What Are You Waiting For?

Web host providers continue to see a steady influx of customers looking to sell online.

Brick and mortar store owners who failed to supplement their holiday marketing efforts with ecommerce sites have spent the past two weeks crying in their leftover egg nog. The problem is that whining will get you nowhere. Planning, however will take you anywhere you want to go. This is the perfect time to launch a powerful online presence so that you can benefit from America’s growing love affair with the web. 

The outlook for ecommerce is brighter than ever according to recent numbers released by Jupiter Media, a leading provider of IT related information and statistics. A look at the research says that online retail spending will increase from $81 billion to in 2005 to $95 billion in 2007. By 2010, the internet will influence nearly half of total retail sales.

Web host providers continue to see a steady influx of customers looking to sell online. The incoming wave of ecommerce includes a wide-ranging clientele with a broader range of needs. If you are looking to join the ranks of ecommerce there are few things you should know:

• Your web host is your strategic business partner. Give your hosting company a clear picture of what you want to accomplish and include them in your business plan.  Make sure the web hosting company you choose is reliable and has superior technical support. Check out the company’s history and ask for references. An ethical web hosting company will not be offended that you are asking questions. In fact, they will respect you for it. Make sure you select a host who can easily provide additional support as your online store grows and prospers.    
• Understand your customers’ needs. Too many sites are overcrowded with tons of information and then miss providing the one thing the surfer is trying to find.  You should constantly ask yourself: Why has this person landed at my website? What is the need that I must satisfy as easily and as quickly as possible?
• Studies show that people do not READ web pages, they SCAN them. Make sure your key messages ring out loud and clear. Often you have only a few seconds to convince the surfer to linger on your site.
• The customer is more in control than ever before. Consumers are demanding because they can be. They expect that anything’s possible to the point that when they hit the submit button they think the FedEx guy should already be knocking on their door. Customers are also better informed than ever before. Chances are they’ve done extensive research before they ever visit your site. Make sure they feel confident about your level of knowledge and expertise.  
• Cross channel selling is smart! Merchants who combine a brick and mortar outlet with an ecommerce operation are positioned to move ahead of their competitors. However, these two venues must be fully integrated for best results. The customer expects a consistent experience. They don’t understand why they can’t use their gift card both online and at the brick and mortar store. For those sites that don’t have a brick and mortar outlet, hard copies of catalogs are a version of “touch” that works well in conjunction with your online store.
• Convenience and time are often more important than price. Ecommerce merchants initially thought that price would be the only driver but many online stores make a tidy profit by tacking on a few bucks so that a product can be delivered fast and hassle free. Something that’s not available locally can safely be marked up (within reason).    
• Consumers like personalization. Expect to see more of it online in the coming months and years. Amazon has garnered a lot of mileage out of their ability to offer items based on past visits. Personalization online gives people the feeling they are visiting a favorite store where they are well known by the sales people – and everybody likes to feel important!
• The old rules still apply. Even though ecommerce sites often provide consumers with a high-tech and (hopefully) engaging shopping experience, the timeless rules still apply on or off the internet. Presenting “top selling” and “featured products” is still an effective sales technique. After all “what’s hot’” and “what’s new” still figure heavily into our reasons for shopping in the first place.

An online presence is no longer optional for brick and mortar stores who want to grow their businesses. The baby boomers are signing on en masse and they are looking for new sites as well as the familiar names they grew up with long before the internet entered the picture. So what are you waiting for? The 2007 holiday shopping season will be here sooner than you think.