Overview
Create a campaign (name, funding goal, deadline), then add one or more free-text products to it (label, price, digital or physical) from its “Manage” screen. Nothing needs to exist yet in the plugin: a preorder usually covers something that is not made yet.
A preorder is a pledge: the card is saved but not charged until the funding goal is reached at the deadline. Everything stays editable until a first preorder is registered; from then on it freezes, so that a buyer is never misled about what they agreed to.
A preorder is always separate from the shop cart: the Preorder block never adds anything to the cart, and the cart never contains a preorder. A short message says so on both blocks.
In the campaigns table, the progress shows the amount already charged and the amount only pledged. “Cancel” on a running campaign cancels its pledges (nobody is charged). In test mode everything is simulated; an email address containing “fail” simulates a declined payment.
“Campaign type” (standard preorder or crowdfunding campaign) can be changed at any time: it only changes the wording shown on the press kit, never a price, a delivery or any rule.
Funding tiers
A tier (for example “Vinyl pressing” at 4300€) is a condition for delivery, never for purchase. At the deadline, if the tier is not reached, its products are removed from the pledges and never charged; the rest of each order is charged normally.
The up and down arrows next to a tier or a product set the order they show in, at any time, even once orders are paid.
Charge, cancellation and delivery
Nothing is charged before the deadline. If the goal is reached, every payment method (card or PayPal account) is charged automatically; a declined payment gets an email with a link valid for 7 days, then the pledge is cancelled without any charge. If the goal is missed, you get an email and a “Confirm the cancellation” button (nobody was charged, so nothing is refunded and no fee is lost); with partly reached tiers, the campaign becomes “Partially funded” and a “Settle the tiers” button appears. PayPal on preorders needs the “Save payment methods” option validated on your PayPal account and enabled on your PayPal app (see Diagnostic and support).
Once the campaign succeeds and the products are ready, deliver them yourself and follow it from the Sales screen, or mark a whole campaign at once from here.