Help centre

Get your store running with confidence.

Practical setup, trust, safety, policy, privacy, and growth guides for South African sellers.

Getting started with biocartly

3 min read

biocartly helps South African sellers create a store, list products, connect Yoco, and share a checkout link on WhatsApp, Instagram, or anywhere they sell.

Create your store

After sign-up, complete onboarding with your store name and URL slug. You can update both later in Store Settings.

Add products

Go to Products, add a product name and price, then publish. Use CSV import when you already have a longer price list.

Connect Yoco and share

Connect your Yoco account from Billing, then copy your store link from the dashboard and share it with customers.

Add trust details before launch

Before you publish widely, add your logo, business description, contact details, social links, delivery options, and basic store policies. These details help customers verify that the store belongs to the real business.

How to connect your Yoco account

2 min read

biocartly does not hold seller funds. Customer card payments go through the seller's own Yoco account.

Before you start

Create or log into your Yoco merchant account, then open the API keys section in the Yoco dashboard.

Connect in biocartly

  1. Open Dashboard, then Billing.
  2. Paste your Yoco secret key in the Yoco Payments section.
  3. Select test or live mode and save the connection.

When a customer pays, Yoco redirects them through a secure hosted payment page and biocartly marks the order paid after the webhook confirms it.

How to import products via CSV

3 min read

CSV import lets you add many products at once from a spreadsheet, WhatsApp price list, or pasted table.

Required columns

Your CSV needs product name and price. Optional fields include stock, category, and description.

name,price,stock,category
Air Force 1 Size 10,R850,3,Sneakers
Custom Cake 6 inch,R450,,Baking

Accepted price formats

Prices such as R150, R 150, 150.00, and 150,00 are accepted. Comma, semicolon, and tab separators are auto-detected.

How to set up delivery zones

2 min read

Delivery zones let you charge different delivery fees for different regions. Customers choose a zone at checkout and the fee is added automatically.

Create a zone

  1. Open Delivery in the dashboard.
  2. Add a zone name, fee, and optional delivery estimate.
  3. Save the zone and keep it active while customers should see it.

Common South African setups include local delivery, nearby provinces, nationwide delivery, and express same-day delivery.

How to use promo codes

2 min read

Promo codes let customers enter a discount during checkout. Promo codes are available on Pro and higher plans.

Create a code

  1. Open Promo Codes in the dashboard.
  2. Choose a code, discount type, value, and optional expiry or usage limit.
  3. Share the code on WhatsApp, Instagram, or email.

Use minimum spend and first-order-only rules when you want tighter campaign control.

How to use a custom domain

3 min read

A custom domain lets customers visit your store from your own brand URL, such as shop.yourbrand.co.za, instead of only using your biocartly store link.

Why custom domains matter

Domains make your store easier to recognize, easier to share, and harder for scammers to impersonate. Customers can compare your store URL with your Instagram bio, WhatsApp catalogue, packaging, receipts, and other official channels.

Before connecting a domain

  • Use a domain owned by your business or founder.
  • Keep domain registrar access secure with two-factor authentication.
  • Do not share DNS or Vercel access with people who do not manage your website.
  • Make sure your business name, logo, and social links match the brand customers already know.

After connecting

Add the custom domain to your social bios and customer messages. If you ever change domains, announce the change clearly on your verified social channels so customers know which link is real.

Store policies every seller should publish

4 min read

Clear policies reduce disputes and make your store feel more professional. They also help customers understand what happens after they pay.

Recommended policy details

  • Public contact information: email, WhatsApp number, or support channel.
  • Delivery or collection options, including estimated timelines.
  • Refund, exchange, and cancellation rules.
  • Product availability and stock timing for made-to-order items.
  • Any third-party supplier, courier, or fulfilment arrangement that affects customers.

Why this matters

Customers should know who they are buying from, how to get help, when to expect delivery, and what happens if something goes wrong. A short, honest policy is better than no policy.

Where to place policies

Add the most important points to your store description, product descriptions, delivery options, order messages, and social highlights. Keep legal, privacy, and support links easy to find.

How customer data is handled

4 min read

biocartly collects the information needed to run the store and process orders. Sellers should treat customer information with care and only use it for legitimate store purposes.

Data used for orders

  • Customer name, email, phone number, delivery details, and order contents.
  • Payment status and payment provider references.
  • Messages or notes needed for fulfilment and support.

What sellers should do

  • Use customer details only to fulfil orders, provide support, and send necessary updates.
  • Do not export or share customer lists unless it is needed for delivery, accounting, or legal compliance.
  • Protect staff accounts and remove staff access when someone leaves the business.
  • Keep your own privacy promises clear if you collect extra information outside biocartly.

Customer rights

Customers can ask privacy questions or request access, correction, or deletion where applicable. Send privacy questions to privacy@biocartly.com and include the store URL and order reference if relevant.

What you cannot sell or do on biocartly

3 min read

biocartly is built for legitimate South African sellers. Sellers must follow the law, payment provider rules, platform terms, and basic good-faith commerce standards.

Do not use biocartly for

  • Illegal, stolen, counterfeit, misleading, or unsafe products.
  • Products or content that infringe someone else's intellectual property.
  • Fraud, fake stores, phishing, spam, or impersonation.
  • Threats, harassment, hate, self-harm facilitation, or other harmful activity.
  • Trying to bypass platform limits, payment checks, or security controls.

If there is a problem

biocartly may remove content, restrict a store, suspend an account, or ask for verification where there is fraud risk, legal risk, payment provider risk, or customer safety risk.

Buyer safety: how to check a store before paying

3 min read

Most sellers are honest, but customers should still check that a store is real before paying.

Check these signals

  • The store link comes from the business's official social account, website, or WhatsApp number.
  • The store uses HTTPS and shows consistent branding.
  • The seller can explain stock, delivery, collection, refunds, and support.
  • Prices and product photos are realistic and match the business's usual content.
  • You are not being pressured to pay through an unrelated link or private account.

Report suspicious stores

If a biocartly store looks fake, impersonates another business, or appears to be scamming customers, email support@biocartly.com with the store URL, screenshots, and any order reference.

Refunds, disputes, and customer support

3 min read

Sellers are responsible for fulfilling orders, helping customers, and handling refund or exchange requests in line with their policies and applicable law.

Best practice for sellers

  • Confirm orders quickly and keep customers updated.
  • Use order statuses so customers know when an order is processing, shipped, delivered, cancelled, or refunded.
  • Keep delivery proof, tracking numbers, and customer messages where possible.
  • Publish refund and exchange rules before customers pay.

When biocartly can help

biocartly can help investigate platform, checkout, payment notification, and account access issues. Product quality, delivery promises, and seller-customer disputes remain the seller's responsibility unless platform misuse is involved.

Still stuck?

Email support@biocartly.com and include your store URL.