Sellers can sign up via two different workflows based the admins preference: 

Method (I)

A seller sign up button is provided under the ‘Become A Seller’ (Website name)’ section in the footer of the website. This is the default seller signup method used by the system. Please refer to the screenshot below which highlights the section that is being referred to. 

Clicking on the Become A Seller button will redirect the user to the signup page. 

The user must enter their ‘Email ID’ and ‘Name’ and click on the ‘Start Selling’ button which will redirect them to the ‘Seller Registration’ form.

1. ‘Details’ tab:On the next tab, the user needs to enter the following information: 
   • Name: The name to be used. 
   • Username: A unique username.
   • Email: The correct email address.
   • Password: A password of choice. 
   • Confirm Password: Re-enter the password entered in the previous field. 
   • Terms and Conditions Checkbox: The seller must read the provided terms and conditions of the portal and click on the provided checkbox.
     NB: The user cannot proceed further without selecting this check-box. 
   • Newsletter Checkbox: Clicking on this checkbox is optional. If the seller clicks on this checkbox, the user gives the consent to receive any updates and newsletter generated from the portal. 
     NB: This section is admin manageable which means that this check-box will not be displayed on the sign-up form if it is not enabled by the admin. 
     When the seller clicks on the ‘Submit’ button, a toast message will be displayed on the top of this page. This message instructs the seller to check for a ‘Verification Link’ sent on the Email address filled in the previous step. 
     The seller must click on the link provided in the email to complete the email verification step. 
     NB: The admin can include or exclude the ‘Email Verification’ step from the sign up process.
     Once the seller has submitted their ‘Details’ form, their information will be saved in the system. If the seller discards the sign up process in any of the next tabs and then tries to register again, with the same username and email address, the system will display an error message. So, the seller can directly login using the credentials filled previously in the ‘Details’ tab which will redirect them to the seller dashboard that will display the ‘Seller Approval Form’. These details need to be filled in order to complete the signup process. 
     
     
2. ‘Activation’ tab: The ‘Activation’ tab is handled by the admin. So, there is no standard requirement. The seller needs to fill in the details in the provided input fields and proceed further with the registration process.. 
   Once the necessary input fields have been filled, the seller can click on the ‘Save Changes’ button. 
   
   
3. ‘Confirmation’ tab: Clicking on the ‘Save changes’ button will navigate the seller to the ‘Confirmation’ tab. This tab will display a message that confirms the seller’s registration. This tab also shows the ‘Login’ button at the bottom by clicking on which the seller will be redirected to the ‘Sign In' page.
   The seller will also receive an email confirming their signup, on the registered email address.

If the seller has not completed the Email Verification step, the following message will be displayed when they try to login after registration.

Please note that if the seller does not receive the verification email, they can check it in their spam and junk folders or resend it by clicking on the ‘Click Here’ button provided in the alert message above. 

Method (II)

The user can also sign up as a seller if they have already registered as a buyer. However, this option is only available if the Admin has enabled the respective settings from their end. 

The buyers will be redirected to ‘Seller Approval Form’ when clicking on ‘Seller’ from the ‘Role Switcher’ button. This form is handled by the admin so there is no standard requirement. The seller needs to fill in the details in the provided input fields and submit their request. An example of the ‘Seller Approval Form’.

Users must fill in the required details and then click on the ‘Save Changes’ button.

Following message will be displayed if Admin approval is enabled. The buyer will have to wait for the admin approval. The users will be notified about the request approval/cancellation status via emails. 

If admin approval is disabled, the buyer will be redirected to the seller dashboard. 

NB: Any user who is registered as a ‘Seller’ will be registered as an ‘Advertiser’ by default in the system. 

Login (Sign In)

Sellers can navigate to the ‘Login’ button available at the top-right corner of the homepage clicking on which will display the login form. 

The seller can login through the registered Email Id or Username. 

Clicking on the ‘Login’ button will verify the entered credentials and redirect the seller to the homepage/dashboard page. 

Another way to login is to enter the registered contact number by clicking on the ‘Use Phone Number Instead?’ button provided below the login input fields. 

Please enter the registered contact number in the provided input field and then click on ‘Get OTP’ button after which an OTP that shall be forwarded to the user on that number. Please enter the correct OTP to login. Resend Option along with screenshot

NB: Please note that this ‘Use Phone Number Instead?’ button will only be displayed if the admin has enabled the respective settings in the panel. 

In case if the Admin has opted for the ‘Admin Approval’ step, the seller will see the message appearing as shown. 

This message will appear until the admin approves the seller’s request from their end. Only after the request is approved, the seller can view the other sections of the seller panel that are explained in the later segment of the manual. In case if the seller does not remember the correct password, please refer to the ‘Forgot Password’ module to reset the password. 

NB: The seller must Sign up before logging in to the website. To sign up please refer to ‘Sign Up’. 

Forgot Password

If the seller does not remember the password, they can reset it. The similar approach can be followed if the seller wants to reset the previously chosen password. 

There is a ‘Forgot Password’ option available just above the ‘Login’ button). Clicking on this button navigates the seller to the Forgot Password page. The seller can reset their password using either their registered ‘Email’ or ‘Phone Number’. 

1. Reset Password Through Registered Email Address: The seller must enter their registered Email address in the provided input dialog box and then click on the ‘Submit’ button provided below it. The system forwards a ‘Password Reset Email’ to the entered registered Email ID. 
   The seller must click on the link provided in the received email which will redirect them to the ‘Reset Password’ page. 
   The seller must enter the ‘New Password’ and ‘Confirm New Password’ input dialog boxes and then click on the ‘Reset Password’ button provided below them. A message declaring ‘Password Successfully Changed’ will be displayed and the seller will be redirected to the ‘Sign in/ Login’ page. The seller can proceed with login using the new password. 
   NB: An example of a strong password is provided below the ‘New Password’ dialog box. The seller can follow the pattern of the given example to create a strong password. 
   
   
2. Reset Password Through Registered Email Address: The seller can reset their password using the phone number linked to their account. Clicking on ‘Use Phone Number Instead’ will display the following form. The seller must enter the contact number that is associated with their account and click on the ‘Get OTP’ button. 
   The OTP will be forwarded to the seller on their contact number. 
   The seller must enter the OTP that is forwarded on their phone number and then click on the ‘Validate’ button. 
   The ‘Reset Password’ form will appear as shown through which the seller can update their password. 

Seller Dashboard Top Navigation Bar

Once logged in, the seller will be navigated to the dashboard. 

• Top-Navigation Short-cut Icons

There are several icons available at the top right corner of the dashboard. The functionalities of these icons are explained below: 

1. User Icon: Clicking on the ‘User Icon’ provided at the extreme right will display two options in the dropdown menu.
   Clicking on the ‘Hi, XXXX’ button will redirect the seller to the ‘My Account’. Clicking on the ‘Logout’ button will log the seller out of their account. 
   
2. RFQ Notifications: This is a shortcut button to read the RFQ Request For Quote notifications.
3. Message icon: This is a shortcut button to access the messaging module. This icon will also display the count of unread messages. Clicking on this button will redirect the seller to the ‘Messages’ page. 
4. Shop icon: This is a shortcut button to access the shop.
5. Home Icon: Clicking on this icon will redirect the seller to the Homepage of the website in a new tab. 
6. Dashboard: Clicking on this icon will redirect the seller to Dashboard. 

• Role Switcher

‘Role Switcher’ button is provided on the top navigation bar. A user can be registered on the website as a ‘Buyer’, ‘Seller’ or an ‘Advertiser’. However, if any particular user has registered with multiple roles for example, a seller has also registered themselves on the website as a ‘Buyer’, they can switch roles using this button. This means that the users with multiple roles do not need to login and logout repeatedly. They can directly access the other dashboards by selecting the respective role from the drop-down.

NB: Any user who is registered as a ‘Seller’ will be registered as an ‘Advertiser’ by default in the system. 

• Shop Icon

Clicking on this icon will redirect the seller to their Shop page at the front-end. 

NB: This icon is not displayed to the newly registered seller since they have not created their shop yet. However, once the seller creates their shop, this icon will be displayed on the top-navigation bar. 

• Hamburger Menu

Clicking on this button will open a vertical side-navigation bar which includes several modules and sub-modules for sellers. All these modules are explained further in the manual.

Dashboard

When clicking on the  ‘Dashboard’ icon the seller is redirected to the Dashboard page. There are three shortcut buttons provided on the top-right corner of this page.

The functionalities of these buttons are explained below: 

• Add new Catalog: This shortcut button redirects the seller to the ‘Products’ module in which they can add a new product in their shop through ‘Custom Product Setup’ form.
• My Products: This shortcut button redirects the seller to the ‘My Products’ page that will display all the products added by them. 
• Shop Inventory: This shortcut button redirects the seller to the ‘Shop Inventory’ page that lists all the inventories added to their shop.

NB: If, by clicking on any of these buttons the seller is redirected to the Subscription Plans page this means that the seller needs to purchase a subscription plan to add products in their shop. These plans are defined and thereby managed by the admin. 

The dashboard page includes sections shown below:

Since the seller has created a new account, there is no information displayed under any of the above sections as of yet. Sections denoted above are explained below.

1. My Sales: This section displays the total amount (in default currency) of sales for orders that are successfully completed and the amount (in default currency) of sales for orders that are in process. Please note that an order is considered as ‘Completed’ only when it reaches its dead state, in other words it reaches a state where no actions can be performed on it. The orders under ‘Completed’, ‘Cancelled’ and ‘Refunded/Completed’ statuses are considered as ’Completed’. The orders with ‘In-Process’, ‘Shipped’, and ‘Delivered’ statuses will be considered as ‘In-Process’ orders. Clicking on this section will redirect the seller to the ‘Orders’ module. 
2. My Rental Sales: This section displays the quota of completed sales along with data of inprocess sales. Click inside the box and you will be taken to the ‘Rental Orders’ details page. 
3. Credits: The sum total of credits earned by the seller from all the successfully completed orders is displayed in this section. It also displays the credits earned on the respective date. Clicking on this section will redirect the seller to the ‘My Credits’ module.
   NB: An order is considered as ‘Completed’ only when it reaches its dead state, in other words it reaches a state where no actions can be performed on it. The orders under ‘Completed’, ‘Cancelled’ and ‘Refunded/Completed’ statuses are considered as ’Completed’. 
4. Sales Graph: The graph shows the total sales of the last six months. 
5. Latest Orders: This section displays the count of the number of orders that have been ‘Completed’ and the number of orders that are ‘Pending’. Clicking on this section, the seller will be redirected to the ‘Orders’ module.
   NB: An order is considered as ‘Completed’ only when it reaches its dead state, in other words it reaches a state where no actions can be performed on it. The orders under ‘Completed’, ‘Cancelled’ and ‘Refunded/Completed’ statuses are considered as ’Completed’. All the other orders will be considered as ‘Pending’. 
6. Rental Graph: The graph shows the total rental orders of the last six months. 
7. Recent Rental orders: A list of latest orders placed by customers can be viewed under this section. This section will not display any orders for a new seller who has just signed up. However, once the seller has added products and begun the selling process, this section will start displaying the orders.
   Each of the orders displayed is provided with necessary action buttons using which the seller can perform certain actions directly from this section. The eye icon  will redirect the seller to the order detail page which is known as ‘View Sale Order’ page. The cross icon will redirect the seller to the ‘Cancel Order’ page. The ‘View All’ link will redirect the seller to the ‘Orders’ module.
8. Transaction History: This section displays the details of the recent transactions made from the seller’s wallet. This list is arranged in the order of most recent transactions on the top. The ‘View All’ link will redirect the seller to the ‘My Credits’ module. 
   NB: The ‘Wallet’ term used in the manual refers to the virtual wallet linked with the seller’s account. 
9. Return Requests: This section displays a list of latest Return Requests made by customers in the order of most recent orders on the top. This section will not display any orders for a new seller who has just signed up. However, once the seller has added products and begun the selling process, this section will start displaying the orders with return requests. 
   Each of the orders displayed is provided with necessary action buttons using which the seller can perform certain actions directly from this section. The eye icon will redirect the seller to the order detail page which is known as ‘View Order Return Request’ page. The ‘View All’ link will redirect the seller to the ‘Order Return Requests’ module. 
10. Cancellation Requests: This section displays a list of the Cancellation Requests placed by the customers in the order of most recent orders on the top. This section will not display any orders for a new seller who has just signed up. However, once the seller has added products and begun the selling process, this section will start displaying the orders with cancellation requests.
    The ‘View All’ link will redirect the seller to the ‘Cancellation Requests’ module. 

To proceed further, the seller needs to click on the ‘Menu Icon’  displayed at the top left corner which will open the side-navigation bar. Each of the sub-modules are categorically placed under the main modules and are explained ahead.

Subscription Plans 

If the admin has enabled the ‘Subscriptions’ feature, then the seller must purchase any one of the Subscription plans. The seller cannot proceed further without buying a subscription plan. 

Since these packages and plans are created and managed by the Admin, they can vary in terms of:

• Number of Packages: The number of packages being displayed. 
• Name of Packages: The names of packages for example, silver, gold and so on.
• Number of Plans: The number of plans provided under each package. 
• Names of Plans: There are no fixed names assigned to the plans. So, the seller can view a new plan apart from those mentioned in the manuals. 
• Cost: The cost for each plan is assigned by the Admin only. Sellers might view multiple choices for prices offered under each package based on the difference in their validity time period. 
• Validity Time Span: The validity time period for which each plan.
• Percentage of Commission Rate: The fixed amount of money to be paid by the seller to the business owner depending upon a certain amount of sale is known as Commission rate. The percentage of commission rate assigned to each plan is different as shown.
• Number of Active Products: The number of active products a seller can add to their shop is different for each plan. The seller can add new products in their shop however, the number of active products cannot exceed the limit offered within the chosen subscription plan. 
• Capacity of Product Inventory: A catalog/product can have several inventories based on the variation in certain parameters such as their color, size and so on. The number of product inventories a seller can add to their shop will also be different for every subscription plan. 
• Images per Product: Number of images any seller can upload for each product added in the shop is different depending on the kind of plan selected. This criteria defines the number of images the seller can add for a product. For example, if the seller uploads three images for one product, the count of the number of images added will be three. 

An example of how the subscriptions will be displayed to the seller. 

Once the seller chooses the best suitable option, they must click on ‘Buy Plan’. The seller will be redirected to the ‘Billing’ page, which will display the total amount to be paid by them. 

The seller can click on the ‘I have A Coupon’ option provided on the right side of the page to avail any discount coupons (if seller has any). A pop-up menu will appear in which the seller must enter the code for the coupon they want to use.

The seller can also visit the ‘Subscription Offers’ module to check for the latest offers available particularly for subscription plans.

The seller must proceed further with the payment confirmation process by clicking on the ‘Proceed to Confirm’ button which will redirect them to the ‘Payment’ page. There are different payment gateways provided (payment method options are admin-manageable) and the seller can choose any one of them as per their convenience. The seller can view the total amount to be paid on the right side of the page. To proceed with payment, the seller must click on ‘Confirm Payment’. 

The seller must complete the steps required for completing the transaction through the selected payment gateway. Once the transaction is complete, the seller will be displayed a confirmation message. 

The seller can proceed further by clicking either on ‘My Account’ or ‘My Subscription’ which will redirect them to the respective pages that are accessible after buying the subscription plan. The packages can also be updated or renewed from the ‘Subscription’ module.