Tag Archive for: eCommerce

10 PERSUASIVE TECHNIQUES TO CONVINCE YOUR ECOMMERCE CUSTOMERS TO BUY

If you own an ecommerce store acquiring more customers is essential to your business. But did you know that convincing a customer to buy is the real deal? Here are some techniques to convince customers to buy.

The web is bombarded with tricked-out strategies that manipulate SEO or convince owners to create viral Youtube Campaigns to win customers. They overlook the basics and forget that in the modern world customers are subject to persuasion techniques, cognitive biases, psychological theories, etc.

Having a solid foundation of excellent persuasion technique will give you an edge over your competitors. It will provide a deeper insight into why your visitors buy and the reason why some abandon the cart. Here is how you convince your customers to buy your ecommerce product;

#1. USE THE POWER OF RECIPROCITY

Ever received a gift from a friend that left you feeling obligated to return the favor? That is called the power of reciprocity. However, in this case, you have to take it a step further. Once you have offered an irresistible gift to your customers, don’t wait for the voluntary act from them. Take the opportunity and ask for the favor in return.

Customers like bonuses, they help them to build compelling emotions around the brand. When customers receive bonuses they feel appreciated and happy. They find reasons to strongly connect to your brand. At this point, they feel more obligated to return the favor by buying more from your store.

In addition to bonuses, you can offer your customers a tripwire (a low priced product that is irresistible). This product should be designed not to bring profit but to convert a visitor into a loyal buyer.

Alternatively, offer discounts and free gifts. This could be a welcome discount, product samples, free shipping, or a surprise free gift shipped with the ordered product. Moreover, you can pamper your existing customer by sending them appreciation notes and cards.

#2. ENTICING PRODUCT SUMMARY

Do not overlook the importance of a compelling, well-written, and detailed product description. Nowadays, online customers rely heavily on the web to learn about the products they want. Unless they get enough details they won’t be convinced to buy the product. For this reason, if the product description is lacking they will take the business elsewhere.

Unturn all the stones and give rich descriptions using a simple and clear language. Explain every product feature and do not forget to include specs such as weight, measurements, materials, and the sizing charts. Give the information in bullets points to make it easily digestible. It’s paramount to articulate the superior value offered by the product features and how they enhance customers’ lives. Be specific and straightforward in your language of benefits but practice the highest standard of honesty.

#3. UTILIZE VISUALS

The description of the product is incredibly important but remember “a picture is worth a thousand words”. A rich product description is to be accompanied by quality product visuals.

Produce large images that can be zoomed easily. The images should be of high resolution, free of clutter, and well-fit. The images should also be taken from different angles for easier identification of the product.

Besides, the up close shots should include images of the product in its lifestyle setting ( the place where the product is used by the consumer). This will easily convince the customer since it makes them visualize utilizing the product in their everyday life.

If your pockets are deep enough, set a budget for videos. This can be particularly effective for providing value-based descriptions and showing off 360 degrees product views in an incredible visual format.

#4. PROVIDE SOCIAL PROOF

Even before the emergence of the social media, humans were naturally social. For this reason, they are influenced by their peers, especially if they highly regard them. Its social proof that makes your customer to base their buying action on the actions of those around them.

Studies have shown that 7 out of 10 online shoppers trust online reviews. Moreover, over 6 out of 10 online shoppers are motivated by positive reviews to buy a product. Share counts, reviews, testimonials, and ratings contribute immensely to the social proof.

Invite customers to give written reviews both positive and negative. Although it’s very tempting to remove the negatives reviews, you are better off letting them stay on your site. This is because customers will become suspicious if they only find positive reviews on your site. Instead of weeding out the negative reviews respond to them in a more constructive way. It helps to clear your brand image and enhance the user experience.

In addition, it’s important to pay attention to what others say about your brand outside your site. Visit sites that exist explicitly for product reviews in a specific industry. Respond promptly to all the valid complaints.

#5. LIKENESS

Customers are simply tempted to say yes to a product they like. This is influenced by two factors; one is the physical attraction. Studies have shown that if something or someone is physically attractive it is more persuasive. Two is a similarity. Customers are persuaded by products they can familiarize with.

When it comes to ecommerce, the two factors can be translated into your store design. If you have a cleaner and more attractive site design, it will help you to convert quite easily.

#6. ATTENTION BIAS

Online shoppers feel more attached to emotionally stimulating factors. They pay more attention to such product and downplay the others. So where do your products fall? Do they stimulate emotions? Or have you attached an emotion-evoking visual and messages to them?

Conduct rigorous qualitative research and determine the emotional state of the visitors arriving on your site. Are they desperate or stressed when seeking the right solution? This will enable you to either take advantage of the visitors’ natural emotional state or change it to perfectly convince them to buy. Focus your energy on writing copies that will make an effective emotional appeal.

In addition, customize your product images, font, and color since they hold an incredible emotional value. Be purposeful and authoritative when choosing these factors.

#7. PAMPER YOUR EXISTING CUSTOMERS

Existing customers are the most valuable asset you have. Therefore, as you pursue more conversions do not overlook their importance. Studies have consistently shown that it’s easier and less expensive to convince your existing customers to buy than it is to attract new clients.

For this reason, it’s important to sweet talk your existing customers. Make follow-ups after the customer purchase and thank them for their action. Add all the existing customers to an autoresponder sales funnel. This will make it easier for them to take advantage of the product offers, enjoy discounts, buy upgrades, or be part of a reward based referral program.

#8. CREATE A BUZZ

Your product might not sell without being advertised. High-quality marketing campaigns convince more customers to buy. Actually, products that sell best are backed by a strong marketing strategy.

By generating a buzz around the product, you make it known and create credible traffic to your site. Some of the best way to generate excitement include; publishing press releases, content marketing, email marketing, influencer shares, and pulling PR stunts.

#9. CONSISTENCY

This is very important if you are looking to maintain momentum. It’s as simple as the name suggests, once you commit to offering something you should maintain your stance. Customers buy more from sites with actions and thoughts that are aligned.

Remember once a customer makes a commitment they start engaging in self-persuasion. They justify their actions not only to themselves but also to their peers. One of the best ways of maintaining consistency is listing your business beliefs and attracting customers of similar ideas. If the beliefs resonate with your visitors, they will be convinced to buy.

#10. BE REACHABLE

If you want to record more conversion, you must be easily reachable. Provide the exact and correct name of your business and the contact details. In addition, provide the link to your social media links to help your customers to stay in touch. If you are easy to find customer will frequently visit your site at the expense of your competitor. Get the right support channel for your online business and the benefit will trickle down to the conversion rate.

CONCLUSION

It’s not easy to turn visitors or potential customers into buyers or faithful customers. However, if you come up with a robust strategy based on the highlighted actions you will be amazed by the results.

All the strategies are in line with the basics of your ecommerce conversion. But do not be inclined to neglecting them, they play an important role. They have the ability to make or break the growth of your business. The strategies form the foundation for some of the fancier conversion tricks. Once you have them in place you will be in a stronger position to attract more customer, retain existing ones and convert more easily.

The strategies have proved their importance in ecommerce and are truly worth experimenting with. If you want to stand out and go beyond the regular, the strategies above give you the best way to build customer loyalty and increase the conversion rate.

October 24, 2017

Startups

HOW TO CONVERT A HOBBY INTO AN ECOMMERCE BUSINESS

Wondering how to convert your hobby into a sustainable, full-fledged, and profitable business? Think it’s hard? It should not be because you have landed on the right page. It’s not an easy venture to convert your hobby into an ecommerce business, but with my entrepreneurial inspiration, I will steer you in the right direction.

Are you too involved with your hobby? Many in your category fail to build anything substantial from their passionate hobby. The reason is they never pursue their ideas in the perfect way. The e-commerce landscape is bumpy and your path to success will only be illuminated if you get the basics right. Let me guide you through the steps.

#1. SELF ASSESMENT

This is the first and very important step in your quest for success. The reason you are turning your hobby into a business is to make money. Period. Of course, the idea is truly exciting, but many starters fail because of rushing into it. They say hurry hurry has no blessing, the wise men said. If you want to excel take your time to carefully evaluate all your personal conditions.

Be brutally honest with yourself. Do you think your hobby will survive customer scrutiny and financial pressure? When the environment is hostile, will you accord enough time to your business? When the going gets tough how will you balance it with other responsibilities like your family and day job?

It’s a daunting task bearing the financial burdens and working to a strict schedule of a startup. You could end up hating your hobby. Consider the following factors before making any other decision;

What do your finances look like?

How much have you set aside for this project? Can you quit your day job to pursue the project? If according to your projection, the money set aside cannot sustain you for 6 to 12 months, keep your job. Make the transition easy, gradually drop to a part-time job, until your business starts to generate revenue.

How much time are you willing to accord the business?
When they going get tough, do you have a robust support system. Be on the same page with your partner, family, or a close friend who you can rely on.
Are you confident enough about your product/hobby?
Are you equal to the challenge? Regardless of how much you love the hobby, it’s going to be a challenge.

#2. MARKET RESEARCH

Do you know your target market? You do not want to enter the scene only to find your hobby or its resultant product generates no interest. Research your target market and ensure people have interest in the products you are about to introduce. If you hit the right button, your hobby will seamlessly convert into a great business without even noticing. Analyze your target audience and your possible competition in the intended market. Here are some valuable tricks;

Use keywords and hashtags to assess the amount of interest the hobby will generate.
Come up with a generalized or fictional representation of your target customers. This will make it easier for you to understand your ideal customers and relate to them as human beings.
Identify the trends in your field.
Find your biggest competitors.
Check the laws and licensing

#3. CHOOSE A BUSINESS MODEL

Are you scared off? If not yet, congratulations! The next step is selecting your business model. This is not easy but it’s crucial to make the right decision. The business model affects your profits, tax rates and liability when the road gets tough.

One of the easiest models for many startups is the sole proprietorship because:

It easy and inexpensive
Gives you complete control
East tax preparation and reporting

However, you will be required to shoulder all the liabilities and it will be difficult to raise funds. In addition, being all alone in the business can be very stressful.

Alternatively, you can pursue your dream in a partnership or a limited liability company if you want to protect personal assets. Choose a model based on your preferences, personal condition, and financial circumstances.

#4. CREATE A BUSINESS PLAN

So far so good, if you have not given up, you got the right attitude to set the business rolling. A good business plan will not only help you navigate through the early business days but it will also let you visualize the whole journey. It will be a necessity when trying to raise funds to buy equipment, purchase inventory, or hire staff. To come up with a comprehensive business plan follow the following guideline:

Where will the finances come from?
Why and how are you planning to do this?
What is the workflow? How long will it take to create the product or provide the service?
Any plan to expand the business in future?
Have do you set the pricing?
Based on the above factors, what your expectations? When do you think the business will break even?

#5. TIME TO GET LEGAL

Everything is almost falling into its place, but you are not yet done. Prepare for the tedious paperwork, this is crucial if you miss a step the government will be on your back. Some of the most important things to get at this step include;

Employee Identification Number (EIN): this is important for tax purposes and it will be required in your business transactions.
Business checking account: this the central checking account where all your business transactions and finances will run through.

Business credit card: you will like the reward system that comes with the credit cards.
PayPal account: this account should be tied directly to the business. You will need it for your online transactions.

#6. FIND THE RIGHT MARKETPLACE

You are almost at the tip of the ladder, but you will have to choose the right marketplace. The modern marketplaces are great because they offer free traffic. So will have the freedom to trade without worrying about SEO or marketing. However, the platforms will charge you for selling on their sites. Nonetheless, they are the best way to establish your foothold in the ecommerce arena. Some of the most common marketplaces include Amazon, DaWanda, Etsy, Handmadeology, Zibbet, Aftcra, and eBay.

#7. ESTABLISH YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE

Now that you have successfully converted your hobby into a business, you need to establish an online presence. Social media is an excellent platform to raise your brand awareness. If you go the social media way observe one simple rule: keep it professional. You should also be smart if you want to generate viable traffic.

SUCCESS STORIES

Some of the most popular people who made a great business out of their passionate hobby include;

Bill Gates

Bill Gates was a 13 years old boy when he took up the art programming as his hobby. He raised money by selling a rummage to buy the resources he required to write a tic tac toe game. Bill Gates perfected his art and developed an algorithm for sorting pancakes while still at Harvard University. He converted his hobby into Microsoft after dropping out of college.

Walt Disney

Walt is the most popular hobbyists. Out of his passionate hobby of sketching and doodling, Walt made a multi-billion dollar business. Though the man is gone, the Business created continue to do well almost fifty years after his death.

At the age of four Walt Disney was drawing pictures and at seven he was selling the pictures to relatives and friends. All through his formative years, Walt kept pursuing his hobby even while attending a Chicago art school. Walt later launched his career in film production, theme park design, and animation.

Debbi Fields

Using the money she earned working as a young ball girl for Oakland A’s, Debbi started making cookies. 10 years later, she started selling them in a retail shop. Her business recorded an instant success and helped her to establish over 650 retail bakeries in the USA and over 80 in other countries across the globe.

Pamela Love

Pamela love has demonstrated that you can easily convert your little hobby into a big business. She spent many hours during her preteen to making bracelets from toothbrushes. She would bend the toothbrushes into cufflike shapes using heat. 20 years later, Pamela Love converted her hobby into a multi-million dollar jewelry business. Some of her best items feature in some of the top fashion magazines like Elle and Vogue.

CONCLUSION

At this point, I believe you have taken the right steps to transform that passionate hobby into a multi-billion business. However, setting your business rolling marks the start of the whole tussle.

Hobbies help people to pass time, but it takes diligence to separate your heart from reality. Control the love for your hobby and don’t allow it to shadow the harsh reality ahead of you. Though the business idea originated from your hobby do not sit back comfortably thinking it will be a good business. There is a lot you need to learn to keep the business buoyant.

October 11, 2017

Payments

Best Techniques to Stop eCommerce Fraud

Arm Your Business with this 10 Practice to Stop Ecommerce Fraud in Its Tracks

Fraud costs online businesses at least three billion dollars every year. The number seems to be increasing in the recent times. This means that companies should focus on protecting themselves at all costs. Here are some practices that will help prevent fraud in your online store and will help you to stop eCommerce fraud.

Choose the right e-commerce platform

If you are a newbie in the industry, it is crucial to understand that there are several online platforms. They offer the business functionality you are looking for. Before choosing the platform to use, conduct some research. Select the best. Do not only consider the monthly costs or the transaction rates in the platform. Look deeply into the features of the platform in question. Some of the platforms offer the best and favourable rates to clients. Unfortunately, they do not perform well in the fraud protection area.

As a businessperson, the best online platform is the one that provides top risk management support. Whenever you are a victim of fraud transactions.

Maintain PCI Compliance at all times

The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard is a set of requirements. They are developed to ensure that businesses that store, process or even submit credit card information maintain a secure environment at all times. Any businessman who has a Merchant ID should comply with these set of guidelines.

These set or requirements are designed to protect customer data. Any data that is associated with the card owner such as the account number, name, expiration date, social security number or address. It is considered to be confidential. The guidelines were established in 2006. They apply to all merchants and organisations regardless of the number of transaction or size.

Check the sanity of your website security

After identifying the perfect and safest payment processing platform for your online store and are already in compliance with the PCI guidelines. It crucial to take some considerations to make sure that any personal or financial data from the business, client or bank are safe and secure. Remember the following:

During the checkout process, ensure that the URL remains in https.
Always update all your passwords in the web server control panel. This should only be done on a regular basis in every business.
Hiring a security auditor is paramount for the e-commerce business. These professionals will be able to detect any weaknesses in the site.
Several programs have been developed to offer additional protection from hackers and frauds. These programs will work correctly for credit card firms and security software companies. Conduct some research on these programs and select the one that suits your businesses.

Set up special alerts to screen any suspicious activities

The software platform you are using for your business should automatically alert you whenever a suspicious activity takes places. You should receive an alert in the following instances:

The same person uses different credit cards to place multiple orders.
Phone numbers that are not matching the area code in the billing address.
Big spenders choose to order large quantities of products of the same product and even pay for an extra amount of amount so that you can ship the items quickly. They might be using a stolen credit card to acquire the products then resell the goods at a profit.
Any order where the card holder name is not similar to the recipients. This should be considered when there is a foreign address. Some people ship a product to a different destination so that the fraudulent customer can pick a product without the fear of being attacked.

Use Credit Card Security Codes

The three or four digit number found on the back of the credit card is considered to be the credit card security code. When this is used during the transaction process, it is a sign that the card holder is using a valid card. The security system is usually not printed on the receipts, and this helps in ensuring that the customer credit card information is confidential. The code ensures that your products are safe from any fraud.

When the transaction is being processed, the cardholder is supposed to answer with a code, confirming or rejecting the validity of the number. The number has different names by various credit cards. For Visa, it is known as CVV2, while for MasterCard, it is referred to as CVC2. Always employ the credit card security codes so that you are sure of secure transactions for you and your clients.

Never Store Sensitive Customer or Transaction Information

In most businesses, the PCI guidelines forbid the business owners from storing information concerning credit card numbers, CVV2 codes, and expiry date. However, if you need to store this information for a specific use, get rid of it immediately. Only keep the least amount of data possible. The information should be enough for chargebacks or refunds.

Use tracking numbers for your transactions

Tracking numbers for all the orders are the best way to protect your e-commerce business from chargeback frauds. This type of fraud is mostly referred to as friendly fraud, and it applies when a customer demands the return of products from the merchant. A bank forcibly initiates the procedure. These type of fraud holds the merchant in question accountable for the charges, regardless of the measures they had taken to verify the order. The business owners are forced to pay any transaction expenses incurred. Such as the fees for the removal of fraudulent funds.

Demand for strong passwords from clients

When you are requesting your customers to open an account with your online business, ensure that they create very strong passwords. This measure will make it difficult for the hackers to access the accounts. Always require a minimum of characters, numbers, symbols or capital letters from customers. A complicated password means that the hackers will not reach the client information or even perform fraudulent activities from the other end.

Some clients refuse to open a special account just because they want to make a purchase. If you want to prevent losing clients due to this crucial security issue, ensure that the account creation is only available when the client places an order. This will be the perfect way to retain the clients and protect yourself from fraud activities.

Educate your staff on different security and fraud Protocols

There are several safety measures that all business owners must take for the sake of their businesses. However, their other measures that the employees can comply with to ensure that your online business is free from fraud activities.

All the passwords used by your staff to access your payment options or the business records must be governed by very strict rules. Educate them how they can monitor the transactions so that you can prevent any fraudulent purchases and attacks.

Maintain a file of the fraudulent transactions or attempts

If your business system is hacked or even compromised, it is important to keep a record of all the details in a special file. Record the unfortunate incidences so that you and your future employees can learn and also prevent the activity from happening again. The file can be used to compare the future transactions. Use the knowledge to deny or even approve transactions.

In most cases, business owners will notice patterns in the fraudulent activities. Some of them might come from:

The unusually big orders
Certain geographic regions or countries
Some shipping addresses that do not match the billing address you are using.

July 18, 2017

Startups

Critical eCommerce Failures You Need to Avoid

Common Critical eCommerce Failures and Mistakes You Need to Avoid

Everyday eCommerce Businesses face different confrontations online. One of the biggest challenges you face is to get your product sold, as this is the sole purpose of starting an online shop right. However, did you know an e-commerce store is not only about sales conversion?

What your e-commerce store does is open up doors to a new world not only for your products but makes your brand known globally for all to see. To help you face the difficult challenge of getting your brand known we are here to help you avoid disappointments made by many other online businesses.

We have identified critical eCommerce failures you need to avoid, and the best procedures to follow making your online business a winner.

Avoid these mistakes and generate sales

Do you have an e-commerce online shop or are you starting out? No matter what your needs are by avoiding the following mistakes you can start generating sales in no time. The secret is to pay attention to the development and maintenance of your website by avoiding the following mistakes:

Avoid choosing the incorrect platform

This is critical as choosing the incorrect platform leaves you vulnerable and you need to choose a platform that sells in the best possible manner. You can find many free trials available from great e-commerce platforms such as WooCommerce, Magneto, and Shopify to name a few.

Another important factor is to strategize making sure each part is outlined and in the best interest of your company online. This you can do as follows:

Recognise your buyers and market
Request feedback from customers
Make sure every process is transparent
Target your mobile audience
Think Social-media
Make sure policies are in place
Ensure you provide your customers with a great service and support

These are only a few important steps to help improve your online business online. However, there is one more thing. Have you ever used an online shop only to find the images of products are misleading or you can barely make out what it is? You have!

What happens you are not interested in buying the product, as it is not aesthetically pleasing? Make sure you have clear images available for your customer to enjoy a visual shopping experience leading to sales.

Add Trust Factors

Imagine, you are buying a pair of shoes from an online shop and there are no trust factors in place. Are you going to buy with your credit card from them? No, as they have not built a trust with their clients. Make sure your clients can trust using your e-commerce platform by enhancing it with the Terms of use, Privacy Policies, SSL certificates, and Refund/exchange policies.

Ensure clients that their details kept confidentially and keep your platform design simple. Make sure product categories are easy to navigate through and align your CTA with the content. Further, you can add a section for product reviews as well.

Prevent Long Loading Times

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to view a website and it takes forever to load. If this happens, you have already decided to move on to the next available business displayed in the search engine.

Prevent this from happening with your e-commerce platform, as your customer will get as impatient as you do when waiting for pages to load.

You want instant gratification when shopping online and so does your customer. The platform needs to run at an optimal speed as this prevents you from losing potential clients.

Prevent Long Checkout Processes

Why do people use online shopping, because they can buy stuff in the comfort of their home? Further, they can avoid standing in long checkout lines at shops. So why should your online checkout process be so long? Avoid this from happening at your e-commerce shop, as clients want their purchase to happen quickly.

Keep the checkout process short and sweet, as this will ensure the customer returns. Make sure the customers billing and shipping information handled as quickly as possible and provide them with a confirmation to finalise their purchase.

Avoid displaying incorrect information

As your website reflects, your brand and business provide them with grammatical free errors. Make sure the products you are selling have the correct information as displaying incorrect information can harm your business in the end.

Make certain to display your business information, with a company logo, contact details and more. This builds a trust between your company and a client.

Provide an Excellent Customer Service

When a customer cannot reach you, they lose interest in your business and go elsewhere. Try to provide contact times and respond to customer queries as soon as possible. Set up a chat service where possible as this offers clients the best service possible.

Prevention is better than cure

Avoid spamming your customers

Have you opened your mailbox lately, only to find it is full of spam emails? What do you do with this mail you trash them? Using e-mail marketing is an effective way to advise your clients on new products and information.

However, as you do not like receiving the same mail over and again avoid doing this to your client. If you want to use e-mail, marketing personalises the email to your client. Send information based on your customers’ needs.

Avoid using too many POPUPS

Did you know you only have 15-seconds to keep a potential client mesmerised in buying your products? How does one do this with POPUPS as it allows new customers to receive important information about your product and you receive their personal details?

Nevertheless, there is a downside, as you know how frustrated you can get when these POPUPS keep popping up. Keep your customers happy and avoid overusing this feature.

Remember the free goods

Everyone likes a freebie even you. Never deprive your customer of free items such as specials, discount, and free shipping. Offering free shipping is one of the best marketing strategies as the sales from your client is most likely to happen more often in future.

Never underestimate mobile technology

Moreover, never think too little about mobile technology, as it is the future for your e-commerce business online. More people are using their mobile devices to make online purchases and you can reach a wider audience when making your website mobile friendly.

Final Thoughts

Lastly, never underestimate the power of social media, as this is the best tool to use for marketing your products online. Promoting your products on different social media platforms is a serious task. You need to be cautious not to oversell your products and services. Maintain the loyalty of your followers, customers, and fans and do it the responsible way.

Once you have used all the above tips to prevent commerce mistakes, make sure to set up a Search Engine Optimisation strategy for people to find you on Google. Have a solid SEO plan in place by using the correct keywords on your site, products, images and more.

Further, measure your performance on a regular basis by checking your key figures such as products sold, total visitors, and revenue. This is where you need to get your business on board with Google Analytics and crucial to making a success of your e-commerce business online.

Don’t forget to check out some more tools that can help you grow your business. Read our article about top tools that will help you grow

July 11, 2017

Payments

Security Tips to prevent your eCommerce Business Being Hacked

The hottest topic online is security breaches in eCommerce Businesses. Always keep an eye for hackers and implement some of our security tips to secure your eCommerce online business from hackers. The likeliness is if you have an open source platform, cyber theft can happen. Hackers are always busy trying to find new methods to steal important information from your clients, especially their account numbers to personal information.

Have you ever shopped online and thought to yourself, “How safe is this eCommerce website you are using?” We all have and the same applies to your own online shop. You want to keep your customers happy. Further, you want your clients to return and this happens when you keep their sensitive data safe.

You need to protect your business information and vulnerable data of customers. Therefore, what can you do to prevent being hacked in your online shopping platform online? Sit back relax, we are here to help you with securing your e-commerce business online with the following security tips.

Securing Your Data Starts with the Platform

Whether or not you already have an e-commerce business, online or starting out you need to choose a secure e-commerce platform. Make sure you are using sophisticated technology to keep your website safe. The best online shopping platforms administration panel needs to be inaccessible and a secondary authentication for users help.

Did you know the majority of attacks take place with employee login credentials via phishing, social engineering, malware and more? Hackers use harmful software to capture passwords and usernames giving them access to important information stored with you online. Using a two-factor authentication will help prevent hacking and keep data safe.

Educate your employees:

How many times have you received an email with links and attachments? Many times and how often have you happily opened it- numerous times? Well, the same counts for your employees. They open emails, links, and attachments. It only takes one click to activate software sent from hackers.

This is why it is important to educate your employees, keeping them up to date with the different methods used by a cybercriminal. Here the best training is to create a realistic scenario to test your employees. Further, this helps you to determine common mistakes and improving them in the process.

Another way to help with prevention is to call in a third-party social engineer to help you understand your security policies and programs to prevent outsiders from gaining access to sensitive information. They will facilitate a breach exercise to make sure all your important policies are in place.

Make sure your employees change their password on a regular basis and make sure they use a strong password. Remind them not to store the passwords where someone can see or find it.

Does your hosting company back you?

Make sure you are using a trusted hosting company taking security seriously. Here you can look at the following security features to ensure you are using the correct hosting company backing you no matter what happens online:

If your web hosting company uses pre-installed RAID – this is a special system protecting your data and keeps files safe even if a server crashes. They may not include it with the different plans but offer it extra with an added fee.
Downtime on a web-hosting server is bad for business, especially if the downtime happens frequently. Here you can find out if the web hosting service you use offer reimbursements for downtimes.
Look if your current web host offers you some form of backup and best if you can use manual backups on a daily basis. Further, make sure what backup limit your hosting service offers. Read all the information related to the backup conditions before buying a hosting plan.

Use the SSL service

Have you done online banking before – you have what is the first thing you see when accessing Internet Banking? The website has a lock with https protocol in place giving you a secure connection.

Using an SSL Certificate on your website is a great way to keep your information safe. This service is necessary for any eCommerce business. The program includes small data files that bind a cryptographic key digitally and keeps the detail organised.

Further, it keeps credit card transactions, logins, and data transfer secure. Even the social media sites these days are using SSL Certification.

Implement PCI-DSS

Put the PCI-DSS on your e-commerce site. This is a helpful security standard and known as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard. Why is this so important? If you deal with the leading credit card brands from the major card schemes this policy increases the control related to a client’s data and helps to reduce the risk of credit card frauds.

Read more about PCI-DSS in our previous article PCI-DSS Compliance: A Basic Guide.

Prevent storing delicate data:

You do not need to store millions of data on your client. Prevent storing the information related to their credit card such as the:

Credit card number
Card Verification Value code (CVV2)
Expiration date

Use an AVS system:

You want to keep your client’s information protected when they use your payment service online. However, have you thought of yourself when a client pays their goods? You can become a victim of fraud as you send out the product bought without receiving the money.

This is where the Address Verification System known as AVS is handy. The system verifies addresses against their credit card information. This helps to verify credit card data, such as the clients billing address and Zip code against their account billing information.

In turn, this protects you from fraud why – because if the information does not tie up with the information provided to the credit card the transactions declined.

Keeping your site secure

For protecting your e-commerce brand online, utilise a WAF (Web Application Firewall.) This protects your site from different attacks. If you are using a platform such as WordPress make sure to keep the security patches up to date.

All plugins used needs to be the latest version and install a premium security plugin in case something happens to go wrong. Backup your entire site to an off-site storage and can be done automated. No matter if, you use a WordPress or Magento conduct security patch updates regularly.

By adding additional layers of security to login boxes, contact forms and search inquiries help to take measures in preventing a cyber attack. On the other hand, you can implement a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS.) With this handy feature, it keeps track of frequent attacks happening. Turn to a cloud-based one and a DNS service as this helps with bringing down operational costs.

A DNS hosting site can help you with improving your Internet-based system as it supports transactions and communicates online.

Keep Track of Orders

Although hacking methods have changed, you can still find old school frauds taking place, especially with credit cards. Use a tracking system to keep track of orders shipped as this helps you to avoid chargeback frauds when clients submit a false claim of no-shipment.

With a good tracking system and a proof of receipt, it helps prevent criminals from taking advantage of your online business. Further, restrict third-party advertisements and links. This can harm your business as it may lead your clients to unsavoury online practices. This keeps you safe from malicious processes or codes other companies may be using.

Final Thoughts

You may feel your e-commerce business does not stand a chance against hackers online. Wrong the important thing to remember is that vulnerabilities vary from one company to another and depends on its size. If you own a small or medium sized business with a relatively small to medium sized client base, you can prevent attacks from happening with these simple steps.

Always stay ahead with the latest security measures and take precaution to prevent this from ever happening to your business. Choose the correct technology as this has a direct impact on your business, as your commerce requirement is different to another and be safe.

Check out our other articles on security section.

July 4, 2017

Startups

How to Win a Customer

Essential Tools to Attract Customers in E-Commerce Businesses

Planning to invest in an online store anytime soon? If this is your new adventure, then it is crucial to understand how important it is to succeed without attracting clients to the business. Maintaining customers is not easy too. This task can be time-consuming and challenging. However, with the following tools, you will attract customers without spending a lot of money. To win a customer should be a priority for business owners.

Make your store beautiful

In online businesses, investors should understand the importance of having an attractive website. This site serves as your store. When it is ugly, it will only drive your customers away. As a modern businessman, you have to be aware that a client chooses to purchase your products and services just three minutes on your site. Experts say that the first impression matters a lot. When a visitor to your site is not impressed, then they will not buy any product. Most of the disappointed clients will not visit your store again. Your website is your online representation. Always try to make it professional and beautiful.

Social media

Social media is a vital tool for any online business. The social media platforms give people in business a channel for free promotions. Although you will have to pay if you are planning to publish ads, owning a social media account is free. These accounts come with a lot of benefits. If you want to take advantage of social media, you have to understand the importance of great content. With marvelous content, these activities will serve as the best marketing channels without any financial expenses. Here are easy tips to help you attract new customers using social media:

Engage your users: always ask them questions and ensure that you reply to their comments. This will be the perfect way to attract their attention.
Post regularly: if possible, post something on your social media platforms every day so that your customers do not forget about you. However, if you post content just because you must, it ends ups bringing a negative effect.
Use graphics: individuals who prefer to post with images get more engagements compared to those who do not.
Select the best channels for your online business. It is crucial to focus on Pinterest and Facebook because they always drive a lot of traffic to e-commerce businesses.

Win a customer with customer care

Customer care means everything in any type of business in the modern times. As a businessperson, it is good to remember that there is no better promotion that your satisfied customers. Always work hard to make the experience of purchasing from your store unforgettable in a positive way. A study conducted by Forrester indicates that most people will abandon an online transaction when the business owners do not address their concerns or questions in time. If you want to attract a large clientele, then you must reply to all their inquiries and comments as soon as you can. Timely responses play a fundamental role in e-commerce transactions.

You should never underestimate the power of your customer care. Seventy percent of the clients will not come back if they feel that they are not treated well. The customer service you give will determine if the customer will come back. Ensure that the client is completely satisfied by the services you are offering. This can be achieved by being nice, competent and helpful.

Promos

It is a proven fact that everyone loves getting discounts and promos. Win a customer with some promotions. A study shows that the amount saved makes customers happy. The psychological mechanism in the process plays a vital role in the success of this strategy. Some companies propose free shipping their customers, and they end up attracting very many clients.

Discount coupons work efficiently too. These can be offered to the new customers because of making a purchase in the business. It is important to award the most loyal companies in business by giving special offers. Your customers will feel appreciated and special, and they will come back in the future.

E-mail marketing

Although email marketing is very cheap, it is one of the most useful tools to attract new customers in an e-commerce business. A survey by Epsilon shows that a large group of people have a positive attitude to the online firms that send them different types of emails. During the study, seventy percent of the respondents said that they remembered the emails received from companies whenever they went shopping. The survey results confirm the benefits of email marketing to the online stores. Experts recommend the following:

Send emails whenever you have promos and sales.
Let them know about concerning the arrival of new products by sending them an email.
Inform when customers purchase similar good and services. This will make them eager to make more purchases.
If you notice that some client has not been active in purchases for a long time, send them an email, offering a discount coupon to encourage them to revisit your site and make more purchases.
Always send tips or any stylizations that are related to the products and services. This is one of the tried and tested methods of inspiring clients and also make them visit your online website more times

Find out more about how to set up an email marketing campaign and check out some tips for killer marketing campaign in our previous blog posts. Win a customer with some of our tips.

Consider the subscription business model

Subscription business model has proven to be one of the most effective ways of retaining customers. Experts say that online customers are the lazy consumers, and they always search for the convenient and quick ways to purchase new products. Businesspeople who sell the products that are used regularly used such as coffee, flowers or cosmetics, it is important to offer subscriptions.

Show that you care

Always listen to your clients. Answer all their questions and try to exceed their expectations. This will be the perfect way to stand out from the competition. Show the customers you care by giving them the best online shopping experience.

E-commerce businesses have become very popular in the modern world. Investors do not need millions of money for marketing so that they can attract new customers. The most crucial thing is always to be creative and use the right channels.

June 27, 2017

Startups

Essential Email Campaigns Every Ecommerce Business Must Have

Email marketing is considered to be an efficient and affordable way of growing a business and increasing ROI. According to a recent study, every one dollar spent on email campaign brings an average return of forty-five dollars. However, if you want to see these results, you must reach all your clients first. Fortunately, it is not rocket science to achieve this mission. Here are some of the email campaigns every e-commerce company should use to reach customers and increase sales.

New stock notice

If you want to drive more revenue in your business, then you have to encourage repeat purchases in your business. Experts say that it costs five times to get a new customer than it is to acquire a new one. The best way to encourage repeat purchases from clients is by keeping them updated when you bring in new products in your store. Whenever you have brought a new product, send the consumers an email.

Targeted Campaigns & Newsletters

Sending your clients email newsletters has always been considered to be a powerful method of keeping customers up to date with some of the latest promotions and products in your e-commerce company. This method is also perfect for making new customers come back and make more purchases.

What makes this newsletter efficient is the targeting used. When creating a newsletter for your clients, then it is important to keep in mind some practices so that you can win the heart of your customer. Always position the most important information at the top of the letter. Different studies show that attention drops as individuals read your email. Placing your information at the top will ensure that you have the highest clicks.

Review Request Email

Businessmen who have done well in online stores understand the importance of customer reviews on their sites. This is one of the proven ways of significantly increasing conversions in the business. Experts say that items with reviews have a ten percent higher conversion rate.

When a client purchases a product from your online store, it is always crucial to send them a special follow-up email, requesting them to leave a review of the item on your company website. This email marketing strategy is successful because of the single focus of the email. When writing a review request email to your clients, have the following in mind:

Always ensure that it is automated. It is possible to send a campaign manually after you make every purchase, but it will consume a lot of your time and resources. The most efficient way is to set up an automated email that will go automatically to all the customers making purchases from your store. This will make everything easier for you.
Offer your clients an incentive. Although most people will click your website and leave some comment even when they do not get an incentive, it is always paramount to offer something to motivate the consumer to leave a review. This can be achieved by

providing discounts on future purchases. The discount will encourage the client to make more purchases.

Birthday email

Birthdays are exciting times for everyone. During these days, almost everyone is willing to give themselves a treat. Did you know that sending an email to your clients on their birthday makes them feel special? Setting up an individual automated birthday email to your customers. Especially with a birthday offer will make the customer feel valued and part of the business. The gesture will also make the customers return to your store and make more purchases. To achieve great results when using this strategy, keep these practices in mind.

Automate the email always. It is impossible to manually try to send a birthday message to all your customer every year during their birthdays. It will be an organizational nightmare for your business. However, having an automated email campaign can work wonders. The email can serve the company for years.
Use beautiful images. If you want people to increase their desire for an item, then it is crucial to use beautiful imagery. Some of the modern most successful online stores have done well because they used professional shot images in their email campaigns. Whenever you are making a special offer to an individual on their birthday email, always include a beautiful image to capture their attention. The image will increase the motivation to get the offer you are giving.
Use an action oriented button copy. Many people in business use some genetic words on their buttons such as claim now. However, going for a term that is action oriented and focused like, Get your Chocolate Cake.

Abandoned Shopping Cart Email

Experts say that online shopping carts are abandoned sixty-seven percent of the time on different e-commerce sites. As a business person, never take this personally. Online shopping carts are abandoned for several reasons. However, there are ways of retrieving the forgotten shopping cart. Always send your clients an email shopping cart reminder. These reminder emails have worked effectively for most e-commerce businesses in the world.

Thank You Email

Consumer email campaigns are considered to be very effective. They are as simple as sending a thank you note. These type of emails are known to be the best way of building and maintaining healthy relationships with your online customers. Whenever you are creating these emails, it is always good to thank and praise them for purchasing your product or service. It is also crucial to appreciate the clients for leaving a review or subscribing to your services. We all love to be appreciated, so always show some gratitude to your customers and subscribers. This simple gesture will make them feel better and come back for more purchases.

Email marketing is one of the most powerful methods of online marketing. However, you must use it effectively if you want to get good results at the end of the day. Individuals who have used these campaigns in the past say that they increased their profits and sales significantly. Most of them retained their customers too.

June 20, 2017

Startups

How to use LinkedIn to boost your eCommerce Business

We all are familiar with how challenging it is to have an eCommerce platform. Finding the right customer leading to conversion is an ongoing process. Did you know you could use LinkedIn to boost your eCommerce business online?

Yes, everyone associates this popular podium online with others in need of a job. To some extent, this is true. That is why it is so effective and packed with great features producing awareness for your business.

Let us tell you a secret! Let us show you how to use LinkedIn to boost your eCommerce business. Here is how you can get warm leads with LinkedIn, by sticking to the following advice:

Make an Impact

To make a strong impact the first 7 seconds counts. What is the first thing your prospects will see? Your LinkedIn company profile page and you need to set it up for success.

Start by creating your profile and display important information related to your business. Make certain the followings kept up to date:

· Contact details

· Business address

· Your logo

· Number of employees

· Links to your website and blog

· Keep media pictures up to date

· Videos as they make your page stand out

Infuse style and personality into your page and highlight all your accomplishments. Ask for recommendations as this helps to enhance your business. Add inspiring descriptions telling others about your trade. Create, a call to action, explaining how they can enjoy your products and services.

Be exact with your call to action something simple like “Lose Weight in Less Than a Week” — Click HERE! Stay connected with them.

Define Your Customer Audience

LinkedIn provides you with an amazing search, to filter and define your customer audience. View your target audience by company, location and more. The best part is you can save your search and get email notifications on a weekly basis with important leads to follow up.

Build a Fan Base

As with the majority of social media groups, other businesses and consumers can follow you. Build a fan base, making sure they receive updates on promotions, new products, and blogs available. Be active on LinkedIn as this helps to increase your presence.

Join the different groups available, network, send messages, and comment on posts. The importance is this helps you to keep an eye on other businesses and receive regular company updates. The other great feature you can use is LinkedIn Pulse providing you with the latest news.

Use it to publish articles related to your eCommerce business as this leads to prospects.

Use the Features on LinkedIn

With the many features available on LinkedIn, you can use them to your advantage:

1. The add connection – use this feature to add contacts. This helps you with suggestions of whom to connect with.

2. Make use of the old piled up business cards and put them to use on LinkedIn

3. Connect with family and friends as this boosts your network and is great for marketing. Connecting to friends and family on Facebook is one of the best marketing techniques to use on LinkedIn.

4. Meeting someone new on LinkedIn is amazing, so add them to your contact list as this leads to more business.

Reflect Your Brand

Now you have built a following it is time to give your fan base awesome content. You need to reflect your brand by showing them personality. Talk a little about your business and share important content related to the products you sell with helpful information related to it.

How? by using the share and update section available. Here you can link content to your online store or share mind-blowing videos about your products. Your followers see these updates. Disclose content that is valuable and related to your e-commerce network.

Leave the sales pitch for later they are boring and make it conversational.

Network and Connect

The sole purpose of using LinkedIn is to network and connect with other people. Network, with everyone as you never know who will become your customer. The first step is using the platform free, but by using the Premium account available gives, you access to powerful networking tools.

You receive expanded profiles and can view other people’s profiles visiting your page. Other ways are to find groups that work for you and stay with them. Figure out what groups work best for you and interact with them.

Stay in contact with people on your connection list as this leads to great opportunities once they arise. Networking is a time-consuming thing and takes time. Stick to it for a few months and you will reap the benefits as you meet new people and groups.

Create your own Industry-leading LinkedIn group

Another effective way to get networking and drive traffic to your e-commerce business is to start a group. Whether you sell sports items, health products, and more start a group network with helpful information related to your product.

Present customers with a value such as free samples, advice, webinars and more. This keeps your audience wanting to come back for more. However, it is important to identify your audience and create a name for your group communicating the topic.

Reach out to your connections, inform them you have started a group, and do something special for those joining your group.

Be Energetic and Become Active

To become an effective online business and develop strong connections to boost sales, take part in the LinkedIn Question & Answers page. Here users post questions to get answers and best not to exaggerate your brand.

Answer users’ questions without pitching your product or services. Always look for questions you can answer with knowledge and be concise. Reply to people by using the “reply privately” button to advise the person you have responded to their question.

Present them with a courtesy call to help solve their problem and present them with further help if needed.

LinkedIn powerful Analytics feature

Keep track of your progress by using the LinkedIn Analytics tool available in the page statistics section. Here you can monitor viewers on a month-to-month basis by their demographic. This helps you to tailor your content according to your client’s needs.

Patients is a Virtue

Never expect overnight results as it takes patients. Keep your page up to date, interesting and useful. Building a network for your eCommerce business can take months, however, once you have your audience LinkedIn works for you. The importance of the platform is to use it to generate sales and add significance, leading to new customers directed to your business online.

June 13, 2017

eCommerce platforms

All You Need To Know About Woocommerce

E-commerce is one of the most profitable online business opportunities on the Internet today. In comparison to traditional brick and mortar businesses, e-commerce site requires minimal start-up cost and is relatively low-risk. However, that does not imply creating an e-commerce business is a simple process. To produce a successful online storefront there are so many platforms and options out in the market, most of which exist to facilitate your life. If you have a WordPress based website and want to boost its web presence with the least possible stress, WooCommerce can help you!

WooCommerce, is a WordPress based plugin and is one the most loved and used of all WordPress plugins in e-commerce. Pumped with powerful features, this plugin allows you to transform your WordPress into an extensive e-commerce machine. You can nip and cut and make your online store as good as you might have imagined in your wildest dreams. From free features to amazing features for which you might have to shell a few bucks, WooCommerce gives everything and more that might be required to erect a brilliant platform and is used by a popular programming language, PHP.

Benefits of WooCommerce

1. Extensions

Do you want to make your online store more interesting with various nifty features like reviews, coupons, product management and so on? If yes, you have got about 800 plugins for WordPress available!

2. Integrated Marketing & SEO

Marketing takes a vital role in any business and WooCommerce core is bundled with features that will help you reach people, including SEO, coupons, product reviews and more. Plus there are extensions for when you’re ready to take things up a notch, like intelligent product recommendations.

3. Easy Analytics

The built-in analytics system in WooCommerce provides you thorough insight into the daily analytics, traffic, user behaviour and more. Fіgurеѕ lіkе tоtаl ѕаlеѕ, аvеrаgе оrdеr ѕаlеѕ, іndіvіduаl сuѕtоmеr ѕtаtіѕtісѕ, аll оf thеѕе are nеаtlу рrеѕеntеd vіа grарhѕ, without the users ever having to leave their admin panel.

4. Amazing design features

One among many important factors which decide your success in the eCommerce domain is the front end design. If you fail to provide good user experience, there are good chances that your shopping cart might get abandoned. Since there are a lot of themes available on WooCommerce, you could design a customer friendly, beautiful e-store in a very short time. If you could spend some more money, you could also hire a developer from WooCommerce to make a few customizations for you.

5. Professional and simple

Although it’s a free and user-friendly platform, do not think for a second that it is not professional enough. Inbuіlt wіth thе platform іѕ a detailed оrdеr-trасkіng facility wіth сuѕtоmеr engagement tools thаt аllоw buуеrѕ tо view раѕt аnd ореn orders.

6. Share option,

Another remarkable feature and benefits of installing WooCommerce is that it offers components like Share This, Share Daddy and Share Your Cart, which allows customers to share their purchases with acquaintances and avail coupons.

Thing to consider when Opening a WooCommerce Stores

1. Implement a Shopping Cart

If a ѕаlе іѕ the dеѕtіnаtіоn, thе саrt іѕ the checkout ԛuеuе where сuѕtоmеrѕ can either bail on уоu and аbаndоn things іn thе аіѕlеѕ, or аdd mоrе tо thеіr саrtѕ аnd finish ѕtrоng.

An е-соmmеrсе site іѕ nеvеr complete without a secure shopping саrt. Thе bеѕt option уоu саn соnѕіdеr іѕ a rеmоtеlу hosted ѕhорріng саrt whісh tаkеѕ the burdеn оf mаіntаіnіng ѕесurіtу аnd сrеdіt card numbers off your ѕhоuldеr.

2. Payment gateway

Payment gateways are very useful when customers need to pay you for their purchases. A gateway serves as a channel that can bring a thing from one place to another. When running an eCommerce business, a gateway plays an integral role in making verifications and allowing credit card transactions to come through. A payment gateway is an essential component of any online business. For businesses to be able to accept credit card payments, they need to have a merchant account. Business owners can open a merchant account in the bank where they do their banking transactions. This type of account is where revenue derived from credit card transactions will be transferred after verification by the gateway.

Online payments with WooCommerce

The best WооCоmmеrсе рауmеnt gаtеwауѕ аrе thе оnеѕ thаt wоrk for уоu and your buѕіnеѕѕ. When choosing and setting up a Payment Gateway, it’s vital to consider:

* Cost

* Ease of use (whether they are connected to WordPress and WooCommerce)

* Security

Rеdіrесtіоn іѕ the bеѕt рауmеnt gateways орtіоn іf уоu dоn’t wаnt to be rеѕроnѕіblе for bееfіng uр уоur ѕіtе’ѕ security since getting hасkеd соuld mеаn аll your сlіеntѕ’ сrеdіt саrd and реrѕоnаl іnfоrmаtіоn gets ѕtоlеn. That is where Areto Systems come to help

“Areto Systems” is a fast-growing payment gateway that covers over 140 different countries. Areto Systems able to handle recurring payments with through a PCI compliant payment gateway system that ensures maximum safety for you and your customers. It accepts all major types of payments including the likes of MasterCard, Visa, JCB, Discover, PayD, Visa Electron..etc.

Benefits of “Areto Systems” Payment Gateway

“Areto Systems” is capable of handling payment processes in real-time. It does not require additional administrative help for it to work. This means less business expense, and more time for you to focus on more important business matters.

“Areto Systems” also allows your customer to pay anytime and anywhere. It also provides customers different payment methods. This makes it convenient for your customers and ensures customer satisfaction.

And finally, a plugin for WooCommerce is freely available, which means, within 2 minutes your website can be connected with Areto Systems’ payment gateway!

May 23, 2017