Fraud Protection And E-commerce
Word Count:
359
Summary:
Fraud Protection on the Short term
The bad guys that have this debit card data are not going to attack online merchants for goods that they will have to convert to cash. They have been walking straight to the ATMs for the green dollar.
The impact on merchants in the CNP world will be minimal; certainly no more than a few numbers of credit cards but probably less. I do not think the CP merchants will feel it much either. Consumers, on the other hand, are going to take a ...
Keywords:
Fraud Protection
Article Body:
Fraud Protection on the Short term
The bad guys that have this debit card data are not going to attack online merchants for goods that they will have to convert to cash. They have been walking straight to the ATMs for the green dollar.
The impact on merchants in the CNP world will be minimal; certainly no more than a few numbers of credit cards but probably less. I do not think the CP merchants will feel it much either. Consumers, on the other hand, are going to take a huge hit. As you probably know, credit card holder's liability is limited to $50 under FTC regulations but I do not think there is any such limit for debit cards. The card holder is responsible for keeping the PIN private and shame on him if it gets out and he does not report the card stolen.
And yes the banks will almost certainly do what they can to keep their card holding customers happy, particularly if the cleaned out account can be traced to a compromised PIN by whoever it shakes out is accountable. Will that responsibility always be traceable? I do not know. But even if the banks in the end cover those losses, the cardholder has to deal with his account being cleaned out and all that goes with it.
Fraud Protection on the long term
The big concern for the merchant, on line and off, is if the consumer confidence disappear. We already have confirmation that confidence in online transactions has been falling a bit. This first debit/PIN compromise by itself is survivable, but if it turns out that it was not a one-time thing and we have all of a sudden discovered that PIN transactions are not as safe as we thought. Well, then on line merchants are in trouble and brick & mortar could be in trouble as well.
And I wonder how long the banks are able to calm down their debit card holders. When will they begin to pass the losses to the cardholders like they already pass them on to the online merchants now? It could become a matter of continued existence.
Showing posts with label e-commerce. Show all posts
Showing posts with label e-commerce. Show all posts
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Ecommerce Websites - Howto Take Your Business Online
Ecommerce Websites - Howto Take Your Business Online
Word Count:
591
Summary:
eCommerce has altered the World we live in. no longer are we constrained by having to leave our home for any goods at all. We can simply order them online from from the comfort of our home. For a an offline business to be successful it needs to have a strong online presence. We show you how you can benefit from the use of the Internet.
Keywords:
eCommerce Website, e-Commerce, eCommerce websites, ecommerce web sites, online store, online shop
Article Body:
In the technological world full of changes from time to time, everything seems to undergo a transformation. For being a part of the web world, it is vital to keep pace with the varying trends and advancements. Information is required at every point and needs to be available at a click.
Gone are the days of dependence. With independence ushering in the workspace, it is necessary to have full control of the website too. Set the business free with an ecommerce website fully customized to the business needs and update whatever is required and desired as and when it happens.
For promoting the online sale of any product, it is essential to have a fully functional ecommerce website. An e-commerce website would provide the platform to sell and take payments online. It thus provides an opportunity to operate and grow any business online using internet.
Business organizations have now started establishing their own websites which enable them to come into direct contact with the customers easily. They can keep an established association with their clientele and prompt the sales of the product or service in a healthier manner. Any customer can visit or find his way to a website easily and in less time by just one click. A customized website will act as a bridge between the customers and the organization's objectives.
To reap the benefits of these features, it is must to have a perfect ecommerce design and content. Let us have an idea of what is required. Ecommerce web site is the concluding goal which leads the customers to buy products from the right place. Hence, the website design should be artistic and should not take the customer away from the central purpose of purchasing. All that needs to be done is to take care and devote appropriate time in applying these tips. Following are the points that should be considered while having a custom e-commerce website: Domain names and hosting The domain name is the actual website address and it should have hosting where the website is placed so that it becomes easily accessible to the customers. A well structured Buy path. The website should have a structured and definite path to persuade the customer to buy the product. Different web pages should be showcased along with the path direction. This content will make the website easily accessible for the customers.
Important product button The product button must be displayed on the home page. This will help target customer to buy products through the product page. The payment option should be displayed. It should help the customers to make payment for the product through their debit or credit card which makes their shopping easy.
Product information The product must be displayed properly with correct information about the customized website. The information must be enough to influence the thinking, choice and decision of the target audience in less amount of time. Product categories can be displayed along with its features and picture of the product. Business image defines the success of any image. A custom-made website provides an edge and the tool to refine and define the business and its key strengths amidst the target audience. It helps a business become exclusive and develop flexibility. The user friendliness and competitiveness offered by such a website calls for its need. For the diversity and a more refined personalized website, services of an expert can definitely make a difference. Custom e-commerce service providers ensure that a business reaches its peak through uniquely developed sophisticated website catering to specific client requirements.
Word Count:
591
Summary:
eCommerce has altered the World we live in. no longer are we constrained by having to leave our home for any goods at all. We can simply order them online from from the comfort of our home. For a an offline business to be successful it needs to have a strong online presence. We show you how you can benefit from the use of the Internet.
Keywords:
eCommerce Website, e-Commerce, eCommerce websites, ecommerce web sites, online store, online shop
Article Body:
In the technological world full of changes from time to time, everything seems to undergo a transformation. For being a part of the web world, it is vital to keep pace with the varying trends and advancements. Information is required at every point and needs to be available at a click.
Gone are the days of dependence. With independence ushering in the workspace, it is necessary to have full control of the website too. Set the business free with an ecommerce website fully customized to the business needs and update whatever is required and desired as and when it happens.
For promoting the online sale of any product, it is essential to have a fully functional ecommerce website. An e-commerce website would provide the platform to sell and take payments online. It thus provides an opportunity to operate and grow any business online using internet.
Business organizations have now started establishing their own websites which enable them to come into direct contact with the customers easily. They can keep an established association with their clientele and prompt the sales of the product or service in a healthier manner. Any customer can visit or find his way to a website easily and in less time by just one click. A customized website will act as a bridge between the customers and the organization's objectives.
To reap the benefits of these features, it is must to have a perfect ecommerce design and content. Let us have an idea of what is required. Ecommerce web site is the concluding goal which leads the customers to buy products from the right place. Hence, the website design should be artistic and should not take the customer away from the central purpose of purchasing. All that needs to be done is to take care and devote appropriate time in applying these tips. Following are the points that should be considered while having a custom e-commerce website: Domain names and hosting The domain name is the actual website address and it should have hosting where the website is placed so that it becomes easily accessible to the customers. A well structured Buy path. The website should have a structured and definite path to persuade the customer to buy the product. Different web pages should be showcased along with the path direction. This content will make the website easily accessible for the customers.
Important product button The product button must be displayed on the home page. This will help target customer to buy products through the product page. The payment option should be displayed. It should help the customers to make payment for the product through their debit or credit card which makes their shopping easy.
Product information The product must be displayed properly with correct information about the customized website. The information must be enough to influence the thinking, choice and decision of the target audience in less amount of time. Product categories can be displayed along with its features and picture of the product. Business image defines the success of any image. A custom-made website provides an edge and the tool to refine and define the business and its key strengths amidst the target audience. It helps a business become exclusive and develop flexibility. The user friendliness and competitiveness offered by such a website calls for its need. For the diversity and a more refined personalized website, services of an expert can definitely make a difference. Custom e-commerce service providers ensure that a business reaches its peak through uniquely developed sophisticated website catering to specific client requirements.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
eCommerce Web Site Building: Where Do I Start?
eCommerce Web Site Building: Where Do I Start?
Word Count:
1172
Summary:
An article discussing the details on what tools, skills, and services you might need to start an ecommerce business.
Keywords:
ecommerce, e-commerce, shopping carts, customer service
Article Body:
Building a web site isn't something that is really cut and dry. There's a huge variety of products and services that can either help you get your web site where you want it or simply confuse you. It's also important that you make the right choices upfront so that you don't end up having to restructure your whole web site because of some problem in your design layout. The level of time investment neccessary for mastery in a lot of these software packages can range from little to a VERY significant amount. Because of this I feel it's important to be lead in the "right" direction to make sure you don't spend time in the wrong areas, or learning some software that might not be all that useful for you later on (*coughs* Frontpage *coughs*).
Where you should start greatly depends on what you plan on attempting to do, and how deep you're going to dive in. For a moderately professional, clean looking web site without a lot of automation or intensive animated graphics you can probably get by with some basic knowledge of html, ability with a good WYSIWYG editor, and an image editting program. On the other hand, if you're someone that's looking to build something that will really wow your audience then you might consider spending some major time and developing some animation skills with a program like Macromedia Flash. I personally always spring for what I believe will bring me the greatest amount of profit with a minimal amount of effort, and because of this I usually end up spending all of my time diving in deeper with ONLY my WYSIWYG HTML editor, and my image editor.
## What is a "WYSIWYG" editor? ##
A WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) HTML editor is what allows you to get by with minimal knowledge of HTML. Yes, that means you don't have to know EVERYTHING about HTML to have a decent looking website. When you use a WYSIWYG editor it interprets what you're doing (inserting an image for example) as being a certain series of HTML tags with attributes, and does it for you... Thus, what you see on your screen is what you get. Instead of seeing a bunch of HTML code in text format, you'll mostly see what will actually show up in your browser once your web site is up WHILE you're making it. I highly recommend using the latest version of dreamweaver -- it is well-known as one of the best HTML editors by general consensus. Dreamweaver's interface is very friendly, has a built in FTP client, and is specifically built to be flexible enough to suit both the coder and the everyday amatuer webmaster.
## Image editing? What do I need that for? ##
Okay, let's be realistic here: If you're going to make a professional *appearing* web site it's important that you can make some basic, decent looking graphics. There's a lot of graphics problems that can truly get the job done, but as far as power and flexibility goes I recommend Adobe Photoshop. Adobe Photoshop definitely takes some time getting used to, but in the end it's VERY rewarding. I've ended up using my knowledge of Photoshop to make not only graphics for multiple web sites, but also touched up portraits, made business cards, flyers, and other online advertisments such as banners. Infact, I've used it for everything except animation... But it also comes with Adobe Imageready which is very good with animation. This software is amazing, and if you're going to learn ANY image editing software I recommend you start with Photoshop because of it's widerange of overall... usefulness!
## Let's get me some sales! ##
Kick off your new web site you've gotten up from your knowledge of webmastering and image editing with a few new sales... Sounds like a plan? Well a great way to do that quickly is with pay-per-click advertising. BUT WAIT! Doesn't that cost money? Well... Yes. But with the tools brought to us by some of the biggest pay-per-click advertisers out there we should be able to make a good evaluation of how much profit we're going to make without much investment upfront.
The big question behind pay-per-click advertising is whether or not it's worth the cash when you can simply get traffic from regular search engine ranking (otherwise known as organic traffic). Afterall, there are plenty of companies out there that promise to help get you all the traffic you need through optimizing your web site for organic ranking. The answer to this question is quite simple: profit is profit. Through conversion tracking tools such as those offered by Yahoo! Search Marketing and Google Adwords anyone can calculate exactly what their profit is after cost of PPC advertising is taken out. In my opinion, Google Adwords has the most user-friendly interface among the PPC advertisers. Google Adword's interface makes it very easy to see which keywords are pulling you in the most sales, and which ones aren't even worth your advertising money.
Let us not forget, however, that in order to make those conversions we're going to be needing a shopping cart! There's a lot of diverse software packages out there you can use, but I've been using Mal's E-Commerce Free shopping cart for a number of years with great success. The cart's server is hosted on their machines so that means you not only get away with not having to pay for the software itself, but you get out of having to buy an SSL security ticket too! Nothing's a better bargain than free, eh?
## Getting those sales leads you've been building up to BUY! ##
Once you've scored a few sales it would probably be a good idea to start using some kind of lead management services. I highly recommend the use of autoresponders for this purpose. Autoresponders are, essentially, a newsletter sign-up that allows you to strategically determine what you want to send each lead after a certain alotted amount of time. For example, let's say someone visits your web site and you offer them a free newsletter. If you were selling an ebook on some very complicated topic, you might consider sending them only information on the most basic concepts at first to get them interested. Slowly but surely, you can turn those visitors that might have left your web site and never have returned into some serious revenue!
As far as autoresponders go, I highly recommend the use of Aweber. Their customer service is superb (seriously, these guys really know their stuff!) and can be contacted at any point during the business day via online chat or phone. They also offer tons of free information, and guides on making the most of their services. Check out their month long free trial at http://www.getaweber.com/ .
Word Count:
1172
Summary:
An article discussing the details on what tools, skills, and services you might need to start an ecommerce business.
Keywords:
ecommerce, e-commerce, shopping carts, customer service
Article Body:
Building a web site isn't something that is really cut and dry. There's a huge variety of products and services that can either help you get your web site where you want it or simply confuse you. It's also important that you make the right choices upfront so that you don't end up having to restructure your whole web site because of some problem in your design layout. The level of time investment neccessary for mastery in a lot of these software packages can range from little to a VERY significant amount. Because of this I feel it's important to be lead in the "right" direction to make sure you don't spend time in the wrong areas, or learning some software that might not be all that useful for you later on (*coughs* Frontpage *coughs*).
Where you should start greatly depends on what you plan on attempting to do, and how deep you're going to dive in. For a moderately professional, clean looking web site without a lot of automation or intensive animated graphics you can probably get by with some basic knowledge of html, ability with a good WYSIWYG editor, and an image editting program. On the other hand, if you're someone that's looking to build something that will really wow your audience then you might consider spending some major time and developing some animation skills with a program like Macromedia Flash. I personally always spring for what I believe will bring me the greatest amount of profit with a minimal amount of effort, and because of this I usually end up spending all of my time diving in deeper with ONLY my WYSIWYG HTML editor, and my image editor.
## What is a "WYSIWYG" editor? ##
A WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) HTML editor is what allows you to get by with minimal knowledge of HTML. Yes, that means you don't have to know EVERYTHING about HTML to have a decent looking website. When you use a WYSIWYG editor it interprets what you're doing (inserting an image for example) as being a certain series of HTML tags with attributes, and does it for you... Thus, what you see on your screen is what you get. Instead of seeing a bunch of HTML code in text format, you'll mostly see what will actually show up in your browser once your web site is up WHILE you're making it. I highly recommend using the latest version of dreamweaver -- it is well-known as one of the best HTML editors by general consensus. Dreamweaver's interface is very friendly, has a built in FTP client, and is specifically built to be flexible enough to suit both the coder and the everyday amatuer webmaster.
## Image editing? What do I need that for? ##
Okay, let's be realistic here: If you're going to make a professional *appearing* web site it's important that you can make some basic, decent looking graphics. There's a lot of graphics problems that can truly get the job done, but as far as power and flexibility goes I recommend Adobe Photoshop. Adobe Photoshop definitely takes some time getting used to, but in the end it's VERY rewarding. I've ended up using my knowledge of Photoshop to make not only graphics for multiple web sites, but also touched up portraits, made business cards, flyers, and other online advertisments such as banners. Infact, I've used it for everything except animation... But it also comes with Adobe Imageready which is very good with animation. This software is amazing, and if you're going to learn ANY image editing software I recommend you start with Photoshop because of it's widerange of overall... usefulness!
## Let's get me some sales! ##
Kick off your new web site you've gotten up from your knowledge of webmastering and image editing with a few new sales... Sounds like a plan? Well a great way to do that quickly is with pay-per-click advertising. BUT WAIT! Doesn't that cost money? Well... Yes. But with the tools brought to us by some of the biggest pay-per-click advertisers out there we should be able to make a good evaluation of how much profit we're going to make without much investment upfront.
The big question behind pay-per-click advertising is whether or not it's worth the cash when you can simply get traffic from regular search engine ranking (otherwise known as organic traffic). Afterall, there are plenty of companies out there that promise to help get you all the traffic you need through optimizing your web site for organic ranking. The answer to this question is quite simple: profit is profit. Through conversion tracking tools such as those offered by Yahoo! Search Marketing and Google Adwords anyone can calculate exactly what their profit is after cost of PPC advertising is taken out. In my opinion, Google Adwords has the most user-friendly interface among the PPC advertisers. Google Adword's interface makes it very easy to see which keywords are pulling you in the most sales, and which ones aren't even worth your advertising money.
Let us not forget, however, that in order to make those conversions we're going to be needing a shopping cart! There's a lot of diverse software packages out there you can use, but I've been using Mal's E-Commerce Free shopping cart for a number of years with great success. The cart's server is hosted on their machines so that means you not only get away with not having to pay for the software itself, but you get out of having to buy an SSL security ticket too! Nothing's a better bargain than free, eh?
## Getting those sales leads you've been building up to BUY! ##
Once you've scored a few sales it would probably be a good idea to start using some kind of lead management services. I highly recommend the use of autoresponders for this purpose. Autoresponders are, essentially, a newsletter sign-up that allows you to strategically determine what you want to send each lead after a certain alotted amount of time. For example, let's say someone visits your web site and you offer them a free newsletter. If you were selling an ebook on some very complicated topic, you might consider sending them only information on the most basic concepts at first to get them interested. Slowly but surely, you can turn those visitors that might have left your web site and never have returned into some serious revenue!
As far as autoresponders go, I highly recommend the use of Aweber. Their customer service is superb (seriously, these guys really know their stuff!) and can be contacted at any point during the business day via online chat or phone. They also offer tons of free information, and guides on making the most of their services. Check out their month long free trial at http://www.getaweber.com/ .
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
eCommerce Fundamentals
eCommerce Fundamentals
Word Count:
473
Summary:
eCommerce can be VERY complex. To offer a world class customer experience, retailers must incorporate technologies and functionality that exceeds rising customer expectations.
On the flip side however, site fundamentals still play a very large role in converting visitors into customers. Many retailers surprisingly lose sight of these site basics and leave significant sales on the table. This brief examines 4 quick “fundamentals” every eCommerce manager cannot afford to lose sight of.
Keywords:
ecommerce e-commerce emarketing e-marketing internet marketing web
Article Body:
eCommerce can be VERY complex. To offer a world class customer experience, retailers must incorporate technologies and functionality that exceeds rising customer expectations.
On the flip side however, site fundamentals still play a very large role in converting visitors into customers. Many retailers surprisingly lose sight of these site basics and leave significant sales on the table. This brief examines 4 quick “fundamentals” every eCommerce manager cannot afford to lose sight of.
Think Fast
Speed has become less of a problem due to the penetration of broadband, but don’t forget that a significant number of people still shop by a dialup connection. When creating a site framework, designers and e-commerce teams should ensure that the site is developed with pages loading in less than 9 seconds (over a dial-up connection).
Our recommended page size is within 60-70k in bytes. At that amount, sites will likely load within the maximum wait time of 9 seconds. Online retailers should avoid flash at all costs within their transactional site. Flash’s artistic aspects may help you establish a brand presence – but it will likely lose potential customers before they have even searched within your store.
Image is important
Images are a very important aspect of selling online and are often neglected. All product images should be of the highest resolution possible, be much larger than the product page original, and have
multiple views. Dynamic imaging capabilities can improve the user experience to an even higher level by increasing interactivity (zoom & rotate). At a minimum – retailers should have at least two additional views outside of the product page image to help build emotion.
Be my guest
Shoppers do not like being forced to do anything, especially when they are ready to open their wallets. Forcing a shopper to register on your site before purchasing is a sure way to drive a portion of your traffic to your competitors. Too often, shoppers do not have the time or the inclination to fill out a lengthy form explaining what types of information they desire.
Always offer the ability to checkout as a guest. You will see less customer leakage within the checkout process and can still offer the option to register when the sale is completed.
Make sure it’s “above the fold”
Your homepage is the most important page within your eCommerce store. It sets the initial tone for the shopping experience and offers your best promotions and products to your visitors. Users typically visually scan a web page from top to bottom and then from left to right. All critical content and navigation options should be obvious to the shopper without having to scroll down. If you have your best promotions “below the fold” – you can bet that a large percentage of browsers are not scrolling down to see it.
Craig Smith
Trinity Insight LLC
http://www.trinityinsight.com/
Word Count:
473
Summary:
eCommerce can be VERY complex. To offer a world class customer experience, retailers must incorporate technologies and functionality that exceeds rising customer expectations.
On the flip side however, site fundamentals still play a very large role in converting visitors into customers. Many retailers surprisingly lose sight of these site basics and leave significant sales on the table. This brief examines 4 quick “fundamentals” every eCommerce manager cannot afford to lose sight of.
Keywords:
ecommerce e-commerce emarketing e-marketing internet marketing web
Article Body:
eCommerce can be VERY complex. To offer a world class customer experience, retailers must incorporate technologies and functionality that exceeds rising customer expectations.
On the flip side however, site fundamentals still play a very large role in converting visitors into customers. Many retailers surprisingly lose sight of these site basics and leave significant sales on the table. This brief examines 4 quick “fundamentals” every eCommerce manager cannot afford to lose sight of.
Think Fast
Speed has become less of a problem due to the penetration of broadband, but don’t forget that a significant number of people still shop by a dialup connection. When creating a site framework, designers and e-commerce teams should ensure that the site is developed with pages loading in less than 9 seconds (over a dial-up connection).
Our recommended page size is within 60-70k in bytes. At that amount, sites will likely load within the maximum wait time of 9 seconds. Online retailers should avoid flash at all costs within their transactional site. Flash’s artistic aspects may help you establish a brand presence – but it will likely lose potential customers before they have even searched within your store.
Image is important
Images are a very important aspect of selling online and are often neglected. All product images should be of the highest resolution possible, be much larger than the product page original, and have
multiple views. Dynamic imaging capabilities can improve the user experience to an even higher level by increasing interactivity (zoom & rotate). At a minimum – retailers should have at least two additional views outside of the product page image to help build emotion.
Be my guest
Shoppers do not like being forced to do anything, especially when they are ready to open their wallets. Forcing a shopper to register on your site before purchasing is a sure way to drive a portion of your traffic to your competitors. Too often, shoppers do not have the time or the inclination to fill out a lengthy form explaining what types of information they desire.
Always offer the ability to checkout as a guest. You will see less customer leakage within the checkout process and can still offer the option to register when the sale is completed.
Make sure it’s “above the fold”
Your homepage is the most important page within your eCommerce store. It sets the initial tone for the shopping experience and offers your best promotions and products to your visitors. Users typically visually scan a web page from top to bottom and then from left to right. All critical content and navigation options should be obvious to the shopper without having to scroll down. If you have your best promotions “below the fold” – you can bet that a large percentage of browsers are not scrolling down to see it.
Craig Smith
Trinity Insight LLC
http://www.trinityinsight.com/
Saturday, February 26, 2011
eCommerce and Canada
eCommerce and Canada
Word Count:
567
Summary:
Canadian eCommerce growth was recently flat but still has an attractive upside…
Recent studies found that Canadian retail e-commerce growth was flat year over year (2003-2004). After further examination however, approximately 60% of the 100 largest non-travel sites succeeded in growing their sales over 20%.
Keywords:
ecommerce e-commerce emarketing e-marketing internet marketing web
Article Body:
Canadian eCommerce growth was recently flat but still has an attractive upside…
Recent studies found that Canadian retail e-commerce growth was flat year over year (2003-2004). After further examination however, approximately 60% of the 100 largest non-travel sites succeeded in growing their sales over 20%.
Also interesting is the trending of Canadians from buying at non-Canadian sites to domestic sites (63% domestic, 37% foreign). This “domestic shift” clearly benefits the launching of a new eCommerce business in Canada.
The sales opportunity lies with the “early adopters”, individuals primarily the 18-34 year old age range. This segment is more technologically savvy and more likely to purchase online. In a 2003 to 2004 sampling comparison, this segment’s overall e-commerce spending increased 44%. The 35 to 54 age group increased only 5% and 55+ increased 18% (includes online travel).
Overall Internet Adoption rates still trail the U.S. and come in at approximately 52%. However, with the development of new Internet infrastructures and the maturation of Canadian ISP’s, this number will likely rise in the next 3-5 years. The following quote from the Canadian government re-enforces this theme.
“To reach our new national goal (relating to e-commerce) Canadians will need to develop strategies that build an intelligent infrastructure to serve as the backbone of the e-economy- by encouraging investment, strengthening research, enhancing commercialization and ensuring that all Canadians have access to this infrastructure and know how to use it.” (September, 2004)
Shifting demographics & lack of online competition equal a substantial opportunity…
Forrester Research reports that 48% of Canadian web shoppers are now female compared to 39% in 2003. 74% of web buyers are married and likely are home shoppers, compared to 68% in 2003.
With the gender gap closing, online home retailers have a great opportunity to target their core customer segment: the 30-40yr old female who owns or maintains a residence.
Within this sector, it is rare for U.S. based retailers to have online Canadian stores. Many brands will ship to Canada, for very high costs (customs duty & shipping) but this likely leads to an unpleasant experience for the Canadian consumer. These high costs, compiled with a lack of domestic Canadian retailers providing an e-commerce offering, are driving the stagnant growth of the online sales channel.
By being a “first-mover” in establishing a presence in the online marketplace within Canada, online retailers will facilitate sales from consumers that want to get products shipped from their native homeland after being paid for in Canadian currency.
Similar to the U.S., consumers are exhibiting multi-channel tendencies and embracing the emergence of broadband connectivity…
Canada is the only country in the world in which broadband overtook dial-up access in 2003. Currently 48% of all Canadian consumers have broadband access and they are 67% more likely to have high speed web-access than American consumers.
This impressive penetration may prove to be a strong driver for online circulars and new online merchandising tactics, as product differentiation are established outside of price.
Canadian shoppers are also parallel to U.S. consumers in their multi-channel behavior. 58% of Canadian shoppers have researched a product online and purchased offline, spending an average of $440. An online Canadian strategy must focus on integrating the online and physical store with store locator functionality and other tools to promote cross-channel behavior.
In conclusion, multi-national retailers should closely examine the Canadian eCommerce opportunity. Attractive consumer demographics, an established broadband infrastructure, and a shift in overall shopping tendencies make the Canada a high-growth and un-saturated area for multi-channel retail.
Craig Smith
Trinity Insight LLC
http://www.trinityinsight.com/
Word Count:
567
Summary:
Canadian eCommerce growth was recently flat but still has an attractive upside…
Recent studies found that Canadian retail e-commerce growth was flat year over year (2003-2004). After further examination however, approximately 60% of the 100 largest non-travel sites succeeded in growing their sales over 20%.
Keywords:
ecommerce e-commerce emarketing e-marketing internet marketing web
Article Body:
Canadian eCommerce growth was recently flat but still has an attractive upside…
Recent studies found that Canadian retail e-commerce growth was flat year over year (2003-2004). After further examination however, approximately 60% of the 100 largest non-travel sites succeeded in growing their sales over 20%.
Also interesting is the trending of Canadians from buying at non-Canadian sites to domestic sites (63% domestic, 37% foreign). This “domestic shift” clearly benefits the launching of a new eCommerce business in Canada.
The sales opportunity lies with the “early adopters”, individuals primarily the 18-34 year old age range. This segment is more technologically savvy and more likely to purchase online. In a 2003 to 2004 sampling comparison, this segment’s overall e-commerce spending increased 44%. The 35 to 54 age group increased only 5% and 55+ increased 18% (includes online travel).
Overall Internet Adoption rates still trail the U.S. and come in at approximately 52%. However, with the development of new Internet infrastructures and the maturation of Canadian ISP’s, this number will likely rise in the next 3-5 years. The following quote from the Canadian government re-enforces this theme.
“To reach our new national goal (relating to e-commerce) Canadians will need to develop strategies that build an intelligent infrastructure to serve as the backbone of the e-economy- by encouraging investment, strengthening research, enhancing commercialization and ensuring that all Canadians have access to this infrastructure and know how to use it.” (September, 2004)
Shifting demographics & lack of online competition equal a substantial opportunity…
Forrester Research reports that 48% of Canadian web shoppers are now female compared to 39% in 2003. 74% of web buyers are married and likely are home shoppers, compared to 68% in 2003.
With the gender gap closing, online home retailers have a great opportunity to target their core customer segment: the 30-40yr old female who owns or maintains a residence.
Within this sector, it is rare for U.S. based retailers to have online Canadian stores. Many brands will ship to Canada, for very high costs (customs duty & shipping) but this likely leads to an unpleasant experience for the Canadian consumer. These high costs, compiled with a lack of domestic Canadian retailers providing an e-commerce offering, are driving the stagnant growth of the online sales channel.
By being a “first-mover” in establishing a presence in the online marketplace within Canada, online retailers will facilitate sales from consumers that want to get products shipped from their native homeland after being paid for in Canadian currency.
Similar to the U.S., consumers are exhibiting multi-channel tendencies and embracing the emergence of broadband connectivity…
Canada is the only country in the world in which broadband overtook dial-up access in 2003. Currently 48% of all Canadian consumers have broadband access and they are 67% more likely to have high speed web-access than American consumers.
This impressive penetration may prove to be a strong driver for online circulars and new online merchandising tactics, as product differentiation are established outside of price.
Canadian shoppers are also parallel to U.S. consumers in their multi-channel behavior. 58% of Canadian shoppers have researched a product online and purchased offline, spending an average of $440. An online Canadian strategy must focus on integrating the online and physical store with store locator functionality and other tools to promote cross-channel behavior.
In conclusion, multi-national retailers should closely examine the Canadian eCommerce opportunity. Attractive consumer demographics, an established broadband infrastructure, and a shift in overall shopping tendencies make the Canada a high-growth and un-saturated area for multi-channel retail.
Craig Smith
Trinity Insight LLC
http://www.trinityinsight.com/
Friday, February 25, 2011
E-commerce Store – Build Your Own
E-commerce Store – Build Your Own
Word Count:
917
Summary:
If you have a product oriented business, the Internet offers a unique ability to reach a broad audience. With new technology, it is easy to build your own e-commerce store.
Keywords:
e-commerce, ecommerce, online store, build store
Article Body:
If you have a product oriented business, the Internet offers a unique ability to reach a broad audience. With new technology, it is easy to build your own e-commerce store.
E-commerce Store
Today's world is an E-commerce (electronic commerce or e-com) world. E-commerce, clearly termed as web commerce, basically means selling of merchandise or services over the Internet with electronic transactions and also through a secure network. E-com is not merely buying and selling or providing services but it is also a method of advertising and marketing through an electronic system as well. E-com also means facilitating the progress of commercial transactions electronically. Right now e-com is a well-established technology in all major countries. In most cases Internet marketing requires you to have your own E-commerce store for maximum return.
Requirements of an E-commerce Store
Building an e-commerce store is not an easy job. Software is required that can manage customers as well as their needs. E-commerce software should be able to handle inventory, shipping and handling costs, taxes, dispatching and payment processing of client's orders. You may encounter many options when setting out to build an e commerce store. Before choosing any of them it is important to have a clear view of your requirements. Technical requirements might include coupons, tracking systems, customer login options or any number of other things. Other requirements include what type of impression you want to provide to your valuable clients.
Study the Sales and Marketing Cycle to Determine Your Needs
Before you opt for any of solutions for building e commerce store, study the basic model of e commerce that represents the entire sales and marketing cycle. The first building block of this cycle is audience in which you define what type of customers you will target. Second are commodities, in which you characterize the types of products you will put on the market. Third is customer support where you will answer the questions and offer solutions to clients' or potential clients' problems. Next is advertising, marketing and endorsement where a business promotes the products or services. Then there is transaction processing, the most important technical phase of the cycle, which will handle orders, taxes, payment processing and order delivery.
Transactions may be automatic or manual. In manual processing you have to enter credit card information manually through an offline terminal. In the case of automatic processing a client's order form will be setup with a program that processes and charges the credit card for you. After that there are post-deal services regarding how you provide solutions and services after the sale. Last but not least is brand name with which you will create a distinctive business image to correspond with customers. Nobody is going to pay attention to your online store unless something catches their eye.
Research your Options
Once you have defined your needs, you can then begin researching your options. There are two basic paths you may follow when building an e-commerce store - either buy ready made software or build a custom system with components and parts according to your requirements and budgets.
Flexibility
Some business firms offer gifts and well placed impulse products for better marketing approaches. This requires an e-com solution to be flexible enough to allow various give-aways, coupons and promotions. Also, if your product comes in a variety of models or styles, with different options and different prices then you must communicate these factors and portray them distinctively in your online store. A true businessperson will certainly follow the patterns of his or her usual clients as well as those who directly visit the site. Web statistic tracking tools can be a great help to this end.
Ease of Use
Some e commerce stores are very easy to use and require only a few minutes to learn while others are more complex with so many features that they can be overwhelming. Being able to see a demonstration of software before buying it is a great help to determining ease of use.
Scalability
Being able to grow with your company is very important. If you choose a very simple solution now, then require a more robust solution down the road, you will lose time converting your store. If the URL structure of your store is not consistent, you can also lose search engine rankings by changing e commerce solutions. Therefore, it is important to choose an e commerce solution that can grow with you. For example, some stores owners may not want coupons in the beginning but then down the road decide it is a good idea. Some stores may also have limits on number of products, inventory control and tracking that down the road will be very important.
Security
Of utmost importance to online stores is transaction security. The priority for any business firm should be secure transactions. Thanks to Netscape for introducing SSL (secure socket layer), data can be protected by online store owners. SSL is an encryption technology that encrypts a message and the receiver decrypts it by using RSA security. To enable SSL on your web server you need a digital ID (a form of identification that will recognize you). Many web hosts provide SSL installation for anywhere from a few bucks to a few hundred bucks per year.
Overall, in building your own e commerce store, four things are essential - flexibility, ease of use, security and scalability. Research your options before you make a final choice, and whenever possible, get a free trial of your solution before you buy.
Word Count:
917
Summary:
If you have a product oriented business, the Internet offers a unique ability to reach a broad audience. With new technology, it is easy to build your own e-commerce store.
Keywords:
e-commerce, ecommerce, online store, build store
Article Body:
If you have a product oriented business, the Internet offers a unique ability to reach a broad audience. With new technology, it is easy to build your own e-commerce store.
E-commerce Store
Today's world is an E-commerce (electronic commerce or e-com) world. E-commerce, clearly termed as web commerce, basically means selling of merchandise or services over the Internet with electronic transactions and also through a secure network. E-com is not merely buying and selling or providing services but it is also a method of advertising and marketing through an electronic system as well. E-com also means facilitating the progress of commercial transactions electronically. Right now e-com is a well-established technology in all major countries. In most cases Internet marketing requires you to have your own E-commerce store for maximum return.
Requirements of an E-commerce Store
Building an e-commerce store is not an easy job. Software is required that can manage customers as well as their needs. E-commerce software should be able to handle inventory, shipping and handling costs, taxes, dispatching and payment processing of client's orders. You may encounter many options when setting out to build an e commerce store. Before choosing any of them it is important to have a clear view of your requirements. Technical requirements might include coupons, tracking systems, customer login options or any number of other things. Other requirements include what type of impression you want to provide to your valuable clients.
Study the Sales and Marketing Cycle to Determine Your Needs
Before you opt for any of solutions for building e commerce store, study the basic model of e commerce that represents the entire sales and marketing cycle. The first building block of this cycle is audience in which you define what type of customers you will target. Second are commodities, in which you characterize the types of products you will put on the market. Third is customer support where you will answer the questions and offer solutions to clients' or potential clients' problems. Next is advertising, marketing and endorsement where a business promotes the products or services. Then there is transaction processing, the most important technical phase of the cycle, which will handle orders, taxes, payment processing and order delivery.
Transactions may be automatic or manual. In manual processing you have to enter credit card information manually through an offline terminal. In the case of automatic processing a client's order form will be setup with a program that processes and charges the credit card for you. After that there are post-deal services regarding how you provide solutions and services after the sale. Last but not least is brand name with which you will create a distinctive business image to correspond with customers. Nobody is going to pay attention to your online store unless something catches their eye.
Research your Options
Once you have defined your needs, you can then begin researching your options. There are two basic paths you may follow when building an e-commerce store - either buy ready made software or build a custom system with components and parts according to your requirements and budgets.
Flexibility
Some business firms offer gifts and well placed impulse products for better marketing approaches. This requires an e-com solution to be flexible enough to allow various give-aways, coupons and promotions. Also, if your product comes in a variety of models or styles, with different options and different prices then you must communicate these factors and portray them distinctively in your online store. A true businessperson will certainly follow the patterns of his or her usual clients as well as those who directly visit the site. Web statistic tracking tools can be a great help to this end.
Ease of Use
Some e commerce stores are very easy to use and require only a few minutes to learn while others are more complex with so many features that they can be overwhelming. Being able to see a demonstration of software before buying it is a great help to determining ease of use.
Scalability
Being able to grow with your company is very important. If you choose a very simple solution now, then require a more robust solution down the road, you will lose time converting your store. If the URL structure of your store is not consistent, you can also lose search engine rankings by changing e commerce solutions. Therefore, it is important to choose an e commerce solution that can grow with you. For example, some stores owners may not want coupons in the beginning but then down the road decide it is a good idea. Some stores may also have limits on number of products, inventory control and tracking that down the road will be very important.
Security
Of utmost importance to online stores is transaction security. The priority for any business firm should be secure transactions. Thanks to Netscape for introducing SSL (secure socket layer), data can be protected by online store owners. SSL is an encryption technology that encrypts a message and the receiver decrypts it by using RSA security. To enable SSL on your web server you need a digital ID (a form of identification that will recognize you). Many web hosts provide SSL installation for anywhere from a few bucks to a few hundred bucks per year.
Overall, in building your own e commerce store, four things are essential - flexibility, ease of use, security and scalability. Research your options before you make a final choice, and whenever possible, get a free trial of your solution before you buy.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
E-commerce and Drinking Water
E-commerce and Drinking Water
Word Count:
1122
Summary:
E- Commerce is coming of age with millions of new customers from internet sales for a wide variety of products. The bottled water industry is an ideal beneficiary of e-commerce technology because of the large number of customers served and the frequency of transactions and purchases.
Keywords:
E-commerce, privat labeled drinking water, pure water, local delivery water, customer service, customer satisfaction,SSL, dynamic e-commerce, secure payment, bottled water industry, 5 gallon
Article Body:
April 25, 2006
E- Commerce is coming of age with millions of new customers from internet sales for a wide variety of products. Advances in web site design, payment mechanisms and delivery systems have met the increased demand for online ordering.
With the advent of on-line ordering firms like Amazon and E-Bay, what started out as a small business has morphed into a multi-billion dollar industry. The key to success in the field of E Commerce ist he offering of high quality products coupled with state of the art technology to ensure ease of ordering and secure payment mechanisms.
The bottled water industry is an ideal beneficiary of e-commerce technology because of the large number of customers served and the frequency of transactions and purchases.
E-commerce Defined
E-commerce is similar to other forms of commerce except that it involves the buying and selling of goods over the Internet. E-commerce sites range from a simple web page highlighting a single item to dynamic fully developed on-line catalogs featuring thousands of products.The common theme and benefit in e-commerce sites is instant purchase, instant payment (if desired) and instant gratification for the customer.
Over the years, the e-commerce web has blossomed into a multi-billion dollar industry yearly, with significant growth projected over the next 5 years. A defining characteristic is that all ecommerce web sites accept a type of online payment, whether through a third party or directly with a merchant account..
E-commerce: The Wave of the Future
The internet is changing world view of shoppers. Instant gratification is a reality. Utilizing e-commerce allows customers the ability to quickly take delivery of the goods they require and desire.In addition, the Internet is perhaps the best sales tool ever invented as it allows customers to browse endlessly in privacy. They can return and order again and again without ever leaving their home.
Most experts agree that it is only a matter of time before all sales-oriented companies will have some sort of e-commerce presence in order to remain competitive and the development of software and tools to improve the productivity of e-commerce sites remains strong. As more and better technology is developed, e-commerce will greatly expand.
Secure Payment and SSL(Secure Socket Layer): The Heart of the System
SSL(Secure Socket Layer) has been the de facto standard and heart of the system for e-commerce transaction security, and it's likely to remain so well into the future.
SSL is basedon encryption. SSL encrypts data, like credit cards numbers (as well other personally identifiable information), which prevents unauthorized use. An SSL protected page is identified when the address begins with "https" and there is a padlock icon at the bottom of the page.
SSL Certificates
The SSL certificate resides on a secure server and is used to encrypt the data and to identify the Web site. The SSL certificate also helps to prove the site belongs to who it says it belongs to and contains information about the certificate holder, the domain that the certificate was issued to, the name of the Certificate Authority who issued the certificate, the root and the country it was issued in.
In general,e-commerce users are urged to avoid sites that fail to use and display proof of SSL Ceritifcates.
The Bottled Water Industry and E-commerce
The bottled water business is actually two lines of business: Local delivery water and private labeled water and each is an important subset of the total business.
Local delivery water is defined geographically and usually comprises rental or sales of coolers and delivery of 5-gallon and small package (12, 16.5 and 20 oz.) bottles to customers located within a limited distance from the water source. This business includes a customer base of consumers and businesses in the defined geographic area who take periodic delivery of water. The key to success in this line of business is the production and efficient delivery of the highest quality pure water.
Private labeled water involves the development and production of high quality custom labels with a clear branding message. This line of business is national in scope and includes a strong element of branding and advertising. The key to success in this line of business is the design and production of a label of the highest quality with a clear branding message.
Each line of business has different requirements for e-commerce. For the local delivery business, establishing and meeting delivery schedules is critical with the most advanced sites offering delivery programs that offer the customer choice of delivery schedules and the ability to modify deliveries as conditions warrant.
For the private labeled line of business design flexibility in the form of interactive tools for the development, proofing and production of labels is critical. Another critical aspect of the private labeled line of business is fast and cost effective delivery through national carriers.
A Culture of Customer Service
The best e-commerce site will not produce results without support of an effective customer service organization. E-commerce tools and capabilities must be complemented by a customer service culture that includes rapid customer feed back, human (as opposed to voice mail and e-mail) interaction and clear communication. It is presently impossible to totally remove the human element from e-commerce and the human element is a critical part of the customer satisfaction process..
Best and Powerful Features
There are many varieties of e-commerce sites ranging from the simplest static site that offers very limited features to full featured dynamic sites based upon the latest database technology and access. No matter what the level of technology however, the site should combine ease of use with the most powerful features available. An effective bottled water e-commerce site should include the following minimum features.
General Features
•Multiple-Recipient Ordering (allows multiple user shipments in a single transaction)
•No Shopping Cart “Shoving“ (gives the user maximum flexibility before check-out)
•Login Systems for Wholesale and Retail Customers (with remembered billing and recipient party data)
•Code Maturity (provides for reliability and stability of the site)
•Future Arrival Date Provisions (mandatory for scheduling deliveries and shipments)
•Order History and Fast Loading of Orders
•Automatic Shipping for Retail and Wholesale Accounts
Private Label Features
•Interactive and Customer Friendly Label Configurator (allows for user development of labels and artwork)
•Proofing Capability (allows the user to repeatedly review label design before purchase)
•Multi Layered Design ( allows for choice of color, shading and label features)
E-commerce lends itself to rapid fulfillment of orders and increased customer satisfaction when the site utilizes powerful state of the art tools and features coupled with a culture of customer satisfaction. On a user friendly powerful site, water orders for both local delivery and private labeled business are safe, convenient and fast. E-commerce vendors that maintain a culture of customer service will guarantee customer satisfaction.
Word Count:
1122
Summary:
E- Commerce is coming of age with millions of new customers from internet sales for a wide variety of products. The bottled water industry is an ideal beneficiary of e-commerce technology because of the large number of customers served and the frequency of transactions and purchases.
Keywords:
E-commerce, privat labeled drinking water, pure water, local delivery water, customer service, customer satisfaction,SSL, dynamic e-commerce, secure payment, bottled water industry, 5 gallon
Article Body:
April 25, 2006
E- Commerce is coming of age with millions of new customers from internet sales for a wide variety of products. Advances in web site design, payment mechanisms and delivery systems have met the increased demand for online ordering.
With the advent of on-line ordering firms like Amazon and E-Bay, what started out as a small business has morphed into a multi-billion dollar industry. The key to success in the field of E Commerce ist he offering of high quality products coupled with state of the art technology to ensure ease of ordering and secure payment mechanisms.
The bottled water industry is an ideal beneficiary of e-commerce technology because of the large number of customers served and the frequency of transactions and purchases.
E-commerce Defined
E-commerce is similar to other forms of commerce except that it involves the buying and selling of goods over the Internet. E-commerce sites range from a simple web page highlighting a single item to dynamic fully developed on-line catalogs featuring thousands of products.The common theme and benefit in e-commerce sites is instant purchase, instant payment (if desired) and instant gratification for the customer.
Over the years, the e-commerce web has blossomed into a multi-billion dollar industry yearly, with significant growth projected over the next 5 years. A defining characteristic is that all ecommerce web sites accept a type of online payment, whether through a third party or directly with a merchant account..
E-commerce: The Wave of the Future
The internet is changing world view of shoppers. Instant gratification is a reality. Utilizing e-commerce allows customers the ability to quickly take delivery of the goods they require and desire.In addition, the Internet is perhaps the best sales tool ever invented as it allows customers to browse endlessly in privacy. They can return and order again and again without ever leaving their home.
Most experts agree that it is only a matter of time before all sales-oriented companies will have some sort of e-commerce presence in order to remain competitive and the development of software and tools to improve the productivity of e-commerce sites remains strong. As more and better technology is developed, e-commerce will greatly expand.
Secure Payment and SSL(Secure Socket Layer): The Heart of the System
SSL(Secure Socket Layer) has been the de facto standard and heart of the system for e-commerce transaction security, and it's likely to remain so well into the future.
SSL is basedon encryption. SSL encrypts data, like credit cards numbers (as well other personally identifiable information), which prevents unauthorized use. An SSL protected page is identified when the address begins with "https" and there is a padlock icon at the bottom of the page.
SSL Certificates
The SSL certificate resides on a secure server and is used to encrypt the data and to identify the Web site. The SSL certificate also helps to prove the site belongs to who it says it belongs to and contains information about the certificate holder, the domain that the certificate was issued to, the name of the Certificate Authority who issued the certificate, the root and the country it was issued in.
In general,e-commerce users are urged to avoid sites that fail to use and display proof of SSL Ceritifcates.
The Bottled Water Industry and E-commerce
The bottled water business is actually two lines of business: Local delivery water and private labeled water and each is an important subset of the total business.
Local delivery water is defined geographically and usually comprises rental or sales of coolers and delivery of 5-gallon and small package (12, 16.5 and 20 oz.) bottles to customers located within a limited distance from the water source. This business includes a customer base of consumers and businesses in the defined geographic area who take periodic delivery of water. The key to success in this line of business is the production and efficient delivery of the highest quality pure water.
Private labeled water involves the development and production of high quality custom labels with a clear branding message. This line of business is national in scope and includes a strong element of branding and advertising. The key to success in this line of business is the design and production of a label of the highest quality with a clear branding message.
Each line of business has different requirements for e-commerce. For the local delivery business, establishing and meeting delivery schedules is critical with the most advanced sites offering delivery programs that offer the customer choice of delivery schedules and the ability to modify deliveries as conditions warrant.
For the private labeled line of business design flexibility in the form of interactive tools for the development, proofing and production of labels is critical. Another critical aspect of the private labeled line of business is fast and cost effective delivery through national carriers.
A Culture of Customer Service
The best e-commerce site will not produce results without support of an effective customer service organization. E-commerce tools and capabilities must be complemented by a customer service culture that includes rapid customer feed back, human (as opposed to voice mail and e-mail) interaction and clear communication. It is presently impossible to totally remove the human element from e-commerce and the human element is a critical part of the customer satisfaction process..
Best and Powerful Features
There are many varieties of e-commerce sites ranging from the simplest static site that offers very limited features to full featured dynamic sites based upon the latest database technology and access. No matter what the level of technology however, the site should combine ease of use with the most powerful features available. An effective bottled water e-commerce site should include the following minimum features.
General Features
•Multiple-Recipient Ordering (allows multiple user shipments in a single transaction)
•No Shopping Cart “Shoving“ (gives the user maximum flexibility before check-out)
•Login Systems for Wholesale and Retail Customers (with remembered billing and recipient party data)
•Code Maturity (provides for reliability and stability of the site)
•Future Arrival Date Provisions (mandatory for scheduling deliveries and shipments)
•Order History and Fast Loading of Orders
•Automatic Shipping for Retail and Wholesale Accounts
Private Label Features
•Interactive and Customer Friendly Label Configurator (allows for user development of labels and artwork)
•Proofing Capability (allows the user to repeatedly review label design before purchase)
•Multi Layered Design ( allows for choice of color, shading and label features)
E-commerce lends itself to rapid fulfillment of orders and increased customer satisfaction when the site utilizes powerful state of the art tools and features coupled with a culture of customer satisfaction. On a user friendly powerful site, water orders for both local delivery and private labeled business are safe, convenient and fast. E-commerce vendors that maintain a culture of customer service will guarantee customer satisfaction.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
E-Commerce, Put your business on Internet for success.
E-Commerce, Put your business on Internet for success.
Word Count:
514
Summary:
Ttake full advantage of all that the Internet has to offer. Put your business on Internet for success
Keywords:
online business,e-commerce
Article Body:
Copyright 2006 Patrick Tremblay
E-Commerce, Put your business on Internet.
If your business is not on the Internet, it is not doing as well as it could. In today’s day and age, if you are not advertising on the Internet, you are losing a significant amount of business.
You advertise your business in local newspapers, local television and even local radio. That is good. You are getting enough business to keep you afloat. You may receive inquiries from the surrounding cities, or even the bordering states, and that is great.
What if you could attract business from another country?
When you finally decide to take advantage of technology, the Internet is an incredible universe of its own.
When you create a Website, and starting an e-commerce trade, you are opening your business to a whole new world.
Businesses that would not know that you exist are now able to view your website, research your services and contact you with any questions.
By taking advantage of the Internet, you are allowing your business to grow in ways that it could not if you were to advertise with conventional methods.
In recent years, the E-commerce trades as raised a steady twenty-five every year, and experts feel that this trend will continue. When you finally decide to take the plunge and get your business started on the Internet, there are a few steps that you should take before starting. This will be a nerve wrecking, nail biting point in the growth of your business.
There are steps to take before jumping in. As with any new venture, do a lot of research. Find out what the statistics and trends are for your type of business.
Make sure that your products or services are available as soon as your Website goes live. You want to have everything ready to ship as soon as you get an order. If a client feels that they have received exceptional treatment, your business will experience repeat business.
After your website is created and goes live, there is more to do. Advertising your business in the right manner is crucial. Joining E-commerce organizations and associations, can give your business the boost it needs. These are groups of business owners just like you who want to advertise their businesses.
When you join these organizations and associations you are agreeing to their rules and terms. Most have very strict rules of conduct, and once established, Potential clients will find you through them. Remember, if you are debating whether or not to go forward and start an E-commerce Trade, your competitors are taking advantage of the Internet.
For everyday that you procrastinate, your competitors will take full advantage of all that the Internet has to offer. If you are not familiar with the “Do’s and Don’ts” of the Internet, have no fear. A simple search of the Internet will yield Thousands perhaps millions of companies who will explain to you the benefits of an online business. They will assist you in creating and maintaining an online business that will raise your standard of living.
Word Count:
514
Summary:
Ttake full advantage of all that the Internet has to offer. Put your business on Internet for success
Keywords:
online business,e-commerce
Article Body:
Copyright 2006 Patrick Tremblay
E-Commerce, Put your business on Internet.
If your business is not on the Internet, it is not doing as well as it could. In today’s day and age, if you are not advertising on the Internet, you are losing a significant amount of business.
You advertise your business in local newspapers, local television and even local radio. That is good. You are getting enough business to keep you afloat. You may receive inquiries from the surrounding cities, or even the bordering states, and that is great.
What if you could attract business from another country?
When you finally decide to take advantage of technology, the Internet is an incredible universe of its own.
When you create a Website, and starting an e-commerce trade, you are opening your business to a whole new world.
Businesses that would not know that you exist are now able to view your website, research your services and contact you with any questions.
By taking advantage of the Internet, you are allowing your business to grow in ways that it could not if you were to advertise with conventional methods.
In recent years, the E-commerce trades as raised a steady twenty-five every year, and experts feel that this trend will continue. When you finally decide to take the plunge and get your business started on the Internet, there are a few steps that you should take before starting. This will be a nerve wrecking, nail biting point in the growth of your business.
There are steps to take before jumping in. As with any new venture, do a lot of research. Find out what the statistics and trends are for your type of business.
Make sure that your products or services are available as soon as your Website goes live. You want to have everything ready to ship as soon as you get an order. If a client feels that they have received exceptional treatment, your business will experience repeat business.
After your website is created and goes live, there is more to do. Advertising your business in the right manner is crucial. Joining E-commerce organizations and associations, can give your business the boost it needs. These are groups of business owners just like you who want to advertise their businesses.
When you join these organizations and associations you are agreeing to their rules and terms. Most have very strict rules of conduct, and once established, Potential clients will find you through them. Remember, if you are debating whether or not to go forward and start an E-commerce Trade, your competitors are taking advantage of the Internet.
For everyday that you procrastinate, your competitors will take full advantage of all that the Internet has to offer. If you are not familiar with the “Do’s and Don’ts” of the Internet, have no fear. A simple search of the Internet will yield Thousands perhaps millions of companies who will explain to you the benefits of an online business. They will assist you in creating and maintaining an online business that will raise your standard of living.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Digital Certificates and Secure Web Access
Digital Certificates and Secure Web Access
Word Count:
563
Summary:
This article describes the use of Digital Certificates as a mechanism for strongly authenticating users to web sites where identity information is required. Before the advent of digital certificates the only option for authenticating users to a site was to assign a username and password. Digital certificates on the other hand provide for much more robust access control and have a number of benefits over username and password.
Keywords:
Diginus,e-identity,PKI,Digital Certificate,OpenXPKI,SSL,e-government,e-commerce,
Article Body:
Introduction
This article describes the use of Digital Certificates as a mechanism for strongly authenticating users to web sites where identity information is required. Before the advent of digital certificates the only option for authenticating users to a site was to assign a username and password. Digital certificates on the other hand provide for much more robust access control and have a number of benefits over username and password.
Username and password authentication
Using username and password the process is generally as follows: each time a user wishes to access a web service the user navigates to the site and authenticate themselves to the application using unique username and password. This data is passed to the server (hopefully in an encrypted form), the application looks up the username and the password (or a representation of the password) in some form of access control list and provided the information matches the user is granted access.
This method has some obvious limitations:
* The username and password are passed over the web (encrypted or unencrypted) with the typical security concerns of interception.
* The systems administrator normally has unrestricted access to all usernames and passwords with associated security and liability concerns for the service provider (especially with confidential data)
* The user needs to remember as many usernames and passwords as are required by their applications leading to inevitable support issues to recover lost access data
Digital Certificate Authentication
The typical digital certificate web access process is:
The user navigates to the website. Before allowing access it checks the certificate against the access database. The user enters the password locally to confirming their access right to the certificate and is allowed to the website.
Benefits of certificates over username and password:
* General security is enhanced: the user needs both the certificate itself and the password to the certificate to gain access.
* The password is never passed over the web, not even during account set-up.
* At no stage do systems administrators have access to user passwords.
* The certificate can electronically sign data on the website with the benefit of non-repudiation.
* The user uses one digital identity with one password to access a range of applications (reduces passwords to remember).
Implementing Digital Certificates
All major web servers support client authentication via certificates. An SSL certificate on the web server (to support https) enables configuration of client authentication and only requires specification of the access rights for each directory served by the web server. Amend the web application to support client authentication by certificates. If any code was developed to handle user name and password, then the certificate credentials can be looked up in an access control list in just the same way. Client certificates are issued via a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) You can choose implement your own or use the services of a Managed Service Provider such as Diginus Ltd.
Wider Use
Once customers or employees have digital certificates, the same certificates can be used to digitally sign email, PDF and web forms and Microsoft Word documents. With a few small steps a corporate website can be transformed into the centre of a powerful web services infrastructure, with single sign on to multiple web applications, signed email and forms data exchange, all the time knowing exactly who is accessing the resources and data.
Word Count:
563
Summary:
This article describes the use of Digital Certificates as a mechanism for strongly authenticating users to web sites where identity information is required. Before the advent of digital certificates the only option for authenticating users to a site was to assign a username and password. Digital certificates on the other hand provide for much more robust access control and have a number of benefits over username and password.
Keywords:
Diginus,e-identity,PKI,Digital Certificate,OpenXPKI,SSL,e-government,e-commerce,
Article Body:
Introduction
This article describes the use of Digital Certificates as a mechanism for strongly authenticating users to web sites where identity information is required. Before the advent of digital certificates the only option for authenticating users to a site was to assign a username and password. Digital certificates on the other hand provide for much more robust access control and have a number of benefits over username and password.
Username and password authentication
Using username and password the process is generally as follows: each time a user wishes to access a web service the user navigates to the site and authenticate themselves to the application using unique username and password. This data is passed to the server (hopefully in an encrypted form), the application looks up the username and the password (or a representation of the password) in some form of access control list and provided the information matches the user is granted access.
This method has some obvious limitations:
* The username and password are passed over the web (encrypted or unencrypted) with the typical security concerns of interception.
* The systems administrator normally has unrestricted access to all usernames and passwords with associated security and liability concerns for the service provider (especially with confidential data)
* The user needs to remember as many usernames and passwords as are required by their applications leading to inevitable support issues to recover lost access data
Digital Certificate Authentication
The typical digital certificate web access process is:
The user navigates to the website. Before allowing access it checks the certificate against the access database. The user enters the password locally to confirming their access right to the certificate and is allowed to the website.
Benefits of certificates over username and password:
* General security is enhanced: the user needs both the certificate itself and the password to the certificate to gain access.
* The password is never passed over the web, not even during account set-up.
* At no stage do systems administrators have access to user passwords.
* The certificate can electronically sign data on the website with the benefit of non-repudiation.
* The user uses one digital identity with one password to access a range of applications (reduces passwords to remember).
Implementing Digital Certificates
All major web servers support client authentication via certificates. An SSL certificate on the web server (to support https) enables configuration of client authentication and only requires specification of the access rights for each directory served by the web server. Amend the web application to support client authentication by certificates. If any code was developed to handle user name and password, then the certificate credentials can be looked up in an access control list in just the same way. Client certificates are issued via a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) You can choose implement your own or use the services of a Managed Service Provider such as Diginus Ltd.
Wider Use
Once customers or employees have digital certificates, the same certificates can be used to digitally sign email, PDF and web forms and Microsoft Word documents. With a few small steps a corporate website can be transformed into the centre of a powerful web services infrastructure, with single sign on to multiple web applications, signed email and forms data exchange, all the time knowing exactly who is accessing the resources and data.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Choosing an E-Commerce Solution for your Business
Choosing an E-Commerce Solution for your Business
Word Count:
301
Summary:
You know what kind of online business you want to start. Now you need to know more about choosing an E-Commerce solution for your business. Here are some things to look for if you want an all-in-one provider.
Keywords:
start home business, e-commerce,provider,all-in-one provider
Article Body:
Copyright © Michael Hehn, Online-Profit-4-You
You know what kind of online business you want to start. Now you need to know more about choosing an E-Commerce solution for your business. Here are some things to look for if you want an all-in-one provider.
Look for a site that offers a wide range of templates. Though you can usually customize templates, you need to start with a variety to choose from.
When choosing an E-Commerce solution for your business, look for one that has a good wizard that walks you through everything. Ease of use is important so you can get your site up fast and professionally and make later changes easily.
Look at the possibilities for importing and exporting data. If you already have a database and choose a vendor that does not allow you to import it, you will have to retype everything. Export capabilities save you that same hassle should you ever choose a new vendor.
When choosing an e-commerce solution for your business, look for hosts who offer a variety of marketing options, payment options for your customers, and automated shipping options. If the client can't pay the way he wants, he won't buy. If shipping doesn't happen quickly, he may not be a repeat client.
Look for a site that allows you to analyze traffic flow. In order for your business to grow, you need to see what kinds of marketing are working for it.
This is just a start of what to look for when choosing an e-commerce solution for your business. You also need to look at such things as cost and customer service. Choosing the right hosted solution can take some time, but getting it right the first time is important. Take the time to choose a provider who will help your business grow.
Word Count:
301
Summary:
You know what kind of online business you want to start. Now you need to know more about choosing an E-Commerce solution for your business. Here are some things to look for if you want an all-in-one provider.
Keywords:
start home business, e-commerce,provider,all-in-one provider
Article Body:
Copyright © Michael Hehn, Online-Profit-4-You
You know what kind of online business you want to start. Now you need to know more about choosing an E-Commerce solution for your business. Here are some things to look for if you want an all-in-one provider.
Look for a site that offers a wide range of templates. Though you can usually customize templates, you need to start with a variety to choose from.
When choosing an E-Commerce solution for your business, look for one that has a good wizard that walks you through everything. Ease of use is important so you can get your site up fast and professionally and make later changes easily.
Look at the possibilities for importing and exporting data. If you already have a database and choose a vendor that does not allow you to import it, you will have to retype everything. Export capabilities save you that same hassle should you ever choose a new vendor.
When choosing an e-commerce solution for your business, look for hosts who offer a variety of marketing options, payment options for your customers, and automated shipping options. If the client can't pay the way he wants, he won't buy. If shipping doesn't happen quickly, he may not be a repeat client.
Look for a site that allows you to analyze traffic flow. In order for your business to grow, you need to see what kinds of marketing are working for it.
This is just a start of what to look for when choosing an e-commerce solution for your business. You also need to look at such things as cost and customer service. Choosing the right hosted solution can take some time, but getting it right the first time is important. Take the time to choose a provider who will help your business grow.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Building Your Online Store
Building Your Online Store
Word Count:
900
Summary:
The Internet is great at leveling the field for businesses. Where else can you put up a site and immediately compete with huge companies on an international basis?
Keywords:
online store, scalability, security, e-commerce
Article Body:
The Internet is great at leveling the field for businesses. Where else can you put up a site and immediately compete with huge companies on an international basis?
What It Is
E-commerce, clearly termed as web commerce, basically means selling of merchandise or services over the Internet with electronic transactions and also through a secure network. E-com is not merely buying and selling or providing services but it is also a method of advertising and marketing through an electronic system as well. E-com also means facilitating the progress of commercial transactions electronically. Right now e-com is a well-established technology in all major countries. In most cases internet marketing requires you to have your own E-commerce store for maximum return.
Requirements of an E-commerce Store
Building an online store is not an easy job. Software is required that can manage customers as well as their needs. E-commerce software should be able to handle inventory, shipping and handling costs, taxes, dispatching and payment processing of client's orders. You may encounter many options when setting out to build an e- commerce store. Before choosing any of them it is important to have a clear view of your requirements. Technical requirements might include coupons, tracking systems, customer login options or any number of other things. Other requirements include what type of impression you want to provide to your valuable clients.
Study the Sales and Marketing Cycle to Determine Your Needs
Before you opt for any of solutions for building e commerce store, study the basic model of e commerce that represents the entire sales and marketing cycle. The first building block of this cycle is audience in which you define what type of customers you will target. Second are commodities, in which you characterize the types of products you will put on the market. Third is customer support where you will answer the questions and offer solutions to clients' or potential clients' problems. Next are advertising, marketing and endorsement where a business promotes the products or services. Then there is transaction processing, the most important technical phase of the cycle, which will handle orders, taxes, payment processing and order delivery. Transactions may be automatic or manual. In manual processing you have to enter credit card information manually through an offline terminal. In the case of automatic processing a client's order form will be setup with a program that processes and charges the credit card for you. After that there are post-deal services regarding how you provide solutions and services after the sale. Last but not least is brand name with which you will create a distinctive business image to correspond with customers. Nobody is going to pay attention to your online store unless something catches their eye.
Research Your Options
Once you have defined your needs, you can then begin researching your options. There are two basic paths you may follow when building an e-commerce store - either buy ready made software or build a custom system with components and parts according to your requirements and budgets.
Flexibility
Some business firms offer gifts and well placed impulse products for better marketing approaches. This requires an e-com solution to be flexible enough to allow various give-aways, coupons and promotions. Also, if your product comes in a variety of models or styles, with different options and different prices then you must communicate these factors and portray them distinctively in your online store. A true businessperson will certainly follow the patterns of his or her usual clients as well as those who directly visit the site. Web statistic tracking tools can be a great help to this end.
Ease of Use
Some e commerce stores are very easy to use and require only a few minutes to learn while others are more complex with so many features that they can be overwhelming. Being able to see a demonstration of software before buying it is a great help to determining ease of use.
Scalability
Being able to grow with your company is very important. If you choose a very simple solution now, then require a more robust solution down the road, you will lose time converting your store. If the URL structure of your store is not consistent, you can also lose search engine rankings by changing e commerce solutions. Therefore, it is important to choose an e commerce solution that can grow with you. For example, some stores owners may not want coupons in the beginning but then down the road decide it is a good idea. Some stores may also have limits on number of products, inventory control and tracking that down the road will be very important.
Security
Of utmost importance to online stores is transaction security. The priority for any business firm should be secure transactions. Thanks to Netscape for introducing SSL (secure socket layer), data can be protected by online store owners. SSL is an encryption technology that encrypts a message and the receiver decrypts it by using RSA security. To enable SSL on your web server you need a digital ID (a form of identification that will recognize you). Many web hosts provide SSL installation for anywhere from a few bucks to a few hundred bucks per year.
Overall, you want flexibility, ease of use, security and scalability in your store. Research your options before you make a final choice, and whenever possible, get a free trial of your solution before you buy.
Word Count:
900
Summary:
The Internet is great at leveling the field for businesses. Where else can you put up a site and immediately compete with huge companies on an international basis?
Keywords:
online store, scalability, security, e-commerce
Article Body:
The Internet is great at leveling the field for businesses. Where else can you put up a site and immediately compete with huge companies on an international basis?
What It Is
E-commerce, clearly termed as web commerce, basically means selling of merchandise or services over the Internet with electronic transactions and also through a secure network. E-com is not merely buying and selling or providing services but it is also a method of advertising and marketing through an electronic system as well. E-com also means facilitating the progress of commercial transactions electronically. Right now e-com is a well-established technology in all major countries. In most cases internet marketing requires you to have your own E-commerce store for maximum return.
Requirements of an E-commerce Store
Building an online store is not an easy job. Software is required that can manage customers as well as their needs. E-commerce software should be able to handle inventory, shipping and handling costs, taxes, dispatching and payment processing of client's orders. You may encounter many options when setting out to build an e- commerce store. Before choosing any of them it is important to have a clear view of your requirements. Technical requirements might include coupons, tracking systems, customer login options or any number of other things. Other requirements include what type of impression you want to provide to your valuable clients.
Study the Sales and Marketing Cycle to Determine Your Needs
Before you opt for any of solutions for building e commerce store, study the basic model of e commerce that represents the entire sales and marketing cycle. The first building block of this cycle is audience in which you define what type of customers you will target. Second are commodities, in which you characterize the types of products you will put on the market. Third is customer support where you will answer the questions and offer solutions to clients' or potential clients' problems. Next are advertising, marketing and endorsement where a business promotes the products or services. Then there is transaction processing, the most important technical phase of the cycle, which will handle orders, taxes, payment processing and order delivery. Transactions may be automatic or manual. In manual processing you have to enter credit card information manually through an offline terminal. In the case of automatic processing a client's order form will be setup with a program that processes and charges the credit card for you. After that there are post-deal services regarding how you provide solutions and services after the sale. Last but not least is brand name with which you will create a distinctive business image to correspond with customers. Nobody is going to pay attention to your online store unless something catches their eye.
Research Your Options
Once you have defined your needs, you can then begin researching your options. There are two basic paths you may follow when building an e-commerce store - either buy ready made software or build a custom system with components and parts according to your requirements and budgets.
Flexibility
Some business firms offer gifts and well placed impulse products for better marketing approaches. This requires an e-com solution to be flexible enough to allow various give-aways, coupons and promotions. Also, if your product comes in a variety of models or styles, with different options and different prices then you must communicate these factors and portray them distinctively in your online store. A true businessperson will certainly follow the patterns of his or her usual clients as well as those who directly visit the site. Web statistic tracking tools can be a great help to this end.
Ease of Use
Some e commerce stores are very easy to use and require only a few minutes to learn while others are more complex with so many features that they can be overwhelming. Being able to see a demonstration of software before buying it is a great help to determining ease of use.
Scalability
Being able to grow with your company is very important. If you choose a very simple solution now, then require a more robust solution down the road, you will lose time converting your store. If the URL structure of your store is not consistent, you can also lose search engine rankings by changing e commerce solutions. Therefore, it is important to choose an e commerce solution that can grow with you. For example, some stores owners may not want coupons in the beginning but then down the road decide it is a good idea. Some stores may also have limits on number of products, inventory control and tracking that down the road will be very important.
Security
Of utmost importance to online stores is transaction security. The priority for any business firm should be secure transactions. Thanks to Netscape for introducing SSL (secure socket layer), data can be protected by online store owners. SSL is an encryption technology that encrypts a message and the receiver decrypts it by using RSA security. To enable SSL on your web server you need a digital ID (a form of identification that will recognize you). Many web hosts provide SSL installation for anywhere from a few bucks to a few hundred bucks per year.
Overall, you want flexibility, ease of use, security and scalability in your store. Research your options before you make a final choice, and whenever possible, get a free trial of your solution before you buy.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Blogs, Podcasting, and RSS
Blogs, Podcasting, and RSS
Word Count:
599
Summary:
You probably have heard all these terms an awful lot lately. You wonder about what these technologies do? What value to they provide? If you aren't up to speed on these new applications and how they are impacting retail online interaction then read this brief further.
Will these technologies impact you? To be honest, it's too early to tell - but awareness drives innovation and maybe your team will develop an idea/application that truly changes a portion of your eCommerce business.
Keywords:
ecommerce e-commerce emarketing e-marketing internet marketing web
Article Body:
You probably have heard all these terms an awful lot lately. You wonder about what these technologies do? What value to they provide? If you aren't up to speed on these new applications and how they are impacting retail online interaction then read this brief further.
Will these technologies impact you? To be honest, it's too early to tell - but awareness drives innovation and maybe your team will develop an idea/application that truly changes a portion of your eCommerce business.
Here's the rundown:
Blogs
What it is:
Probably the most well known of the three, blogs allow everyday people to quickly develop a website and distribute any type of content that they desire. Many web entrepreneurs use this functionality to develop online stores within niche markets, while using search popularity to beat out larger retailers on the specific terms within the market.
Where Blogs make make sense is within targeted online communities. Certain blog authors develop a large base of specific visitors, hence the site becomes a target market for viral marketing. By integrating your brand image within the site experience at that SPECIFIC blog, you as an online marketer are able to truly segment your marketing PRIOR to converting someone as a customer.
Should you care:
If you have a very unique value proposition, or sell to a very specific or high-value customer segment, blogs can be a great way to increase overall brand awareness. You can better connect with your customers and provide detail into the current sales/promotions that you are providing.
Podcasting
What it is:
Pocasting should be just called mobile video broadcasting - Apple's marketing/development team did a great job with branding their device to a type of emerging media! Similar to traditional radio and television, mobile video broadcasting delivers branded content in either a paid/free environment, on someone's mobile MP3 player (Apple only does video currently, but that will change shortly). Retailers can use this communication channel to further connect to their customers with promotional events, while transmitting specialty programming to meet an interest need.
Should you care:
Not really. Until video podcasting penetration increases, it's still a limited channel for advertising. The best application available right now would be an online content segment that is digitally delivered to an opt-in list. As technology advances, you can potentially do this from your current opt-in page from your website and not from Apple's iTunes platform.
RSS
RSS stands for Real Simple Syndication and is a method for electronic content distribution. RSS is transmitted via the internet, but what makes it unique is that no downloading efforts are needed by the end receiver of the content. It streams instateneously. Consumers can have news readers on their computers, either integrated into an emal client, or an aggregated web application such as News Gator, and are able to get information relating to their interests.
Already gaining steam in the travel industry and within comparison shopping engines, RSS seems to be a valuable way to push news, offers, and infomrmation to customers. Travel companies are able to provide a streaming supply of last minute airfare offers to their customer segments, without that customer having to open an email or visit a webpage.
Should you care:
Depends on the nature of your business. Do you consistently offer new prices? Do you get new pieces to your assortment consistently? Do you have a customer base that is extremely loyal that you want to reach out to with messaging? If so, RSS may another channel to help build your brand.
Craig Smith
Trinity Insight LLC
http://www.trinityinsight.com/
Word Count:
599
Summary:
You probably have heard all these terms an awful lot lately. You wonder about what these technologies do? What value to they provide? If you aren't up to speed on these new applications and how they are impacting retail online interaction then read this brief further.
Will these technologies impact you? To be honest, it's too early to tell - but awareness drives innovation and maybe your team will develop an idea/application that truly changes a portion of your eCommerce business.
Keywords:
ecommerce e-commerce emarketing e-marketing internet marketing web
Article Body:
You probably have heard all these terms an awful lot lately. You wonder about what these technologies do? What value to they provide? If you aren't up to speed on these new applications and how they are impacting retail online interaction then read this brief further.
Will these technologies impact you? To be honest, it's too early to tell - but awareness drives innovation and maybe your team will develop an idea/application that truly changes a portion of your eCommerce business.
Here's the rundown:
Blogs
What it is:
Probably the most well known of the three, blogs allow everyday people to quickly develop a website and distribute any type of content that they desire. Many web entrepreneurs use this functionality to develop online stores within niche markets, while using search popularity to beat out larger retailers on the specific terms within the market.
Where Blogs make make sense is within targeted online communities. Certain blog authors develop a large base of specific visitors, hence the site becomes a target market for viral marketing. By integrating your brand image within the site experience at that SPECIFIC blog, you as an online marketer are able to truly segment your marketing PRIOR to converting someone as a customer.
Should you care:
If you have a very unique value proposition, or sell to a very specific or high-value customer segment, blogs can be a great way to increase overall brand awareness. You can better connect with your customers and provide detail into the current sales/promotions that you are providing.
Podcasting
What it is:
Pocasting should be just called mobile video broadcasting - Apple's marketing/development team did a great job with branding their device to a type of emerging media! Similar to traditional radio and television, mobile video broadcasting delivers branded content in either a paid/free environment, on someone's mobile MP3 player (Apple only does video currently, but that will change shortly). Retailers can use this communication channel to further connect to their customers with promotional events, while transmitting specialty programming to meet an interest need.
Should you care:
Not really. Until video podcasting penetration increases, it's still a limited channel for advertising. The best application available right now would be an online content segment that is digitally delivered to an opt-in list. As technology advances, you can potentially do this from your current opt-in page from your website and not from Apple's iTunes platform.
RSS
RSS stands for Real Simple Syndication and is a method for electronic content distribution. RSS is transmitted via the internet, but what makes it unique is that no downloading efforts are needed by the end receiver of the content. It streams instateneously. Consumers can have news readers on their computers, either integrated into an emal client, or an aggregated web application such as News Gator, and are able to get information relating to their interests.
Already gaining steam in the travel industry and within comparison shopping engines, RSS seems to be a valuable way to push news, offers, and infomrmation to customers. Travel companies are able to provide a streaming supply of last minute airfare offers to their customer segments, without that customer having to open an email or visit a webpage.
Should you care:
Depends on the nature of your business. Do you consistently offer new prices? Do you get new pieces to your assortment consistently? Do you have a customer base that is extremely loyal that you want to reach out to with messaging? If so, RSS may another channel to help build your brand.
Craig Smith
Trinity Insight LLC
http://www.trinityinsight.com/
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