Mals-E is an exceptionally easy to use extremely low cost shopping cart solution for smaller companies looking to sell goods and services on the web. Mals-e is an off-site shopping cart. This means exactly what it sounds like; the shopping cart is not hosted on your server. Products are ordered through a simple link on your site which sends the information to their servers. So the only “technology” you need to know to add a product is how to make a simple link. Shipping calculations, taxes, credit card verification etc. are all done on their end. Your site is simply sending them the information about the product. This offers a number of advantages; there is no server software to install, no heavy security issues for storing credit card numbers, no updates, to add a product you just make a new link; Mals-e handles the rest. Mals-e can easily handle catalogs of 100’s of products, even those with options, downloadable items, multiple shipping option, quantity discounts, etc.
Mals-e is not database driven so it is not recommended for larger product catalogs with complex product relations or limited inventory items but for those looking for a simple way to sell on the web it’s a great tool and the cost can’t be beat… FREE for most users and only $8 per month for those who want to add an off site credit card processor and integrated shipping. Configuring and setting up a Mals-e shopping cart is much simpler than installing a dedicated on-site shopping cart system. Typical costs run in the low hundreds for a Mals-e cart compared to the many thousands that some of our larger eCommerce solutions cost to build.
Here is a typical product link for Mals-e
<a href=”https://ww1.aitsafe.com/cf/add.cfm?userid=3100170&product=Sample+Product+Link&price=20.00&return=https://www.armandgilbert.com/2013/blog/mals-e”> Buy Now <a>
You can try it out here: Buy Now
To complete the credit card transaction use any expiration date in the future and the card number:
4111 1111 1111 1111
There are additional fields you can add
The return link allows you to send the customer back to a specific page which is useful in multi-page catalogs.
You can also add items via a simple form:
<form action=”https://ww#.aitsafe.com/cf/add.cfm” method=”post”>
<input name=”userid” type=”hidden” value=”12345678″>
<input name=”product” type=”hidden” value=”Oceanmaster jacket”>
<input name=”price” type=”hidden” value=”159″>
<input name=”return” type=”hidden” value=”www.mals-e.com/support/help2.php”>
<input type=”submit” value=”Buy Now!”>
</form>
This gives you the option of a range of form elements: radio buttons, check boxes and drop down lists.
Configuring the shopping cart is relatively easy, there are a series of options to select from in the Cart Setup section Ranging from Payment Methods, Cart Look and Feel, Email Notification, Taxes, Shipping etc. etc. Once this is configured all you need to do is add the appropriate links on your order page.
The shopping cart system can be extended further with plugins that will do everything from enhancing form functionality, to enabling you to publish 1000’s of products via an excel spreadsheet.
For more information on ecommerce solutions for your business contact me@armandgilbert.com