Ecommerce Web Design Blog
Linux v Windows Web Hosting
Published in web hosting by oscworks |Linux and Windows are two different operating systems that sit behind the scenes on a hosting provider's web server. They do not affect the software that runs on the desktop computer you use to manage your website or the computers your customer uses. So if you have Linux Web Hosting for example, the website that is being hosted can be a Windows or Macintosh computer - all that matters is that it has a compatible web browser. Most customers will see very little difference in the features they have available to them in their hosting environment between the two.
The web server software is the key difference. The key difference between Linux and Windows Hosting is the web server software that powers them. For Linux servers this is generally called Apache. For Windows-based servers the web server technology is called IIS (Internet Information Server).
IIS Microsoft programming code technologies that are not available on Linux, so Windows Hosting is usually required if you are going to be using Microsoft programming technologies or databases in your site. These include ASP, ASP.NET, Microsoft SQL Server, Tomcat or MS Access.
Which one? If you are not using Microsoft programming technologies, Linux servers generally offer better value for money in terms of features. If your website is going to use PHP you can usually choose either Linux or Windows Hosting, but most customers prefer Linux servers as they can take advantage of more license-free software and scripts and there are generally more free scripts available to download from the Internet for this platform.
Osc Works hosting, ecommerce and web design packages all currently run on the Linux platform.
10 Ecommerce Tips
Published in shopping carts, shopping cart, ecommerce websites, ecommerce cart, ecommerce by oscworks |1. Make your products easy to find. Your shopping cart software comes with the ability to set up categories so it's wise to take advantage of that. Making it easy for customers to find your products will enhance their shopping experience.
2. Make payment processing easy. Let your customers pay you in multiple ways - bank transfers, simple payment systems like Paypal or Paymex, or through online payment gateways (which allow credit card processing in real time and keep customers on your site through the payment process). The more payment processing options you can accept, the better.
3. Don't forget to promote your site. Setting up a great site with a cool domain name is one thing, but how will your customers know about it? Think about purchasing a SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) ecommerce add-on so you can use friendly names in your URLs which are easier indexed by search engines, and better remembered by customers. Submit your domain name and URL to the search engines about every six weeks to make sure they keep coming back. And if you have a marketing budget, put your domain name on your flyers, business cards, shop front, posters, newspaper ads and everything else. Banner ads and affiliate programmes could also help you.
4. Add your personality to your site. Give your potential customers a real sense of who you are, where you're based and what you believe in. Include a photo of your office if you have one and physical contact details. Impersonal or missing About Us pages could prevent you from achieving sales. Anything you can do to bring a sense of personality to your site through your About us page or the way you write your descriptions, could help your site be memorable. Include links to your privacy and returns policy.
5. Ask customers if they would like to sign up for a newsletter - but only after a sale is made. Customers hate having the sale process interrupted to answer questions - if you annoy your customers as they go through the checkout, they're less likely to be satisfied by the sale experience.
6. Let people know how to contact you offline: If something goes wrong and customers want to be able to contact you, they'll want to know somewhere to write or a phone number to call. If you don't include this information in your site, they could be wary of buying from you.
7. Display good quality, large photos of your products. Would you buy something in a supermarket by only looking at it from across the aisle? Putting good quality, higher resolution images of your products on your site can be time consuming, but well worth it as your customers will probably want to see what they are getting. Make sure the photos show the products in their best possible light.
8.Try creating packages of items: Pre-made packages suited to particular customer groups or occasions can help sell your products and move less popular items. Put yourself in your customer's mind and think interesting and appealing names for your package. Sell it at a slightly discounted price than purchasing the individual items that make up the package. If you sell packages, try to sell 'light' or simplified versions of your products - this works well if you sell electronic products like books, reports or music.
9. Purchase a cross sell module: Accessories are a great money-spinner for retail stores, so why not take advantage of them on your site too? If you purchase an ecommerce add-on for your site that allows cross selling functionality, you could increase your average sale amount for every customer who goes through the check-out. A simple 'you might also like these products' could help
10. Get your site ready for Xmas early: Traffic's up during the holiday season, so get it coming to your site. Email your top 20 or 50 customers with a discount coupon, or suggest items they may be interested. If you hold stock for your site, start purchasing it now to make sure you have extras in time for the Christmas season. Look out for wholesale options.
