Ecommerce Web Design Blog

One of the biggest factors that people don't take into account when buying shopping cart software is the cost of support . There are many 'free' ecommerce solutions in the marketplace, but when something goes wrong with them, what do you do? You could post in the forums relevant to the free shopping cart you are using, but if you don't get a reply or the solution posted doesn't work, where do you turn?What if you are getting a unique error message?

Unless the problem you are having is to do with the server's configuration, in many cases they will also be unable to help. You will then be left on your own and with the expensive problem of trying to hire paid support from the original  developers of the cart or a third-party developer. Depending on your problem, either option could be very expensive.

Some shopping cart software products charge hundreds or even thousands of dollars per month in addition to the cost of their hosting environment just to give you the right to submit a very limited number of problems to them per year. 

If you are choosing a shopping cart for your business, support matters. Our advice is that you should choose carefully.

If you are choosing a hosted ecommerce solution like ozCart (where you are renting the shopping cart software but own your domain name and products), then support is often included in your monthly payment. It's good to check however what support you get for your monthly payments. For example, ask your shopping cart provider:

• Can you get support after 5pm? If you're working a full time job, you will often be working on your store between 5-8pm so look for a provider who has support during these hours.
  
• Can you get support at weekends?
• What support options do you get? Is there an extensive knowledgebase covering the key problems you may face? Is there an email ticket system to ask questions if you can't get what you want from the knowledgebase? Is there phone support or support live chat?
  
• How many support enquiries do you get for your monthly payment?
• Is proactive website performance management support provided behind-the-scenes?
• Is there a willingness of your provider to maintain a secure environment for your store?

Although ozCart from Osc Works does not offer phone or online chat support, our customers are not disadvantaged by this at all. We are proud to offer oustanding ecommerce support 7 days a week, 365 day email support via our ticket system (with unlimited tickets on all our ecommerce packages), plus a members knowledgebase with answers to questions based on past customer enquiries.  Our support team also provides proactive support where critical bug fixes and security patches can be implemented on stores without a ticket submission even being required if we become aware of them.

Choose an ecommerce software provider who includes support as part of their monthly fee and either provides a generous or unlimited number of ticket support enquiries and reasonable rates for extra work if required.

Shopping carts help you reach out to new customers when economic times are tougher and the business expenses of running a physical shop put a squeeze on your margins.  A shopping cart website that is well promoted can lower your cost of product distribution and widen your reach of customers.

If you want to get a shopping cart up and running quickly to complement your physical shop, here are five tips to get you started:

1. Promote your website, heavily. One of the biggest mistakes made by customers new to ecommerce is that they expect instant traffic. But selling online in your own store is not like selling on an auction site. A standalone online store has the benefits of not having to pay listing and success fees, but you have to build your own traffic through a combination of advertising, offline promotion and optimising your website to be more relevant to certain (popular) search terms (this is called sarch engine optimisation).
2. Use your physical store to promote your website. Run a referral program to encourage visitors to your physical store to refer others to your site or come back and shop out of hours with you again. Have a 'Have you seen our website?' poster, giveaway card or promotion in-store. Don't forget to promote your physical store in your online store too - if customers know you have a physical presence this can help them feel more comfortable buying from you.
3. Focus on product photography. In a physical store a customer can look, smell, touch or try the product you are selling. Online your product descriptions and photography have to work hard to ensure that they give the customer the experience they desire. Great photography and well written descriptions (not just the manufacturer's provided description) will help ensure your site is unique, inviting and delivers you the best possible value for money for your online store.
4. Guide customers through your site. In your physical store you may have signs to tell customers where to find the things they are looking for and any promotional items such as specials. Use carefully placed banners to achieve this same effect online. Highlight specials and provide useful additional information. For example, if you are a jewellery store, tell your customers how they can work out their ring size.
5. Use consistent branding.  Your store will be more familiar to your existing customers if they feel like they are shopping in your physical store. And for new customers, they will be able to make the linkages between your physical and online store.