Monday, July 28, 2008

Storefront Features

There are many different features available with different electronic storefronts. Features vary depending on the storefront option that you have selected. Typically, higher-end software has more advanced features than that of a template service; however, some of these features may not be essential to running your particular online business.

Shopping Cart

An electronic shopping cart is an excellent feature for sites selling multiple products or services. The online shopping cart system operates much like an actual shopping cart. Buyers can add items to their cart as they please, and they can remove items just as easily. As the customers add and subtract items from their shopping cart, a running total of their purchase choices is dynamically updated. This is a great feature that shouldn’t be overlooked when you choose your storefront software.

Purchase Notification

This software feature enables merchants to be notified via e-mail whenever a purchase is made on their Web site. The e-mail typically states the product purchased, the purchaser’s contact information, and the credit card information. This feature is terrific if you use offline methods (e.g., the telephone) to authorize credit card purchases. You can simply pull up the e-mail message on your screen and call in to receive an authorization number.

Inventory Management Integration

Does the software enable you to integrate the storefront with your back-end system? Back-end systems refer to the company’s internal accounting, inventory, contact management, customer service, and other supporting software systems. This is a fantastic feature for companies selling multiple products online. By integrating the back end with your storefront, you can track inventory levels to (1) ensure that you don’t run out of a certain product or (2) notify
customers that you are out of stock before they make a purchase.

Client Database Management

A client database is essential to any business that would like to keep track of the people utilizing its site. This includes all users who interact in some way with your site, either by filling out one of your forms, becoming an affiliate of yours, or purchasing something through the shopping cart. All users will have a record of their actions in your client database. You can find out information such as who bought a particular product, who is subscribed to a particular newsletter, the time a client has been added to your database, and so on. Once a search is
conducted, you will get a list of all clients and their online actions on your site. With this list, you are able to create a customized mailing list.

Integrated Mail List

Many ASP storefront solutions integrate private mail list software with their application. It just makes sense that when someone makes a purchase, they might like to give permission for you to send them your e-zine or newsletter, your e-specials, or coupons. The mail list application should be able to be fully integrated with your Web site and should provide good tracking and management reports. Today it is essential that mail list software have an integrated spam checker so that your mail can have the best chance of getting through to the intended recipients.

Searchable Product Database

Practically a necessity for companies selling hundreds of products online, this feature enables a consumer to visit your site and search through your database of product listings. Normally consumers will know what they want when they visit your site, so offering this feature will enable them to go directly to the product SKU (stock keeping unit) they want, rather than searching through multiple pages trying to find the product. An SKU is similar to the ISBN number you find on the back of books—it is a numerical value that identifies an individual product.

Thumbnail Image Capability

Your storefront software should enable you to place small thumbnail images of the products next to their listing. The user can then click on the image to enlarge it and see a better view of the product. This enhances the overall listing for each of your products in your storefront. Thumbnails also assist in optimizing your site’s download time. It takes much less time to download several thumbnail 2K images as opposed to several full-sized 50K images.

Customer E-mail Notification

This feature enables you to automatically send your clients an e-mail directly after they purchase an item on your Web site. The message will confirm that you have received their order, and you can also take the time to thank them for doing business with your company. This is a great way to provide quality customer service to your clients.

Unlimited Autoresponders

An autoresponder is a customized e-mail notification with a few added features. Autoresponders can be used for different purposes, and you can send an unlimited number of sequential messages. For example, you might have one general autoresponder for all your customers and a few more-detailed autoresponders for customers who purchase a particular product. This way you can ensure a great follow-up for future repeat sales. By using this method you can offer classes with the lessons delivered by autoresponder e-mails once per week, as well as train your affiliates on up-and-coming news with your business. An autoresponder can be set to go out over a period of time and be composed of one or more messages. Autoresponders are becoming a very powerful Internet marketing tool.

Shipping and Delivery Options

Another way to provide excellent customer service is by offering different shipment options to your clients. This feature enables your customers to select a shipping option that best suits their needs during the checkout period, when they are finalizing their order on your Web site. Some people like to receive their purchases in the mail sooner than others. By offering a variety of shipping and delivery options, you have an opportunity to up-sell, utilizing different price points for different delivery periods. You could set a specific price point for each of your delivery options, which may include “next day,” “two or three days,” “surface, one to two weeks,” and so on. In addition, some customers may prefer to send individual items to separate locations—perhaps they are doing their Christmas shopping. Giving the user the option to send each item to a different location is a great feature to include.

Coupons, Discounts, and Special Offers

Many storefront solutions provide the ability to offer discounts, accept coupons, and provide for special deals to generate urgency to drive up your sales.

Storefront Feature: Technical Support

Above all, whether you purchase storefront development software or choose to use a template service, you should always ensure that the service provider has excellent customer support. If you have any problems with your storefront, you should be able to call and receive immediate assistance to remedy your problem. Downtime or malfunctions in your storefront can hinder your business’s professionalism, so you should have the best technical support available to help
you solve any problem you may encounter.

Storefront Feature: Affiliate Programs

A major challenge for new Internet businesses is how to drive traffic to their site. Some possible shoppers come to your site; they look around and really like what they are seeing. On your Web site you have a “Join Our Affiliates Program” link. They click on it, fill out a quick form, and choose a user name and password. They then will receive an e-mail with instructions and access to referral URLs. Once they have the URLs, they must send their prospects to your site either through outbound e-mail or via links from their own Web site. Along the way, your new site viewers will get tagged as having been referred by the affiliate. If they become customers and make a purchase, the affiliate will be credited with the sale. Both you and your affiliate can see this in the order record, using a login page with a full history of all their commissions. Affiliates are wonderful because they send traffic your way, and you pay them only for paid customers.