creates a payment record, which is listed at the bottom of the page. The 

commissions can be cancelled by clicking the `dustbin' icon. 

6.12 Coupons 

Coupons are unique codes that correspond to a percentage or fixed amount 

discount. Coupons are entered during the checkout procedure. 

6.12.1 Generating 

coupons 

Clicking the 

New

 link in the coupons section brings up the coupon creation 

form. The coupon value as a percentage or as a fixed amount in default 

currency can be set from the first line. Next, a start and finish date for the 

coupon's validity can be set. If the end date is not set, it is assumed to be 

valid forever (which in reality is 2050). The quantity box is used to specify the 

number of coupons you wish to generate   many store owners will generate 

coupons in bulk as part of a promotion. Finally, there is the option to set 

coupons as reusable. By default, a coupon cannot be used twice. 

Reusable coupons with a set expiry are quite useful as promotional tools   the 

same code can be published in a newsletter, giving those who subscribe a 

period to use the coupon and obtain the accompanying discount. There is not 

the overhead of having to send individual coupon codes to everyone. 

6.12.2 

Listing and finding coupons 

The 

List / Find

 link brings up a list of recent coupons, grouped by the time of 

generation. Similar coupons therefore appear on one line with a quantity 

shown. The individual coupons can be viewed and edited/deleted by clicking 

on the 

List Coupons

 link. Specific coupons can be found by entering part of 

the code into the search box. 

6.13 

Email List Management 

Having the facility to let visitors and customers sign up to an email newsletter 

is a valuable way of keeping in touch with those interested in your products. 

Users can sign up via the mailing list box on the site, the `make enquiry' form 

or when making an order. 

6.13.1 Spamming 

Spamming is a modern day scourge. It is the act of sending bulk unsolicited 

emails to users who have not consented or requested them. Spam increases 

the overhead on networks and irritates the recipients. The cost of spam in 

Europe alone has recently been estimated as billions of Euros per year. 

Consequently, most networks will remove users who spam and it is against 

the AUP (Acceptable Use Policy) of any ISP that wants to remain connected to 

the rest of the internet. 

Concern over spam can cause problems if your legitimate mailshot is 

interpreted by a recipient as spam because their address was signed up 

maliciously by another user, or they forgot they signed up. For this reason, 

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