Special instruction not working for my button

[lighthouse1]

I've created a Buy now button and, even if I've checked the "Can your customer add special instructions in a message to you?" option, no area to add instruction appears to my customers.

Can you help me please?

[MTS_Ciaran]

Hi,

This feature was deprecated a while ago in the new checkout flow. The recommendation at the moment is to add a textbox to your button code to give the option of adding instructions before the PayPal button is clicked e.g. 

<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
  <input type="hidden" name="business" value="herschelgomez@xyzzyu.com">
  <input type="hidden" name="cmd" value="_xclick">
  <input type="hidden" name="item_name" value="Hot Sauce-12oz. Bottle">
  <input type="hidden" name="amount" value="5.95">
  <input type="hidden" name="currency_code" value="USD">
  Special Instructions to the Seller?<br />
  <input type="text" name="custom" maxlength="600"> <br />
  <input type="image" name="submit" border="0" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/webstatic/en_US/i/btn/png/btn_buynow_107x26.png" alt="Buy Now">
  <img alt="" border="0" width="1" height="1" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" >
</form>

[HeatherLS]

Thanks, MTS_Ciaran, for that suggested workaround. It's odd that the button advanced features still provides the option to include a custom message to seller if that feature has been deprecated. I tried the option you suggested but, unfortunately, it includes the custom message right below our button on our website which is not the ideal user experience.

Do you happen to know of any other ways to add this message to the checkout screen and not to the website button display?

Many thanks!

[MTS_Ciaran]

It is odd 🙂 but we've requested this to be updated on the button factory. 

Unfortunately there is no way to add this to the checkout screen. 

[Newport10]

MTS_Ciaran  The option to have customers provide special instructions is still available in the button creation area.  However, it does appear to not actual show up on the check out page.  

1.  Can we get it turned back on?  

2.  As for adding a textbox for a tempory solution, here is the line I added to my button code:

Enter your classified ad here:<br />
<textarea name="custom" cols="40" rows="6"></textarea>

It appears below my PayNow button, which is fine.  My question is, how will the special instructions entered flow to the seller?    

[MTS_Ciaran]

We wont be able to reenable this in the short term as it was removed as part of a feature change purposely.

For the alternative via the text box, this would mean the information is pushed into the transaction detail pages as well as the downloadable reports. 

[voodoocatbox]

IT is absolutely ridiculous that you cannot implement a special instructions box on the checkout page from a top-level.  We have HUNDREDS of buttons, on our site.  We should not have to go into each and every one to turn on an option (which has now been deprecated), or god forbid have to add code to each one, which is intended to show up on the CHECKOUT PAGE.  Why is there no option to customixe the checkout page in this way???

[flourpot]

Please, please reinstate the merchant instructions on checkout.  My clients often need to communicate during checkout on what/who they are paying for.  If not, guess I will start investigating other checkout methods.

[MTS_Ciaran]

Feedback noted, I'll add this as a feature request, however I can't guarantee that it will be implemented. 

[spirani]

You are a global company. You should be able to fix this. I'm currrently looking at better options than PayPal and there are several. Once I find the best one I'm done here. In the meantime, like I said, make it work. Or disable it. Don't offer it knowing it doesn't work.