Ask me anything about eCommerce (2012)

[Dan Da Man]

Btw,

I have been getting tons of PMs recently regarding SEO and e-commerce. Don't want to steal the light from Biophase. He probably knows much more then I do. But, I have been doing this for over 3 years and learned everything by myself from trial and error. I don't hire anyone and I don't outsource anything but website creation.

Anyone who is interested in learning more about SEO or e-commerce please PM me and I will set you up on my list for an ebook that myself and another member on this forum have created. It is free and I don't require an email to sell you, just a written and video review. Ebook is already written just need to put some finishing touches on it.

What will be covered? Everything from finding a product, researching a niche, finding manufacturers, keywords research, SEO tools, building links, onpage SEO and pretty much every thing I have learned in the last 3 years.

I really think that anyone interested in SEO and or building their own e-commerce store will find value in this. I know how hard it was to find information about SEO and e-commerce and I lost a lot of money and a lot of time figuring it out on my own. If I can share my knowledge and help people out, I think those 3 years of sleepless nights will have been worth it.

P.S you will also have access to the membership site where we update content regular and weekly webinars, examples and test sites we practice new strategies etc..

Thnx

 

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[andviv]

Dan, I think you should open a new thread to talk about SEO, based on what you know.

That would be very useful.

 

[Dan Da Man]

Dan, I think you should open a new thread to talk about SEO, based on what you know.

That would be very useful.

Sure thing

 

[lookingahead]

What ways are there to drive traffic to your site, besides adwords and SEO?

 

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[biophase]

What software are you using for your analytics, i heard that your should stay away from googles analytics if you run more than one site and do SEO as they can catch you out.

I have heard that too. But I am still currently running Google Analytics.

 

[biophase]

What ways are there to drive traffic to your site, besides adwords and SEO?

Right now I've become experimenting with social media mainly Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. I'm also hoping that amazon and ebay eventually bring me traffic too.

 

[lookingahead]

hmm I might need to try those I'm having trouble driving traffic with adwords

 

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[JasonR]

hmm I might need to try those I'm having trouble driving traffic with adwords

What's your niche? Do you have trouble with people actually clicking, or converting those who are clicking? You want people to buy with adwords...not so much click/drive traffic. You also want quality traffic...pay attention to your negative keywords.

 

[Deleted5250X]

I've been getting my first commerce store set up. I've been working on a lot of the government paperwork this past week. I've filed my DBA's and I've received my EIN. I have yet to mail in the paper work for my Sellers Permit, and City Business License, and home occupation permit. I have however contacted manufacturers and have received replies using your thread that is stickied.
https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/we...how-i-find-suppliers-my-ecommerce-stores.html

One sent me an order form/catalog, One replied with their credit application, and One Replied with their Dealer Form. The Manufacturer who sent the Dealer Registration form Asks for Business License, Tax form and Reseller Number and also asks for other manufacturers I purchase hard goods from and my account numbers with them, they do accept visa and master card.

I'm hesitant to respond to any of them as I don't have the sellers permit from the state and it appears it will take two weeks to arrive from when I mail the forms in tomorrow. Do all manufacturers require these documents and how many have you worked with who ask for a credit application or account numbers of other manufacturers I purchase hard goods from?

I guess my question is should I respond to these manufacturers immediately or wait to respond until I have the necessary documents in hand to set up an account?

My Second Question is if I do not currently purchase from other manufacturers, will most manufacturers ask for these references?

Sorry for all the questions this is my first store and first time purchasing from manufacturers/distributors.

 

[keza]

Hey everyone, I've been getting alot of PMs lately about my ecommerce stores so I thought I'd just start a thread where you can post questions abouy anything ecommerce (suppliers, platforms, credit card processors, SEO, dropshipping, etc...) and I will try to answer them here.[/QUOTE

Do you know about Steve Chou's course about starting an ecommerce ? He is asking $ 400, I need a coach, I do not know how to start.

 

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[DollarArticles]

What ways are there to drive traffic to your site, besides adwords and SEO?

depending on the niche, social promotion can work wonders.

 

[BeingChewsie]

What ways are there to drive traffic to your site, besides adwords and SEO?

Display Ads
Social Media
Webinars
Seminars
Podcasting
Retargeting
infographics-like Pinterest
Videos
Content Marketing
Email/Newsletters
Press releases
Affiliates
White papers
Presentations in the local community or at national organizations that represent your niche or on slideshare etc
Forums
Q&A sites like Livestrong as an example
Referrals
Discussions/comments
Development of apps-web and mobile
Blogging
Philanthropy
Authorship of books
Free classes

I am sure that there are a million other ways that I have not come across, yet.

Sue

 

[biophase]

I've been getting my first commerce store set up. I've been working on a lot of the government paperwork this past week. I've filed my DBA's and I've received my EIN. I have yet to mail in the paper work for my Sellers Permit, and City Business License, and home occupation permit. I have however contacted manufacturers and have received replies using your thread that is stickied.
https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/we...how-i-find-suppliers-my-ecommerce-stores.html

One sent me an order form/catalog, One replied with their credit application, and One Replied with their Dealer Form. The Manufacturer who sent the Dealer Registration form Asks for Business License, Tax form and Reseller Number and also asks for other manufacturers I purchase hard goods from and my account numbers with them, they do accept visa and master card.

I'm hesitant to respond to any of them as I don't have the sellers permit from the state and it appears it will take two weeks to arrive from when I mail the forms in tomorrow. Do all manufacturers require these documents and how many have you worked with who ask for a credit application or account numbers of other manufacturers I purchase hard goods from?

I guess my question is should I respond to these manufacturers immediately or wait to respond until I have the necessary documents in hand to set up an account?

My Second Question is if I do not currently purchase from other manufacturers, will most manufacturers ask for these references?

Sorry for all the questions this is my first store and first time purchasing from manufacturers/distributors.

Glad to know what I posted still works! Most dealers will ask for applications and licenses. They don't give their wholesale info out to just anyone. You should wait until you have your documents in hand before you turn in the other stuff. If they require it, they won't do anything with your paperwork until you send them everything. You probably don't need to put in bank account info in your application. Some will ask for references but will never call them.

 

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[biophase]

Do you know about Steve Chou's course about starting an ecommerce ? He is asking $ 400, I need a coach, I do not know how to start.

Is he the my wife quit her job guy? If so, I think his course would be solid based on the information in his blog.

 

[Fastlaner2012]

Thank you Biophase for your valuable post.

What are your thoughts on providing an online paying service (instead of selling products) though the development of web application? How do you go about finding a service that is in need? that would improve people's lives? What tools/strategies would you use to do the marjet research? would you recommend any consulting companies that does online market research?

My past failures have taught me the importance of researching the market before venturing into this kind of business or any for that matter! My expertise lies in the web application/database development/software engineering and would like to hear your thoughts about researching the potential online service! i would very much appreciate your input.

Great blog you have there i like the funny part about pooping and how to solve that problem! ^^ I used it this morning and it worked lol
Funny posts like these make people laugh, get their attention and make them happy! smart

speed++

 

[biophase]

Thank you Biophase for your valuable post.

What are your thoughts on providing an online paying service (instead of selling products) though the development of web application? How do you go about finding a service that is in need? that would improve people's lives? What tools/strategies would you use to do the marjet research? would you recommend any consulting companies that does online market research?

Hi,

I am not sure what you mean? Are you creating a store selling services or web development services?

 

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[Fastlaner2012]

Hi,

I am not sure what you mean? Are you creating a store selling services or web development services?

Hello,

I am talking about providing an online service through a dynamic web application like charging users fees to use the service online (membership sites) or charging commissions for every transaction made like online market places such as flippa, crowdspring, Lynda alibaba etc.
I have the knowledge in developping such services, my hurdle lies in finding what is services in need and how to go about doing market research online. I know that this is somewhat different from developping an e-store but i was just wondering your thoughts on this.

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

Maroine

 

[Deleted5250X]

Hi BioPhase since this is ask me anything, I have another question for you.

I'm in the process of designing my eCommerce store and was wondering if you had any resources for design principles. The niche I'm entering most of the stores don't seem to be well designed so I don't want to just copy them. Are there any design principles that I must follow? Do certain designs convert better for different niches? Is cleaner better like Shoes, Clothing, and More | Zappos.com appears very clean looking, some sites like tennnisgear.org isn't as clean but they are also successful. Seems like Amazon, NewEgg, Zappos and others are much cleaner. Is it wise to try and mimic those designs or do certain niches convert better with different designs?

I guess what I'm trying to say do certain designs convert better than others and what universal principles are there to follow?

 

[JasonR]

Hi BioPhase since this is ask me anything, I have another question for you.

I'm in the process of designing my eCommerce store and was wondering if you had any resources for design principles. The niche I'm entering most of the stores don't seem to be well designed so I don't want to just copy them. Are there any design principles that I must follow? Do certain designs convert better for different niches? Is cleaner better like Shoes, Clothing, and More | Zappos.com appears very clean looking, some sites like tennnisgear.org isn't as clean but they are also successful. Seems like Amazon, NewEgg, Zappos and others are much cleaner. Is it wise to try and mimic those designs or do certain niches convert better with different designs?

I guess what I'm trying to say do certain designs convert better than others and what universal principles are there to follow?

The cleaner or better the design, the higher the conversion rate IMHO.

Were you trying to link to Tenniswarehouse.com? I used to work for them, and they are HUGELY successful. I'm friends with one of the guys that was there from the start. Last I worked there (a couple years ago) they were doing about $35 million a year. They are also in other niche e-commerce businesses. If you have questions let me know...

 

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[Jeremy]

The cleaner or better the design, the higher the conversion rate IMHO.

The only way to know is to test and track. Every niche is different. Every audience is different.

Craigslist is a filthy, dirty mess from any user-interface standpoint. A drunk monkey could do better. But it converts and works with its audience.

There are a million "clean" template sites out there that have no original descriptive content, no well defined niche, no USP, no soul, no nothing...and they don't convert.

 

[JasonR]

The only way to know is to test and track. Every niche is different. Every audience is different.

Craigslist is a filthy, dirty mess from any user-interface standpoint. A drunk monkey could do better. But it converts and works with its audience.

There are a million "clean" template sites out there that have no original descriptive content, no well defined niche, no USP, no soul, no nothing...and they don't convert.

That's true...but Craigslist doesn't convert anything...they don't make money off anything other than business listings.

IMHO a well designed site, with good content, good link hierarchy/site structure, etc. is better than the same with a crappy design.

 

[Pete799p]

Thank for all of the great info as usual.

For most of the niches I have been pursuing I could not get a manufacturer to sell to me without a B&M location and definitely no drop shipping. Many of these niches have strong name brands but based on some market research there are still generics that are selling especially in B&M retail stores. Plus there have been several new companies open up in the last few years that have been able to build a brand and gain market share. Because of these factors I am considering importing some of these generics or unknown to the US brands and selling them on ebay/amazon while building an ecommerce presence.

Do you think that ebay/amazon is a good way to test the market for products you plan to open an ecommerce store with or are the sales results mutually exclusive. How important is your stores conversion to its SEO rankings. If I have a store that only sells 2 or 3 items that should have 10-20 and is therefore not converting very well will I still be able to rank it on the first page with strong content. My goal would be after ranking my site to either get distribution deals with the manufacturers who wouldn't sell to me or continue to expand and possible brand my imported inventory.

Also at what point do you consider search volume to be too low. For example a keyword with 590 Exact local matches and 2400 local matches be too small. Or another one with 1900 Exact local matches 27000 generic.

Thank you

 

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[biophase]

Hello,

I am talking about providing an online service through a dynamic web application like charging users fees to use the service online (membership sites) or charging commissions for every transaction made like online market places such as flippa, crowdspring, Lynda alibaba etc.
I have the knowledge in developping such services, my hurdle lies in finding what is services in need and how to go about doing market research online. I know that this is somewhat different from developping an e-store but i was just wondering your thoughts on this.

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

Maroine

So you are talking about creating a site that has transactions between your customers and you charge them a fee to list or buy, etc...

I think for that type of site, they are born from needs. For example 99designs came from digital point's marketplace. They saw that many people were getting logos done and decided that there was a need for it.

This is where I think that just getting into markets and clicking around the web will create ideas.

I do like this market, but I don't have experience in it. If you can develop this software, maybe you can even provide this software as your product with a monthly fee.

 

[biophase]

Is it wise to try and mimic those designs or do certain niches convert better with different designs?

I would always mimic the designs of the large ecom stores. My thought is that they must have many people and spend tons of money on research on what converts. So you can use their results as a baseline and change your template from there.

I personally like clean, white templates.

 

[biophase]

Thank for all of the great info as usual.

For most of the niches I have been pursuing I could not get a manufacturer to sell to me without a B&M location and definitely no drop shipping. Many of these niches have strong name brands but based on some market research there are still generics that are selling especially in B&M retail stores. Plus there have been several new companies open up in the last few years that have been able to build a brand and gain market share. Because of these factors I am considering importing some of these generics or unknown to the US brands and selling them on ebay/amazon while building an ecommerce presence.

Do you think that ebay/amazon is a good way to test the market for products you plan to open an ecommerce store with or are the sales results mutually exclusive. How important is your stores conversion to its SEO rankings. If I have a store that only sells 2 or 3 items that should have 10-20 and is therefore not converting very well will I still be able to rank it on the first page with strong content. My goal would be after ranking my site to either get distribution deals with the manufacturers who wouldn't sell to me or continue to expand and possible brand my imported inventory.

Also at what point do you consider search volume to be too low. For example a keyword with 590 Exact local matches and 2400 local matches be too small. Or another one with 1900 Exact local matches 27000 generic.

Thank you

I think you can use ebay or amazon to test sales. Many people start on amazon or ebay and then open up an ecommerce store. But you need large margins to sell there because they take so much off the top.

If you import some products and sell them on ebay/amazon be sure to brand them and not sell them as generics.

I don't think your rank would depend on how many products you have. Some stores can survive on a few products because they are very targeted.

 

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[Pete799p]

If you import some products and sell them on ebay/amazon be sure to brand them and not sell them as generics.

When you say brand them I am assuming you mean private label under my brand/name. Do you think it would be okay to start selling them under my name without my name being on the product or could I just put a nice sticker on them or provide some kind of branded stuff in the box. I ask because most of the manufacturers I have talked with about private labeling require a sizable order quantity. This is definitely my end goal but I am trying to find a way to boot strap this with smaller orders of more products.


Thanks again

 

[Dan Da Man]

That's true...but Craigslist doesn't convert anything...they don't make money off anything other than business listings.

IMHO a well designed site, with good content, good link hierarchy/site structure, etc. is better than the same with a crappy design.

No offense this is not entirely true. A well looking site will only be a factor of trust usually. There is a guy Andy Jenkins who is an e-commerce master and some of his sites were the ugliest looking things ever. He tested tested and tested and the ugliest design always wins.

Obviously each niche is different but I made the mistake of trying to hard on the aesthetics of the site when really it doesn't matter. You have to test it to know what works and a good looking site could also be a very unconverting site.

Trust me his site is ugly as shit. Wall Tapestries and Wall Decor Hangings from The Tapestry Standard This was his high converting site which they tested every tiny thing imaginable

 

[biophase]

When you say brand them I am assuming you mean private label under my brand/name. Do you think it would be okay to start selling them under my name without my name being on the product or could I just put a nice sticker on them or provide some kind of branded stuff in the box. I ask because most of the manufacturers I have talked with about private labeling require a sizable order quantity. This is definitely my end goal but I am trying to find a way to boot strap this with smaller orders of more products.


Thanks again

Yes, just sell them under a name, put a sticker on the box, or get a different box. Do something to differentiate them.

 

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[JasonR]

No offense this is not entirely true. A well looking site will only be a factor of trust usually. There is a guy Andy Jenkins who is an e-commerce master and some of his sites were the ugliest looking things ever. He tested tested and tested and the ugliest design always wins.

Obviously each niche is different but I made the mistake of trying to hard on the aesthetics of the site when really it doesn't matter. You have to test it to know what works and a good looking site could also be a very unconverting site.

Trust me his site is ugly as shit. Wall Tapestries and Wall Decor Hangings from The Tapestry Standard This was his high converting site which they tested every tiny thing imaginable

There are always exceptions to every rule...

 

[AllenCrawley]

biophase,

I just came across this article - Google Shopping Censors All Gun, Ammo & Accessories Results and wondered how it will affect your business if at all?