Archive for the ‘Business Practice’ Category

My last article discussed how people get caught up in fancy technology and never even consider the online business fundamentals in meeting visitor needs and ultimately building credibility.  This article breaks down what you need to do to achieve this.

Whether you are a new or existing online business, when you have a first time visitor to your site, the product offering is important, but it is the methods in building credibility with the visitor that will determine whether they buy from you now, or come back to purchase later.

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The potential problem all online businesses face is, as sales increase, ROI decreases.  This is due to the increase in cost/resource to deliver the orders.  It is fine for online businesses to say they are acquiring 250 + orders per day through the website, but how profitable are they?   The automation of processes reduces cost and builds efficiencies.

The focus on fulfilment is two pronged, building fulfilment processes is critical in both building customer loyalty and in creating a scalable and profitable business.

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To acquire new customers typically costs money, whether it is online or off, so there needs to be methods in retaining and building their long term value.  True online customer service is defined as all the activities conducted once the customer completes a purchase.  This is referring specifically to the conduct of the customer service team towards their customers.  

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Our brains respond to colour. It’s no accident that Coke and Ferrari use red, IBM blue and black, and the UPS courier service use brown. People tend to relax in green rooms, weightlifters have been found to perform better in blue gyms, babies cry more in yellow rooms. Prisons and hospitals now use specific colours to influence the behaviour of inmates and patients.

If you’re thinking of redesigning your website, or re-branding, it pays to research your colour choices carefully before you commit.

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Here’s a question for you, “If one of our greedy little banks offered a deal on one dollar coins for fifty cents, how many would you buy?”

Most normal people would say, “I’ll take the lot”, right?

Why then do companies have an advertising budget?

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This approach is so simple, yet so powerful, that most clients mentally kick themselves that they had been wasting time struggling with how to do shipping online. It may take a little time to get your head around, however it has succeeded for every one of Exceed’s eCommerce clients to date.

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The process of connecting to a market has always been arduous for many.  For those who truly feel an online presence is key to growth (that should be all of you), the ability to implement a strategy around feedback loops is critical.  If you are a pure play, this is compulsory.  

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You may have noticed an increase in articles from me about Email Marketing lately. Other than it being one of my online areas of specialty, it’s also one of the lowest-cost / highest-return forms of marketing (online or offline); and with my background in wholesale and retail, show me something with such impressive returns from such a small outlay, and I can’t help but get excited!

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According to research released today, interesting changes in online buying habits suggest retailers have a growing influence on consumer’s online purchase decisions.

Compared to a similar study in 2004, shoppers are starting their online search with fewer decisions made in advance.  

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With 2008 now behind us, we decided to start 2009 by putting all our online experts in one room.

They survived each other, and the result is our top picks for the hottest online trends for the year ahead…

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