 |
|
The source of the best business, financial and legal news |
|
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
|
|
|
 | |
| |
 |
Business Informations |
|
|
|
Is ECommerce Right for Our Business?
If your business features products or services for sale, undoubtedly the topic of eCommerce has come up. What is eCommerce? Literally defined as "the conduct of financial transactions by electronic means," it refers to purchases made over the Internet. There are popular slang terms such as ebusiness, click and mortar, dotcom, cyber-mall and multiple spellings (eCommerce, e-commerce, E-Commerce), but they are all basically the same thing. Don't let the different phrases confuse you, it all comes back to the same principle: selling online. So how do you know if selling online will be beneficial for your business? There are a few basic questions that can help you with this decision. First and foremost, can you afford to develop a professional eCommerce storefront on your Web site? You've heard the phrase "if you can't do it right, it's not worth doing at all". This is especially true in regards to eCommerce because people will not purchase from your Web site if it looks amateur and is poorly done. Custom developed eCommerce sites can cost tens of thousands of dollars, but pre-built shopping cart solutions such as WebSolutions' Marketplace can provide your business with a professional eCommerce storefront for a fraction of the cost. Another benefit of a program like this is whereas a Yahoo or eBay store may be less expensive to get going, it's going to be less customizable, and as your business grows, you'll outgrow the site and need to start over again. An option like the Marketplace provides a great starting place with unlimited building potential and growth. After the cost issue is addressed, you need to evaluate the potential of selling your product or service online. Are any of your competitors selling online? If not, have a brainstorming session and try to think of any logical reasons why they aren't. Could it be that they tried and failed or is it that they just haven't thought about selling online yet? One key to remember is that once you make the decision to sell online, your product and pricing is now available 24/7 to anyone that stumbles upon your site. After evaluating your competitor's Web sites, you need to look at your product line and determine your target audience. Who buys from your now? Are you selling to businesses or individuals? If the answer is businesses, are they generally companies that are active on the Internet or businesses that don't rely on the Web as much (such as mechanics, restaurants, etc.). If the answer is individuals, what demographic(s) are you advertising your products or services to? You need to be sure that the people you want purchasing your product have access to the Internet and are willing to shop online. Few businesses realize that over 80% of the world's Internet access speed is still dial-up, so loading huge catalogs, Flash files, and large graphics will deter a prospect from purchasing. Finally, you need to determine how you can make your business stand out from all the rest. If you're selling copier supplies, why is someone going to come to your site versus the other millions of copier supply Web sites? Are you going to sell based on price, location, quantity, quality of service? Are you going to provide online shipment tracking, account management, wish lists, real-time credit card authorization and processing, and other advanced eCommerce applications to make your site more professional? These are all issues that need to be addressed before you start designing your first product page. Taking the next step of selling online is a big decision for your business and isn't to be taken lightly. There is significant cost and risk involved, but there is also significant reward waiting to be had. Be sure to consult with your Web developer to find out which options are available to you and do your research ahead of time. Not every eCommerce site is profitable, but if you prepare, there's no reason yours can't be. WebSolutions is a professional Web site design, development, and hosting company based near Chicago. Their expertise in eCommerce has been highlighted in print and television and their custom developed solutions and pre-built shopping cart application (The Marketplace) has been successful for businesses nationwide. Jon Kee handles all sales and marketing related activities for WebSolutions and can be reached by phone at 630.375.6833 or email @ sales@wsol.com. Visit us online: http://www.wsol.com
MORE RESOURCES:
ecommerce - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Internet and Customer Care: Aid or Anarchy? It was reported in 'Marketing' magazine this month, that Britain is becoming a "disaffected nation", with each adult apparently making an average of 12 complaints to service providers each year, based on a "Service in Britain" survey by ASR (Andrew Smith Research). In response to the rise of the 'assertive consumer', brands are endeavouring to make sure 'good customer service' is a recognisable characteristic in the form of testimonials, efficient call centre responses and empowering staff throughout the company to resolve problems. Dont give up on your business! Summer must be when many work at home Mom start to think that their business is a flop and begin to look for a new opportunity. This is fine if your business is truly a flop - but chances are, you just need to take a look at it from a fresh perspective. Choosing the Right Online Shopping Cart Are you a website owner or a web designer/developer? If either applies, I would venture to say that eventually you'll need an online shopping cart for one of your websites. In fact, almost all new websites today need some sort of ecommerce built-in, for the purpose of selling goods and services in the online marketplace. Ecommerce Marketing Plan Concept of ServiceThe current work deals with marketing offer of e-commerce service. It highlights the essential steps of marketing of a brand-new firm offering services of website construction, design, programming, development, and promotion. Accept Credit Cards Online Without A Merchant Account It is often assumed if you want to accept credit cards on your website that you must have a merchant account. This is not the case. Shopping Cart Features to Consider Often the simplest Web stores have the most success. But shoppers like special features depending upon the type of store you have, how you market and use them, and if you don't overwhelm the shopper. Gooooooooooogle It! .. Your Site is all Direct Marketing This may not be a popular view, but I think writing a web site is very similar to writing a piece of direct mail. I'm not talking about smash-and-grab fliers. 5 Tips for Online Shopping Shopping online has become more and more popular in America as we are all looking to save a little time and money. E-commerce sales are growing at astronomical numbers ranging from 20-25% per year. Are You Making These E-Commerce Excuses? (part 2) Last time, we started to take a look at the most common reasons why most people don't make progress on their e-commerce and Internet marketing goals. Today, we continue the discussion. How To Sell Websites Fast ! This article will explain in depth the steps needed to sell your website fast in today's marketplace.Step 1 Establish a Reasonable Price for Your SiteHow Much Can I Get?Before you sell, it's a good idea to know how much the domain is worth. Selling Globally Through a B2B Exchange Participation in B2B Exchanges is increasingly becoming one of the fastest growing marketing methods for businesses looking for augmenting their client base beyond their local markets. Any good B2B Exchange offers direct contact with thousands of prospective buyers in a single location. Electronic Commerce Tax Jurisdiction and Principles of Permanent Establishment The principle of "permanent establishment" is very important for avoidance the conflict of law of matter connected imposition of taxation. In the absence of a permanent establishment, a country where goods or services are sold has no jurisdiction to tax the resulting profits. Excuse Me, Are You Wasting Traffic? The largest cost and concern of an internet business is customer acquisition; traffic. Both quantity and quality of traffic directly determines the succes of an internet business. Your Readers are Publishers Too Too often we charge ahead and treat the web as if it were just like any other medium. We know it isn't, but somehow we just can't resist retaining complete control of the creation and publication of our website and newsletter content. Creating Legal Framework for E-commerce Taxation; non-tax statutes We have to make amendments in existing substantive and procedural laws to make it compactable with changing technological advancement of e-commerce?Amending Contract Act, 1872I recommend the amendments in section 3 and 4 of contract Act 1872 so as to make the compactable with section 13, 14 and 15, of the electronic transaction ordinance 2002 related with attribute of communication, acknowledgement of receipt and time and place of the communication between the parties. Either additional section should be added for acceptance device of 'electronic communication', or words be added in matter connected with electronic communication relevant section 13,14 and 15 be evoked while interpretation of section 3 and 4 of contract Act 1872. How to Receive Payments for Your Online Sales Once you decide which products you are planning to sell on the Internet, and what type of web store you are going to use in order to display your products, next vital decision that you have to take is to figure out how your customers are going to pay you. Whatever you plan to sell online, accepting credit card transaction is a must! A full 90 percent of all online sales occur through credit card payments. What is SSL (the little padlock)? SSL ("Secured Socket Layer") is a protocol used to encrypt the communication between the user's browser and the web server. When SSL is active, a "little padlock" appears on the user's browser, usually in the status line at the bottom (at the top for Mac/Safari users. 12 Easy and Effective Ways To Create Reports 1. Combine a few of your articles into a free report. Is ECommerce Right for Our Business? If your business features products or services for sale, undoubtedly the topic of eCommerce has come up. What is eCommerce? Literally defined as "the conduct of financial transactions by electronic means," it refers to purchases made over the Internet.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||
|
||||
|
