May update
3rd May 2023
posted 3rd May 2023
Here are your May updates on what's new and improved this month. Most of the new features and changes are going to be part of the Webfactory Hub at this stage which is in a closed beta. You can join the waiting list to get access to these new features.
New ecommerce reports
Webfactory Hub beta only
We've updated and improved all the reports across the hub. We've also added two new reports for ecommerce customers. 'Month sales comparisons' and 'Month sales comparisons day by day'.
These reports help you compare your website's performance across the years by comparing a specific month. For example, you can see how your April sales were in the last 4 years. The day-by-day version of this report can be really interesting but especially helpful when looking at the current. The graph will show on a day-by-day cumulative basis your total sales across the years. This means you can easily see if this year is shaping up to be better than previous years and take corrective measures if sales are low.
Improved ecommerce product search
Webfactory Hub beta only
We've improved the product search facility in the Hub to allow more complex searching. Previously you would need to enter an exact match phrase for a product to be found, now when you search you can use multiple terms in any order.
We've also added the ability to narrow your search to live, hidden or all products.
Anti-spam measures
We've made CAPTCHA mandatory on all contact page forms and property request viewing forms to help fight spam. This is just one of a number of measures we've added to help reduce unwanted messages. By default new forms will have this feature enabled, but this can be disabled in the form settings. Don't forget you can also block specific words in your site settings. In the coming weeks we will be upgrading to a new version of CAPTCHA which means that your visitors won't even have to click on the "I'm not a robot" tick box.
Coming soon: Message centre
Webfactory Hub beta only
We're working on a new message centre for websites. This will be a central place for you to view any submissions from your website's forms. Over time we will expand the functionality to allow you to tag messages to aid in organisation. Eventually, we would like to reduce the number of messages which are sent by forms to your email inbox as this is less secure than if the contents were viewed in the Hub.
Form element copying
Webfactory Hub beta only
You can now copy individual form fields from other forms. Previously you could only copy entire forms. The new option can be found next to the 'add form element' button. You will see a list of all your forms and all the elements within them
File download page element
Webfactory Hub beta only
Previously, when adding file download links and buttons to your website, you had to rely on the user's browser settings to determine whether the file would download or open in the browser when the link was clicked. But now you have a new option that lets you enforce the download behaviour instead of having the file open in the browser.