Our E-Commerce service allows you to configure Multi-Seat Purchases options for transactions.

When enabled, the Multi-Seat Purchase option allows Users to purchase training on behalf of other Users. Multi-Seat Purchases generate unique codes, called Enrollment Keys, that purchasers will distribute to their Learners.

A Learner will use their Enrollment Key to access the purchased content in an Absorb LMS Portal.  New Users will be prompted to create an account for the Portal before they can access the content.

How to Configure Multi-Seats

E-Commerce will need to be enabled in order to configure your LMS to allow Multi-Seat purchasing. If E-Commerce is not enabled, please contact Absorb Support.

To enable the purchase of multiple seats simultaneously:

1. Navigate to E-Commerce Settings by opening the Client Settings page from the Account menu on the right-hand side of the Admin Interface.
   
2. In the Settings section of E-Commerce Settings, enable the setting displayed under Multi-seat Purchases.
   
   • With this toggle enabled, it is possible to purchase quantities greater than one. A single Enrollment Key with multiple uses will be generated, based on the quantity purchased.
   • When you enable this toggle, the Generate Multiple toggle is made available. The Generate Multiple toggle, when enabled, will create individual Enrollment Keys for each seat in a Multi-Seat Purchase. Each Enrollment Key will allow for only a single use.

Purchasing Details

This section contains specifics related to a single purchase, a Multi-Seat Purchase, and variable Course purchases:

Individual Purchase

• All purchases default to the quantity of one (1).
  • Unless you purchase training on behalf of other Users, this value does not need to be adjusted.
• Purchases of a single quantity list item (like a Course) will automatically enroll the purchaser into the training following the transaction process and email a receipt and enrollment confirmation.

An Enrollment Email must be enabled at the Course level for a message to be sent upon enrollment. If the Message Template is enabled with the Send to Administrator and/or the Send to Supervisor options enabled, the email will be sent to the Supervisor listed on the User's account and/or the Administrators of the User's Department.

Multi-Seat Purchases

• Multi-Seat Purchases are made when the purchaser changes the quantity to a value greater than one (1).
  • Once the new quantity value is entered, the purchaser needs to click the Refresh button to update the cart. Failing to do so will result in the quantity being reset to the default value of one (1).
• When the transaction is completed, the purchased will receive an email containing the Enrollment Keys to distribute to their Learners.
  • Enrollment Key information will be displayed on the checkout page.
    • Use the Enrollment Key email. This will send an email to the purchaser for each individual Enrollment Key. The Admin can then forward the individual Enrollment Key emails to their selected Users.

Please advise that the purchaser will not be enrolled in the training if multiple seats are purchased, nor will the purchaser receive any enrollment emails.

• Those who receive an Enrollment Key will enter its information into the Enrollment Key tile on the Public or Private Dashboard.
  • If the User is logged in, they will be taken to the Course where they can begin taking the training.
  • If they are not logged in, the User will be prompted to log in or create an account. Your Admins can configure what User fields the new User will be required to populate.
    • The Department field for the User will be either pulled from the Default department field in E-Commerce Settings or from the purchaser's Department.
    • If the purchaser is an Admin within the LMS, their Department will be applied to the Enrollment Keys and will automatically put any new Users who use the Enrollment Key will be placed into the purchaser's Department. 

Once the User enrolls into the Course(s) using the Enrollment Key, they will receive appropriate enrollment notification, as long as one is attached to the setup of the Course(s).

Multi-Seat Purchases for ILCs

If you bulk purchase seats for an Instructor-Led Course (ILC) to distribute, encourage the recipients to use the Enrollment Key immediately. Available seating for the ILC Session will update when Enrollment Keys are redeemed; this may result in the class maximum exceeding its limit to accommodate all seats/Enrollment Keys sold.

If you plan to purchase different seat amounts across multiple classes, do this in separate transactions. Otherwise, the LMS will automatically raise the seat amount to the highest number in the cart and apply that seat count to all classes selected.

Variable Courses Purchasing Quantity

When purchasing on behalf of others, Learners can purchase a variable quantity of Courses.

Based on how Enrollment Key generation is set up in the E-Commerce Settings, when the quantity of Courses is various, the Enrollment Keys will be generated in one of two ways:

1. One multi-use Enrollment Key per Course.
2. A Single-use Enrollment Key for each cart item.

If the quantity of Courses in the cart is equal, the Key generation mechanism remains unchanged.

Guest Checkout and Saved Payment Details

Multi-Seat Purchases can be completed through Guest Checkout or while signed in to a customer account, but the two checkout paths are not always compatible. The behavior depends on which options your System Admin has enabled in E-Commerce Settings.

Guest Checkout vs. Customer Account Checkout

These two checkout experiences differ in what information is captured and retained for the purchaser:

• Guest Checkout allows a purchaser to complete a transaction without signing in or creating an account. Billing details are entered at checkout and are not retained for future purchases.
• Customer Account Checkout requires the purchaser to be signed in to an account in the Portal. When Customer Accounts is enabled, purchasers can save their billing address and payment method for reuse on future transactions. Subscriptions also require this checkout path because recurring billing depends on saved payment details.

For more information about saved payment details, refer to Customer Accounts for E-Commerce. 

For more information about Subscriptions, refer to E-Commerce Subscriptions.

Multi-Seat Purchases and Saved Payment Details Limitation

Guest Checkout and saved payment details are effectively mutually exclusive for Multi-Seat Purchases. When the Learners can save their payment details during the checkout process setting is enabled under Saved payment details & subscriptions in E-Commerce Settings, the system requires the purchaser to be signed in to complete the transaction. Guests can add items to the cart and proceed through most of the checkout flow, but they will be unable to complete payment for a Multi-Seat Purchase.

Because Multi-Seat Purchases always require an Enrollment Key to be issued and tracked, this behavior is intentional rather than an error.

Roles and Permissions

System Admins are the only Admins who can adjust settings within the Portal Settings. Once the Multi-Seat Purchases option has been enabled, all other Admins will need the following permissions in order to configure the E-Commerce rules.

Required Role Permissions

Keep in mind that you may need to adjust Course level Course Administrator permissions.

Suggested Role Permissions

In addition to the required permissions above, the following permissions are recommended to give Admins visibility into related E-Commerce activity.