Updates Log
History of changes and updates in the NEXT BASKET platform
Legend:
New features
Improvements
Fixes
2024
New features
New in-house CRM Hub
The NEXT BASKET platform now includes an in-house CRM (Customer relationship module) module, tailored for partners who need an efficient and easy-to-use solution to manage customer relationships without relying on third-party CRM systems. This new module allows partners to customize and control CRM features based on their specific business needs, integrating seamlessly with the platform’s promotions, emails, and customer groups. The CRM module can be accessed through the Back Office by navigating to Marketing → CRM Hub. Inside, a dashboard displays a suite of CRM tools, organized into active and inactive sections for easy management. Each tool includes a Settings & Configurations button, guiding partners to detailed pages where they can set up and manage specific tools. This module makes it simple for partners to execute focused CRM campaigns, promoting ease of use and efficient customer engagement without the need for extensive CRM subscriptions.
Holiday Management in the CRM hub
NEXT BASKET introduces the Holidays Management tool, enabling partners to create and manage holiday-based promotional campaigns directly within the CRM module in the Back Office via Marketing → CRM Hub. This new feature allows for the seamless creation of custom holidays, including promotional details, email campaigns, and geographic targeting, all tailored to specific business needs. Through the Holidays Management tool, partners can create new holidays or manage existing ones. In the CRM Hub, the holiday management process starts by selecting the Holiday Management Settings button, followed by the option to Create Holiday, such as a birthday. Once the necessary information is provided, a promo code can be generated. This promo code can be assigned to all customers or specific customer groups and applied to products, categories, brands, collections, or tags, with the ability to set specific cart requirements and promotional rules. With automated newsletter sending integrated, email templates are automatically dispatched to the selected customer groups as part of the holiday setup. This ensures that customers receive timely promotional messages, enhancing engagement during key sales periods. Additionally, holidays can include start and end dates, custom messages, and exclusive promo codes, while campaigns can target specific countries and regions for more precise results. The combination of targeted promotions and automated communication makes the Holidays Management tool an effective way to simplify holiday-specific campaigns, increasing customer engagement and maximizing promotional success.
Automated birthday-based customer groups in CRM Module
NEXT BASKET now offers the ability to automatically create customer groups based on birthdays, making it easier to design and target personalized promotional campaigns. This feature, available in the CRM module Marketing→ CRM Hub), allows partners to automatically segment customers into a special birthday group, ensuring they can send tailored promotions during this key occasion. Partners can set up the automated birthday group to trigger customized promotional emails or offers. The system will handle grouping and management, enabling seamless integration of birthday promotions into overall marketing strategies. This feature makes it simple to engage with customers on their special day, driving loyalty and boosting sales.
Area of Operation filter in the apps menu
A new feature has been added to the Apps menu: the Area of Operation filter. This intuitive drop-down menu allows store owners to filter and view apps based on their operational region. Designed to streamline the app selection process, this feature automatically preselects a country based on the shop's settings, ensuring that the most relevant apps are displayed first. Store owners can also explore apps available in other regions or view all apps globally. The drop-down is single-select, with "Show All" as the default option, making it easy to navigate and find the apps best suited to their location. Apps that are applicable worldwide or have no specific country will be shown alongside those filtered by region, ensuring a comprehensive view without duplicates.
Improvements
Expanded social media integration
Store owners can now upload additional social media profiles, including LinkedIn, Reddit, YouTube, and X, via the "Social" tab in Shop Settings. This update ensures that social connections are easily managed and validated, offering more ways to link stores to various platforms.
Enhanced product import
The Import Products page has been revamped for easier use. Store owners can now download CSV and XLSX templates, upload files via drag-and-drop or dialog box and start the import with a newly activated button. A progress bar and header notification has been added, and imports can be paused or canceled as needed. Successful imports are confirmed with a popup notification, while failures offer a detailed error file. Column names in Import/Export files have been updated to match the new template. Access to the Import Products page is now available from the Product Listings page and the Catalog menu.
Consent module update
The Consent Module has been refined with several updates: the "Reject All" option has been removed, "Customize" has been renamed to "Manage Cookies" with corrected capitalization for "Accept All," and the Consent Management form/modal has been redesigned. The Mandatory header text has been updated to clarify that these cookies are essential for site functionality, and the toggle for this section now reads "Always Active."
Enhanced Category management: New option to disable Categories
A new enhancement has been introduced for category management. Categories can now be disabled using a toggle switch. Disabling a category will hide it and any subcategories from the storefront but will not affect the visibility of individual products. Products linked to a disabled category will still be accessible through direct links, and clients will be able to view and navigate to these products or subcategories if they have direct URLs. This feature streamlines category management while ensuring product accessibility.
Enhanced brand managing
We’ve enhanced brand options to make managing brands easier. Now, when creating or editing a brand, users can choose to feature the brand or display it on the homepage. These options are entirely optional, and if left unchecked, the brand will follow the default setting. This update simplifies customization and improves control over how brands are showcased.
Export product page
Store owners can now export all products or specific data, including URLs, directly from a dedicated export page. The export process supports both XLSX and CSV formats, catering to different needs. Once the export process starts, a status bar displays the file's compilation progress, allowing store owners to navigate away or even close the browser while the file is being prepared. After completion, the export file remains available for download for 24 hours or until a new export is initiated, ensuring easy access to the data. The new export page is seamlessly integrated into the existing navigation, providing a streamlined experience for managing large product databases.
AI Search app is installed by default for new Partners
We've enhanced the platform experience by ensuring the AI Search feature is automatically installed and activated for all new partners. Upon registration, the AI Search application will be set as active and visible in the Back Office, ensuring a smooth and efficient setup process. Additionally, shop data will be embedded during the app installation, allowing for seamless updates when new products are added. This guarantees that partners benefit from AI-powered search functionality right from the start.
New features
Associate static pages with specific purposes
We’ve introduced a new feature in the Back Office that allows store owners to easily associate static pages with specific purposes, such as Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions. This new setting, available under Design > Footer, lets partners select and manage these important links by choosing from a list of existing static pages, ensuring accurate and convenient updates.
Expanded free shipping promotions
We’ve enhanced the Free Shipping functionality to provide NEXT BASKET partners with more flexibility in creating dynamic and customizable shipping promotions. Now, in addition to offering free shipping through individual providers, partners can set up universal Free Shipping under specified conditions. By navigating to the new "Shipping Promotions" section under the Promotions and Discounts tab in the Back Office, partners can manage and create shipping promotions with various configurable options, such as minimum spend requirements and promotion duration. When a customer meets the eligibility criteria during checkout, the shipping fee will be waived automatically, providing a seamless and attractive promotion for customers.
Additional exposure for Shipping Promotion features on product pages
NEXT BASKET has enhanced the visibility of Free Shipping promotions by expanding their exposure on product pages. This new feature allows store owners to prominently display free shipping offers directly on the product pages, ensuring that customers are always informed about available promotions. This targeted approach aims to drive more sales by making these attractive offers more visible and accessible during the shopping experience.
Customer tracking of Shipping promotion progress through the cart page
The cart page in NEXT BASKET now includes an improved user interface that helps customers track their progress towards unlocking shipping promotions. A new progress bar visually indicates how much more the customer needs to spend to qualify for Free or Discounted Shipping. This enhancement not only informs customers but also motivates them to reach the promotion threshold, enhancing the overall shopping experience.
Inform customers and activate Shipping promotion
When customers meet the required spending threshold for a shipping promotion, the cart page now prominently highlights this achievement. A clear notification informs customers that they are eligible for the active shipping promotion, making it easier for them to take advantage of these offers. This feature ensures that customers are always aware of and can easily benefit from available promotions.
Push for additional sales when Shipping promotion has not yet been unlocked
For customers who have not yet met the requirements to unlock a shipping promotion, NEXT BASKET has introduced a new user interface component on the cart page. This feature prompts customers to "Keep Shopping" and redirects them to the Promotions Page, encouraging them to continue adding items to their cart to qualify for the shipping promotion. This strategic nudge helps increase sales by guiding customers towards meeting promotion thresholds.
eWAY payment method
We’re introducing eWAY as a new payment method, now available for partners in Australia and New Zealand. This new feature allows customers to pay seamlessly with eWAY during checkout. The payment provider app can be easily installed, configured, and uninstalled through the Back Office. This integration ensures a smooth and consistent experience, adhering to the latest UI/UX standards.
Revolut payment integration
Revolut is now integrated as a payment option, available as an installable app in the Back Office. Once installed, Revolut will appear as a payment method on the Store Front, providing a seamless and intuitive payment experience. All Revolut-specific options will be available during the payment process, ensuring a smooth and user-friendly transaction journey.
Improvements
Enhanced Category and Subcategory management
We've improved the category management system to allow categories and subcategories to be deleted or disabled under specific conditions. Now, categories without connected products can be deleted, even if they have subcategories, as long as those subcategories also have no connected products. Additionally, categories can now be disabled, regardless of their connection to products or subcategories. When disabled, categories will be hidden from the storefront without affecting the products in any way.
Enhanced Footer settings menu
The Footer Settings menu has been upgraded to offer a more dynamic and user-friendly experience. The new design introduces a sleek layout with a loading animation, repositioned Save button, and updated footer visualization. Users can now easily navigate through various tabs including Content Pages, Brands, Collections, Tags, Blog Articles, Products, Categories, and External Links. Each tab features a search bar for efficient filtering and the ability to drag and drop items directly into the footer. The interface also supports pagination and ensures a streamlined management of footer elements, making customization simpler and more intuitive.
Improved Brand filtering and product display
We've enhanced the brand filtering system on the brands page to ensure a more intuitive shopping experience. Users can now filter products by brand effectively, with clickable brand hyperlinks for active products and text-only displays for inactive ones. This ensures that selecting a brand filter displays the relevant products and that the brand information is accurately represented.
Enhanced Back Office navigation
The Back Office has been upgraded with new navigational enhancements to streamline the user experience. The All Products tab now leads directly to the Products listing page, and if the menu is expanded, it remains open until another sub-menu or main menu is selected. Additionally, if there are no existing products, brands, tags, attributes, product types, banners, content pages, shipping methods, delivery zones, or sender addresses, the system will automatically redirect to the appropriate creation pages. These improvements aim to make store management more intuitive and efficient.
Improved order exports from the Back Office
The Back Office order exports are now more powerful and user-friendly. Large order files will be broken into smaller, more manageable chunks, making it easier to download and handle extensive data. The export files will include new columns for Country and City in both basic and detailed reports, providing more useful information at a glance. Store owners can now download order data in both XLSX and CSV formats, accommodating a wide range of needs.
New features
Product stock availability display on Storefront
We’ve introduced a new feature that allows the shop’s end customers to view product stock availability directly on the product page. Now, when the Product Stock Visibility setting in the Store Settings under the Catalog module is enabled, customers will see stock availability labels like "X Pieces Remaining" for limited quantities or "In Stock" for unlimited quantities. This feature ensures that stock information is clearly displayed and aligns with the data in the product module in the Back Office, enhancing the shopping experience and aiding in purchase decisions.
Customer group selection in Shipping method
We’re introducing a new feature to the Shipping Method configuration page, giving partners the ability to tailor shipping options. Now, partners can choose which customer groups a shipping method applies to with a simple toggle. When activated, a dropdown menu appears, allowing the selection of one or multiple customer groups, ensuring that only the right options are shown to the right customers. This upgrade makes the checkout process smarter, more efficient, and perfectly tailored to the customers.
Featured brands section
The store now includes a dynamic Featured Brands section, showcasing up to 10 top brands recently updated and marked as featured in the Back Office. This grid displays each brand's image and name, ensuring a clean and organized layout. This update enhances brand visibility and provides customers with an easy way to explore featured brands, enriching their shopping experience.
Improvements
Updated footer design
We've implemented an updated footer design in the Back Office, including a revised phone number for better accessibility. This enhancement is now available in all supported languages, ensuring a consistent experience across different regions.
Display product public ID on Edit page
We’ve enhanced the product management experience by adding the display of the product's Public ID on the product Edit page. The Public ID will now appear with a “#” symbol before it, similar to how it is shown on the Orders edit page. This change provides quick access to the Public ID for existing products, while it remains hidden during product creation.
Improved business line selection
We’ve updated the business line selection dropdown during Onboarding for a smoother experience. Business lines are now listed alphabetically in all languages. The search bar has been removed, and the dropdown now closes if you click outside of it. On mobile, the keyboard won't pop up automatically when selecting business lines.
Improved Banner image management
We've enhanced the Banners page in the Back Office by renaming the Image column to Desktop Image and adding a new Mobile Image column. This allows Partners to easily see and manage both desktop and mobile images for each Banner. The columns will display updated images immediately after any changes.
Support for New Zealand and Australian currencies
We’ve added support for New Zealand Dollar (NZ$) and Australian Dollar (AU$) currencies on the platform. These currencies are now available for use in both the Back Office and Storefront, enhancing the shopping experience for customers in New Zealand and Australia.
Improvements
Logging added for RabbitMQ connection in AI Search
We've added logs to track RabbitMQ connections in the AI Search feature. This helps monitor and troubleshoot any issues, making the connection process more transparent.
Detailed time breakdown added to search results
Search results now show a detailed breakdown of how long each function within the search response takes. This helps to better understand and improve search performance.
Improvements
Improved AI search engine speed
The translation engine used in the AI Search feature for getting search results has been removed. This update simplifies the search process, making it faster and more efficient. Customers will still get accurate search results, but without the extra step of translation.
New features
New sales performance monitoring on product pages
A new feature, "Sales Performance Monitor," has been introduced to enhance the credibility and appeal of products on NEXT BASKET shops. This feature allows store owners to display lifetime sales and recent sales data directly on product pages. Under the new settings in the Back Office, partners can choose to show total historical sales or recent sales (monthly or weekly), with the option to set a minimum sold quantity before the data is displayed. This enhancement aims to boost customer confidence and drive more sales by showcasing a product's performance over time.
Show product view counts
To complement the new features that display product sales, a new functionality is being introduced to show customers how many times a product has been viewed recently. This feature will display view counts over different time periods, such as the last 24 hours, week, or month, directly on the product page. By showcasing how often a product has been viewed, this feature enhances social proof, builds trust, and highlights current trends. High view counts can create a sense of urgency, encouraging customers to make a purchase. This also allows store owners to strategically promote popular products, boosting overall sales and customer engagement.
Wishlist restock alerts
The wishlist now includes restock alerts. Customers who add out-of-stock items to their wishlist will be notified when the items are back in stock, allowing them to quickly add the products to their cart and complete their purchase. This enhancement ensures customers stay informed and can act promptly when desired products become available again.
New payment method: Square
A new payment method, Square, has been integrated into the checkout process, allowing store owners to offer Square as a payment option to their customers. This integration ensures a seamless experience for customers by automatically retrieving available Square payment options during checkout. Square appears as a prominent payment method on the storefront once configured in the Back Office.
Improvements
New eligible pages section for featured pop-ups
A new section called "Eligible Pages" has been added to the create/edit featured pop-ups interface. This section functions similarly to the Eligible Pages section in Alert Bars, allowing for precise selection of pages where the featured pop-ups will be displayed, with fields tailored specifically to this feature.
Improved Brand drop-down menu on products page
The brand drop-down menu on the products page has been enhanced to display up to 7 brand options at a time, with an internal scroll feature added for easier navigation. This update makes it more convenient to browse and select brands, especially when dealing with a long list of options.
New features
Individual Brand pages
Product brands now have their own individual pages. Each brand can be set up to display all products associated with that brand on a dedicated page. In the product card, the brand name is now clickable, allowing customers to easily navigate to the brand's page and explore more products from the same brand. This enhancement improves product visibility and helps customers discover more of what they love from their favorite brands.
Enhance Blog functionality with Category tagging
Blog functionality now includes the ability to tag categories to specific blog articles. This improvement increases category visibility and user engagement within blogs. Blogs can now showcase categories, making them more attractive and relevant to readers, potentially leading to more purchases. Informative blogs help engage and educate customers, building trust and improving conversion rates. This enhancement also boosts SEO by targeting long-tail keywords, attracting organic traffic, and creating a strong internal linking structure, making the site more authoritative and improving its search rankings.
Improvements
Enhanced footer settings menu
The Footer Settings menu has been significantly upgraded with a new design and improved functionality. Key enhancements include a sleek loading animation, repositioning of the Save button for better accessibility, and a revamped footer visualization for a more organized layout. Tabs have been introduced for different sections, allowing for easy management of Content pages, Brands, Collections, Tags, Blog Articles, Products, Categories, and External links. This update streamlines the user experience, making it easier to customize and manage the footer content efficiently.
Implement view icon on Tags, Brands, and Collections listing pages
The listing pages for Tags, Brands, and Collections now include a view icon. This enhancement ensures a consistent and user-friendly interface across all three functionalities, allowing partners to easily preview and interact with these elements on their respective listing pages.
Introducing Product Collections as page filters
A new option for product collections as page filters is available. Collections allow partners to create dedicated pages with specific information and products, directing customers to these pages to boost purchases. In the Back Office, users can create and edit collections, link them to categories, brands, and tags, and set specific products to appear in collections. On the storefront, collections are now available as filters on pages, enabling customers to find products within active collections easily. This feature aims to improve product visibility and drive sales through targeted collections.
Enhancing landing pages with product card component
The Landing Page Builder now includes the ability to add a Product Card component to static pages designated as landing pages. This enhancement allows store owners to easily showcase specific products directly on their landing pages, providing a more dynamic and engaging experience for visitors.
New features
Automatic segmentation of customers into marketing groups
We are excited to announce the new feature of automatic segmentation of customers into marketing groups. When a store owner creates a customer group based on order value, customers will now be automatically upgraded and transferred into the appropriate tier. They will receive corresponding benefits such as special promotions. For example, if a customer in the "Bronze" tier reaches the threshold for the "Silver" tier, they will be automatically upgraded to the higher tier. This ensures a seamless and rewarding experience for loyal customers.
Automatic inheriting of upper levels in product categories
Introducing a feature that allows products to automatically inherit the upper levels of their main category. Products will now be displayed correctly on the website without needing to be added as additional categories. For example, if a product is assigned to the "iOS" category, it will also appear in "Smartphones" and "Electronics." This ensures seamless visibility across all relevant categories, enhancing the customer experience. Existing products will be updated to reflect these changes, ensuring consistent and accurate category display on storefronts.
Manual order creation in Back Office
Partners can now manually create orders in the Back Office, allowing them to handle customer orders received via phone or email. This new feature includes a "Create Order" button on the Orders listing page and various fields to capture all necessary order details, including customer information, delivery and billing addresses, product specifics, and payment methods. Additionally, partners can upload and download files related to orders, and if the email used for the order is registered, it can be linked to the customer's profile. The functionality ensures seamless order management, including waybill generation for supported couriers.
Free text editor for homepage
Introducing a new feature that allows adding and formatting text on the homepage using a simple, intuitive WYSIWYG editor. This tool supports text styling, image insertion, and link creation without requiring coding knowledge. The text component can be dragged and dropped onto the page for immediate use. The content will appear as designed, ensuring consistency and a great user experience. Fully responsive, it maintains readability and layout across all devices. This enhancement simplifies the creation of visually appealing, customized pages.
Enhance blog functionality with product tagging
Blog functionality now includes the ability to tag products to specific blog articles. This improvement increases product visibility and user engagement within blogs. Blogs can now showcase products, making them more attractive and relevant to readers, potentially leading to more purchases. Informative blogs help engage and educate customers, building trust and improving conversion rates. This enhancement also boosts SEO by targeting long-tail keywords, attracting organic traffic, and creating a strong internal linking structure, making the site more authoritative and improving its search rankings.
Improvements
Page loading spinner
Introducing a sleek and dynamic loading spinner for a smoother browsing experience. This enhancement provides visual feedback during page loads, ensuring customers know the content is on its way. This update not only improves the overall functionality but also adds a touch of modernity to the interface, making interactions with the platform more engaging and satisfying.
Add confirmation pop-up for restoring theme options
A confirmation pop-up has been added to the “Restore settings" button in the Theme options under the Shop tab. This enhancement ensures that partners can confirm their action before restoring default values. If changes are confirmed, the default values are restored without needing to click the Save button. If declined, the manually updated values remain unchanged. The confirmation pop-up text is correctly translated into all supported languages.
Improvements to the Promotions page
Enhancements have been made to the Promotions page on the storefront to improve customer experience and navigation. Customers can now easily access direct discounts through the Promotions page, where both special price and direct discount items are displayed. This change offers immediate, usable promotions without any conditions, making it easier for customers to find all promo items in one place. The new design encourages longer sessions on the site and increases the likelihood of sales conversions.
Email configuration changes for inquiry feature
We've made changes to the email configuration in the Back Office to better support the inquiry feature. "Mail config" is now renamed to "inquiry configuration" across all relevant areas, including URL, menu name, and page text. Additionally, an info message has been added to guide users: “You should go to the Settings menu to activate the inquiry configuration".
New features
Store notification outbox tab for events
All email notifications are now stored in a new "Notification Outbox" tab within the E-mail Management section. Partners can filter notifications by event name, receiver type, notification type, and date. Each email can be opened to view its details and body, ensuring full transparency and easy access to notification records.
Improvements
Onboarding process enhancements
The onboarding process now features updated designs, improved navigation, and enhanced user engagement across all key steps. New designs and texts are available in multiple languages for both desktop and mobile. The overall flow has been streamlined, removing unnecessary pages and introducing better pop-up notifications. Key updates include modernized steps for logo upload, product addition, payment method installation, and delivery methods. The "Congratulations!" screen is now a full page with integrated contact options. A new guide for the onboarding steps ensures an intuitive and seamless user experience.