Fulfillment Tab of your account and select "Bay Photo" from the droplist. |
| New Lab Services |
| Whether you need Lab Color Correction or occasional shipping to Canada, we've got your back! Lab color correction is now offered through Bay Photo, WHCC, and Richard Photo Lab, and Canadian shipping is now offered through both Bay Photo and WHCC. |
| New Lab Settings |
In our efforts to make the fulfillment process more convenient for everyone, we have added two new fulfillment settings:
- Fulfillment Wait Time - When automatic fulfillment is enabled on your account we generally wait 1 business day before sending your orders off to the lab, in case any changes need to be made beforehand. The new "Fulfillment Wait Time" setting allows you select a wait time that works best for you.
- Simple Lab Swapping - The previous method for swapping fulfillment labs between orders involved leaving the order you were working on, going into the Lab Connections screen, making your changes, and then going back to the fulfillment process to start over on your order. This process has been dramatically simplified and you can now swap fulfillment labs within the fulfillment process itself!
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| New Lab Products |
Over the past few months we've added some amazing products to our fulfillment options, including:
- Metal Prints - Created by infusing high-quality photo dyes directly into specially-coated aluminum sheets, these prints leave a lasting impression on anyone lucky enough to view them! Each print comes with slightly rounded corners (for safety) and metal hanging hardware. Additionally, all metal prints are both waterproof and scratch resistant. Available through Bay Photo and WHCC.
- Styrene Mounting - Styrene is an extremely rigid plastic material that can add durability and warp-resistance to prints of any size. At just 2-3mm thick Styrene works wonderfully in frames, and because the mounting material is plastic it is not affected by humidity or moisture. Available through Bay Photo and WHCC.
- Gallery Wrap Canvas - Gallery Wrap Canvas options are now available through all of our lab partners! Regardless of whether your clients want small prints for their hallways or large prints for their great rooms, gallery wrap canvas prints are an excellent choice that will continue to look amazing for many generations to come. Available through Bay Photo, ProDPI, WHCC, and Richard Photo Lab.
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| TOOL UPDATES |
| Manually Create Orders |
Do you need a few prints for yourself, or has your client sent order details to you offline? If so, you can now manually create an order through your account without having to submit it through your client galleries.
To begin the process of manually creating an order simply head into the Order List page within the "Orders" tab and click the "Create New Order" link. Once you've finished creating the order, you can then send the order to one of our fulfillment partners using the standard fulfillment process. |
| Expanded Email Functionality |
Sending gallery invitation emails through the "Visitors" page has always been fairly straightforward, but with only one global "Invitation" email template to use, the functionality has also been a little bit limited.
With that in mind, we've expanded the email options available through the "Visitors" page in the following ways:
- Custom Subject Lines - Each time you send an email from the Visitors page you can now customize the subject line before it is sent.
- Selectable Templates - Instead of being limited to sending just the global invitation email template, you may now select from ANY of your email templates.
You may also continue to send Abandoned Cart emails from the "Visitors" page, with the same added benefits as described for the Invitation emails above. |
| Invoices Paid Offline |
Having all of your client invoices listed, paid, and tracked in one location can be extremely convenient, but what happens when a client decides to pay you offline instead of through their emailed invoice link?
Through our new "paid offline" functionality, you can manually mark an invoice as being paid offline, and continue to track and monitor it along with your other invoices.
To mark an invoice as being paid offline simply click the new "Paid Offline?" link found next to each of your unpaid invoices. |
| MISCELLANEOUS |
| Black Friday Sample Email |
Black Friday is THIS MONTH! Do you have your sale(s) setup and ready to go? If not, now's the time to do it!
To help you get started with your Black Friday Sale email, we've created a sample template for you to customize and make your own. Click the button below to begin customizing the sample email!
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| Referral Bonus |
Refer your friends to Instaproofs before the end of November and we'll thank you by giving your account an extra 3GB of storage space... for the life of your account! And because fair's fair, we'll even give an extra 1GB of storage space to your friend as well.
To take advantage of this offer simply ask your friends to put your name down in the "Referred By" box when they sign up for an Instaproofs account, and we'll do the rest! |
| And That's A Wrap! |
