The Evolution of Online Stores, Part Two

Shameless Self Promotion, Website Conversion No Responses »
Dec 292009

As eCommerce and online sales revenues have grown over the past 15 years, so have the tools to develop, stock, and maintain an online store.  Where once all online stores were developed as custom sites that had to be maintained by your web designer, today the most successful stores start with a full-featured eCommerce engine that is then customized by your web developer and managed by anyone on your staff familiar with Microsoft Windows applications.

At one time, if you had a web design firm develop your online store you had difficulty moving your website to another host, making your website a virtual prisoner to them.  We have found that due to bad experiences with other vendors, those who are coming to Comstar bring this up as a major concern. (We, of course, do not use a proprietary eCommerce approach, so that our clients could take their website to any Microsoft compliant hosting provider.)

Today there are so many eCommerce engines that they cannot be counted.  One of the challenges we face as web developers is choosing the right one for our clients’ needs.  We do this by conducting workshops with our clients to find out about their business model and how it aligns with their vision of their online store.  Then we match the solution to their vision.

While specific features can vary, all eCommerce engines we put into play have much the same basic functionality, utilizing best practices to build assets for our clients.  They all include a familiar shopping cart experience, large and small photos, descriptions, an ability to pay through a payment gateway, etc. 

The solutions we use most have additional features that can be turned on as needed, such as a Featured Product area, a Top Seller area, or cross-selling of products.  Coupons, discounts, and special pricing for designated customers are often utilized, valuable features, as well.  Emailing customers, supporting Affiliate sellers, and contacting vendors can be especially important.  Inventory control, order fulfillment, and shipping are also a big part of any eCommerce solution that can benefit from professional advice.

That’s one thing about my job at Comstar, I see lots of ideas for online businesses.  Some you wonder about and some you just know will be big money-makers.  But you know none will succeed without an ability to generate sales online, 24/7.

As you contemplate selling online or improving your online sales in the coming year your online store will only be an asset if it is both useful and gets used by buyers looking for what you offer. 

Check back for more info on how to build a real asset of an online store in Part Three!

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Posted by Bob Holdeman at 10:54 AM Tagged with: , , , ,

The Evolution of Online Stores, Part One

Website Conversion No Responses »
Dec 182009

It was only about 15 years ago that most of us were wondering how anyone could make money with this new internet thing.  The slow speed of dial-up access kept a regulator on the numbers of web users and what could be done online.  But there were many who tried and some who were successful, surviving the “dot.com” bust of the late 90’s.  These hearty souls were perfecting the art of selling online and when technology caught up in the form of high-speed access and more powerful personal computers, they were poised to reap what they had sown.

eCommerce had been named and was out of its infancy by the first few years of the new millennium.  Amazon.com, Ebay, and its subsidiary PayPal, made the online credit card transaction commonplace.  Most websites that offered products for sale were custom built and were either very sophisticated, if operated by a major brick-and-mortar retailer, or very simple, if operated by a small business.  eCommerce was something many businesses aspired to, but which some could never successfully master.

Then along came the boys at Google (and I do mean boys) who revolutionized how buyers and sellers connected… by means of an efficient way to search for what you wanted coupled with a way to display paid ads to you based on your own interests.  And guess what?  They made lots of money on the web in ways no one thought of in 1995!

Even as every year online sales continue to rise, there are those who project the slowing down of that growth.  In mid-2007 the so-called experts were projecting that the year’s annual online revenue would be $116 Billion (that’s 5% of total retail sales folks) and was about to peak, so that the next few years would see a down-turn in that revenue.

Since then we have seen it rise to 6% of overall retail sales in 2008 (a growth rate of 13%) and there are predictions of 7%, or $156 Billion this year.  With the interest we have had in the past six months to a year at Comstar in eCommerce website development, the trend is probably not going to change soon.

With such growth you are probably thinking “I have to get in on this eCommerce thing!”  You’re probably right.

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Posted by Bob Holdeman at 1:58 PM Tagged with: , , , , , , ,

When is a Website Done?

Website Conversion No Responses »
Dec 092009

Let’s say you’re going to get a brand new website.  You might decide to create it yourself, hire your nephew, or have it built by a professional firm.  (I know which of those three you should choose, but that’s for a different article.)  Regardless of your choice, when will the website be done?

On the due date, before the due date, some time after the due date?  You’re thinking you’d like it done, all wrapped up and under the tree before the due date, right?  Keep dreaming.

I didn’t ask when your website should be published!  I asked when it would be done.  The correct answer is NEVER.  The proper website for your business is never completed.

Now you’re probably thinking that I might have gone off the deep end.  Maybe I should take a vacation, clear my head?  Well, let me put this in perspective.  Typically we see two different types of client mentalities…

  1. “The website is done and perfect when it’s published.”  This idea is that you’ve paid a lot of good money getting a site developed.  You might have even paid extra to get those developers that understand your industry (I have an opinion about this too) so gosh darn when it’s published it ought to be perfect, ready to start cashing in.
     
  2. “We can’t publish yet because it is not perfect.”  The idea here results in constant futzing, with never a website to show for it.  Since it is believed it will be perfect when published, like in mentality number 1, and yet it is perceived not to be perfect, then the client continues to request changes or stall until they can figure out what perfect will look like.

Here what should happen…  The original specs are met and the site is published.  Now the work really begins.  No one knows in advance whether the site will properly convert visitors into customers, so once it is published you can measure the real conversion rate.  Then change something and see what happens.  Did performance improve, great try something else.  Did performance go down, bummer, but try something else.

You see a new website just puts the stake in the ground.  Once its there the test phase begins.  There is no end to testing unless you get to the point of converting 100% of visitors.  If you get to that point then there’s nothing left to improve.  But until you get to that point, odds are good that you can get better results than you are today.  So, the site is never done.  It is always waiting to perform better.

Who’s going to test your site once it’s published?  Who will change different elements?  Are you going to do this?  Is your nephew?

Posted by Jeffrey Kirk at 4:19 PM Tagged with: , , , , ,

Contact Info, Where?

Website Conversion, Website Tips No Responses »
Oct 232009

I just went to a website and became very frustrated so I need to share this tip with you today.  Here is the tip:  put contact information in your calls-to-action within the text of your website!

For example, if one of your paragraphs ends with “pick up the phone and call us right now” then you should make absolutely sure that your phone number is visible to them either right after that line or at least on the page.

Or if your call to action asks them to “email for more information” then you should provide a visible email address or a link to a contact page or something. 

After telling your site visitor what to do, if you do not provide a way to do it then you will have one frustrated visitor.  And, odds are you’ve got a site that is not useful.  And that means no sale.

There is nothing less effective than asking someone to take an action but not giving them enough information or some means to complete it.  Sorry website that I was visiting, you did not get my business today!

Posted by Diana Myre at 1:03 PM Tagged with: , , , , ,

How to Convert Site Visitors

Website Conversion, Website Tips No Responses »
Aug 312009

If your site covers all of your visitor’s wants, they will be more willing to take the action that you desire.  A recent study found that the following techniques listed below will increase the chances of your visitor taking the action that you desire.

1.      Show the visitor what you can do for them.

2.      Get to the point right away within your text.

3.      Answer questions before they are asked.

4.      Figure out what people want and put it in headings.

5.      Don’t make the visitor hit the Contact Us button to first learn about how to get a hold of you.

Think about your website for a minute.  Does your site follow these techniques?  Does every page request the visitor to take an action?  If no, why not?  If yes, is it effective?

Posted by Diana Myre at 10:32 AM Tagged with: ,

Improve Your Site Traffic and Conversion

Website Conversion, Website Tips, Website Traffic No Responses »
Jul 302009

What does it take to increase your online success?  Traffic to your site?  Sure, that’s part of it.  But it doesn’t guarantee success.  What if your site sucks?  You could get more traffic than any other site in the world, but if the site doesn’t convert it’s not doing you any good!

OK, then it must be conversion.  Well, that’s part of it too.  What if you have the best converting site in the world, but no one ever goes there?  It still doesn’t do you any good!

So, to get more business you actually need more traffic and more conversions.

We just published a new page to our blog today.  It has 10 free traffic and conversion tips for you to review right now.  But don’t stop there.  To the right of our blog articles you’ll find a sign-up form.  You can sign up for additional emails from me.  I’ll immediately send you a report of 21 Traffic and Conversion Tips, expanding greatly on the 10 shown here in the blog.  You’ll get good action steps to take to start improving your results right away.

Then I’ll follow up with another report about a day later.  After that I’ll keep you up-to-date with other information related to traffic and conversion.  I think you’ll enjoy the quality of information you’ll receive.  Try it out.  It’s free.  If you don’t like what I have to say, then simply click the cancel link that I include in every message.

Posted by Jeffrey Kirk at 3:20 PM Tagged with: , , , ,
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