Add a Downloads button to Shopify's order confirmation

How the order confirmation button works

Shopify sends the Order confirmation email itself, not Alva Digital Downloads. The code you copy from Alva's Download delivery page adds a short block to that email: a heading, a line of text and a View your downloads button. The button's only link is Shopify's own Order status page link for the order, {{ order_status_url }}. The code contains no Alva link and no download key.

The button opens the customer's Order status page. There, Alva's Order status page extension adds a download button, and the customer gets their files from it. The order confirmation button is optional and comes in addition to Alva's own download email. Because Shopify sends the order confirmation, the button goes out even when Alva's download emails are switched off.

Before you start

The button in the email leads to a download only when all three of these are in place:

• New customer accounts. The download button on the Order status page is a customer account extension, and those work only with new customer accounts. With legacy (classic) customer accounts the button in the email can't lead to a download, so the Shopify order confirmation email section shows Needs new customer accounts instead of the code. You can upgrade in Shopify under Settings → Customer accounts.
• The Order status page extension. Add Alva's Order status page extension in Shopify's checkout and accounts editor and publish it. Without it, customers who tap the button won't find their files on the Order status page. On the Download delivery page, the Order status page row shows Added once the extension is published; an extension added to a draft shows as Not added until you publish it. Open checkout and accounts editor takes you to the editor.
• A confirmed sender email address in Shopify. If Shopify asks you to confirm your sender email address, do that first. Shopify doesn't let you edit email notifications until it's confirmed.

What your customer sees

In the order confirmation, the block shows the heading Your downloads, a line of text and the View your downloads button, in the language you chose. The button uses the accent colour of your Shopify email templates. The line of text depends on whether the order is paid when Shopify sends the email:

• Paid orders. The line reads Find your downloads on your order page.
• Orders that aren't paid yet, for example with a manual payment method. The line reads Your downloads will be on your order page once your payment is confirmed.

When the customer taps View your downloads, their Order status page opens. When they tap the download button there, Shopify asks them to log in with a one-time code before their files show.

The download button on the Order status page appears once the order is paid and processed. A customer who opens the email within a minute of ordering may need to refresh the page.

After two to three weeks (sooner on another device or browser), the button in an older email opens a page where the customer has to log in before the download button shows.

Test the button

Shopify's Preview and Send test email use sample data, so the button may not show there when it's set to show only on orders with a digital product. To see it, place a test order through your store's checkout with an email address you can read, for example with a 100% off discount code (Method 1 in Test an end-to-end delivery without a real customer order).

Alva's Send test order button can't show the button: Shopify doesn't send its order confirmation email for those test orders.

Stores that sell in more than one language

Shopify sends the order confirmation in the language the customer ordered in when a translation exists. To add the button to each translation, go to Settings → Notifications → Customer notifications → Order confirmation → Localize. If Shopify shows the email body there, choose that language under Button language in Alva, copy the code and paste it into that translation.