I received an email from one of my WooCommerce web design clients recently. He noticed that there appeared to be large gaps in his WooCommerce order numbers, and was concerned that several orders had got lost somehow.
Obviously when a client thinks they are losing business, this rings immediate alarm bells, and the first person they look to for answers is their web developer.
I was sure there was a reasonable explanation for the missing order numbers, and I was right! However, in order to fully understand the reason behind the problem, you need to get to grips with how WordPress works in the background.
The WordPress core infrastructure applies a sequential “ID” to every item of content, including images, posts, pages & of course WooCommerce orders. So your WooCommerce invoice number is actually a WordPress core ID.
So, for example, if you received a shop order at midday with the invoice/order number of #2345, and you then added 2 new images to the website between receipt of that order and the next, the images would be allocated the ID’s of 2346 and 2347.
If you then received another order after adding those two images, that order ID would be #2348.
Hence, in your WooCommerce orders page, it would appear that invoices #2346 & #2347 were missing, but in fact, as I have illustrated, this isn’t strictly true, because those numbers were applied to the images you added.
So while we’ve established why the problem is happening, it’s an issue that could still present confusion in your accounting.
Many accountants will tell you that gaps in invoice numbers can raise queries by HMRC, so sequential invoice numbers are generally seen as good practice.
Fortunately, there is a WooCommerce sequential order number plugin available that corrects the issue. Personally, I think such functionality should be built into the WooCommerce core, but increasingly with free applications like WooCommerce, many key features are paid options, providing the developers with ready income.
Whether you agree or not, this approach allows you to completely personalise your own particular installation to your requirements.
Bob has been fantastic in helping me deal with the WordPress issues that I just cannot get my head around. He is quick, efficient and super knowledgeable. He's the extra support I really need alongside running my business and I'm super happy with the service provided.
Bob is fantastic, super helpful. Recently moved my hosting over to him. Had a couple of queries and he fixed everything I needed him to, he went above and beyond. Would high recommend.
Bob manages three websites for me and he's brilliant at what he does. Every time I have a question or need help to add or change something, he's always prompt and ready to support. We know how sometimes WordPress can screw things up with updates, or a plugin that stops working, Bob is there fixing it before I even realise there's an issue. He's so reliable and I never have to worry about things breaking. This peace of mind is invaluable.
Bob has been really helpful in the much needed redesign of our website, and set-up of our new webshop. He has been supportive and quick in responding to any queries we've had since and we would highly recommend him. Thanks Bob! :) Abby & Jon
We use Bob at SushiWP for our website. He comes highly recommended as a reliable and professional web developer. Excellent communication and high quality work.
Brilliant service. Bob is extremely knowledgeable and efficient. He explains everything clearly and delivers results in a timely manner. I highly recommend his services. Thank you!
When creating the website for the Duke of Connaught's Own Club, Bob was tasked with one thing; that when people open our page, the reaction is "Wow, where do I go first". Bob did not disappoint. He has developed a first class site that shows off all that is good about our Club. A very friendly guy and very easy to work with. I cannot recommend him highly enough.
Nothing is never to much to ask , we are a new business and litrally bob has just helped us lift it of the ground with no stress as you have so many things to think about when opening a new business! .We just gave a few very vague ideas and bob put the whole website together , thank you so much :)
Really really pleased with my new website. I love it! It works brilliantly, most of our clients book online and we always get great comments from them about how good our web site is. Bob was great at listening to what I wanted and how I wanted it to look and work. He goes that extra mile, several in my case as we made quite a few changes along the way. We need to update our web page weekly with new content and Bob made that really easy for us to do and created a video to show us how to do it. I highly recommend him to anyone wanting a brilliant web page. Thanks a million Bob, its so good to have a web page I am really proud of.
We have been dealing with Bob for over 9 years and have found him to be very professional Always on hand for any support if needed Would highly recommend this company
Fantastic service from bob from start to finish took time to explained every step and was very patient with me who is not grate with computers and even took time out to come and show me how things worked definitely recommend to anyone for a website
After the 1st lock down we realised we needed a stronger website , Bob came as a recommendation and at the 1st meeting both companies clicked which is so important, At Sushi Wp they listen to our ideas and our vision on how we wanted the site to look and function, over coming issues with site traffic and bespoke development to help us give our customer a great web experience. Great Work Bob and his team
Bob has created our dream website. It's everything we wanted and more! Bob has gone above and beyond and is always gets back to you straight away. Highly recommend SushiWP
Bob at SushiWP has proved to be invaluable in building my businesses new website! He is not afraid to talk to you personally rather than via email and doesn't blind you with science when discussing the technicalities of the World Wide Web! I would highly recommend this very patient human.
Great firm, very professional and easy to deal with. Great communication, modern and vibrant ideas. Awsome value for money. I can easily recommend SushiWp to everyone looking for a decent website and many more related stuff. I Will be using them again soon. Thank you Bob. Great stuff. Raffa Ziegler Simply Hog Roast
SushiWP has been my website design & development partner for a couple of years now. In that time they replaced my very out-dated website with a streamlined new one that has resulted in a steep increase in orders, thanks mainly to a successful search engine optimisation & marketing campaign that has elevated many of my products onto page one of Google. I'd happily recommend them to anyone!
SushiWP have always been very helpful, friendly and quick to respond to any issues we've had regarding our website or emails, sorting them swiftly so we can get on with our business. We love our latest website design. Orbitpress would definitely recommend them.
I found Bob to be really easy to work with. He really understood my needs and developed a website that I am really pleased with. Any changes have been made quickly and easily. I would definitely recommend SushiWP.
Web design and hosting is a completely foreign world to me so I need a company I can trust to guide me through it. SushiWP are that company. They are knowledgeable and creative and any issues that inevitably crop up from time to time are dealt with promptly and with little fuss. I can't recommend SushiWP strongly enough.
SushiWP have served me well in creating and supporting my commercial website. They provide a friendly, professional creative, supportive service.
The support that I've received from Bob of SushiWP has been totally amazing. I totally trust his integrity as a business owner and he is very personable/easy to chat to. His expertise and advice is always given with generosity and I trust him to offer the right options for me based on what I need and what I can afford. A rare commodity not often found in business - it's good to know that there are experts around that not only know their industry well, but take the trouble to consider how that applies to each individual - a truly bespoke service.
Since Sushi WP rebuilt my website, enquiries have increased and Bob was really helpful in sourcing and testing a great online booking system which has transformed my business! Highly recommended.
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