Documentation

For System Managers

Note: You need to be logged in as a system manager for everything in this section.

Commerce

Items can be enabled for purchase or not as required.

Clicking the purchase button takes the user through a conventional sequence of screens to confirm quantities, billing and delivery addresses, payment details etc…

The currency used and presented will be as specified for the initial configuration of the system.

The following attributes of purchases can be set

  • Media Formats
  • Media Sizes
  • Item Uses
  • Pricing Structures
  • Regions
  • Countries
  • Delivery Methods
  • Tax Codes

Royalty free or rights managed

Trinity accommodates both royalty free and rights managed commercial models, or a combination of both.

Royalty free

Royalty free means that you supply an item and the purchaser can then use it in any way that they choose.

Rights managed

Rights managed means that you supply an item for only specific uses that will determine price charged. For example an image is supplied for use only on an inside page of a magazine for one edition with a circulation not exceeding 10,000 in one country only.

How charges are calculated

Each of the following can have a price associated with it.

  • Media size
  • Pricing structure
  • Delivery method
  • Tax code where applicable.

The charge presented to the user will be the total of all the prices above, prices can be set to any value including zero.

The quantity ordered – where applicable – will also affect the charge.

Example prices and charges

Here are three examples of the total charge calculations.

Example of prices and charges

Cost of fulfillment

Optionally media sizes and delivery methods allow the for the fulfillment costs of these elements to be entered. Fulfillment costs don’t appear in any public screen.

Personal financial data security

iBase Trinity does not store any credit or debit card details, and although it might not be obvious on the screen used to enter card details, it is always on the payment provider’s site, e.g. PayPal or a bank, not Trinity.

Changing commerce settings

All of the setting below are on the Administration page in the ‘Commerce’ group. Click the one that you want to edit.

Media Formats

The media formats screen displays all of the media formats.

Media formats that you supply might for example be print and digital, these two are standard settings in Trinity as delivered.

To edit a format click it – you can then edit description, whether or not it’s an electronic format *, and select all of the file types to which the format applies.

* Defining as electronic, or not, will affect the delivery methods offered.

Create a new format by clicking ‘Add Media Format’ and edit the details as above.

Click Update Media Format to save the new or changed settings.

Delete a format with the Delete button.

Media Sizes

The media sizes screen displays all of the media formats, select a format to list the media sizes associated with it.

Add a media size with the button or click one in the list to edit it.

For each media size the following can be entered –

  • Description - as displayed to users.
  • Cost - optional cost of fulfillment. Not seen by non-system managers.
  • Price – price of this size. It can be zero.
  • Download policy – for electronic items only, set the size that will be delivered.

Delete a size with the Delete button.

Item Uses

To specify the ways in which an item will be used by the purchaser. As delivered the uses are Commercial, Educational and Personal. You can add more with the Add Item Use button or just have one, General for example.

Delete an item use with the Delete button.

Pricing Structures

Item Uses must be created in Trinity before Pricing Structures can be linked to them. As delivered there is a pricing structure for each of the ‘as delivered’ item uses.

Pricing structures are listed on the first screen.

Pricing structures are principally for use with rights managed sales. If your sales are all royalty free set each of the listed pricing structures to a zero price.

For rights managed sales additional pricing structures can be created as required, for example you might want one for say ‘UK printed media’. Add prices for each structure, and optionally the media format.

Tax Codes

Any relevant tax code can be created. As delivered Trinity is set up with NONE (No tax) and VAT, which is applicable in countries of the European Union.

Click Add Tax Code to create a new one and enter a tax code, description and tax rate percentage.

Delete a tax code with the Delete button.

Regions

Regions are not the same as the conventional geographic continents. In Trinity commerce they are associated with particular Tax Rates and with the availability of Delivery Methods. For the UK these regions might for example be United Kingdom, European Union and Rest of the World.

The required Tax Codes must be created in Trinity before they can be linked to a Region.

Note: When a new Region is created, any Countries within it from which orders may be accepted should be reviewed and their details updated as required.

Add a new region with the Add Region button and provide a short code and description, and if required set a tax rate. Finish with Update Region.

Edit a region’s details by clicking on it.

Delete a region using the Delete button.

Countries

Trinity is delivered with a list of all recognised countries in the world at that time. This is also the drop list of countries used in the address details of Trinity user accounts. If a new country is added, it will be necessary to review all users whose addresses lie in the area that now forms the new country.

This command opens a list of all Countries listed in Trinity commerce. It is organised across 13 pages.

Add a new county with the Add Country button and provide a short code and the name of the country. Finish with Update Country.

Edit a country’s details by clicking on it.

Delete a country using the Delete button.

Delivery Methods

Delivery methods are the ways in which a purchased asset can be supplied, for example ‘Download’, ‘Email attachment’, ‘Courier’ etc…

Note: The required Regions must be created before delivery methods can be flagged as being available there.

Add a new delivery method the ‘Add Delivery Method’ button and enter a description, cost (for internal use if required), price to the purchaser, whether it’s an electronic format such as a file rather than a print, and whether it can delivered with a download. Check the region(s) for which the delivery method can be used.

Edit a delivery method by clicking on it.

Delete a delivery method using the Delete button.