The Inlay blog
Custom work. Sold online.
Guides for cabinet, door, millwork, countertop, flooring and other custom home product brands on checkout, dealer portals, payments and customer data. Written by people who build ordering software for the trades.
Checkout & Conversion
Why Your Checkout Should Look Like Your Website
A branded checkout for manufacturers keeps buyers on your domain, in your fonts and colours, from first click to deposit. Here is what to match first.
Checkout & ConversionGuided Configurators vs. Order Forms for Custom Products
A product configurator for cabinets walks buyers through one decision at a time and checks sizes as they go. Here is how it compares to a classic order form.
Checkout & ConversionSave for Later: Why Big-Ticket Home Orders Need a Pause Button
Custom home orders rarely finish in one sitting. Letting buyers save a quote for later keeps measurements, options and pricing ready when they return.
Checkout & ConversionThe Final Review Step That Cuts Wrong-Size Orders
A clear final review screen is one of the simplest ways to reduce custom order errors. Here is what it should show, in what order, and what to ask buyers.
Checkout & ConversionFrom Sample to Full Order: Designing the Sample Journey
Finish samples to order conversion depends on what happens after the box lands. How to price samples, time follow-ups and link them to a saved quote.
Checkout & ConversionQuote, Bid or Invoice? The Words That Cost You Orders
Quote vs invoice confusion stalls custom orders. How to use quote, order and invoice consistently across your checkout, documents and emails.
Checkout & ConversionShould Your Quotes Expire? Price Holds for Custom Manufacturers
A quote expiry price guarantee gives buyers a clear deadline and protects your margins, as long as your system can record and honour it. How to set one up.
Checkout & ConversionAbandoned Quotes: A Follow-Up Sequence That Respects Buyers
A four-email quote follow up email sequence for custom home products, with timing, content for each message, and the rule that stops it once they order.
Checkout & ConversionWhen Your Ordering Software and Email Tool Both Hit Send
Duplicate and missing order notification emails confuse buyers. How to split jobs between your ordering system and email tool, and audit what customers get.
Dealer Portals
What a B2B Dealer Portal Should Do for a Door Manufacturer
A B2B dealer portal for a door manufacturer should handle logins, price tiers, POs, net terms and cut lists. Here is the checklist to judge one by.
Dealer PortalsDealer Price Tiers Without the Spreadsheet
How to set up dealer pricing tiers for custom home products so each trade account sees its own price online, with no spreadsheet to keep in sync.
Dealer PortalsNet 30, POs and Credit Limits: Trade Accounts Online
How to run Net 30 terms for B2B ordering online: who qualifies, PO numbers, credit and approval limits, and invoicing through your own Stripe account.
Dealer PortalsLetting Dealers Quote Under Their Own Name
White label quoting for dealers lets your trade accounts send quotes under their own logo and markup, built from your catalogue and rules. How it works.
Dealer PortalsOne Catalogue, Two Channels: Homeowners and the Trade
Why a B2B and B2C ordering platform should run homeowners and dealers from one catalogue, with separate pricing, payments and checkout for each channel.
Dealer PortalsOrdering From a Cut List: Bulk Line Entry for Cabinet Shops
Cut list ordering lets cabinet shops paste or upload dozens of door and panel lines at once, checked against size rules before the order is placed.
Trade Guides
How to Sell Custom Cabinet Doors Online
How to sell cabinet doors online: product structure, measuring help, size rules, samples, deposits and production sync for made-to-measure door makers.
Trade GuidesSelling Fronts for IKEA Box Systems: Ordering Rules That Matter
Selling custom fronts for IKEA cabinets online? The ordering rules that matter: fixed sizes per box, drawer stacks, hinge prep, cover panels and fillers.
Trade GuidesOnline Countertop Quoting: Square Feet, Edges and Cut-Outs
How to give an online countertop quote that holds up: square footage by shape, edge profiles by linear foot, cut-outs, backsplash and a template deposit.
Trade GuidesTemplate-Visit Deposits for Countertop Fabricators
How to set a countertop template deposit online: what it covers, how much to take, how to handle price changes after template, and refund policy.
Trade GuidesFlooring Waste Factors by Layout, and Why Checkout Should Do the Math
A practical guide to flooring waste factor by layout, from straight lay to herringbone, and how to build the math into checkout so orders come out right.
Trade GuidesSelling Flooring Online: Box Rounding, Underlay and Trim
To sell flooring online without short orders, round to full boxes, pair the right underlay, add trim by linear foot and take a deposit where it makes sense.
Trade GuidesMade-to-Measure Blinds Online: Mounts and Price Grids
Custom blinds online ordering works when checkout handles inside vs. outside mounts, deductions, width-by-drop price grids and control options for the buyer.
Trade GuidesWindows and Exterior Doors: Moving Dealer Orders Off Email
Window dealer ordering software replaces emailed spec sheets with checked orders: rough openings, handing, glass options, POs and status that dealers can see.
Trade GuidesShower Glass and Mirrors: Measured Orders and Deposits Online
How to offer a shower glass quote online that buyers trust: configuration choices, measure visits, deposits and mirror sizing rules your shop can build.
Trade GuidesRailings, Decking and Fencing: Selling Kits by the Linear Foot
A railing kit configurator turns linear feet, corners and stairs into a complete parts list with posts, balusters and hardware, and flags common code checks.
Trade GuidesCloset Configurators Homeowners Can Actually Finish
A closet configurator homeowners finish asks for wall widths and storage needs, builds the layout from rules and shows a clear price with a deposit option.
Trade GuidesMillwork Online: Pricing Mouldings, Mantels and Built-Ins
Millwork ordering software should price mouldings by the linear foot, mantels by size and built-ins by section, with species and finish rules built in.
Trade GuidesBuilder Design Centres: Upgrade Selections and Deposits Online
Home builder selections software lets buyers pick upgrades by plan and lot, see prices, sign off and pay deposits online, with cut-off dates enforced.
Trade GuidesDrawer Boxes, RTA Boxes and Panels: Repeat B2B Orders
Drawer box ordering for trade suppliers works best with size rules, cut-list uploads, account pricing and one-click reorders. Here is how to set it up.
Payments & Fees
Deposits vs. Pay in Full for Custom Home Products
How to choose between deposit payments for custom orders and pay in full, by product line, with sample policies, timing, and what to put in writing.
Payments & FeesThe Hidden Cost of Percentage Fees on Ordering Platforms
Ordering platform transaction fees look small on a quote but grow with every big custom order. How to model percentage fees against flat monthly pricing.
Payments & FeesWhy Payouts Should Land in Your Own Stripe Account
Stripe Connect for manufacturers explained: why custom-order payments should settle in your own Stripe account, and what it changes for refunds and disputes.
Payments & FeesGST, HST, PST and US Sales Tax at Checkout: The Basics
Sales tax for online orders in Canada and the US: how GST, HST and PST follow the delivery province, when US states expect you to collect, and what to ask.
Data & Security
Who Owns Your Customer List? Questions for Any Ordering Platform
Customer data ownership on ordering platforms: what to check in the contract, how exports work, and what happens to your orders and customers when you leave.
Data & SecurityPCI Compliance for Small Manufacturers, Explained
PCI compliance for small business manufacturers: what PCI DSS asks of you, how hosted card fields shrink your scope, and the yearly steps you still own.
Data & SecurityPIPEDA and Quebec Law 25: A Plain-Language Checklist
A PIPEDA compliance checklist for online ordering, plus what Quebec Law 25 adds: a named privacy lead, incident records, privacy policy and portability.
Data & SecurityShared Databases vs. Isolated Data in Ordering Software
What makes a secure ordering portal: shared databases versus isolated data per company, encryption at rest and in transit, and questions to ask vendors.
Buying Guides
How to Choose Ordering Software for a Cabinet Shop in 2026
Choosing cabinet ordering software in 2026: compare homeowner checkout, dealer ordering, fees and production sync, with public pricing as of September 2026.
Buying GuidesShopify Option Apps vs. a Trade-Specific Configurator
A Shopify product configurator app works for simple options. Made-to-measure home products need sizing rules, deposits and production sync. How to choose.
Buying GuidesWhat a Wrong-Size Order Really Costs a Custom Manufacturer
The cost of order errors goes past the remake. Add up material, machine time, freight, staff hours and goodwill on one wrong-size order, then prevent it.