During the last two weeks we analyzed our 2009 projects to assess the average improvements in conversion rates and increases in revenue our team helped clients achieve.  Before we get to the numbers, we wanted to reiterate that 2009 was one of the most challenging years for our clients.  Our projects for clients were focused on plugging the leaky faucet of online shoppers due to the external factors of the economic recession. Promotions, pricing structures, and free shipping became huge motivators and persuaders for the online shopper throughout the year.

And here are the results:

Continue reading 2009 – How did the recession impact your company?

Posted in Ecommerce

Our experience has proven time and time again that copycats never win. Taking a design or site functionality, and slapping it on your ecommerce site; although you may share the same industry and sell the same items; is never a good idea.

A recent client of ours took the same exact PPC campaign ad of a competitor, worked for weeks on it, and was shocked with 0 conversions at launch. Worst of all is within a couple of weeks, the competitor had completely shifted to an entirely different design.

Continue reading Ecommerce Copycats

Posted in Ecommerce

Here at Invesp, we work with all sorts of ecommerce platforms, hosted, customized, free, or paid. Working with the vast variety of platforms out there has always posed a challenge for our team, which is why, in many situations, we require our clients to do the actual implementations of the recommendations we submit to them. That does poses another slew of problems since time estimates are often miscalculated and delivery dates can’t met. However, we manage to work around all of these issues by offering our clients step by step instructions and unmatched customer service.

To top the list of difficult and challenging hosted solutions to work with though, has to be Network Solutions. We are constantly challenged with limitations in the recommendations that our clients can and cannot implement. Testing? Not an option! Network Solutions is not compatible with Google Website Optimizer.

The folks at Network Solution are unresponsive as well. So a rigid platform and poor customer service, what’s keeping these clients?

Continue reading Network Solutions: A rant

Posted in Ecommerce

We previously discussed 13 Areas to evaluate ecommerce solutions  while selecting an ecommerce technology or platform(Part 2 can be of selecting ecommerce solution can be found here). Mainly you have three main options to choose from:

1. Custom built websites that are developed specifically for that site

2. An ecommerce package that is deployed on a server (think Magento, oscommerce, ATG, etc)

3. Hosted e-commerce solution (Yahoo!, Network solutions, Cloud craze, etc)

Each of these options has its pluses and minuses. As an ecommerce architect, I have experienced both ends of the spectrum, helping companies select the right solution for their business as well as the selling ecommerce solutions to companies.

Continue reading Hosted Ecommerce Solutions are Rarely a Good Option

Posted in Ecommerce

The IRCE 2009 was bustling with etailers and vendors alike, although the majority of people we spoke to felt that the numbers were significantly lower than previous years. Khalid and I arrived in Boston late Sunday evening and rushed our way down to the exhibit hall Monday morning to set up and then up to the ecommerce workshops to consult with online retailers. It was a busy Monday morning, and the entire stay was eventful and quite eye-opening.

Khalid and I both felt that the retailers sitting at our tables during the website consultations were engaged and interested. Website clinics are really a big hit because online retailers are given actionable items to implement and consider optimizing on their website.

Continue reading IRCE 2009 at a glance

Posted in Ecommerce

During such tough times, incentives are everywhere. Companies are struggling to get customers through the door. Even major conferences are “extending deadlines” for their “early-bird specials” because, simply, people are not buying. But more likely than often, incentives do work. They motivate and persuade the customer that is in a latter part of the buying stages. But what if your incentives were designed to motivate the customer that is in the initial buying stages, or just a browser, as well?

What NOT to do when it comes to incentives:

Continue reading Incentives: Giving your customers the biggest bang for their buck

Posted in Ecommerce

Yes we know it’s not easy to optimize an entire ecommerce site – but a few best practices and blunders have given us hints on “easier” ways to approach optimization. Here are some tips on what NOT to do.

1. Recommendation Implementation Galore: Slow down with the recommendations! Very often when you see a page you assume that 50 different elements can be changed or shifted in some way, shape, or form. And that may well be the case. But, SLOW DOWN! Don’t go changing everything at once! Record what changes you want to make to a specific page, then make a single change and monitor the progress before moving to the next change.

Continue reading Ecommerce Optimization Made Easy

Posted in Ecommerce

My last post was a longish rant about Netflix’s decision to remove its email customer support feature.

After writing that, I thought that the most logical follow-up would be a post that included some tips to help you refine your own email support system.

So, without any further intro text, here it goes…

Continue reading Six Tips to Assist You With Email Support

Posted in Ecommerce

Not a single day goes by without some question or comment from clients, potential clients, or subscribers to our RSS on the validity of personas for an ecommerce website. Of course, once we get our clients results, they are certainly on board. But convincing them of the personas role and effectiveness at the ecommerce front before beginning a project, has posed as a challenge.

Let’s get something out of the way though: is it possible to optimize without the use of Personas? Definitely.

So why personas for an ecommerce website? Let’s dissect this further:

Continue reading Personas: Can Ecommerce do without them?

Posted in Ecommerce

Warning: this is a rant post.

I’m starting to wonder if there’s any other kind for me.

Today’s topic of choice: the new trend of online businesses removing email support from their websites.

You read right.

Continue reading Why Removing Email Support Removes Profit Potential

Posted in Ecommerce