Online Store - What/What Not to do?

Hi Mark I would recommend reading the articles on e-commerce at http://www.managedweb.com/articles/ecommerce.shtml as a starter, which should give you a good introduction. I would say the most important factors for an online shop are: 1) Good, neat design - the site must look professional & secure (first impressions are vital) 2) Clear product information and large, clear images so customers can see the detail of the products 3) Simple ordering process - 1,2,3 and you're done. Don't force them to register first! 4) Clear information on delivery charges, delivery times, and refund policy. 5) Communication! The more you can communicate with a customer the better - it reassures them that they have done the right thing by ordering from your site. They should get an automatic email receipt once they've placed their order, another email when their order is despatched, and preferably another a few days after they've received their order to ask if everything is ok. 6) You've already mentioned secure ordering - make sure this is highlighted on the site, and don't use a framed site where the secure padlock can't be seen. 7) Contact details (email and phone no) on every page, especially a phone number. This gives customers confidence that there is actaully someone real on the other side! You also need to include your address on the Contact page (both for confidence and as a legal requirement). I hope that helps! Gary
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Tie Warehouse
Great ties for any occasion!
http://www.tiewarehouse.co.uk

There is not to much more to add then what Gary has mentioned. As the website represents your business, you need to make it as professional as possible. A nice, clean design with easy navigation is a must. Not sure if you have looked into the actual carts, but look into Oscommerce http://www.oscommerce.com which is free to use. Jay Design R Web Solutions
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http://www.designr.co.uk">href="http://www.designr.co.uk">http://www.designr.co.uk Mailorder and Trade, designer, branded fragrances

http://www.designr.co.uk/web Web site design

Hi Mark, Just picking your brains here!!! we are looking for something different, but something cheap!! to send out to clients on our cd business cards, that are stuck to a5 card flyers, I thought about pens...but guess that's not very inventive...just wondering as its business gifts you sell/print can you come up with some ideas...that are reasonably cheap

Thanks for your replies everyone, much appreciated. Jay, I have looked at oscommerce as the format follows the look of the site I had in mind. I would like to send a jpeg or psd file of what I am thinking of (similar to your template 3), if you could tell me if in can be incorporated with oscommerce, costs etc that would be much appreciated. Actionscript - pens are always a good item based on cost. They are obviously useful and also lightweight, the downside being will it stay on the desk of your prospect. A couple of other idea that are both useful, lightweight and attach to a card easily are the video clip which can be viewed at http://www.advertiseonagift.com/action/promotional/ac155.htm Also another good item is the jumbo paper clip, if you click on my profile, send me a message with your e-mail address so that I can mail you an image and prices. Thanks all Mark Repro Grafix Speciality Advertising Freephone 0800 2983109 Fax: 01829 271789 http://www.advertiseonagift.com
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Repro Grafix Speciality Advertising - Promotional Items and Corporate Gifts  1000s of products at the BEST prices
Freephone 0800 2983109 Fax: 01829 271789  www.advertiseonagift.com">href="http://www.advertiseonagift.com">www.advertiseonagift.com
For Golf Gifts visit our Golf Gift Shop

Just to add to this, it is now a legal requirement on an ecommerce website to display your business Terms&Conditions, a Privacy Policy if you are collecting personal data (which you will be) and a clear returns/refund policy.
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Richard Osborne
Quick Formations Limited
A simple online company formation and company credit checking service...
Company">href="http://www.quickformations.com/">Company Formations - Company Reports
Network online and free community support for your business at the UK Business Forums

and just a word of advice for you - be very aware that any online transactions are 'person not present' and the card holder has 2 yrs to dispute the transaction. No matter how much you pay for fraud protection to companies such as world pay, streamline etc the merchant is always the one who has to pay for it in the end, and we get a lot of attempted fraud as it is very attractive to fraudsters for obvious reasons. Sorry for sounding so doomy, hope I haven't put you off. good luck. www.getshirt-e.co.uk
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www.getshirt-e.co.uk
www.realcarsnetwork.com

Thanks for all the advice. Jay I'll be getting back to you with a 'look' as promised in the email for you to see if it can be used with Oscommerce. Catherine - what precautions do you take to avoid attempted fraud? Mark Repro Grafix Speciality Advertising Freephone 0800 2983109 Fax: 01829 271789 http://www.advertiseonagift.com
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Repro Grafix Speciality Advertising - Promotional Items and Corporate Gifts  1000s of products at the BEST prices
Freephone 0800 2983109 Fax: 01829 271789  www.advertiseonagift.com">href="http://www.advertiseonagift.com">www.advertiseonagift.com
For Golf Gifts visit our Golf Gift Shop

Well, I thought paying for world alert and fraud alert with your payment processor (which is an extra on each transaction) would do it, but your not completely covered. Some checks go as far as to make sure that the card holder has funds available others check to make sure the card has not been reported stolen. But if a card has been cloned and some one else has stolen just the numbers then it is harder to detect. Authorisation from your payment processor just means that there are funds available and they are being sent to your bank a/c, so you need to go through the order carefully. If you use Worldpay or Paypal or the like they send you an email to confirm the order, then you go through the order on their site and if something is fishy i.e email does not match order name, mobile number only, or one of the checks does not match (i.e post code etc) then turn it down. Perhaps it could just be an unusually large order either turn it down or at least phone them and double check. I know I sound paranoid but I always thought credit card companies picked up the bill for fraud - but they don't, we do. Anyway hope I have helped. www.getshirt-e.co.uk
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www.getshirt-e.co.uk
www.realcarsnetwork.com

• Your company branding on the secure payment pages (if you use a third party payment site.
• Terms and Conditions, for the over cautious customer.
• Delivery timings to be made obvious.
• Endorsements from past customers
• Good navigation
• Crisp design. CSS design tends to be the best way forward nowadays + it tends to get searched easier due to its cleanliness.