eFireplaceSupplies.com Launches!
March 27, 2008
With over 30 years of experience in the hearth, fireplace and woodstove industry, our supplier was the perfect company to partner with on our newest niche site dedicated to fireplace supplies and accessories. The site features over 300 fireplace supplies that have been hand crafted in
Site Features:
A fireplace can make a dramatic impact on a room but can often be overlooked when upgrading your home. This site is aimed toward the home owner looking to improve the look of their fireplace or those in need of fireplace tools. The color palette is easy on the eyes and gives the feeling of a cool relaxing atmosphere–on fire. This version of our platform comes equipped with a mini cart dropdown that displays your cart contents and cart total to avoid shopping cart sticker shock and allows the customer to know what they have in their cart at all times. This site also has the ability to cross promote between our other sites via the checkout confirmation page and a banner manager. Our product pages also allow the customer the ability to calculate their product arrival date via a link to shipping estimates. Check it out and feel free to critique.
Customers Can be Wrong
March 20, 2008
Here’s a great article by Alexander Kjerulf called “Top 5 reasons why ‘the customer is Always Right’ is wrong.” In our industry customer service is extremely important and we try to do our best. Sometimes–no matter what you do–there will be a “demanding jerk” who is absolutely hell-bent on being dissatisfied. The best thing really is to cut ties with the customer in a respectful manner. Let them know why they’re not a good fit for you and vice versa. It’s not worth demoralizing your loyal employees to save a customer who is anything but loyal.
Tags: customer service advice, customers can be wrongOne woman who frequently flew on Southwest, was constantly disappointed with every aspect of the company’s operation. In fact, she became known as the “Pen Pal” because after every flight she wrote in with a complaint.
She didn’t like the fact that the company didn’t assign seats; she didn’t like the absence of a first-class section; she didn’t like not having a meal in flight; she didn’t like Southwest’s boarding procedure; she didn’t like the flight attendants’ sporty uniforms and the casual atmosphere.
Her last letter, reciting a litany of complaints, momentarily stumped Southwest’s customer relations people. They bumped it up to Herb’s [Kelleher, CEO of Southwest] desk, with a note: ‘This one’s yours.’
In sixty seconds, Kelleher wrote back and said, ‘Dear Mrs. Crabapple, We will miss you. Love, Herb.’”
DiscountCanvasArt.com Launches!
March 14, 2008
Unless you are an avid art collector who takes pride in owning rare high end works of art, you most likely want pieces that look more expensive than they really are. Art that makes a statement, exudes your personality, and matches your décor. DiscountCanvasArt.com is a shopping outlet for original hand printed –get this– discount canvas art on an art gallery frame, ready to hang. Our collection includes vintage prints, animal, floral, and beach themes to name a few. Whatever your taste, we believe you should be able to find sweet art and save money doing it.
Site Features:
The design of this site is reflective of a retro modern appeal. The site features many of the new additions to our ever growing platform including the Thickbox JS image effect on product pages, a fully (finally) integrated PayPal module, and the ability to up sell other brands on our checkout success page. We are pleasantly surprised at how well the platform is evolving (and converting). We would be thrilled to receive feedback–try to be gentle–and any suggestions you have. It’s always good to have an outsider’s perspective.
Quick SEM Tip: Use PPC Ads to Prequalify Customers
March 12, 2008
Here’s a simple Pay Per Click tip. If you’re offering a high end product or premium service you can easily achieve lower cost per conversions by screening customers who already know they don’t want to spend over a certain dollar amount. Simply display the price your products start from in the ads. You’ll probably get a lower click through rate but the end benefit is a higher ROI and lower cost per conversion.
Here’s an example ad you might find on Google, Yahoo, etc.:
Blue Widgets
From $1,999.95 - Premium Quality
Find Rare Blue Widgets Here!
www.sweetbluewidgets.com
Throw out some more…
Tags: lower cost per conversion, ppc tipsMade in the USA and eCommerce Strategy
March 9, 2008
The ever-growing problem of Americans losing jobs to outsourcing will continue the consumer movement towards buying domestically made products so they can support local jobs. Several of our properties offer products Made in the
When it comes to eCommerce, it’s easy to focus on technology, trends, and marketing thus causing you to lose sight of your customers. People want to buy from companies they like and values they can get behind.
“In our experience we’ve found that not only do people shop online to find the lowest price, they also search for products that support causes.” - Chad and Jon, simultaneously
When developing your eCommerce strategy make sure you don’t loose focus on the customer’s needs and wants as a whole. Low prices and efficiency isn’t always the best approach. Often times the website becomes too much of a focus and we can overlook these buried gems. Make sure the foundation of your online marketing strategy is giving people as much value as possible while meeting their needs. It’s why your website should exist in the first place.
Stalkers rejoice: Twitter info.
March 6, 2008
We figured it was about time to setup a Twitter account so here you are: http://twitter.com/3tailer
Not much action yet and we’re not exactly sure how we’re going to use it but we’ll see what happens (erder tweets, anyone?).
How do you use Twitter in your business/life?
Tags: 3tailer twitterAmerican Express: Plum is the new Black.
March 4, 2008
Earlier this year we decided to get an American Express Plum Card to run most of our expenses through. To say the least, we are pumped about our card selection. The Plum Card has proven to be an amazing asset to our small business and a great tool for managing cash flow. Today we received a letter in the mail from AmEx OPEN. Below is a recap of the letter and the card in general.
“Congratulations, your charter member number is 9,518 of 10,000.” Susan Sabbott, President American Express OPEN
The small circulation actually means it’s currently more exclusive than the Black Card.
Current Benefits of the Plum Card (3-3-2008):
- Early Pay Discount - receive up to 2% back if you pay your bill within 10 days of receiving it.
- Basically, this increases your profitability by 2% just by running your expense through the card.
- Instantly decreases your PPC costs by 2%
- Defer Pay Discount - pay 10% of your balance and defer the remaining for 30 days with no interest.
- We haven’t tried this out yet and hopefully won’t have to but it could be useful if cash flow is tight.
- No Limit.
- Well actually, when you first get it they put a 32k limit on the first month but it grows as you continue to build and pay off high balances.
- Automatic discounts at certain restaurants, hotels, etc..
Upcoming features for the 10,000 businesses who made the initial selection:
- Opportunity to promote your business through PlumCard.com and Plum Card Advertising.
- Create a digital card with your business name on it
- They provide you with a customized Plum Card “Who’s getting one?” arrow to display on your own business website
- Opportunity to be on the Plum Card advisory board
- Let them know how to make the card better
Check out the scans of the letter we received regarding the above upcoming rewards of this awesome card.
Anyone else have it?
Tags: american express plum, amex plum cardTeamFlagShop.com Launches!
March 3, 2008
Sports fans love to show off their team pride and we are here to help. TeamFlagShop.com has a collection of over 700 flags, pennants, mailbox covers, and accessories of teams from the NFL, NCAA, and MLB. We also sell the only premium quality Applique and Embroidered mini flag on the market. So whether you want to hang sports team flags outside your home, on your car, or on your wall – we have the flag to fit your decorating and team spirit needs.
Site Features:
As time rolls on our platform continues to grow and our ability to manage and display more products becomes a necessity. Our left navigation needed to be tweaked so that it doesn’t display all sub categories at one time. The nav will now only display sub categories when you select a category. The ability to cross sell products within the sub category on the product pages was also important because odds are that someone looking for a Tar Heels flag probably isn’t interested in a Duke flag. This site also features our most current checkout process modifications and the ability to cross sell on the shopping cart page. Check the site out and let us know what you think!
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