Is a confirmation screen necessary for an order form?

Question

In a discussion about how to streamline an order form on our site, the idea of eliminating the confirmation screen. So, instead of filling out the form, clicking "Submit", seeing a summary on a confirmation screen and clicking "Confirm", the user would simply fill out the form, hit "Submit", and the order's done. The theory is that fewer clicks and fewer screens means less time to order and therefore the ordering experience is easier.

The opposing opinion says that without the confirmation screen, user error increases and people just end up canceling/changing orders after the fact.

I'm looking for more input from the SO community. Have you ever done this? How has it worked out, compared to a traditional confirmation screen setup? Are there examples of a true "one click and done" setup on the web (does Amazon's 1-click have a confirmation screen? I've never been courageous enough to try it)?

EDIT: Just to clarify, when I say "confirmation screen", I mean a second step where the customer reviews the order before placing it. Even if we did do away with it, the user would still receive a message saying "your order has been placed".

Answer 1

Normal Amazon purchasing works via a confirmation screen. 1-Click does not (hence the name - sorry if that sounds obvious).

I would definitely have a confirmation screen. It'll reduce the amount of manual work down the line backing out orders.

Perhaps more importantly, most (all?) e-commerce sites work like this. Changing how people normally work with a website is potentially confusing and alienating, and I wouldn't want to turn away or confuse customers.

Answer 2

personally, until I see a 'your order has been received and is being processed' message, find an order confirmation email in my inbox, and see the money deducted from my account, I have no reason to believe that I've made a purchase. Your own hesitance to try amazon's one-click checkout function is a good indicator.

Answer 3

A confirmation screen is there for a reason. It's easier to proofread the data entered (the billing address, etc.) when you see it laid out on the page, rather than when each piece of data is in its own input field.

Unless you want to deal with orders submitted with errors and the resulting aggrieved customers because their neighbour received their order and they never saw it themselves as they made a mistake in the address field or something like that, I would recommend keeping the confirmation screen.

Make a simple order page where you have everything the user needs to enter upfront: the address, payment details and whatever else is needed. Follow it up with a confirmation screen that has the information laid out clearly and from where any errors made are easy to fix. What is frustrating is not the confirmation step; it's bad when the order process drip-feeds you the requirements for completing the order: the billing address on one page, the shipping address on the next one, coupon entry form & gift wrapping on the third, etc. so by the end of it you've almost forgotten what is it that you are ordering.

Answer 4

Necessary? Absolutely not.

A really freaking good idea that should never be skipped... YES!

Some order forms take like four pages to get through, and I agree with some earlier posters that until I see "your order is being processed", I have no reason to believe anything official has transpired.