Page 255 – Practical Ecommerce

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Platforms & Apps
Magento Shopping Cart and 20,000 Friends

June 18, 2008 • Michael A. Cox

Roy Rubin held the cyber equivalent of a barn raising and had several thousand of his closest friends over for the event. Of course, everyone actually stayed home and did the work from their own little cubicles, kitchen tables, laptops on airplanes and Blackberrys on bar tops.
Marketing & Advertising
SEO Report Card: Music123.com

June 17, 2008 • Jeff Muendel

I’m a musical gear-aholic. My apartment is littered with instruments leaning against walls, stashed in corners, and propped up in closets. I’ve never met a guitar or keyboard I didn’t like. Having said that, while I frequent online music malls, I’ve never shopped at Music123.com. That s...
Google Ads
Paid Search With Online Yellow Pages

June 17, 2008 • Bill Hartzer

You are probably familiar with Google AdWords, Yahoo! Search Marketing, and MSN AdCenter, the three largest paid search advertising opportunities. However, have you considered running a paid search campaign using the online yellow pages? Even if you’re an online retailer that does not h...
Business
Bloglist: Steve Delgado With Arial Software

June 17, 2008 • PEC Staff

Name: Steve Delgado, Marketing Director Company: Arial Software In Bloglist, we ask ecommerce professionals to identify their favorite blogs. For this installment, we asked Steve Delgado, Marketing Director of Arial Software, a company that produces email marketing software and solu...
Business
Freelance Journalist, Jim Rue, Discusses The Annual Book Expo

June 12, 2008 • PEC Staff

Jim Rue is a freelance and technology journalists, and recently attended the Annual Book Expo. He speaks with Practical eCommerce Publisher, Kerry Murdock, about the migration of content delivery to ...
Checkout Tactics
Keep It Simple And Straightforward

June 11, 2008 • Pamela Hazelton

During a recent online shopping experience, I was thrilled to find the particular store offered free shipping on orders of $25 or more. The large, bold graphic denoting such offer was in the upper-right hand corner of the screen. So I spent some time picking out a few more items, then I...
Conversion
When To Ignore A 50% Conversion Rate

June 11, 2008 • Michael Stebbins

Now that your analytics tool is tracking your conversions, you can measure the conversion rate of search engine keywords, referring sites and ad campaigns. The strategy is to find a traffic source that generates higher-than-average conversions, and increase the traffic from that source ...
Conversion
PPC Report Card: Learningbreakthrough.com

June 11, 2008 • Greg Laptevsky

Learning Breakthrough Program is a specialized exercise routine that improves cognitive functions for those diagnosed with developmental, behavioral and learning disabilities. This exercise program is offered via Learningbreakthrough.com, and staff of LBP (Learning Breakthrough Program)...
Business
Recovering Damages From Thieves, Crooks and Scofflaws

June 9, 2008 • John W. Dozier, Jr.

It seems not a day passes that Dozier Internet Law is not asked how to pursue someone who is using a replica website to “compete,” is stealing traffic through trademark infringement, is publishing outrageously false information online, or is undertaking sinister, threatening conduct aga...
Conversion
Conversion Success: Simplicity, Target and Alignment

June 9, 2008 • Mat Greenfield

I enjoy watching those television shows where the masked magician reveals the secrets of how stage magic is done. It’s funny because whenever he reveals a new trick, I mentally kick myself for not having figured it out earlier. It seemed so simple. In this, my final column for Practica...
Business
Jody Hartwig Of Netconcepts On Microsoft’s Live Search Cashback

June 5, 2008 • PEC Staff

Jody Hartwig is the Vice President of eBusiness at Netconcepts, a company specializing in natural search marketing and ecommerce. She joins Practical eCommerce Publisher Kerry Murdock to discuss Microsoft’s new ...
Conversion
Accessibility: Use Audio To Describe Your Products

June 4, 2008 • Joseph Monks

On Memorial Day my wife and I went to see the new Indiana Jones film. You might find that odd, a blind person going to the movies. But it’s possible, thanks to audio-description technology, which allows the blind to follow what happens on-screen. It got me thinking: How could such a se...
Marketing & Advertising
Yahoo! Glue and You: How Blended Search Affects eCommerce

June 4, 2008 • Jeff Muendel

More than likely, you’ve heard the terms “blended search,” “federated search,” or “universal search” (Google’s name for it). They refer to a new form of search engine results that especially affect anyone concerned with search marketing. The term blended search has become the most neutr...
Design & Development
Programmers: Web 2.0 Forms

June 3, 2008 • Brian Getting

Online forms have become much more elegant and usable in the last couple of years as developers take advantage of “Web 2.0” technologies like visual effects and “behind-the-scenes” calls to the server. In fact, I have seen forms that are just downright fun to fill out, which is somethin...
Design & Development
Quick Query: Credit Card Expert Stresses Integrity

June 2, 2008 • PEC Staff

Virtually every ecommerce merchant processes credit card payments. We asked Michael Shatz, publisher of The Merchant’s Guide, a resource to help merchants understand credit card processing issues (at Themerchantsguide.com), to share his views on choices merchants must face when deciding...
Business
Shopping Carts: The Umpteenth Time’s The Charm

May 28, 2008 • Brendan Gibbons

Name: Chris “Cartel” English Title: Director of Online Sales Companies: HipHopNow, PetsRight, Ramco Worldwide URLs: Petsright.com (under construction), Ramcoworldwide.com Used Miva Script at first “I originally had a hosting account with SimpleNet before Yahoo! purchased it, and Sim...
Platforms & Apps
Field Test: Shopping Carts, Part Three Of Three

May 28, 2008 • Brendan Gibbons

In Field Test, Practical eCommerce has gathered twelve seasoned ecommerce merchants and asked each of them the same questions around a given topic. This month’s topic is shopping carts. The participating ecommerce merchants are: Dave Norris, House of Antique Hardware; Justin Hertz, Mut...
Business
Exporting Requires Formal Agreements

May 28, 2008 • Hal Selim

When considering exporting to foreign markets, you must protect yourself legally. It is crucial that your business relationship with the foreign entity representing you is documented in an agreement. Furthermore, you must also take the appropriate steps to protect your intellectual asse...
Business
Field Test: Shopping Carts, Part Two Of Three

May 27, 2008 • Brendan Gibbons

In Field Test, Practical eCommerce has gathered twelve seasoned ecommerce merchants and asked each of them the same questions around a given topic. This month's topic is shopping carts. The participating ecommerce merchants are: Dave Norris, House of Antique Hardware; Justin Hertz, Mut...
Conversion
Social Media Made Simple

May 27, 2008 • Lisa Wehr

Social media sites like Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Flickr and blogs consistently rank high in search results. This means you have more opportunities to increase visibility, build your brand and learn about your audience if you're utilizing social media. It may seem overwhelming at firs...
Social Media
Blogs and Email: A One-Two Marketing Punch

May 21, 2008 • Paul Chaney

I have long been an advocate of using blogs and email as complementary online marketing strategies. Blogs serve a customer acquisition function, while email serves a customer retention role. That belief was recently reinforced when I attended a webinar jointly sponsored by a new company...
Business
Field Test: Shopping Carts, Part One Of Three

May 21, 2008 • Brendan Gibbons

In Field Test, Practical eCommerce has gathered twelve seasoned ecommerce merchants and asked each of them the same questions around a given topic. This month's topic is shopping carts. The participating ecommerce merchants are: Dave Norris, House of Antique Hardware; Justin Hertz, Mut...
Google Ads
Pay-Per-Click Tools Improve Productivity

May 19, 2008 • Greg Laptevsky

Daily pay-per-click management routine is not a lot of fun. Thankfully, there are a few tools out there that make the work much more efficient and allow search engine marketing professionals to look at the big picture. Below is a list of software tools that every pay-per-click account o...
Conversion
Conversion Report Card: Folica.com

May 19, 2008 • Alan Cox

Folica.com is an online beauty retailer that is achieving success through the implementation of a unique business model that includes ecommerce, branded product development and online community. The site has evolved from a relatively small e-retail catalogue to a rather large site with ...
Conversion
Gift Certificates Create Automatic New Customers

May 14, 2008 • Massimo Arrigoni

Electronic gift certificates can be a great way to acquire new customers. When an existing customer buys one for a friend, the friend becomes a free and automatic customer acquisition, unless they were already shopping with you. When a new customer buys a gift certificate for a friend, ...
Conversion
Social Commerce For Social Media

May 14, 2008 • Brendan Gibbons

As social media expands, developers are finding ways to monetize it, making it useful for ecommerce. This is done with applications (abbreviated "apps") and widgets. Jodi McDermott, Director of Product Management for Analytics for Clearspring, a widget developing service, defines the tw...
Business
Lessons Learned: Scanpancookware.com Owner Allan Regenbaum

May 12, 2008 • PEC Staff

"Lessons Learned" is an occasional series where we ask seasoned ecommerce professionals about their mistakes and successes. For this installment, we've asked Allan Regenbaum, owner of Keylan, Inc., a company that sells cookware, coffee machines and fitness products online. Keylan, Inc. ...
Marketing & Advertising
SEO Report Card: Pawleyfarm.com

May 12, 2008 • Jeff Muendel

This month's report card website is Pawleyfarm.com, a small site that sells personalized country photographs and note cards. The home page says, "Just as a home-cooked meal nourishes body and soul, our custom matted and framed artwork carries along a bit of peace and contentment." The d...
Business
Damon Schechter, CEO and Founder of Shipwire

May 9, 2008 • PEC Staff

Damon Schechter is CEO and Founder of Shipwire, a shipping and storage solution for ecommerce merchants. He joins Practical eCommerce Publisher Kerry Murdock to discuss Shipwire and how it can ...
Amazon & Marketplaces
Shopping Search Engines: Six To Consider

May 7, 2008 • Bill Hartzer

If you consider yourself an online retailer, you most likely are familiar with the major pay-per-click (PPC) search-advertising providers: Google, Yahoo! Search Marketing, and MSN. Advertising on these search engines can bring sales to your site. However, you may be missing out on a lot...