I’m currently using Rapidcart 3 to sell some mp3s from my site and have just upgraded to the latest version of Rapidcart 4 to make use of the mobile features.
I’m currently zipping the files to make for easier downloading, but obviously this won’t work on as phone or tablet. Can anyone suggest how I might better approach this?
Thanks in advance.
Actually, there are many iOS apps that will download and unzip files. The user just needs to be aware of them. For example, GoodReader is one of the many. When you touch the download link to download a zip iOS will ask you what app to open with.
by the way… zipping video and audio does not make the file that much smaller… so there is no reason to zip unless you want more than one file in the package… I tried zipping files together (video) into one download but after a while I simply decided to now as individual files. But that is pure preference I think.
by the way… many people think GoodReader is simply a pdf reader… check it out… it downloads and unzips and plays many file types as do many other apps. I offer a “how to download and play” link to a help page just under my buy buttons. There, step by step instructions are provided along with several different suggested apps for all OS’s.
Thanks. Would you mind if I had a look at your site?
There isn’t a correct answer for your question.
Browsers can handle only some types of files (images, movies, text…).
In iOS situation is much harder because there is no download-and-save-in-folder actual functionality.
Saving downloaded ZIP archives is available thru DropBox or other 3rd-party apps if installed but you can’t count on it.
Anyway it’s a good choice to make your website responsive but you don’t need to care about digital downloads on mobile.
If the customer can’t download the product from his device, he’ll do later at home clicking on the download link he receives via email (if you use RapidCart Pro).
rob… May I throw this out… respectfully… there are people who own mobile devices and don’t own a computer! I know several. Thinking that “they will just go home and download their purchased digital item on their computer” means loss of business and loss of revenue. If they don’t know how to use on their mobile device they won’t buy. We all better learn how to deal with phones, tablets, etc… just thoughts… Also, I have some older customers who are great in using an iPad but wouldn’t even know how to turn on a desktop…
That’s why I think the discussion is useful. I appreciate the replies so far and hope others chime in.
If you are in the UK, check out https://paddle.com.
I understand your point of view, but digital download is a “product” that’s not so mobile-friendly due to the reasons I’ve explained above.
By saying “you don’t need to care about digital downloads” I mean that you can’t assure full compatibility with all your customers, unless you sell certain type of files like PDF or images (with some limitations).
PDF documents can be opened directly in browsers and most of the times can be saved, for images you need to pay attention to the size, really hi-def images are quite big both in KB and pixels, browsers on old mobile devices sometime can’t handle them correctly and crash or don’t display them.
You say that you create ZIP archives of your MP3s but ZIP files can’t be opened by iOS.
MP3 is already a compressed format so you don’t need to zip it, but anyway you get a single ZIP file to download instead of multiple tracks (if you have more than one track).
Leaving MP3 files as they are, the customer must open each track and, as far as I know, Safari Mobile doesn’t let you save them into your Music app.
If I were in your shoes, I would use ZIP files and if a customer complains that he can’t open it with his mobile device, I would reply to use a computer or install a 3rd-party app that can handle it.
I sell zipped Hypnosis mp3s and Podcast episodes with Rapidlink, and found that GDrive https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=531569865&mt=8 is a good solution for iOS users without a PC. I have suggested Androzip for Android users although no-ones given me any feedback on it yet.
Richard
I sell my CDs as zipped packages with all tracks and the artwork as a PDF file. If someone can’t handle that manner for any reason, they can always go to iTunes or Amazon or CDBaby. I’ve yet to receive a complaint.
Terry V