| Small Business Center
Getting the Most Out of Your Website
Part 5: E-Commerce Essentials
Over the past few months, this forum has explored many of the basic factors that, when used correctly, help you maximize the success of your online business.
This month, we come to the most important concept yet: The art of e-Commerce.
So what is e-Commerce, exactly? The obvious answer, from Wikipedia, is that e-Commerce (for Electronic Commerce) is “the distributing, buying, selling, marketing and servicing of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks.” Wikipedia dates the first historical example of E-Commerce back to 1994, when the Internet’s first banner ad appeared.
Well, e-Commerce has certainly come a long way from that first banner ad back in ’94. Today, e-Commerce is, simply put, the focus of the global marketplace — period.
And it’s only getting bigger. According to a Forrester Research report from last year, "Non-travel online retail revenues will top the quarter-trillion-dollar mark by 2011. The driver of this growth? A segment of the most active Web shopping households that is approximately 8 million strong. This group of consumers is extremely comfortable with technology and values convenience above all else in the online retail experience."
That’s no shock. In this age of ever-worsening traffic congestion and sky-high gas prices, many people simply prefer to shop online.
Aplus.Net E-Commerce Hosting Plans
The bottom line: You’ve got to get online. If your business doesn’t sell online, the hard truth is that you’re missing out on the biggest and most easily accessed sales market in the world.
The good news is that, as an Aplus.Net customer, you’ve already got at least one foot in the door. If you haven’t yet taken advantage of the wide variety of e-Commerce hosting plans we offer, it’s time to start thinking about doing exactly that.
But let’s back up a moment: What’s really the difference between an e-Commerce hosting package and just a basic shared hosting plan? Why does “e-Commerce web hosting” provide that makes your website a more powerful selling tool?
The main ingredients are a shopping cart and the ability to process credit cards (preferably in real-time). These are absolutely essential: They’re the tools that let customers buy from you instantly.
Also included are Secure Server Certificates, which are equally important so that your customers can buy safely. Take note! Many customers are extremely wary about online fraud, and will not even consider buying from a site that isn’t certified. Our hosting plans come complete with Secure Server certificates (they’re also available for our other shared hosting plans, but at an additional cost).
These are the biggest factors, but there are dozens of other tools that all combine for effective e-Commerce selling. With our e-Commerce plans, you also get free marketing tools like eCommerce Booster Google DataCenter Watch, Google PageRank, MSN and Google KeyRank Monitors, and much more. These tools may not be directly related to selling, but they’re essential in getting your site seen by more potential customers. And, with the Unix ePro and Web-a-Business plans, you also have the option of using e-Store Connectors for Amazon.comTM, eBay.comTM, Shopping.comTM, and/or Froogle.comTM.
Hopefully, this (very brief!) e-Commerce intro will have you thinking about some of the ways you can improve your site and improve your sales. But if you’re still not sure what needs to be done, head on over to the Aplus.Net website for a complete run-down of our e-Commerce plans. If you’d like to speak with someone who can help you figure out what plan is right for your company, call one of our friendly and knowledgeable Aplus.Net sales reps at 877-275-8763 today. Good luck!
 Back to top
|
