Page 60 – Practical Ecommerce

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Design & Dev Tools
20 Free Web Design Tools from Winter 2021

March 8, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Free resources from the design community can add value to a website. Here is a list of new tools and design elements from winter 2021. There are website and page builders, icon libraries, pattern and color palette tools, free fonts, and a template marketplace. All of these tools are free, though some also offer premium versions.
Shipping & Fulfillment
Sustainable Packaging Drives Customer Loyalty

March 7, 2021 • Pamela Hazelton

How merchants pack online orders makes a difference. One needn't look any further than Apple's product packaging to understand the cherished tradition of unboxing. But packing materials are as important as the overall appearance. More than half of U.S. consumers are concerned about the environmental impact.
Business
Hollywood Actor, Director Finds Success on Amazon

March 5, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Judson Morgan is a Los Angeles-based actor and director. He owns an agency that creates films and other visual content. He's also a successful ecommerce entrepreneur — with a purpose.
Google Ads
Changes to Google Ads Impact Campaign Setup

March 5, 2021 • Matthew Umbro

Google has recently announced three changes that will force advertisers to rethink how they set up campaigns. The changes are: broad match modifier moving to phrase match, responsive search ads becoming the default ad type, the decision to not create alternative tracking identifiers.
Content Marketing
5 Content Marketing Ideas for April 2021

March 4, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Content marketing is the act of creating content to attract and retain prospects. Opportunities abound in April 2021, with topics as diverse as the Pony Express, National Beer Day, Arbor Day, and TikTok.
Payments
Pros, Cons of Credit Card Surcharges

March 3, 2021 • Mike Eckler

Credit card processing is expensive. "Surcharging" allows merchants to recoup some of the cost by passing a fee to customers at the point of sale. In this post, I’ll explain surcharging. I’ll address the rules and the pros and cons for merchants wishing to apply surcharges as a way of recovering processing fees.
Content Marketing
CommerceCo Recap: Is the Clock Ticking on TikTok Marketing?

March 2, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Marketing on the popular TikTok platform can attract and engage an audience of potential customers. But like so many social media platforms, as it matures TikTok may become more difficult to earn a following.
Design & Dev Tools
15 Easy-to-use Logo Makers

March 2, 2021 • Sig Ueland

A logo represents your store, your company, and your mission. A good logo stands out and builds trust. Here is a list of logo makers and design tools. All of these are inexpensive and easy-to-use.
Business
February 2021 Top 10: Our Most Popular Posts

March 1, 2021 • PEC Staff

Since 2005 we’ve published thousands of articles, webinars, and podcast episodes to assist ecommerce merchants. What follows are the most popular articles that we published in February 2021. Articles from early in the month are more likely to make the list than later ones.
Platforms & Apps
Ecommerce Product Releases: March 1, 2021

March 1, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Here is a list of product releases and updates for late February from companies that offer services to online merchants. There are updates on live stream shopping, email marketing, managed hosting, and artificial intelligence-powered voice assistance.
Marketing & Advertising
11 TikTok Video Ideas for Merchants

February 28, 2021 • Kaleena Stroud

You’ve downloaded TikTok and browsed the videos. Now you’re wondering what content to create for your ecommerce business. There are many types of videos to attract leads without dancing on camera. Here are 11 ideas for all types of merchants.
Business
Tomlinson’s Feed: Fresh and Relevant after 75 Years

February 26, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Kate Knecht is the fourth-generation owner-operator of Tomlinson's Feed, a family-owned retail business with 16 brick-and-mortar locations in Central Texas. The company is 75 years old. Amid the pandemic and the onslaught of online behemoths, can such a business transition to 2021 consumers? I asked Knecht that question and more.
Business
Major Brands Bet on DTC Ecommerce

February 25, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

Selling directly to consumers online is no longer just for start-ups. As brick-and-mortar sales decline because of Covid-19 and store closures, established brands are focusing on digital sales. Even before the pandemic, the traditional model of manufacturers selling to wholesalers who then sold to retailers was faltering.
Design & Development
Even Small Companies Use AI, Machine Learning

February 24, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Data, technology, and people are at hand to make artificial intelligence and machine learning available to all commerce companies. To be certain, artificial intelligence and its sub-field, machine learning, have gone through cycles of inflated expectations followed by disappointments.
SEO
10 SEO Tips for Podcasts

February 23, 2021 • Jill Kocher Brown

Podcasts have gone mainstream — 37 percent of Americans over the age of 12 listen to at least one podcast per month. But podcasts are often poorly optimized for search engines. Drive more organic search traffic to your podcast with these 10 tips.
Customer Retention
5 Ways to Prompt First-time Customers to Buy Again

February 22, 2021 • Pamela Hazelton

Loyal customers talk about the business and its products, driving more shoppers. So it makes sense to shift some of your marketing efforts to retain the buyers you already have. Here are five ways to do it.
Content Marketing
22 Tools for Writing and Distributing Content

February 22, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Generating informative and meaningful content can strengthen a brand and provide value to its customers. There are many tools to help. Here is a collection of new and updated tools to ...
B2B
B2B’s Digital Shift Is Permanent and Incomplete

February 21, 2021 • Armando Roggio

The pandemic has forced many B2B companies to add ecommerce capabilities quickly to keep orders flowing. The transformation is almost certainly permanent, changing how the companies operate. It's also incomplete.
Business
DTC Seller of Apple Watch Bands Soars from College Project

February 19, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Braxton Manley was a sophomore at Texas Tech University in 2017 when he attended a workshop on entrepreneurship. The purpose was to conceive a product based on market research. "My idea was cool Apple Watch bands," Manely told me. Fast forward to 2021 and his company, Braxley Bands, is a direct-to-consumer seller of elastic, colorful bands.
Marketing & Advertising
A Human Approach to Marketing Automation

February 18, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Marketing automation can seem daunting. It may require segmenting customers, understanding behavioral triggers, writing dozens or even hundreds of messages, and developing complex if-then workflows. Fortunately, a successful automation campaign can be done in small, simple steps.
Email & Text Marketing
Email Conversion Guide, Part 1: Database Cleanup

February 16, 2021 • Carolyn Nye

This post is the first in a 3-part series on improving conversions from an email marketing program. Parts 2 and 3 will address templates and retargeting, respectively. In this part 1 installment, I'll review the importance of a clean subscriber database, including tips for ongoing maintenance.
Design & Dev Tools
13 Free Video Editors from Basic to Advanced

February 16, 2021 • Sig Ueland

The right software can help create compelling product videos, clips, or ads to share on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, or anywhere else. Many free video editors offer basic, easy-to-use features as well as advanced tools and effects for professional-quality. Here is a list of free video editors.
Business > Merchant Voice
The best way to select a software vendor

February 15, 2021 • Richard Stubbings

As a company grows, so does its reliance on software. The right software drives efficiency and profits. It can lower employment costs. But software cannot become an obstacle. It cannot prevent a business from growing or evolving. When it does restrict growth, change your software.
Platforms & Apps
Ecommerce Product Releases: February 15, 2021

February 15, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Here is a list of product releases and updates for mid-February from companies that offer services to online merchants. There are updates on headless commerce, payment options, live-video shopping, artificial intelligence, collaborative web development, and more.
Keyword Research
SEO: Keyword Research for Product Content

February 14, 2021 • Armando Roggio

For many commerce businesses — omnichannel retailers, ecommerce-only merchants, wholesalers — attracting a steady flow of site visitors from organic search results is vital for success. But achieving high rankings in those results requires optimizing a site with relevant content.
Influencers & Affiliates
Ridge Wallet Hits $50 Million with Influencer Marketing

February 12, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Ridge wallets launched via a Kickstarter campaign in 2014. Ultra-thin, metal-clad, with RFID protection, the wallets are enormously popular in the U.S., with $50 million in sales in 2020 alone. Influencer marketing has driven much of the growth. Sean Frank is The Ridge's chief operating officer.
Finance
Raising Funds Becomes Easier with New SEC Rules

February 11, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has modified rules that affect how companies can raise capital via direct listings and equity crowdfunding. Previously, in a direct listing, a company could sell existing shares (from employees and private investors) on public stock exchanges.
Shipping & Fulfillment
When to Consider Ecommerce Shipping Insurance

February 10, 2021 • Armando Roggio

High-end products, high volume, and quality customer service are among the reasons for considering shipping insurance for ecommerce. Shipping insurance can protect businesses from costs associated with damaged, stolen, and lost packages.
Technical SEO
SEO: Common Fixes to Core Web Vitals

February 9, 2021 • Jill Kocher Brown

Google stated in November that Core Web Vitals would become a ranking signal in May 2021. When Google announces such a change, heed the warning. The sooner you prepare, the better the chance of preserving or improving your organic search traffic.
Fraud Prevention
9 Cloud Storage Services with Encryption

February 9, 2021 • Sig Ueland

As businesses move their sensitive data to the cloud, security becomes an increasing concern. However, many cloud storage platforms now offer sophisticated encryption features for minimal cost. Here is a list of secure cloud storage platforms.