Designs in cart and orders
What the customer and your team see after a personalized item is added to the cart.
This page describes what happens to a personalized design after the customer selects Add to cart.
What the customer sees in the cart
The item is listed with its option details below it: the text the customer entered, the design they selected, and any file they uploaded. This is the same as for any other option.
Personalized items also include a link to view the design. The default wording is Preview Your Design, and it can be edited in the widget text.
Preview mode
How the design is displayed is controlled by a store-wide setting.
Settings > Settings > General > Cart page > Personalize preview mode
View in modal
The design opens in a dialog on the cart page. The default
Almost always. The customer checks it without leaving the cart
Download file
The design is downloaded as a file
Customers need to keep or forward a copy — approving artwork with a colleague, for instance
View in modal is the recommended value. It lets the customer check the design without downloading a file.
This setting may not be available on all plans. See Compare plans.
Letting customers change their mind
Show "Edit Options" button in cart, also under Settings > Settings > General > Cart page, lets customers reopen the option form from the cart and change their selections, including their personalization.
Enable this for personalized products. Without it, a customer who finds a typo in their engraving after adding to cart has to remove the item and start again.
This setting may not be available on all plans. See Cart page.
What you see on the order
The order in Shopify admin lists the item with its option details: the text, the selected values, and links to any uploaded files.
Your production team works from these details. Two settings determine how clear they are:
Give every option a readable Name
The Name is what appears on the order. Engraving text: Forever yours is actionable; text: Forever yours is not. See Label and Name
Include everything production needs as an option
If the font matters, ask for it as a Font picker option so it is recorded, rather than relying on a default nobody wrote down
Getting the details out of Shopify admin
There are three options, depending on how your team works:
Reading the order in Shopify admin
Low volume. Nothing to set up
Order confirmation emails, invoices, and packing slips
Anybody who works from printed paperwork. Option details appear automatically. See Show options on orders
An automation
Higher volume — email yourself the options as each order arrives, or write them into the order notes so they appear everywhere the note does
If you sell personalized products regularly, set up the automations early. See Email notification and Order notes update.
Uploaded files
Uploaded files are attached to the order, so your team can download the originals from the order in Shopify admin.
Two points to note:
State the resolution you need in the option's help text. The preview also displays low-resolution files that are not suitable for printing.
Enable the upload option's image editor so customers crop their own photos before uploading. See File upload.
Set expectations about the preview
The preview is a representation, not a print proof. Screens are not color-calibrated, and final placement can vary slightly.
Add a line of help text such as "The preview is a guide. Colors may vary slightly from your screen."
For high-value personalized items, add your own proofing step. Use a Switch that offers an emailed proof before production, either free or priced.
Notes
Option values, including personalization text, reach the order as line item properties. See Line item properties.
Add-on products attached to personalization appear as their own cart lines unless you merge them. See Merge main product and add-ons.
Orders keep the option names they were placed with. Renaming an option later does not change existing orders.
The Preview Your Design and Your Design wording can be edited for each language under Settings > Translations.
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