E-commerce portal

Basics of E-Business - Building a Successful ‘Brochure’ Website
The Brochure Website is the simplest model, but it is also often the most effective one for small businesses. We are in a service economy, and so for many, the Brochure Model might be the way to go!

Ecommerce Fundamentals
eCommerce can be VERY complex. To offer a world class customer experience, retailers must incorporate technologies and functionality that exceeds rising customer expectations.

On the flip side however, site fundamentals still play a very large role in converting visitors into customers. Many retailers surprisingly lose sight of these site basics and leave significant sales on the table. This brief examines 4 quick ?fundamentals? every eCommerce manager cannot afford to lose sight of.

Think Fast

Speed has become less of a problem due to the penetration of broadband, but don?t forget that a significant number of people still shop by a dialup connection. When creating a site framework, designers and e-commerce teams should ensure that the site is developed with pages loading in less than 9 seconds (over a dial-up connection).

Our recommended page size is within 60-70k in bytes. At that amount, sites will likely load within the maximum wait time of 9 seconds. Online retailers should avoid flash at all costs within their transactional site. Flash?s artistic aspects may help you establish a brand presence ? but it will likely lose potential customers before they have even searched within your store.

Image is important

Images are a very important aspect of selling online and are often neglected. All product images should be of the highest resolution possible, be much larger than the product page original, and have

multiple views. Dynamic imaging capabilities can improve the user experience to an even higher level by increasing interactivity (zoom & rotate). At a minimum ? retailers should have at least two additional views outside of the product page image to help build emotion.

Be my guest

Shoppers do not like being forced to do anything, especially when they are ready to open their wallets. Forcing a shopper to register on your site before purchasing is a sure way to drive a portion of your traffic to your competitors. Too often, shoppers do not have the time or the inclination to fill out a lengthy form explaining what types of information they desire.

Always offer the ability to checkout as a guest. You will see less customer leakage within the checkout process and can still offer the option to register when the sale is completed.

Make sure it?s ?above the fold?

Your homepage is the most important page within your eCommerce store. It sets the initial tone for the shopping experience and offers your best promotions and products to your visitors. Users typically visually scan a web page from top to bottom and then from left to right. All critical content and navigation options should be obvious to the shopper without having to scroll down. If you have your best promotions ?below the fold? ? you can bet that a large percentage of browsers are not scrolling down to see it.

Craig Smith is the founder and managing director of Trinity Insight LLC. Trinity is a consultancy that helps online retailers sell more products within the eCommerce marketplace. <a href="http://www.trinityinsight.com" title="http://www.trinityinsight.com" target="_blank">http://www.trinityinsight.com</a>

Avoid Common Mistakes In Online Store Set Up
One mistake that many make is trying to incorporate a flashy design in your store. The fact is that keeping your online store simple is one of the best tools for you and for your customers. When you have too many graphics, the end result is that you confuse and overwhelm your visitors. They are also too heavy meaning that the visitor has to wait longer to see your page. Instead, keep it simple. To help you to do that, use ready to use templates and be sure that the ecommerce solutions that you use are ones that are able to be integrated properly. Design integration is essential here. You will either need to have a set of templates that are specially created for your ecommerce solution or you will have to change the html code in your store to match that which you have in your graphics file. When having these features is too costly, do consider a free design or even a low cost template. Put more of your money towards marketing now and later you can make changes if you need to. The bottom line is that great custom design means expensive money but not necessarily more customers. To find a good design for your store, consider TemplateMonster. Whatever you do, do not consider flash templates as they take a long time to load, they are very expensive and they also can decrease your search engine ranking. By far it is important to consider only software and programs that you know you can trust such as XCart for your ecommerce shopping cart. Display Your Information Many make the mistake of not providing enough of their contact information to their visitors. If you just want to leave an email address, do not expect customers to be placing many orders. You need to create a sense of professionalism by providing your visitors with your full contact information including your company address and phone numbers. This builds trust. When they trust you, you will increase your visitor to order ratio considerably. For those that do not have an office and do not want to use their home address, there are solutions you can use. One of them is to sign up for a Post Office Box or even a UPS Store box. With the UPS Store, you will even get a suite number and avoid the PO Box problem. You should also supply a phone number on every page of your site. Ecommerce shopping carts are not the only place to provide this information. If you do not have a number, use a service like GotVmail as a virtual phone system. The fact is that you need to consider this for improving your level of customer service. Respond to each and every phone inquiry and email that you receive within 24 hours. You can also consider having a live chat feature or live support button on your website. This is helpful with any software program including XCart because it allows your customers to ask questions and for you to offer help as you monitor their actions on your site. Due carefully consider the offline button though. You may not want to have it shown at all because this often is a drawback when a customer can not find a time when you are actually online. For those that have a busy store, consider an online support board to help. This allows you to track a ticket history, solve any unresolved problems and it helps you to hand inquiries quickly. More Products More Orders Another potential problem that many face is the belief that having more products helps to increase the orders that you have. The problem is that this is simply not the case but an unfortunate costly problem. A store that has ten items that are well priced and that are targeted to a specific group well is likely to have more orders and a better customer to order ratio. Using your XCart or ECommerce solutions software, do your best to organize and display your products, too. For example, consider using several ways to get the best images including thumbnail images, product images, and then detailed images. You want to avoid small and images that are not clear. Not only does this hinder customers from placing an order, but it will also hurt your search engine rankings as well. You should invest the time in finding the best organization for your products as well. Your XCart software can help you to do this. Terms And Conditions Another error that people make with their ecommerce solution is not providing a terms and conditions element on their store. You should also provide detailed shipping information as well. Customers want to know what they are getting and that the company they are working with is a professional trusted one. This comes in the form of offering and honoring guarantees and return policies. In addition, give customers an approximate cost of the shipping. Even when this is displayed without a discount, you are likely to get a better result. Marketing Well Yet another mistake happens by those that believe that if they will simply get the website up and running that people will simply come and take advantage of it. Even with the best XCart program or ecommerce solution, the end result is the same. You need marketing. Actively promote your store to see the results you need. Do not focus on just one type of advertising either. More so, be sure to invest in onsite search engine optimization until you are ready for a full scale search engine company. Learn about your company by watching the elements used. For example, be sure to use follow up marketing and analyze your data from each sale. XCart can help you to accomplish this. Not The Right Hosting Finally, a problem that many have is not having the right hosting. For your eCommerce solution, invest in good hosting! Anything less will just cause problems such as slow speed and the dreaded time outs. You will likely not be using a secured server and you may even have a shared SSL certificate which does not do well with customers that notice the difference in the domain name during the checkout process. For all of these mistakes, be sure that every decision that you make for your ecommerce shopping cart is a smart one. Consider what XCart can offer to you as an exciting ecommerce solution.

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Write your eBook Fast–First Steps to Finishing Line
Write your eBook Fast–First Steps to Finishing Line Judy Cullins c. 2006 Why write an eBook? You want ongoing, lifelong multiple streams of income. You want to raise your credibility and trust ratings with clients or customers. You want to get your message out so the world can be a better place. You want to spend only a little time on it. (Would you be willing to spend 4 hours a week?) You want to get it out fast (Would 4-8 weeks be OK?) You want to market for a low-cost investment. And, for some of you, you are ready to be innovative and even take a small risk to get your eBook read by hundreds of thousands, rather than hundreds! Where are you now? You have an idea for your eBook; you have a lot of ideas! Take a moment and decide which one you are most passionate about now and will be for the next year or two. Focus on one great idea, where you know what the audience needs or wants– your solutions to their problem. Or, do you have your eBook well on its way, but aren’t finished. You need advice on how to get it done, what to include, what to leave out, what’s needed to publish (not much!), and how to distribute it to pull continuous monthly sales that can be 1/2 your income. Who Should Write an eBook? If you want to share your unique message world-wide to help people create a better life. If you are ready to invest a little to reap a great deal. If you are a business person who want to expand your business and be a leader in your field. If you are willing to move much faster than traditional publishing to sell faster, more, and create more cash flow for marketing. What do I Need to Know Before I write this eBook? 1. To help make your eBook successful apply the essential “Nine Hot-Selling Points.” These include cover, title, table of contents, thesis, “60 second tell and sell,” one preferred audience, introduction and the back cover. Why? Every part of your book can be a sales tool. When you include the above “hot-selling points” you will have a roadmap to guide you to writing a focused, organized, compelling book that will cut your editing time in half.. 2. You need to know how to write a focused, organized, chapter each time. Think format. Each non-fiction book chapter needs a hook in its introduction, a few questions to address where your reader is now. Its middle part consists of stories, analogies, tips, and how-to’s, Make your ending motivate your reader to want to go to the next chapter and feel satisfied with the present one. Use the “Fast-Forward Writing Technique” that compels your reader to read all of the chapter, the next ones, and finish the book. Now you have a 24/7 sales team member that will shout your book’s praises. .Designing every chapter and knowing your “Essential Nine Hot Selling Points” before you write bring out your best writing that is clear, easy to read, and inspiring to your readers. These techniques will bring thousands of buyers rather than hundreds..

Book and Internet Marketing Coach, Judy Cullins, works with businesses who want to build their credibility and clients, and make a maxium profits. Author of 11 eBooks including Write your eBook or Other Short Book Fast, she offers free monthly ezines, "The BookCoach Says" and "Business Tip of the Month," at http://www.bookcoaching.com and over 225 free articles. Judy@bookcoaching.com. Questions and Orders: 866/200-9743 and 619/466-0622

HOW TO SUCCEED IN ONLINE BUSINESS
It doesn’t matter if you are a small firm offering computer parts to local businesses or sell clothes to a wide range of international consumers, launching your bricks and mortar venture across the Internet will most definitely work in your favor. Before you can increase the awareness and interest in your business, there are a few things you should consider, which will make this transition into the World Wide Web much easier. Below you will find a few tips to get you started: 1) Assess Potential Start-Up Costs Before you commit to creating an online presence, you should be aware of all start-up costs, which for some may seem quite intimidating. Website design doesn’t usually cost an arm and a leg and if you possess any creative skills, the final total will be much lower. For the average start-up site, costs are often seen between $500 and $1000. Websites also require a hosting company, which could cost about $20 to $30 per month. Those following a tight budget can find less expensive substitutes in all areas of website design, hosting, and maintenance; it just might take a little longer to locate. 2) Offer Up-to-Date Information Since customer service is handled across the Net, it is important to keep all website information up-to-date and easy-to-find. For those who need additional information before making a purchase, it is vital to offer alternative means of contact, such as email addresses, telephone numbers, and store address. Businesses with a direct customer service line are highly attractive to the curious consumer. 3) Consider Search Engine Optimization Once your website is complete, you can optimize it for popular search engines, such as Google and Yahoo. It is quite common for some businesses to fall victim to submission scams trick unsuspecting webmasters in paying a fee for multiple search engine submission, so be careful of what services you use. 4) Request Reciprocal Links Amplify your chances for increased traffic to your site by establishing a reciprocal link relationship with another website. For instance, if you sell fashionable dog outfits, you may seek out dog food companies and pet shops that might find interest in trading links. Some websites quickly climb the ranks of search engines because they possess a high number of reciprocal links. 5) Consider Common Website Traffic Tactics Don’t be afraid to explore website boosting tactics, such as cost per click search advertising to attract more visitors to your site. 6) Don’t Forget the Little Things In the rush and excitement to launch your business on the Web, don’t forget the little details that are so very important. All bricks and mortar websites should display their company mission statement, contact information, map to business, and hours of operation Author :Hariprasad Chowta His websites :http://www.bekhammysyte.com http://www.bekhammysyte.com/quickinfo

Author :Hariprasad Chowta His websites :http://www.bekhammysyte.com http://www.bekhammysyte.com/quickinfo

eCommerce-Selling To The World
Think about this. You are planning to engage in eCommerce , to take your business online. So, you need to learn a new set of business rules, a new way of doing things, because online business is different , right? Well, actually, no, not really. You still have a product or service to sell. You still have a store with a shop window (your website) and you still need the customers to visit your store, in order to buy whatever it is that you are selling. The only major difference is that (continuing the analogy) your local store window can only be seen by a small group of people, whereas your online business can be seen by the whole world. By engaging in eCommerce, you can take your business global . For many businesses, this is truly an advantage, representing a wonderful opportunity. But that is not the case for everyone, particularly for companies who sell a physical , tangible product. When planning to go online, therefore, you should spend some time thinking about your product and exactly who your target market is, because this will be a crucial factor in determining whether your venture is a success or a failure. What it is that you plan to market on your eCommerce enabled website, and who will want to buy it? Some products will, by their very nature, not be totally suited to a world wide market. Pork based food products for example, will not be popular in Muslim countries, nor will wine, whisky or beer. Sales of open toed sandals may be disappointing in Iceland, Greenland and the frozen polar North. Secondly, give very careful thought about how you will get your product to the customer. For example, if you were to make laser toner cartridges in Asia (as one of my client companies does) there is absolutely no sense in trying to sell one or two cartridges at a time to a customer in the USA, because of the cost of delivery. So, if your product is bulky or heavy, selling outside your locale may not be practical. Furthermore, you need to consider that, whilst most countries use the same Standard International Trade Classification (S.I.T.C) codes for deciding on how much import duty to levy on a particular product, the actual duty to be paid varies from country to country, and such variations can (and will) lead to disputes. Again, using my client as an example, they sold a consignment of toner cartridges to a customer in Finland, which got held up in Customs for several weeks on arrival in Helsinki, because of a dispute over the Import Duties to be paid. Whilst this was not the fault of my client or his customer, nevertheless, the result was an unhappy customer, who obviously did not become a regular customer. Likewise, if you plan on selling a service online, can that service be provided outside your local area in such a way that you still make money? Do you need to have one of your own staff actually work with the customer (in which case, you need to stay local) or can the work be easily subcontracted on a global basis? Would it be easy to find such a local subcontractor capable of supplying your advertised service in such a way that both you and the customer are happy? How much would such a subcontractor cost? Unless you can get positive answers to all of these questions, then, again, it may pay you to keep your services local, rather than overreaching, in order to become a global player. The simple truth is that, whilst the global nature of the internet allows you so sell to the whole world, it is the nature of your product or service that will ultimately decide whether this is practical for your potential customers, and profitable for you, or not. http://webbiz99.com/ecommerce

Steve Cowan is an enterpeneur,businessman & writer.He is also an international racing driver & full time father.Find more,visit his site at http://webbizz99.com/ecommerce

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