Frequently Asked Questions

Getting Started

How do I register? Is it free?
Do I need to register to make a purchase?
What browsers do you support?
Why do I have to fill out the entire registration form to participate in the blog/forum community?
How do I log in?
I forgot my username – can you email it to me?
I forgot my password – how do I reset it?
What is the 'Share This' button and why is it on all of your products, articles, and posts?
How do I change my email address?
How do I change my password?
How do I change my mailing address?
How do I subscribe/unsubscribe to your newsletter?

Forum Community

What are the forum rules?
How do I start my first topic?
How do reply to a post?
How do I put a picture into my post?
How do I add a signature to my posts?
What are 'Hot Tags' and how do I use them?
What are 'Private Messages' (PM) and how do I use them?
What is my 'Community Profile'?
What are 'Forum Favorites'?
What is a 'RSS Feed' and how can I use it to monitor forums/topics for new activity?
I am logged in but it says 'You must register and login to post'. What do I do?

Shopping Cart

How do I search for an item?
How do I learn more about a product before buying?
How do I add an item to my cart?
How do I select a different size for an item before adding it to my cart?
Why are there two 'Add to Cart' buttons? Do I really save 5% by adding items using the second 'Add to Cart' button?
How do I change the quantity of items in my cart?
How do I remove an item from my cart?
How do I view my previous orders?
Can I re-order a previous order?

Checking Out

How do I get a coupon code?
How do I use a coupon code?
I have a credit on my account. How do I apply that to my order?
What credit cards do you accept?
What will my order show up as on my credit card?
Do you accept PayPal?
Is your site secure?
What personal information do you store when I buy something from you? Do you save my credit card information?
My credit card keeps getting rejected – what do I do?

Shipping

Can I change my billing and shipping addresses before ordering?
What shipping carrier do you use?
Can I change to a different shipping carrier?
How accurate is the 'Estimated Delivery Date'?
How soon do you process and ship my order?
What is your return policy?

Affiliate Program

What is an affiliate program?
How to I enroll in your affiliate program?
What is the affiliate payout structure?
Can I use the affiliate program on my own purchases?
How do I create affiliate links?
How do you track affiliate links?
How often do you pay affiliates?
Do I get paid more if I take Tastefully Driven store credit?

Gift Certificates

How do I buy a gift certificate?
Can I buy more than one gift certificate?
How do I check the balance of my gift certificate?
I have a gift certificate – how do I apply it to my order?

About Tastefully Driven

Do you have a phone number? It's not listed on your contact page.
Who owns Tastefully Driven?
What is your 'Commerce with Conscience' program?
How do I get a 'Commerce with Conscience' wrist band?
What software did you use to create your site?
Can I work for you?

Getting Started (Return to Top)

How do I register? Is it free?
You can register by visiting tastefullydriven.com/register.php. It is completely free to register to participate in our community.

Do I need to register to make a purchase?
Yes – we require everyone who purchases an item to sign up for an account. This ensures that we have sufficient contact information should we need to get in touch with you regarding your order.

What browsers do you support?
We support all major browsers - Internet Explorer 6/7, Firefox, Safari, etc - on all operating systems. To be able to interact with our forum community or make a purchase, it is highly recommended that you enable javascript in your browser. Many Tastefully Driven features require the use of javascript and will not function correctly without it.

Why do I have to fill out the entire registration form to participate in the blog/forum community?
Our goal is to provide a unified community shopping experience. It's our hope that you will utilize the content in our forum to influence your purchasing decisions – both on TastefullyDriven.com and on other sites. Having one account allows you to seamlessly click from the forums to the store and make a purchase.

How do I log in?
You can log in at the top of any page.

I forgot my username – can you email it to me?
You can have your email address mailed to you by filling out this form.

I forgot my password – how do I reset it?
You can reset your password by filling out this form. If you forgot your security question/answer, you can contact us by emailing support [at] tastefullydriven [dot] com and we'll reset your password for you.

What is the 'Share This' button and why is it on all of your products, articles, and posts?
The 'Share This' button allows you to share any web page – be it a product page, article, video, blog post, or any other web page – with friends via email or social web sites like Facebook, digg, and del.icio.us. Simply click the 'Share This' button as shown below and select the method you'd like to use to share Tastefully Driven.

How do I change my email address?
Once you're logged in, you can change your email address by filling out this form.

How do I change my password?
Once you're logged in, you can change your password by filling out this form.

How do I change my mailing address?
You can change your mailing address on your My Account page.

How do I subscribe/unsubscribe to your newsletter?
When you register you have the option to subscribe to our email newsletter that includes exclusive coupon codes, articles, videos, and more. If you'd like to change your newsletter preference you can do so on your My Account page. Alternatively, if you wish to unsubscribe, you can do so by clicking the link on the bottom of any mailing from us.

Forum Community (Return to Top)

What are the forum rules?
The forum rules are posted in our forum - please check back often for changes.

How do I start my first topic?
After registering and logging in, you'll be able to add a new topic to any forum by clicking on the appropriate category on the forum home page and filling out the 'New Topic in this Forum' form:

How do reply to a post?
After registering and logging in, you'll be able to reply to any post on any forum simply by filling out the form at the bottom of the last page of the topic:

How do I put a picture into my post?
You can add a picture to your post by clicking the 'Insert/Edit Image' button when constructing a post (see image below). The only required field in the form is the URL – the web address of your picture. If you do not have access to image hosting, popular sites like flickr and photobucket will host images for you for free. If the editor is not showing properly for you, please check to make sure that you have javascript enabled in your browser: Tastefully Driven requires javascript to fully function.

How do I add a signature to my posts?
Signatures allow you to express yourself with a "signature" underneath each of your posts. To create your signature, go to the 'Edit Signature' link on your My Account page.

When making a post your signature will now automatically be included at the bottom.

What are 'Hot Tags' and how do I use them?
'Hot Tags' are a way of grouping forum topics by similar themes. When starting a new topic, you enter 'Hot Tags' as a comma-separated list of key words and phrases related to the topic. For example, a post about the history of basketball might get tagged with “ncaa, nba, basketball, james naismith”.

As tags accumulate and are used multiple times, they are shown on the forum home page. The larger the size of the text, the more times the tag was used. By clicking the tag you can view all topics that have that tag applied to them.

What are 'Private Messages' (PM) and how do I use them?
Private Messages are an internal messaging system that allows you to communicate privately with other Tastefully Driven users. To send a PM, click the 'PM THIS USER' link that is either on their profile or underneath one of their posts.

After sending the PM, the recipient will be notified via email that they have received a Private Message.

What is my 'Community Profile'?
Your 'Community Profile' page – found at www.tastefullydriven.com/community/profile/YOURNAME – displays your signature and recent topics you've contributed to. In the future, you'll likely have the option to expand and customize your profile to match your personal interests.

What are 'Forum Favorites'?
'Forum Favorites' allow you to follow your favorite forum topics. When you read a topic that you want to monitor, click the 'Add this topic to your favorites' link at the top of the page.

You can either monitor your favorites by clicking 'Forum Favorites' in your My Account page, or by subscribing to the RSS feed (learn more about RSS feeds below).

What is a 'RSS Feed' and how can I use it to monitor forums/topics for new activity?
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a web content syndication format that enables you to have information delivered directly to your desktop using a news feed reader (also referred to as an aggregator). Each feed that you subscribe to is updated every time a site updates their content. This keeps you informed without having to browse each individual site. Our favorite RSS reader is Google Reader, but you can also use most popular web browsers or email clients to also monitor RSS feeds for you.

On Tastefully Driven, all forums and topics have buttons like the ones below that enable you to access the RSS feed for that forum or topic.

I am logged in but it says 'You must register and login to post'. What do I do?
Log out and then log back in and everything should be fine. If the problem persists, email us at support [at] tastefullydriven [dot] com.

Shopping Cart (Return to Top)

How do I search for an item?
You can search for an item from the search box on the home page or the search box on the left hand side of any store.

How do I learn more about product before buying?
It is our goal to use our blog and forum community to meticulously educate consumers about how our products can improve their lives. On any product page you can view related forum and blog posts to leverage our knowledge and the knowledge of our community to help you make better purchasing decisions.

How do I add an item to my cart?
You can add an item to your cart by clicking the 'Add to Cart' button on any product page.

How do I select a different size for an item before adding it to my cart?
If an item has multiple sizes available, you can select a different size from the 'Select a Size' drop down menu.

Why are there two 'Add to Cart' buttons? Do I really save 5% by adding items using the second 'Add to Cart' button?
The first 'Add to Cart' button adds the item described on the page to your cart. The second 'Add to Cart' button – located on the lower right of the page, below the 'Complementary Items' – adds the item described on the page and also any items checked off under the 'Complementary Items'. Each complementary item is added to your cart with a 5% discount built in!

How do I change the quantity of items in my cart?
You can add or reduce the quantity of an item in your cart by changing the number in the 'Quantity' box and then clicking 'Update Cart'.

How do I remove an item from my cart?
You can remove an item from your cart by clicking the 'X' to the left of the product name.

How do I view my previous orders?
You can view your previous orders by visiting your My Account page.

Can I re-order a previous order?
Unfortunately at this time we do not have a re-order feature. This is something that we are hoping to add in the near future to improve your shopping experience.

Checking Out (Return to Top)

How do I get a coupon code?
Our newsletter contains exclusive coupon codes and is the best way for you to consistently have access to special pricing on Tastefully Driven. If you don't already have an account, you can sign up for our newsletter by selecting 'yes' to the 'Newsletter' drop-down when registering. If you already have an account, you can visit your My Account page to manage your subscription.

How do I use a coupon code?
You can use a coupon code by entering the code in the 'Enter Coupon Code' box and clicking 'Redeem'.

After clicking 'Redeem' you'll see confirmation that your code was accepted and applied.

I have a credit on my account. How do I apply that to my order?
Credit is automatically applied when the subtotal of your purchase exceeds the amount of credit on your account. For example, if you have a $10 credit you must make a purchase of greater than $10 for the credit to apply to the purchase. Credit does not apply to tax or shipping.

What credit cards do you accept?
We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express. In addition, we also accept PayPal payments.

What will my order show up as on my credit card?
The order will show up as PUREADAPT. Tastefully Driven is owned by Pure Adapt, Inc.

Do you accept PayPal?
Yes – you can pay with PayPal by selecting the PayPal payment type when checking out.

Is your site secure?
Yes – when you enter sensitive information like a credit card number on our order forms, we encrypt that information using 128-bit secure socket layer technology (SSL). We also do not store your credit card information in our database (see the following question).

What personal information do you store when I buy something from you? Do you save my credit card information?
We store only the information that you give to us when you register – name, email address, physical address, etc. We DO NOT store your credit card information, nor do we ever see or have access to your credit card information. All credit cards are processed by the extremely safe and secure PayPal Payments Pro service. During an order, PayPal simply tells us whether the information you entered is correct (in which case we process the order) or incorrect (in which case we tell you that there has been an error). PayPal charges your card in our name and deposits the funds into our account. We believe that this results in the safest shopping experience possible for our customers.

My credit card keeps getting rejected – what do I do?
Please send us an email at support [at] tastefullydriven [dot] com with your name, email address, phone number, what you are trying to buy, and any other pertinent information that you feel may help us. We will call you back as soon as possible and take your order over the phone. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Shipping (Return to Top)

Can I change my billing and shipping addresses before ordering?
Yes – you can change your address by clicking the 'Edit' button on the checkout page.

What shipping carrier do you use?
For domestic (US) orders we ship using FedEx. For orders shipped to International, APO, and US Territories we ship with USPS.

Can I change to a different shipping carrier?
Unfortunately we do not offer that option at this time.

How accurate is the 'Estimated Delivery Date'?
The estimated delivery date is just that – an estimate. If you need an order rushed, please email us at support [at] tastefullydriven [dot] com and we will work with you to figure out the fastest method to have your products delivered.

For a quick estimation on FedEx Ground arrival dates (the default shipping for US orders), please see the chart below.

How soon do you process and ship my order?
We make every attempt to ship your order within one business day of your purchase.

What is your return policy?
Unopened products are available for return or exchange 30 days from the date of purchase. You are responsible for any shipping charges back to Tastefully Driven and any ensuing shipping charges. Shipping charges from the original order will not be refunded.

Refunds will be issued in the form of a credit to your account or a check will be issued for the amount of the return. Under no circumstances will a credit card be charged back.

If you feel as though a product you have purchased through Tastefully Driven may be defective, returns should be made directly through the manufacturer. If you need help finding the contact information of a manufacturer you may contact us.

Affiliate Program (Return to Top)

What is an affiliate program?
An affiliate program allows you to receive cash or Tastefully Driven credit for referring people to our products. Learn more by visiting our affiliates page.

How to I enroll in your affiliate program?
You can be up and running in a matter of seconds. Simply log into My Account and click on 'Apply Now' as shown below.

What is the affiliate payout structure?
We make our affiliate payout schedule available on the site for everyone to see. The page is automatically updated as we add new products, so be sure to check back often.

Can I use the affiliate program on my own purchases?
Yes - follow your own affiliate link before making a purchase and receive cash or credit back!

How do I create affiliate links?
After applying for the affiliate account, you'll be able to view the affiliate link for every product on it's product page while logged in. There are also detailed instructions on your affiliate account page.

How do you track affiliate links?
When someone clicks one of your affiliate links, a text cookie is placed on their computer to identify you as the user who referred them to us. If they make a purchase on Tastefully Driven within the next week, your affiliate account will be credited with the sale.

How often do you pay affiliates?
We pay out monthly on the 20th. Your account must have a balance of at least $25 for us to pay out.

Do I get paid more if I take Tastefully Driven store credit?
Yes – we pay an additional 15% if you accept Tastefully Driven credit!

Gift Certificates (Return to Top)

How do I buy a gift certificate?
You can buy a gift certificate by visiting our gift certificate page.

Can I buy more than one gift certificate?
Yes – but unfortunately you need to go through the transaction process once for each gift certificate that you want to buy (since the quantity in your cart is the dollar amount – learn more). You will not be charged shipping since gift certificates are delivered electronically.

How do I check the balance of my gift certificate?
You can check the balance of any gift certificate by visiting the link at the bottom of the gift certificate.

I have a gift certificate – how do I apply it to my order?
Enter your code in the 'Enter Gift Certificate Code' box and click the 'Redeem' button. Gift certificates count towards your subtotal, tax, and shipping.

About Tastefully Driven (Return to Top)

Do you have a phone number? It's not listed on your contact page.
Yes, we have a phone number. It is 518-528-7717. Unfortunately because we are a small company, our time is limited and we do not have the resources to staff a phone all day long. We are much more capable of handling a large volume of customer service requests rapidly via email. If you call and leave a message, we will do our best to respond to you promptly – either by phone or email. For the fastest support you can use our contact form or email support [at] tastefullydriven [dot] com.

Who owns Tastefully Driven?
Tastefully Driven is owned by Pure Adapt, Inc – a web design, development, and marketing company located in Albany, NY.

What is your 'Commerce with Conscience' program?
In an effort to give back to our community, we are donating 5% of our pre-tax profit to local charities through our Commerce with Conscience program.

How do I get a 'Commerce with Conscience' wrist band?
All orders over $100 receive a wrist band for free. Alternatively, you can purchase one through our site for $4.99, with 100% of the profit from the item being donated to charity.

What software did you use to create your site?
The shopping cart portion of our site is a 100% custom programming job by our team. The forum is a modified version of bbPress, while the blog is a modified version of WordPress.

Can I work for you?
Maybe – we're always looking for talented writers, programmers, warehouse workers, and more. Contact us at support [at] tastefullydriven [dot] com.