Digital download transactions allow providers to attach and sell digital files on a listing, and customers to purchase them. When creating a listing, providers can upload up to 10 digital files, each with a size limit of 1 GB. The most common file types are supported, though some, such as executables and scripts, are blocked for security reasons.
Below are some examples of marketplaces with digital download transactions:
Design templates for creators: Canva templates, resume/CV templates, or social media planners sold by designers to other creators and small business owners.
Stock photo and design assets: curated stock photography, icon sets, or fonts sold to other designers and marketers, similar to a niche version of Shutterstock.
Course and educational materials: worksheets, lesson plans, or study guides sold by teachers and tutors to other educators, parents, or students.
You can enable digital download transactions by creating a new Listing type in Console → Listings → Listing type. When setting it up, select the "Digital download" transaction process.
All listings created with this Listing type automatically use the digital download transaction process. The next sections explain the stages of this process for customers, providers, and marketplace operators (admins).
Digital download transaction workflow and user experience
The digital download transaction process is designed for marketplaces where sellers sell digital files that become available to customers immediately after purchase. Because the purchase is for digital files, there's no limit to how many times a listing can be purchased, and generally no intervention is needed from the seller (unlike with physical products, where the seller needs to confirm shipment).
Below are the stages in a digital download transaction:
The customer purchases the listing with the file(s).
The file(s) become available for download.
The customer has 7 days to report a problem with the transaction. During this same window, the operator can manually complete the transaction, or report it themselves if there's an issue.
If no one takes action within 7 days, the transaction automatically completes and payout to the provider is triggered.
Once the transaction is completed, whether automatically or manually, the buyer receives an email inviting them to leave a review of the provider. The provider does not leave a review in return.
Customer purchases the digital files
The digital download transaction begins when the customer buys the listing containing the digital files.
Files become available for download
Once payment is confirmed, the purchased file(s) become available for the customer to download. The customer then has 7 days to report any issues with the transaction to the marketplace by clicking "Did something go wrong?". Clicking this prompts the customer to submit a report describing the issue, which is sent to the provider by email notification.
Viewing and managing the transaction as an Operator
Once a customer buys a digital file, a corresponding transaction appears under Console → Manage → Transactions. Learn more about managing your marketplace transactions.
Within the 7-day window, the operator can either complete the transaction or report it. If the operator completes the transaction with the Operator complete action, the payout to the provider is triggered and the transaction is marked complete. If no action is taken at all, this happens automatically once 7 days have passed.
If the operator reports the transaction with the Operator report action, the transaction moves into a “reported” state. From there, the operator has 60 days to resolve the dispute between the customer and provider. There are only two possible outcomes:
Operator cancel: this cancels the transaction and refunds the payment
Operator complete from reported: this completes the transaction and triggers the payout to the customer
Once the transaction is completed, the buyer receives an email asking them to leave a review of the provider. The provider does not get to leave a review in this transaction type.