If you ever truly wondered - and I hope you have - about how much the loading time of your website affects total sales and profits, Kissmetrics put together a mother of all infographics. In it, you'll find the typical stats on how mere seconds can make or break a visitor's session, as well as how the impatience of mobile users has grown. However, there are a few key takeaways … [Read more...]
Bill Weiland – A Tribute to a Man Who Truly Helped Shape the Success of Small Business Ecommerce
Today I'm a bit of a multi-tasker. When I was younger, I thought multitasking was the ideal way to get a lot done. Turns out it just made everything take longer, and certainly not with best quality as a result. But, today, I'm working on my final slides for International Ecommerce Day, as I'll be presenting on the topic of ecommerce conversions. I'm doing it alongside dealing … [Read more...]
Official Miva Merchant Guide – Updated for 9.0003
What started as a simple ebook on version 2, this is the 9th edition of The Official Guide to Miva Merchant. Currently distributed in PDF format (printing later this year), this 300+ page guide is made available to users for free, courtesy of Miva. It's a complete walk-through of the admin interface, and all the tools the shopping cart has to offer. This latest edition has … [Read more...]
Meet Me at Ignite 2015
If you're looking to grow your ecommerce business and boost conversions, you don't want to miss Ignite 2015! Hosted by Practical Ecommerce, Ignite takes place September 16th and 17th in Dallas, Texas. It's a must-attend event for ecommerce owners and marketers. Register by June 30th and save $200. sign up here On the schedule are nearly 40 in-depth presentations by industry … [Read more...]
Google to Launch Buy Buttons on Mobile Search
I've long said that if you want to grab the attention of your target audience well, you need to sell on Amazon and offer Amazon Checkout as a payment option on self-managed webstores. Many etailers have avoided taking that plunge because they see Amazon as a direct competitor. The fact is, though, Amazon gets the bulk of the traffic - not becoming an Amazon seller can stifle … [Read more...]
Will Purchasing Via Email Take Off?
Are online shoppers ready for one-tap buying within an email? If Chicago, Illinois firm Modest has anything to say about it, yes. Founded in 2012 by four engineers from President Obama's reelection campaign, the Modest mobile platform works with some existing shopping carts to create a shopping app. The company's latest feature, Email Buy, eliminates more steps one needs to … [Read more...]
Online Shopping: How Men & Women Differ [infographic]
If you spend any time looking at your customers' demographics (and you should), you'll notice that conversions by gender are never split right down the middle. This is also prevalent in social media network followers. For example, on Facebook 41% of those who interact with me are male, opposed to 69% on Twitter. That's a huge difference, which affects the way I post on each … [Read more...]
Should Small Business be Concerned over Amazon’s First Physical Location?
At the top of ecommerce headlines Thursday was a report by the Wall Street Journal that Amazon will open a physical "store" in Manhattan in time for the holiday rush. Should small business owners, including those with only an online presence, be concerned? Right now I have two answers to that question: Yes and No. I'll clarify. Headlines can be deceiving. Amazon's location … [Read more...]
This $10 Solution Will Get You More Email Subscribers and Shares
Ask any small business owner for his top ten hurdles and these two will rank: Getting more email subscribers Getting more people to share content SumoMe addresses both of these issues in a slick and affordable way. I've been testing SumoMe's apps for the past few weeks and the results? Rewarding. Free to use, the SumoMe store includes some key functionality for … [Read more...]
How to Ask Customers for Post-Purchase Feedback
For an online store, the ratings and reviews customers leave across the web can sometimes make or break the business. That's why so many sites utilize third-party companies to handle post-order surveys. Unfortunately, the functionality of services themselves can wreak havoc, so it pays to research before making a final selection. Until this much-needed factor of post-sales … [Read more...]
Don’t Be Lazy with Describing What You Sell
A few months back, my husband was on the lookout for a new (to him) reading chair. So he took to Craigslist to find a gently-used leather recliner. Since he's totally blind, he copied and pasted URLs to ones he thought fit the bill in an email to me, and I perused the images and called potential sellers. I wouldn't expect the average Craigslist-er to understand the ins and … [Read more...]
9 Ways to Get Personal with Your Customers
I know my local banker by name. The folks at the local Mail Stop know me by voice. The baristas at Starbucks know my usual drink, and the cook at Five Guys knows I like my fries well done. There's something to be said about "old-school" business practices. With everyone going digital, and in such a rush to get things done, don't overlook key things that can make small business … [Read more...]