Page 191 – Practical Ecommerce

Category

Customer Service
Live Chat Can Improve Service, Sales

September 10, 2012 • Armando Roggio

Live chat can be an effective ecommerce conversion tool, providing customers with answers and help just when they’re making a buying decision, and for support questions. For example, "Laura" wanted to buy a shirt for her husband, but did not understand how the color and size options wo...
Technical SEO
SEO: Avoiding Penguins and Pandas

September 7, 2012 • Jill Kocher Brown

Google’s recent penchant for naming major algorithmic updates after animals has the world of search engine optimization sounding more like a zookeeper’s dilemma. But with rumors of an impending Penguin update — see this article from Search Engine Roundtable — right around the corner, e...
Conversion
8 Free Lead Generation Services

September 7, 2012 • Kevin Webster

Quality leads are the lifeblood of any sales organization. But identifying the names and contact information of those prospects is time consuming. There are companies that supply targeted lists — for a fee. However, here are eight web based lead services that offer — as of this writing — free trials, affording you the opportunity to fill your pipeline with new prospects.
Business > Merchant Voice
Oh No, Its Christmas Again

September 6, 2012 • Richard Stubbings

Its September, and Christmas is coming. Like many gift retailers Christmas is our busiest time of the year. Orders double, then triple, then go through the roof. It is a very hectic time of year. It is always better to plan ahead. No doubt you will concentrate in what to stock, and what...
Business
Lessons Learned: Selling Specialty Handbags Expensive

September 6, 2012 • Elizabeth Hollingsworth

Las Vegas-based business duo Christopher Nelson and Tamara Leuty created patented designer handbags with built-in lights that enable you to see what's inside. Then they started a business — Glass Handbag — in late 2010. They received U.S. and international patents for their invention. T...
Design & Development
Defining Your Integrated System Requirements

September 6, 2012 • Dale Traxler

Editor's Note: This is part two of a three-part series on the benefits of an integrated, all-in-one ecommerce platform. The first installment is "The Benefits of an Integrated Ecommerce System." The final installment is "Choosing an Integrated Ecommerce System; 4 Steps." There are clea...
Social Media
10 Brand Campaigns on Twitter

September 5, 2012 • Sig Ueland

Twitter is about what’s happening right now. For companies, Twitter can be an effective platform to reach and to interact with an audience. Here is a list of brand campaigns on Twitter. Some of these campaigns use Twitter to deliver rewards to customers. Other campaigns use Twitter to ...
Conversion
3 Ideas for Halloween Marketing 2012

September 4, 2012 • Armando Roggio

Halloween is typically the second most important holiday for retailers. It is expected to drive more than $7 billion in U.S. retail sales beginning in September, if 2011 was an indicator. The ghoulish holiday is not limited to costumes, candy, and the odd decoration; rather America's o...
Social Media
Facebook Launches Targeted Page Posts

September 4, 2012 • Paul Chaney

Facebook continues to launch new features in an attempt to position itself as a marketing platform. The latest is targeted page posts, which enable retailers to create Facebook Page posts that reach specific audience segments. For example, if a merchant needs to market to women within...
Platforms & Apps
Installing Software on Ubuntu Linux

September 3, 2012 • Armando Roggio

The Ubuntu Linux software installation process is more like visiting a mobile app store than following a traditional Microsoft Windows or Apple Mac OS X process. “On Windows, you might have to root around on a website to find an .exe file to download or go to a store and buy a CD with ...
Technical SEO
SEO: Launching a Redesigned Site

August 31, 2012 • Jill Kocher Brown

Editor's Note: This is part two of a two-part series on identifying, assessing, and mitigating the risk of site redesigns on organic search traffic. Part one, "SEO: Identifying the Impact of a Site Redesign," we published last week. Launching a redesigned site is filled with potentiall...
Platforms & Apps
The Benefits of an Integrated Ecommerce System

August 30, 2012 • Dale Traxler

Editor's Note: This is part one of a three-part series on the benefits of an integrated, all-in-one ecommerce platform. The second installment is "Defining Your Integrated System Requirements." The third is "Choosing an Integrated Ecommerce System; 4 Steps." I am consulting with a com...
Google Ads
Google’s Product Listing Ads: Cheaper, More Profitable

August 30, 2012 • Scott Smigler

I’ve previously written about why you should make Google’s Product Listing Ads a priority. If you’ve followed my advice in "Cheaper Clicks from AdWords Coming?" and, more recently, "5 Steps to Prepare for Google Shopping," there’s a good chance you’ve observed a sharp increase in pay-pe...
Influencers & Affiliates
Affiliate Marketing: Recruiting Content Sites

August 29, 2012 • Carolyn Kmet

In affiliate marketing, sites that feature unique content are highly valued. A few examples include product review sites such as Steves-digicams.com; blogs such as Icoulduseadeal.com; and online forums, such as ...
Analytics & Data
How to Measure Website Load Times

August 28, 2012 • Tim Wilson

Consumers are increasingly impatient when it comes to waiting for their web browsers to load content. Measuring and monitoring how long it takes pages on your site to load — from desktop computers, laptops, tablets, or smartphones — enable you to take corrective action when any one of d...
Amazon & Marketplaces
Top 10 Comparison Shopping Tools of 2012

August 28, 2012 • Armando Roggio

Shopping comparison sites and services let online shoppers compare products' attributes and prices in a relatively neutral environment. These services also give merchants a channel to market to some of the web’s savviest consumers. Several companies track and analyze shopping compariso...
Platforms & Apps
Touring the Ubuntu Unity Desktop

August 27, 2012 • Armando Roggio

Ubuntu 12.04 is an alternative to the Microsoft Windows and Apple OS X operating systems. It features a functional and intuitive desktop environment. Ubuntu's Unity desktop has similarities to both Windows and OS X, meaning that users considering the switch to Ubuntu should not have m...
Design & Development
The Case for Building a Mobile Ecommerce App

August 24, 2012 • Gagan Mehra

In "Getting Started with Responsive Web Design," my previous article, I stated that there are instances when building a separate mobile app can be beneficial for your ecommerce business. In this article, I will expand on that to present instances where building a mobile app is a good op...
Technical SEO
SEO: Identifying the Impact of a Site Redesign

August 24, 2012 • Jill Kocher Brown

Editor's Note: This is part one of a two-part series on identifying, assessing, and mitigating the risk of site redesigns on organic search traffic. Part two, "Launching a Redesigned Site," we will publish next week. Site redesigns can create a period of intense instability for organi...
Finance
Ecommerce Shines in the Second Quarter of 2012

August 23, 2012 • Marcia Kaplan

The first half of 2012 continued the 2011 fourth quarter trend of strong ecommerce growth. In Q2, online retail grew nearly four times the rate of total consumer spending in the U.S., according to ecommerce research firm comScore. The Census Bureau reports that U.S. ecommerce sales in Q...
Staffing
Outsourcing v. Hiring In-house: Pros and Cons

August 22, 2012 • Dale Traxler

Looking back at my 10-years of managing a growing ecommerce business, I realize that online retailing is not simple. It requires many specialized skills and resources to succeed. I've listed some of these, below. Website design and development. A moving target, with new releases, d...
Conversion
Is Marketing Killing Your Ecommerce Business?

August 22, 2012 • Shirley Tan

Editor's Note: We welcome Shirley Tan as our newest contributor. She is a seasoned ecommerce owner, having founded, built, and then sold AmericanBridal.com, a leading wedding-goods supplier. She now consults with ecommerce merchants on improving the operational aspects of their busines...
B2B
Use a PIM to Manage Cross-Channel Product Details

August 21, 2012 • Armando Roggio

As an online retail business grows, managing product data can become a monumental task. Product information management solutions can help keep track of product data — descriptions, photography, and even pricing information — improve accuracy, and ensure good customer shopping experience...
Social Media
6 Tips for Selling Directly on Facebook

August 21, 2012 • Paul Chaney

At a time when large retailers like Gap, Nordstrom and J.C. Penney have shuttered their Facebook stores, smaller ecommerce merchants appear to be finding success. In a guest article at Forbes, Rusian Fazlyev, CEO of social-media ecommerce platform Ecwid, said that Facebook commerce is...
Platforms & Apps
17 Ecommerce Themes for OpenCart

August 20, 2012 • Sig Ueland

OpenCart is an open-source shopping cart system that is feature-rich and user-friendly, with a large variety of payment gateways and shipping method integrations. OpenCart features many high-quality ecommerce themes to ...
Influencers & Affiliates
3 Ways to Help Affiliates Pin Products

August 20, 2012 • Armando Roggio

Merging affiliate marketing with photo sharing on social media sites may help online retailers boost site traffic and sales whilst earning loyal patrons. Affiliate marketing is pay-per-performance marketing wherein merchants reward affiliates — sometimes called "publishers" — that driv...
Keyword Research
SEO: Using Excel for Keyword Analysis

August 17, 2012 • Jill Kocher Brown

Excel is the SEO tool I use most frequently. Excel helps me organize my thoughts, decide which keywords or pages to focus on, illustrate key concepts, and even draft rudimentary content. This article lists my favorite Excel formulas, menu items, and keyboard shortcuts for search engin...
Inventory
3 Tips for Making Better Product Decisions

August 16, 2012 • Armando Roggio

Purchasing inventory wisely is an important part of any online retail business, since buying too little of a product might leave virtual shelves bare just when shoppers want something and buying too much can diminish capital and restrict cash flow. Often the secret to making better pur...
Business > Merchant Voice
Whatever I’m doing, I’m not doing it right

August 16, 2012 • Elizabeth Hollingsworth

One of the best things about Practical eCommerce is that you can learn from the wonderful articles and from the advice that online retailers give. However, sometimes a little knowledge is worse than none at all. I'm doing something, but whatever it is isn't right... More unique visito...
Customer Retention
QR Code Mobile App Encourages Repeat Ecommerce Orders

August 15, 2012 • PEC Staff

Ecommerce merchants strive for repeat business from existing customers. We recently spoke with Dr. Alex Heiphetz, owner of AHG, a company that has produced a mobile app, based on QR codes, to encourage repeat orders. The mobile app is QRwave. Practical Ecommerce: What exactly is a QR...