Follow-up: Payment Processing Upgrades and Fixing Issues

We wanted to provide you with an important update on the recent changes to our payment gateway, ensuring transparency and open communication every step of the way. 

A step forward with upgrades 

Last week, we successfully rolled out a significant upgrade to our payment gateway integration. Our primary goal was to rectify longstanding payment processing issues, such as transactions failing, remaining in a pending state, or returning ambiguous statuses. Additionally, we wanted to enhance the transaction speed in the tasting room, ensuring a seamless experience for all.

We are delighted to announce: 

• POS transaction times have been significantly reduced by 50%, ensuring a smoother experience for your patrons. 
• The issues responsible for pending transactions and incorrect statuses have been successfully rectified. 

With the recent rollout, we encountered several payment issues that might have caused disruptions to your operations, and we sincerely apologize. Rest assured, we have successfully addressed all major issues related to this upgrade and are committed to delivering even smoother experiences with our future updates. 

Currently, one known issue appears sporadically with manually entered cards. We are actively working on this issue and will provide updates as we have them on the Status Page.

Stay updated & engaged 

While we do expect occasional, infrequent bugs, your feedback is invaluable to us in resolving them swiftly. If you encounter any payment issues or have questions, please use the 'Ask a question' feature in the admin panel's bottom right chat bubble. Alternatively, you can always email us at support@winedirect.com.

Thank you for your continued support and trust in WineDirect. We are here for you. 

Payment Update: Zeamster & VivoPay EMV Device Issues

Update 10/13/2023: Please read our latest blog post about the recent payment processing upgrades and bug fixes.

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Following our latest Zeamster enhancement deployment, we've identified some functionality concerns for VivoPay EMV devices and Zeamster Gateway users. We understand the potential disruption and inconvenience this might cause, and we sincerely apologize.

Our team is working diligently to rectify the situation. While we are eager to resolve this promptly, our main priority is ensuring any updates' stability and reliability. Therefore, we won’t rush any solutions that might introduce new defects. To expedite the process, we've redirected resources, and our team is working through the weekend to provide a resolution as soon as possible.

Here are updates on the current payment issues:

VivoPay EMV Device Issues

If you currently use a VivoPay EMV device, you may have noticed two issues recently:

1. Only manual credit card entry will be possible.
2. Any club order made with VivoPay before October 4, 2023, cannot be refunded or canceled.

Important Note: Do not use the Dip or Swipe payment method with the VivoPay card reader until the issue is resolved

Both issues are actively being worked on, and we will push for an update as soon as it is completed and tested. ETA for the fix is Monday, October 9 - Wednesday, October 11. 

Zeamster - Refunding Issue

We have identified an issue preventing clients from processing refunds on club orders originally processed before October 4. Good News! We have pushed an update to fix the refund issue today (Friday, October 6th, 2023). We will update the status page with the latest updates.

If you need to process refunds ASAP: 

WineDirect Payments will process these refunds for you in bulk. Please download and fill out the spreadsheet below, then email it to payments@winedirect.com.

▶ Refunds Needed Spreadsheet

Important Note: If you manually issue a payment through the gateway, the refund amount will not be reflected in WineDirect for reporting purposes. As a workaround, you can use the "Order History Importer" tool to import the refund order so that it appears in WD reporting. For information on how to use the tool, please read more here.

We appreciate your understanding and patience as we navigate this challenge. We will send a follow-up email with updates next week. For real-time updates, you can visit the status page. For any additional concerns or questions, please use the 'Ask a question' feature on the bottom right chat bubble on the admin panel or email support@winedirect.com.

New: Strong Cyber Weekend Results for 2022

The post-Thanksgiving weekend is such a key time for wineries, with everyone pulling together to reach their sales goals while providing a great experience for consumers. Despite challenging market conditions, your hard work paid off. While sales declined compared to last years' post pandemic spending sprees, same-store sales across all DTC channels increased +6% compared to 2020 and a strong +20% compared to pre-pandemic 2019. 

 

WineDirect Platform Stability: Black Friday Through Cyber Monday

Our Classic platform performance also continued to be a standout - our continuing commitment to enhancing our architecture has resulted in lightning-fast transaction speed and stability, even in the face of extremely high demand.

These enhancements are just the beginning of what's in store as we count down the days until All-New WineDirect is available for all wineries in early 2023. We are incredibly grateful to have you join us for this next step forward. 🥂