eCommerce
Adding Credibility Signs To Have A Profitable eCommerce Website
With the incredible competition in the online marketplace, it has become obvious that more importance should be put on site’s credibility. Generating more leads becomes possible when customers feel comfortable and secure while shopping online with your web store. So it is highly recommended to apply the proven basics of the retail success.
To run a successful ecommerce website, you need to make your web store as attractive as possible and display your product range to the best advantage.
You may incorporate an online catalogue that provides detailed information on each product and make it easy for the online shopper to make a purchase. Perhaps it would be nice to have organized categories and use thumbnails to give faster load time. Just let the visitors learn about your product, win your customers’ interest before they will actually shop online.
Note that for a fail-safe eCommerce project it is highly recommended that the retailer is physically present in the web store having a real name instead of pseudonym, putting a personal picture and being ready to communicate with customers, explain the process of placing the order and proceeding with it. Simply let your customers feel that they know at least something about you to be certain that someone will take care of them.
Additionally, you should give clear and accessible information about your company, your contact information, customer service. It’s highly preferable to present these options as links on your eCommerce website’s main navigation menu. What’s also important here is to provide the answers to the commonly asked questions using FAQs, for instance. Your customers will feel comfortable with a fully developed customer service policy. They will also feel secure in your store if there is SSL on your online payment pages, some visible signs that your site is secure and online payment systems are safe. Plus you can show credibility signs like 3rd party trust logos, security audits of your website, accreditation logos included in strategic points on your site, etc. The above-mentioned factors are actually the prime concern of every potential online shopper.
Do you know that the visitors are sure to give up shopping with eCommerce websites that have large sections under construction or offer coming soon banners, stores that never offer any new content, littered with dead links, hosted by providers that provide slow or inconsistent services? Be sure, all this will kill online shopping and a business eventually. It is extremely important that you, as a solid online retailer, could afford to professionally maintain your eCommerce website, otherwise the visitors will leave you.
To make your eCommerce website a high converting machine that not only has top-quality look, but also builds tremendous credibility, you may apply to Template Monster that’s having this killing promo currently – their eCommerce Templates are 20% off starting August 25th. Out of such product categories as osCommerce, Magento, PrestaShop, Zen Cart, VirtueMart, and CRE Loaded Templates, online retailers can pick any design and purchase it with a guaranteed discount. Every eCommerce Template developed by Template Monster expert designers has a professional-looking, fully functional design that will build exceptional credibility with potential online shoppers. So make the click that matters! Follow this source to get a professional eCommerce design at a 20% discount and make your eCommerce site visitors actually shop with your new shiny store.
Easily Create Online Survey Polls With Flisti
Are you thinking of holding up a vote on your website or blog? Holding an online poll is perhaps the easiest way to do this. And thanks to Flisti, creating online polls had never been easier.
Flisti is a free and user friendly website that assists visitors in poll creation. There is nothing to download or install – everything happens within your web browser. Moreover no registrations or account creations are required. You can jump right into the poll creation process.
The entire poll creation interface is located on the site’s homepage. You start by entering the question your poll will ask. Then you enter the answers. By default you can enter two answers; using the little “Add” button in the bottom right, you can add fields for more answers.
You can also allow or disable choosing multiple answers. When you have entered your questions and answers, click on the “Create New Poll” button. This will create a simple poll with a unique URL.
You can invite people to cast their vote by sharing the poll’s URL or by sharing it directly on the supported social networks. If you want to put the poll up on your own website or blog, you can copy the generated HTML code and paste it on your website.
In these easy steps, you would have created your online poll. Visit Flisti.
10 Collaborative Brainstorming Web Apps When You Work As A Group
The internet has recently seen a lot of progress in the field of online collaboration. When we are working on a project as a group and group members have to work remotely, online collaboration becomes a wonderful way to bridge the physical gap.
Below you will find 10 websites which I feel are great for brainstorming and working as a group. Check each one out and see which one suits your group project best.
1. Zoho
Zoho is the name for a collection of services. The entries you see in the image above are only few of what Zoho has to offer. We can sign up for an account and use Zoho’s services to easily gather ideas and create plus modify files / documents / images / presentations as a group. Click here to visit Zoho.
2. Mind42
Mind42 is free to use website that lets us brainstorm individually or as a group. We can create an account and record our ideas through simple mind maps. Mind maps can be group brainstorming a lot more effective because they save time when it comes to filtering our ideas. Click here to visit Mind42.
3. Imagination Cubed
Imagination Cubed is a very simple to use website that facilitates group drawing. We are provided a canvas on which we can draw with a red virtual pen. We can insert various shapes and text, draw straight lines, and change the canvas’s color. Our pen’s motion is also recorded and a “replay” button shows us exactly the motion our pen followed. We can invite our friends to our canvas via their email address. Once they join in we can draw simultaneously on the same canvas. Click here to visit Imagination Cubed.
4. Edistorm
Edistorm is a website that lets us add notes to a very large canvas. We can move around notes to prioritize them and sort our ideas. Under the free account we can create public and self brainstorming sessions. For a fee we can create private brainstorming sessions which let us share our canvas with users we invite only. Our invited users can view our canvas and add notes to it as well. Click here to visit Edistorm.
5. WiseMapping
WiseMapping is another website that lets users create mind maps as a group. The interface is user friendly and saves users’ time in figuring out the controls. We can embed ready mind maps in any website. Through WiseMapping we can also save our mind maps as image files or PDF documents. Click here to visit WiseMapping.
6. Think
Think is an online tool that lets users create interlinked mind maps. We can link one node of our map to many nodes and then shift them around as we see fit. The simplicity of use is what makes Think unique. Click here to visit Think.
7. Bubbl.us
Bubbl.us lets users sign up for an account and create mind maps as a group. The mind maps created on the site are colorful and have a variety of colors differentiating map nodes which makes them easier to spot and read. Click here to visit Bubbl.us.
8. Sneffle (Virtual Paper)
Sneffel gives users a whiteboard to draw on. The URL of the whiteboard can be shared with our friends for collaborative drawing. We can embed the whiteboard on our blog or website as well. Click here to visit Sneffel.
9. Glinkr
Glinkr, another online mind map creation tool, is great for online collaboration. We can create colorful mind maps that are easy to read. Plus we can attach additional descriptions and links to our nodes. The interactive interface lets us easily move the nodes of our map. Our maps can be exported to an XML file. Click here to visit Glinkr.
10. Solvr
Solvr is a free to use website that lets us post a problem and then share that URL with our friends whom we want to ask the solution from. This can be helpful when we want to reach a solution as group. The approach is that of an online forum but dedicated to problem solving. Click here to visit Solvr.
TomatoCart: Open Source Shopping Cart Solution
Online shopping websites always have the shopping cart option for their visitors and shoppers. Normally osCommerce is the tool used by developers to form the shopping cart. But now a much better option is available – TomatoCart.
While osCommerce is a highly popular ecommerce solution, it is quite time consuming due to lack code-graphics separation and graphic template system. TomatoCart is a new generation of open source shopping cart solution developed by Elootec Technology.
The service is currently free and will remain so in the future. ExtJS is the framework used by TomatoCart. It also provides users with multi-window environments so that they simultaneously work on several modules. If you are already working on osCommerce, you can use TomatoCart Migration Tool to import osCommerce data of Languages, Categories, Products, to name a few.
Some of the highlights of TomatoCart include:
- RIA based Administration Panel: The Desktop and Mutiwindow environment, as known to all, is efficient.
- Search Engine Optimization: Rich keyword URLs are generated for products, reviews, just to name a few.
- Web Analytics (Piwik): Piwik is integrated into Dashboard to generate detailed reports about visitors to stores.
- Lightweight Framework: TomatoCart, high-performance is not picky of servers. It will do even on php5.1.6.
- Content Management System: Articles, FAQs, Slide images are fully under your control.
- Email System: You can manage your online store while handling emails.
If you are interested in this new shopping cart solution, check it out TomatoCart. A guide on how to use TomatoCart can be gotten here.
eType: Auto-Complete Words, Spell Check & Translation Tool (1000 Invites)
Many freeware typing tutor programs can help increase your typing speed and accuracy. But if you want a simple application that guesses which word you are about to type and automatically fills in the letters, then eType is what you need.
eType is a freeware currently in its beta. The downloadable app is compatible with Windows and sized at almost 5 MB. Installation is quite standard and you will have it up and running in no time.
Once the program has been installed, you can have it run in the background as an icon in your system tray. You can right click on the icon and enable / disable eType’s function.
So what exactly does eType do?
eType monitors your typing activity in any application. Whether you are using notepad, Microsoft Word, typing in your web browser, chatting, or doing any other typing activity, eType will be monitoring what you type. As soon as you type in a few letters, word suggestions will pop up in a floating window. From this floating window you can select the word you wanted to use. A word can be selected by pressing ENTER or SPACE or clicking on the word. You can choose to skip the word selection by pressing the ESC key. To revert to typing the old way, you can always disable eType from its system tray icon.
By completing a user’s words eType will help many computer users who want to type fast and save time.
eType is a freeware program and currently in beta. There are 1000 instant beta invites exclusively available for SmashingApps readers. You can get eType from http://www.etype.com/v.aspx?id=smashingapps
We do not need anything in return but would appreciate a lot if you can guys can spread the word and tweet it.
New Customization Features Added to Google News
Google News has undergone extensive testing by Google and finally the service now has a number of notable customization options. Read on to learn about them:
1. Topics you can subscribe to
In the left pane of Google News, you will find a topics list. Click on any topic to find news related to it. When the news open up, you will find a button which lets you add that topic to your personalized news page thereby subscribing to the topic.
2. News For You
News For You is a brilliant idea by Google. You can edit the news topics by filtering them out of your news feed. New topics can be added by entering keywords in the search bar provided in the News For You box. You can also specify the frequency with which you read about each topic so that news is correspondingly arranged.
3. Selecting / Deselecting News Sources
If there is a certain news source that you prefer, you can click on “Settings” at the top of the page, select “News settings” and start typing the sites you’d like to see more often in Google News. On the other hand if there is a news source you do not like, you follow the same procedure and eliminate the news source from your feed.
4. Social Network Integration
Clicking on the small arrow in the top right corner of each news cluster will drop down networks on which you can share the current news. This is a great way to let your friends know of anything interesting you read.
5. Keyboard Shortcuts
Some keyboard shortcuts have been added to enhance the user experience. The following keys apply: j or n (next story), k or p (previous story), / (search), s (star), . or f (share), Enter (open the headline article for the current story).
Google has clearly improved its News page by giving more control to the user. A full list of new features can be read here, on Google’s official page on the matter.
Estimurl: Website Estimated Worth Finder And Analysis Tool
Many professional bloggers start up their own websites. They then bring it up to a reputable level at which they begin receiving offers for the site. Determining what price would be fair for the site can be a little tricky. People value websites in various ways because there is no standard. But Estimurl is one service that provides its visitors with a fair and comprehensively calculated value of a site.
Estimurl is a free to use web service that determines the value of a website. This can be greatly helpful in determining what price to quote for the site you have worked so hard on. Finding the fair market value will also help buyers ensure they are not paying more than what is fair.
The homepage of the site is filled with many elements but the text field is on top and stands out. You enter the website’s (any website’s) URL in this text field and then click the “Check” button. The site then processes some data and you a window computing the statistics.
The site’s unique algorithm runs its own tests on the URL you enter. After processing the stats you are shown a comprehensive set of results with the site’s value located on top.
Under this portion you can view various other details about the site such as Alexa rank, and estimates of the website’s daily income and daily visitors.
The final portion of the result shows the IP address of the site’s server and its physical location on a map.
You can use Estimurl to find out the worth of your site or run random tests to find other sites’ worth. Either way, Estimurl will serve flawlessly.
DoYouBuzz Can Help You Easily Create Customizable Resume and Spread It Across Social Networks
People whose work involves computers need to have an online version of their resumes a.k.a. curricula vita. If you plan on uploading an online CV furnished in Microsoft Word, you will not stand out from the crowd. You need a resume that is brilliant and eye catching. DoYouBuzz can help with that.
DoYouBuzz is a wonderful website that helps you create an online resume within minutes. The site features free and paid accounts. While you can take full advantage of the site’s services only through the paid account, the free version will be a good place to start.
You start by creating a username and password on the site. Entering your name gives you your very own DoYouBuzz URL. As you move on you can transfer information from your LinkedIn and Viadeo accounts. At the time you enter your name, you can also enter your employment type and field.
The resume starts off as a basic black and white template which you can modify to give a visually brilliant look. This is what the resume looks like without any work done on it:
Additions to your resume can be made using the buttons on top. From there you can choose different templates and color schemes for your online CV.
You can choose to add a variety of things to your resume such as media additions to your portfolio.
The completed resume can even be linked to your social media accounts to share with your friends and family.
People who work online (especially freelancers) can immensely benefit from DoYouBuzz’s online resumes. Click here to visit the site.
Digital Product Delivery: Selling Products Online Is Not That Hard, As We Assume!
Selling digital products on the Internet can look like an overwhelming and expensive endeavor. However, with the right tools, knowledge, and experience, it is very feasible to make a remarkably viable online marketplace in a matter of a few clicks of the mouse. Significantly helping to streamline and simplify the process for online marketers while still offering a wealth of features and options is DPD.
Standing for Digital Product Delivery, it is a comprehensive e-commerce utility for people who want to sell digital products on the web.
Sell Digital Downloads at a Flat Price
With some of the other online marketplaces that facilitate the sale of digital products, the sellers are hit with transaction fees, hosting fees, and other charges that can quickly bite into the bottom line. Such is not the case with DPD. Instead, subscribers pay a low monthly fee and are offered unlimited downloads and unlimited transactions. In fact, it is possible to sell digital products through a number of different websites, all through one DPD account.
When you use a standard Google Checkout or PayPal process for selling a digital product, you may be hosting your premium content on a freely available webpage. You may use a generic link that is sent out to all buyers, opening up the possibility of link farming, piracy, and other related issues. DPD is different in the way that it works. Each buyer is provided with a unique, secure download link. This way, it is much more difficult for multiple people to download from the same purchase. In the settings area on the user dashboard, you can also set restrictions in the number of download attempts, as well as a time limit for how long the generated download link remains active.
Multiple Websites, Multiple Profiles, Multiple Products
One of the major features offered by DPD is that it can handle multiple websites and multiple products from a single DPD account and interface. This significantly streamlines the process. Each website can be afforded its own profile, defining such items as the store name, website URL, currency accepted, contact name, default language, payment processor, Google merchant ID, tracking HTML, download limits, and more. Since this e-commerce tool hosts all of your digital products too, you don’t have any worries about bandwidth and minimal concerns over downtime. Most DPD plans have no product file size limit, ensuring that you have enough room for larger content like videos and software packages.
Inspecting the User Dashboard
From this dashboard, you have quick access to your stats and analytics, as well as the ability to edit your websites and products.
Each website and each product is listed separately on your inventory page, including links to the different options and customizations available. Each product is given its own unique product ID, as well as a thumbnail image. Going into each individual product, you can also gain access to pre-designed buttons (including the full HTML code for each) that you can then embed on your websites, forums, and other places on the Internet. There are sets compatible with single-item (instant) checkouts and multiple-item (shopping cart) checkouts. After the buyer completes the purchase process, he or she can be redirected to a return URL that you define. This could be a specialized “thank you” page that you design or it could be back to your main website; it’s up to you.
Integration with WordPress Blogs
WordPress continues to be one of the most popular content management systems on the Internet, not only for blogs, but also for content websites and e-commerce stores. As such, DPD has also been designed to be compatible with the platform. In this way, you can “turn your WordPress blog into a download selling marketplace” with DPD. There is no extra code-edited needed on your part. In fact, you don’t even need to copy-and-paste like how you would with a regular website. Instead, the entire transaction can be facilitated with the WordPress plugin. Simply download and activate the plugin, connecting to your DPD account, and you’ll be ready to sell digital products on your WordPress site in no time. This includes a sidebar checkout widget, customizable buttons, and the ability to add cart buttons to your posts.
Run Your Own Affiliate Programs
Want to enlist the help of affiliates to promote your product? As it turns out, DPD comes with it’s own built-in affiliate system to automatically track affiliate’s commissions and generate payout reports. DPD generates your own affiliate “mini-site” to link from your sales site where your affiliates can log in and view their sales stats, generate links, read vendor news, and more. DPD supports multiple payout levels too, so you can set up “super affiliates” with higher payouts. A unique feature of DPD, vendors can create affiliate buy buttons that allow affiliates to sell your products, right from their website while you retain complete control.
Offering Coupons and Discounts
Allowing you to open a regular e-commerce store is already pretty powerful, especially with multi-website and multi-product support, but DPD goes even further.
It is possible to offer discount codes for each of your digital products. These coupons codes are defined by you and you can define the amount of the discount, either as a flat rate or as a percentage of the purchase price. Want to only offer the coupon to the first X number of buyers? You can do that too. The coupon can also be time-limited, giving you all sorts of opportunities for creative marketing and promotion.
Sell Digital Products with Fixed Costs
A remarkably robust and powerful e-commerce tool, DPD is also very affordable, even for the smallest of online merchants. There are a number of pricing plans available, including a 30-day free trial. All plans include PayPal support, Google Checkout support, an affiliate enabled multi-item checkout cart, ClickBank support, and the ability to give free samples. The smallest plan is just $5 a month and includes up to 10 products with a max product size of 50MB. Even at this price, you are afforded unlimited bandwidth and unlimited transactions. The most popular plan is $10 a month, allowing for up to 20 digital products, unlimited product space, unlimited bandwidth, and unlimited transactions. The 30 product, 60 product, and 120 product plans are $16, $22, and $30 per month, respectively. DPD even has larger plans available for volume sellers!
Let Your Customers Rate Your Emails With Nice Reply
Leaving a good impression on your customers is the key element in the success of any business. The way you communicate with your customers reflects on how high you value them. Attention to little things is of utmost important because you want your business to have loyal customers who come back for your services every time.
To give your customers what they want, you first have to know their wants. One way to go about it would be to collect feedback from your customers about a particular issue that you feel needs improvement. “Nicereply” is a perfect example of this.
Nicereply is a free to use website that helps you improve your interaction with your customers. This is achieved by improving the email messages sent to customers.
The way it all works is quite simple. You create an account on Nicereply and obtain a link which you should add to the signature of the email. A small description could be included in the signature, asking customers to click on the link and indicate their satisfaction with the email message. When they click on the link, their response is observed by Nicereply and recorded in your Nicereply account. You can view the overall statistics of a certain email message and see how successful it is in satisfying customers. The nature of the email can be anything: from an automated response to something offering tickets and coupons.
The customer service representatives in your company can have individual accounts at Nicereply. This will form a healthy competitive environment in which each employee will be motivated to excel amongst his peers when it comes to customer satisfaction.
Nicereply works as a wonderful tool in determining whether or not your emails are up to the mark. Click here to visit Nicereply.
