Category

Design & Development

The nuts and bolts of an ecommerce site are design and development. We address design innovation and trends — including layouts, colors, photography, logos, video, and more. We explain the basics of code — HTML, CSS, JavaScript — as well as platforms, themes, plugins, open source, and related topics.

Code | Design & Dev Tools | Platforms & Apps | Schools & Resources | Typography & Fonts | User Experience

Business
Adding Alternative Payment Methods to your Online Store

May 13, 2013 • Dale Traxler

Many established merchants offer payment methods in addition to credit cards. The most popular alternative by far is PayPal, but there are other options, too. In my experience, adding a single alternative payment method that allows shoppers to avoid using a credit cards is a good idea. ...
User Experience
Case Study: Shopping for Frisbee Golf Disks on an iPhone

May 9, 2013 • Dale Traxler

In "Mobile Commerce Grows 31 Percent in Q1," Contributing Editor Armando Roggio addressed the rapid growth of mobile commerce. Following from his article, I experimented with various ecommerce sites, to better understand the status of mobile shopping today. Since much of the growth is a...
Schools & Resources
Reading List: Vendio’s Mike Effle

May 9, 2013 • PEC Staff

In “Reading List,” we ask ecommerce professionals to name some of their favorite books and blogs and tell us why they read them. For this installment, we corresponded with Mike ...
Design & Development
Mobile Commerce Grows 31 Percent in Q1

May 7, 2013 • Armando Roggio

Mobile ecommerce sales rose 31 percent in the first quarter of 2013 as tablet-fueled, couch commerce is rapidly becoming the most popular form of online shopping with the so-called multi-channel shopper. Data from the IBM Online Retail Index and the U.S. Department of Commerce suggeste...
Design & Dev Tools
15 Easy Mobile App Solutions

May 6, 2013 • Sig Ueland

Mobile apps can be easy to make. With the variety of mobile app builders to choose from, even non-coders can build their own mobile apps with ease — from basic catalogs to complex utilities. Here is a list of solutions to build your own mobile app. These tools are primarily for users w...
Design & Development
3 Important Mobile Commerce Trends

April 26, 2013 • Armando Roggio

Tablet-based purchases, an explosion in video watching, and shopping activity of men are among the hottest mobile commerce trends that could impact how online retailers market and sell. Mobile commerce — mcommerce — is the fastest growing retail segment as more shoppers make purchases...
Schools & Resources
Reading List: Rama Ramakrishnan of CQuotient

April 25, 2013 • PEC Staff

In “Reading List,” we ask ecommerce professionals to name some of their favorite books and blogs, and tell us why they read them. For this installment, we corresponded with Rama ...
Design & Dev Tools
11 Free Screencasting Tools

April 22, 2013 • Kevin Webster

Screencasts are an effective way to promote your products or services. As a video tutorial, a product demonstration, or for reviewing the strengths of your company, screencasts offer substantial benefits.
Platforms & Apps
25 Apps for Dropbox

April 15, 2013 • Sig Ueland

Dropbox is a cloud-storage service. Similar to Google Drive and SkyDrive, Dropbox lets you access and sync files across all your devices. While Dropbox only offers 2GB of initial free storage — Google Drive offers 5GB, SkyDrive offers 7GB — it expands free storage for completing a few s...
Design & Development
How to Choose Colors for your Ecommerce Site

April 9, 2013 • Ezra Firestone

I often ask ecommerce business owners about the color choices for their stores. Most of the answers are similar to “I like these colors and thought they would look nice,” or “My designer came up with it.” If that is how you pick your colors, you are missing a huge opportunity to convey ...
Schools & Resources
17 Education Sites for Web Merchants

April 8, 2013 • Sig Ueland

Web merchants wear many hats, such as entrepreneur, marketer, accountant, and technologist. If you need help developing some of your ecommerce skills, there are plenty of free resources available online. Here is a list of education sites for ecommerce entrepreneurs. These sites provid...
Platforms & Apps
4 Reasons Every Retailer Should Have a Mobile App

April 3, 2013 • Armando Roggio

Mobile applications resonate with shoppers, are easy to implement, come with a variety of abilities and purposes, and are becoming the standard for online retailers. There are at least four reasons nearly every retailer should offer a mobile application. Mobile commerce is among the fa...
Design & Development
7 Ways Mobile Commerce Will Change Retail

March 28, 2013 • Armando Roggio

As the online and offline worlds converge, mobile commerce has the potential to eclipse desktop-based ecommerce and, perhaps, even replace a significant portion of traditional retail shopping. Mobile-driven online sales in the U.S. are expected to reach $2.12 billion in 2013 and explod...
Schools & Resources
15 New Ecommerce Books for Spring 2013

March 25, 2013 • Sig Ueland

Spring is here and so are new ecommerce books. Here is a list of new ecommerce and Internet-marketing books for spring 2013. There are new titles on creating viral content, delivering customer support, emulating the success of business mavericks and top brands, and several books on soci...
Schools & Resources
Reading List: Retention Science’s Jerry Jao

March 21, 2013 • PEC Staff

In “Reading List,” we ask ecommerce professionals to name some of their favorite books and blogs and tell us why they read them. For this installment, we corresponded with Jerry ...
User Experience
How to Make your Site Mobile Friendly, Part 1

March 20, 2013 • Kathleen Fealy

According to a recent study from Pew Internet & American Life Project, 46 percent of Americans use smartphones. Small to medium-size businesses are searching for cost-effective solutions for capturing this audience and for making their websites more mobile-friendly.
Schools & Resources
10 Examples of Storytelling in Web Design

March 15, 2013 • Drew Coffin

In "Storytelling in Web Design," I explained the three most basic aspects of storytelling — character, setting, and action — and offered ways to begin including storytelling in web design using basic design elements. In this article, I will examine ten sites that use storytelling and list the character, setting, and action found in each story.
Platforms & Apps
22 New Ecommerce Themes for WordPress

March 11, 2013 • Sig Ueland

WordPress is a content management system that’s popular for blogging. But with an ecommerce theme, you can use WordPress to launch a storefront. Here is a list of new ecommerce themes for WordPress. There are free and premium themes, loaded with features to customize your site. Many o...
Schools & Resources
Reading List: Tinyme’s Ben Liau

March 5, 2013 • PEC Staff

In “Reading List,” we ask ecommerce professionals to name some of their favorite books and blogs and tell us why they read them. For this installment, we corresponded with Ben ...
Schools & Resources
8 Ecommerce Galleries

February 25, 2013 • Sig Ueland

Looking for ecommerce design ideas? Browse through website galleries that showcase ecommerce sites. Find examples of beautiful websites and site elements from both new and established ecommerce stores. Here is a list of inspirational galleries that showcase ecommerce sites. There are ...
Schools & Resources
10 Creative Contact Pages

February 21, 2013 • Drew Coffin

Contact pages facilitate questions from visitors, and otherwise help prospects locate your business or connect via social media. A well-designed, creative page with easy-to-find information encourages interactions, which can lead to sales. Here are 10 creative contact pages. Lionway...
Schools & Resources
15 Helpful Guides for Ecommerce Merchants

February 18, 2013 • Sig Ueland

An ecommerce merchant frequently wears many hats -- entrepreneur, marketer, and content creator, to name a few. Fortunately there are free online guides to help with every task. Here is a list of online guides to assist merchants with their many needs. There are style guides to help wi...
Design & Development
Color Psychology and Ecommerce

February 6, 2013 • Drew Coffin

Color affects our moods and states of mind. It can influence customer buying habits, making color psychology an important part of ecommerce. This article will address color psychology basics and ways you can use color psychology with your ecommerce efforts.
User Experience
Understanding User Experience vs. User Interface

February 4, 2013 • Dale Traxler

I’ve had many discussions this year with web designers and developers concerning user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) and what the differences are. For ecommerce merchants, it’s important to know the difference if you are planning any type of redesign of your online store. On...
Schools & Resources
Reading List: Postcode Anywhere’s Guy Mucklow

January 31, 2013 • PEC Staff

In “Reading List,” we ask ecommerce professionals to name some of their favorite books and blogs and tell us why they read them. For this installment, we corresponded with Guy ...
Design & Development
Using Creative QR Codes

January 29, 2013 • Drew Coffin

QR codes can be used to display text, store product information, or direct users to websites. Most smartphones can scan QR codes with a built-in camera and a barcode scanner app. This makes QR codes an effective way to connect with customers. The problem with QR codes is they are often bulky and unattractive.
Design & Dev Tools
19 Tools to Test your Site for Mobile Devices

January 21, 2013 • Sig Ueland

Is your ecommerce site ready for mobile commerce? Preparing your site for mobile customers can be daunting, considering the huge range of mobile devices and browsers. Fortunately, there are some great tools available to make sure your site is mobile compatible. Here is a list of tools ...
User Experience
Optimizing Ecommerce for Tablets and Smartphones

January 15, 2013 • PEC Staff

If you're thinking users of smartphones and tablets do not represent a material part of your ecommerce audience, consider these data points. 29 percent of all U.S. adults own a tablet or e-reader, up from 2 percent three years ago, according to Pew Research. Sales from tablets and sma...
Schools & Resources
Reading List: Bridgeline Digital’s Brett Zucker

January 8, 2013 • PEC Staff

In “Reading List,” we ask ecommerce professionals to name some of their favorite books and blogs and tell us why they read them. For this installment, we corresponded with Brett ...
Design & Dev Tools
8 Tools for Managing Multiple WordPess Sites

January 7, 2013 • Sig Ueland

Managing multiple WordPress sites is getting easier. With the release of WordPress 3.0 and its multisite feature, you can run multiple sites from a single WordPress installation and create a network of sites. However, if you run several websites with a variety of requirements, your need...

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