Deep Linking and the Customer Experience

One way to immediately streamline the guests' experience while purchasing tickets is to make use of deep linking from your venue's website site to ACME's. Deep linking allows you to control exactly where a customer lands when moving from your site to the ACME Online Checkout (B2C) website pages. Deep linking can be used to skip repeated steps/info when landing on the online checkout page, depending on what part of your site a guest is coming from. For example, when a guest has already clicked into an event on your website, then you can use a specific link that goes directly to the calendar for that event or even into the cart with a date and time already specified, which means fewer clicks for the guests to get to the cart and checkout.


TABLE OF CONTENTS


Levels of deep linking

Depending on how much information you want your guests to receive after they get to the ACME Online Checkout website, you can deep link past the main events list to:

  1. Event detail page

    • This shows the full event description configured via the template, including links prompting members to verify if included in the description. 

    • Considerations for use:

      • Linking to the description provides more event information, but this may be redundant info, depending on what info was on the source page the guest came from. 

      • It starts the guest before the buy flow, so more clicks for the guests to get to the cart - Tickets>Select date>Select ticket options>Checkout

  2. Calendar for a specific event

    • No event info when landing on this link, but it puts guest directly into buy flow.

    • Considerations for use:

      • This doesn’t provide event information, but the guest needs to make fewer clicks to get to the cart - Select date>Select ticket options>Checkout

  3. Cart showing available tickets for a specific event and date

    • This skips all the extra clicks and directs a customer directly to a cart with an event and date preloaded.

    • This useful for one time events where there is only one date the event occurs on, and OR if the guest has already chosen a date and event on the original site. 

    • Considerations for use:

      • This doesn’t provide event description information, but uses the fewest clicks to complete checkout - Select ticket options>Checkout

  4. Calendar without a specific event selected yet

    • This allows the guests to pick a date, and then they see a shorter events list with only events available on that date. From there they have the option of clicking to “Learn More” to get to an event detail page, or they can go straight to the cart and select tickets for any event.

    • Considerations for use:

      • There is potentially less event information, depending on where a guests clicks once they get the date specific events list. The list they do see is much simpler, and only shows events available on the selected date.

      • It starts them before the buy flow, with more clicks for the guests to get to the cart - Tickets>Select date>Select options>Checkout


Event Link Types

  1. Event Detail page

    • This links to the ACME Event detail page with full description. Guests will then have to choose a date from the calendar before landing in the cart.
    • There is a non-member link that will go straight to the Event Detail page, as well as a member link that will prompt members to verify first.

  2. Event Calendar page

    • Calendar for a specific event. Once a date is selected, guests will immediately go to the cart with date and event chosen.
    • There is a non-member link that will go straight to the Event Calendar page, as well as a member link that will prompt members to verify first.

  3. Event Cart page - specific date

    • Cart showing available tickets for a specific event and a specific date. Guests will choose their tickets and be able to checkout.
    • There is a non-member link that will go straight to the Event Cart page, as well as a member link that will prompt members to verify first.

  4. Event Cart page - today's date (dynamic)

    • Cart showing available tickets for a specific event and the current date. This link doesn't specify a date and dynamically uses the current date when the link is clicked. This should be used for events that are available daily or regularly, vs one-time events.
    • There is a non-member link that will go straight to the Event Cart page, as well as a member link that will prompt members to verify first.

  5. General Calendar - all events

    • Calendar without a specific event selected yet. One a date is selected, guests will see a list of all events available on that day. Once an event is selected they will go to the cart for that event and the preselected date.
    • There is a non-member link that will go straight to the General Calendar page, as well as a member link that will prompt members to verify first.

  6. Event Detail page - date specific

    • Event detail page with date already chosen. This skips the calendar after showing the detail and directs straight to the cart for that event and the preselected date. This is great for 1 time events.
    • There is a non-member link that will go straight to the Event Detail page, as well as a member link that will prompt members to verify first.


Additional Member Link Types

In addition to the member event links above that require members to complete verification before directing them to the de, there are some additional member specific links that can be used.

  1. Member verify to Member Detail page

    • Deep link to verify, then land on Member Detail page. Use this to link a member to their profile for easy renewals.

  2. Member verify to Donations Landing Page

    • Deep link to verify, then land on Donations Landing Page. This drives Members to donate while being logged in, so their membership information is recorded when they make the donation.
    • See Creating Custom Donation Landing Pages for more information

How to Update Links

Attached below is a link generator you can use to create any of these links for your events. To use it, you will need to insert your tenant ID, the event ID, and a date (as needed) on the first page, and it will format the links for you to copy and paste. You can update the event ID and date as needed to format links for as many events as you need.


IDs for each event can be found in the URL in B2B for that event template.


HTML can be used with the CSS to control the styling of text across the ACME Online Checkout website. This will allow you to use different colors, backgrounds, font weights, etc on the CSS controlled text, like the Orders page description (cart message), the events list message (above the events list) etc. See the Tips for using HTML with CSS for more information.


Sample member verification link embedded in the cart text:
"orders-page-description": "<p>We look forward to your visit. For support call 555.555.5555.</p><p style=\"font-size:20px; font-weight:300; background-color: #ECECEC; padding: 20px;\">MEMBERS: <a href=\"https://sand10-buy.acmeticketing.com/auth/000/members?ref=https:%2F%2Fsand7-buy.acmeticketing.com%2Forders%2F000%2Ftickets%3Fcart\" target=\"_self\" style=\"text-decoration: underline; font-weight:900;\">Please verify your membership</a> to receive discounts on tickets.</p>,


Using deep linking to control the customer experience

Below are some examples of ways to use the different link locations, and how that will change the customer experience.


Starting at event detail

Option 1: Deep link to Event Detail, Members go back to Event Detail after verifying

  1. Link to an ACME Event Detail page (Standard Link 1)

    • Members click a ‘Verify Membership’ link in that is in the event description, controlled by the template

      • Use Membership Link 1 in the event description to verify then direct to event detail 

    • Verify membership

    • Member is automatically redirected back to event detail

  2. All guests click “Tickets”

  3. Select a date

  4. Select tickets in cart

  5. Checkout


Option 2: Deep link to Event Detail, Members go to Calendar after verifying (recommended)

  1. Link to an ACME Event Detail page (Standard Link 1)

    • Members click a ‘Verify membership’ link in that is in the event description, controlled by the template

      • Use Membership Link 2 to verify then direct to calendar

    • Member is automatically redirected to Calendar

  2. Non-members click “Tickets”

  3. Select a date

  4. Select tickets in cart

  5. Checkout


Option 3: Deep link to Event Detail, Members Verify in Cart

  1. Link to an ACME Event Detail page (Standard Link 1)

    • Do not include a “Members, click here to verify” message and link in the event description (controlled by the template)

  2. Click Tickets

  3. Select a date

    • In cart, click link in cart description text (WL controlled)

    • After verifying, Members are redirected to cart with discount applied

  4. Select tickets in cart

  5. Checkout


Starting at calendar

Option 1: Deep link to calendar for specific event

  1. Link to the calendar for a specific event (Standard Link 2)

  2. Select a date

  3. Select Tickets in the cart

    • Non-members checkout

    • Members can be prompted to verify by configuring message in cart header


Option 2: Deep link to member verification and then calendar for specific event (member specific)

  1. Link to verification that directs to calendar for a specific event (Member Link 2)

  2. Verify

  3. Member is automatically redirected to calendar, select a date

  4. Select Tickets in the cart


Starting at cart

Option 1: Deep link to cart with event and date preselected

  1. Deep link to the cart showing available tickets for a specific event and date (Standard Link 3)

  2. Select Tickets in the cart

    • Non-members checkout

    • Members can be prompted to verify by configuring message in cart header


Option 2: Deep link to member verification and then to cart with event/date preselected (member specific)

  1. Deep link to verification that directs to the cart showing available tickets for a specific event and date (Member Link 3)

  2. Verify

  3. Member is automatically redirected to cart with event and date already loaded

  4. Select Tickets in the cart


Starting at the calendar before selecting an event

Option 1: Deep link to calendar without a specific event selected yet

  1. Deep link to calendar with no event selected (Standard Link 5)

  2. Select a date

  3. Limited Events List loads with only events available that day

  4. Click Learn More to see event description, or click Tickets

  5. Select Tickets in the cart

    • Non-members checkout

    • Members can be prompted to verify by configuring message in cart header


Option 2: Deep link to member verification, then land on calendar picker to see date specific events list

  1. Deep link to verification that redirects to calendar with no event selected (Membership Link 7)
  2. Verify
  3. Member is automatically redirected to calendar with no event selected
  4. Select a date
  5. Limited Events List loads with only events available that day
  6. Click Learn More to see event description, or click Tickets
  7. Select Tickets in the cart


Attachments

  • attached below - v11 updated on 03/06/2024

    • Link formatting for all two stage Member redirect links was updated to support enhanced security protocols that are coming to the ACME Online Checkout website