|
Whenever the script calls itself or calls decode.php the variable
is passed along with the call. That way it's always available when the script finally finishes
and it's time to send the visitor back home. That is done with this line:
header("Location: $return_path");
The return path may contain a query string or extra path information
if you need to pass things to the page being displayed. The "header" function tells the visitor's
browser to load the page located at that URL. You can use this method anytime you want the user to continue automatically to another page after your script has finished.
Tip: This method is great for serving up a Thank-You page.
You can update this page whenever you want, without having to edit the script. The script only needs
to know where the page is located. Such pages should be displayed any time visitors do what you
wanted them to do - buy something, subscribe to something, etc. It's an automated response but it's
still a part of good CUSTOMER SERVICE.
And speaking of customer service, it's always a good idea to send your customer some followup emails
that add value to your product or service. Use the personalization techniques and the methods presented in Chapter 12 to make the customer feel special. Don't overdo it, though. Also, be sure to either let them know to expect some followup messages or use a double-optin autoresponder. You can customize the autoresponder messages using the mail-merge functions of any good autoresponder service. I use and recommend Aweber.com
|
|
When your script takes input from the user and possibly also from
a database, you can create a new page whose content will be different every time. The mechanics of
doing this are explained in the next chapter but I want you to start thinking of some of the ways
this could be useful. A very simple example (on the surface, at least) is what happens when you use
a search engine. It retrieves the info you asked for and displays it on one or more pages. These
pages are created at the time you ask for the data. They present it in a list that contains page
titles, descriptions and links for each of the relevant pages.
Now suppose you have an online catalog with all your product descriptions,
prices, stock numbers and availability stored in a database. A customer is interested in only
certain products or groups of products. He or she fills in a search form and is shown a page that
contains the details about his or her product selections.
Here's another example: Suppose you have a form that asks people
a few survey questions. After the data is tabulated, a request is sent to the database to get an
up-to-the-minute summary of the survey results. These results are displayed immediately.
The results from the database can be plugged into Web page elements
and used to construct a customized page (or pages). If there are more results than can be shown on
one page, links to the next page and previous page can be provided. All this fancy automation can
give your customers the perception that your site is "user friendly." That's a good thing.
Refer to Chapter 14: Working with Databases, to see how to get
information from a database. Once your script has that information stored in local variables, you
can build a page with them and display it on the visitor's screen.
Chapter 17 will provide more details on how this is done.
Do the work once (writing the script), keep the content fresh (update
the database) and let the server do most of the work. You'll give customers most of the help they
need making buying decisions without having to do very much of the work personally. Make a contact
phone number and email address available for those questions that will need your expert help. Make
the most of your valuable time. |
