Online shopping – Page 2

21 Mar23:40pm

EDI for Yahoo Stores Eliminates Data Entry

As ecommerce stores try to compete with Amazon and Walmart, they continue to seek ways to not only speed up the process from the time the customer places an order to actually receiving the product at their door, but also try to cut their own costs and become more efficient.

These two scenarios present a challenge because at first glance it appears that it is difficult to present the customer with a more efficient process from purchase right through to delivery, and lower administrative costs at the same time.

Yet xocbox has helped Yahoo Store Merchants do this by offering an EDI solution which enables them to eliminate some manual tasks, and frees up employees’ time so they can work on higher value projects.

Unlike some of the web-EDI solutions offered to online stores, the EDI solution that xocbox offers Yahoo stores is a fully integrated product which means that you do not have to re-key data into a third party product in order to pass the data on to the EDI trading partner.

A great benefit to Yahoo merchants is that this has allowed them to trade with suppliers who will only sell to them if they use EDI, enabling them to offer a much greater selection of products, and increase their sales revenue.

xocbox provided the back-end system required to achieve this, and worked with their suppliers to ensure that transactions were processed correctly. Once all testing was complete, they were up and running with a new supplier. No additional staff or training was required by the store to do this, and they were able to introduce a new line of products to their store.

With xocbox EDI Yahoo stores are able to manage their orders, and also product onboarding and inventory.

By transacting with your partners electronically you can save time, offer a greater range of products, and free up time to do other valuable tasks within your business.

If this sounds like something that would work for your store, learn more about the Benefits of xocbox EDI products here, or call xocbox at 858-752-3803.

For those looking to automate just about everything – from product onboarding, taking orders, and shipping products – read about the xocbox No Touch Store, where you literally don’t have to touch a thing.

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16 Jun23:15pm

Are Etailers Leaving Money on the Table?

I was recently asked a question about common issues that we see that are causing small and medium-sized etailers to leave money on the table in their online retail stores.

Of course, no-one would be doing this on purpose, but sometimes opportunities can be missed because they are not immediately apparent.

One thing we have seen is that merchants are missing opportunities to keep shoppers on their site by not optimizing their home page or landing pages.

The first thing a shopper should see is the most attractive merchandise and the best offers. This could be products that are well priced or popular for other reasons – such as Back to School products.

For example, if you sell apparel that has price variations according not only to size, but also color, your home page can show an attractive or seasonal color with the price below, and also show a price and label for the less expensive color.

By showing the lower price alongside the more expensive price of the product shown in the image, the shopper is drawn to the product. Even if they eventually buy the higher priced product, the lower price on the home page attracts their attention.

Another example would be making sure that bestsellers are visible above the fold on the website and out of stock items are pushed to the bottom or removed.

This is something that can be updated on a regular basis, or automated in response to events and triggers, such as a product going out of stock.

xocbox can help with automation and placing of products on landing and section pages – contact us for details.

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08 Jan21:19pm

Many Small Businesses Still Not Online

The results of holiday sales 2014 indicate that online retailers had a good year.

The web tracking company, comScore, released data this week showing an increase of 15% in November and December, better than their original estimates. These figures do not include sales made on mobile devices.

The figure is expected to increase to over 17% when mobile sales are taken into account, and this falls into line with many other reports and research that shows shoppers are now very comfortable making purchases on their mobile and tablet devices.

Big box stores and large enterprises have certainly embraced this, but smaller businesses appear to be having a more difficult time keeping up with technology trends, as noted in research from the nonprofit group, SCORE, which is supported by the Small Business Administration.

Their research showed that only 51% of small businesses have a website, yet 97% of consumers begin their product search online.

They also found that the small businesses that do have a website often lacked a call to action, did not engage in social media, and were not mobile and tablet friendly. There were even some that didn’t have a phone number, so contact by customers was difficult, if not impossible.

When you look at the volume of sales being made online and on mobile devices, it is clear that if your company does not have a website, you need to get one. Also, if your site is not yet mobile friendly, that is something you should have on your 2015 To Do List.

If it is that simple, why don’t more small businesses have a website?

The main reasons cited for not having a web presence were:

Lack of time – they are working round the clock to run their business, so don’t have time to devote to new technology and / or skills.
They don’t feel web savvy enough to delve into ecommerce, and stick to what they know.
The task is just too big. They don’t take credit cards in their store, so the jump to internet retailer is too daunting.

At xocbox, we try to make getting your business online an easier process, and one that doesn’t give you nightmares.

We can help your business, if:

You do not have an ecommerce site, and do not know where to begin because the large number of products you carry makes it overwhelming. We can help you get products online, and use xocbox tools to add and edit products.
You need to integrate your online store with bricks and mortar, and point of sale system. Manage inventory and work with suppliers / drop ship vendors to ensure that products sold online are actually available.
You have an ecommerce site, but find it difficult to keep on top of the volume of work involved keeping products up-to-date. xocbox tools reduce the data entry required in most ecommerce platforms.
You don’t already have a catalog and SKUs set up.
You have products with many colors and sizes, and need to quickly create professional looking listings with multi-views and swatches.

Contact xocbox today, and learn how we can help your online business.

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10 Nov20:16pm

Free Shipping

I have just returned from the WooConference 2014 in San Francisco, and came away with lots of ideas and information.

With a host of great speakers, we didn’t know what to expect, and the interesting thing is they all offered great new ideas, and reiterated some of the concepts we know we should all be offering.

One of the things all store owners must be thinking about at this time of year is Free Shipping, and is it really worth it? Well the answer is, a big YES!

Speaker after speaker mentioned the value of having free shipping available in your online store.

One speaker stated that 73% will shop with Free shipping offered, and that 90% will buy more from your store if free shipping is offered.

Another speaker said that research showed 44% of shoppers will drop out without free shipping, and go elsewhere.

So how can you make free shipping work for your store?

If you can’t sell all your products with free shipping, try offering free shipping on the total value of an order over a given amount, such as $100. This not only attracts shoppers, but entices them to spend over the $100 amount in order to benefit from the shipping offer.

Another way is to offer free shipping on products that you are planning to mark down in the next few days / weeks. You may sell them at full price, simply because you are offering free shipping.

Try offering free shipping on combined purchases in a certain category or categories.

Set up an email campaign offering free shipping to those who buy a product / products before a certain date. This way you will benefit from receiving revenue quicker.

Show a FREE SHIPPING label on your home page, so shoppers know it is available as soon as they land on your store. If possible, have free shipping in your header, so it appears on every page.

There is no question that competition is stiff in the online marketplace, but free shipping is here to stay and it is what shoppers have come to expect, not just from the big box stores, but from any online store or marketplace.

So don’t despair – in the long run, the more you sell, the better rates you can negotiate with your shipping service, so figuring out how to get started is crucial to your ongoing success.

Why not start by talking to your local shipping store? By passing more work their way, you may be able to solve your own shipping problems as well.

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21 Oct18:51pm

Apple Makes Headline News Again

This week Apple announced that it had sold an astonishing 39 million iPhones in the quarter ending September 2014, up from 33.8 million sold in the same quarter last year.

There is no doubt that we love our smartphones, and yesterday the iPhone just got smarter with the introduction of Apple Pay, described on their website as “Your Wallet. Without the Wallet”.

Many major banks have already signed up to parter with Apple, and more are scheduled to follow.

The convenience that Apple Pay presents for shoppers, and the huge number of iPhones sold, suggests that consumers will readily adopt this new way of paying.

Apple Pay can be used with retailers and chains such as Open Table, Panera Bread, Target and Staples, with more scheduled to follow.

What About Your Store?

So can your store use Apple Pay yet?

Most retail stores that accept contactless payments that are based on wireless-chip technology, or NFC, should be able to use Apple Pay. If your store has the hardware in place, but has not activated the functionality yet, now may be a good time to do so.

Shoppers can also use Apple Pay within store apps, without having to enter card numbers, or any other personal information, using fingerprint ID to authorize a transaction.

Research indicates that the majority of stores in the US are not equipped at this time to do contactless transactions, and smaller retailers may be wondering how they are going to keep up with yet another new piece of technology.

However, due to a requirement coming into force in 2015, merchants will need to upgrade equipment to include an enhanced security system or EMV, so now may be a good time to also enhance the system with NFC capability.

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01 Oct03:22am

What is Drop Shipping?

When you open an online store, the main thing you need is inventory.

Without any products to sell, you don’t have a store. This seems pretty obvious.

However, many people are surprised when they start listing products online, as it often takes many more product lines and categories than first anticipated to fill an online store.

So if you don’t have the funds to buy hundreds of different product lines, or simply don’t have the storage space, then drop shipping may provide the answer.

How Does Drop Shipping work?

Basically, you do not purchase products to store in your own warehouse until sold. Instead, you make arrangements with a wholesale supplier to list their products on your website, and when a product is sold, the supplier ships the product. Sounds simple.

The arrangement is straightforward enough, however, there are a few things you should be aware of.

Firstly, you lose control of the inventory, and this may ultimately cause customer service problems. For example, if there is a delay in shipping, or a product is damaged on arrival.
Also, since drop shippers usually sell to many retailers, keeping track of their inventory, as well as your own is difficult.
Profit margins on sales are also lower than if you were to purchase products and sell them directly to your customers.

The benefits of drop shipping are:

You can add more products to your website, and give your customers greater selection.
You don’t have to deal with the packing and shipping of products yourself.
You can begin your retail store without the expense of buying inventory to stock your store, so this can be a good way to get started.
You can “try out” a new product or new category, just to see if it’s a good fit for your store, without actually buying the product.

In conclusion, drop shipping has many advantages, and some disadvantages. Retailers often find a combination of products housed in their warehouse, and those shipped directly from drop ship suppliers is a good way to go.

Once you have elected to work with a drop shipper, always monitor their performance in regard to product fulfillment and customer service. If you find that a particular supplier does not perform well for you, it is better to stop selling that product, rather than risk your online reputation.

For information about selling through drop ship vendors, and how xocbox systems can help you keep track of shipments and inventory, please contact xocbox.

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