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Ask me anything about eCommerce (2012)

Dicky Dee

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Do you have analytics set up on the backend? Your site is really slow to load for me. Analytics will help you see where traffic is coming from and what pages they visit, how long they stay for, heat maps show where they hover their mouse cursor over or look at, etc. You may consider having better images optimised for use on the web.

Think you need general marketing advice not just SEO.

Just my opinion.


Hey thanks for having a look, would the site be loading slow because the pictures are too high of resolution? It loads fine on my computer but maybe its different on others, and no i dont have analytics set up is that something i can download and add on?
 

s168

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Hey thanks for having a look, would the site be loading slow because the pictures are too high of resolution? It loads fine on my computer but maybe its different on others, and no i dont have analytics set up is that something i can download and add on?

Images will load slower if they are too high res. Reduce their sizes by having them optimised for the Web otherwise visitors with slower connections will abandon your site due to frustration. Especially if they are on mobile / cell phones.

Analytics can be paid or free. Google Analytics is free and is pretty good. Pros and cons of using them though. I'd spend a bit of time researching that.
 

CPisHere

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I'm getting started in PPC, and I'm thinking it would be best to direct links to a landing page w copy specific to the ad rather than just direct to category or product pages as I think it would raise the conversion rates.

Bio or others, any experience with doing landing pages for e-commerce? What did you use to set them up?

I'm using Shopify so something that integrates would be nice!
 
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BlakeIC

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Finished going through the entire thread, got a niche idea but my issue dealing with MOQ of this niche
the product goes for around $7-$25 to be manufactured to $100-$200 and even higher

edit: Dropped the idea targeting the demographic would be a major pain in the a$$ and it would probably be awhile before i would become profitable off ppc
 
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Mike Kavanagh

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Alright, I'm in the middle of setting up a mock site to test the niche I'm looking at.

Would I get in trouble for using pictures of name brand items, like some sort of copy right offense?
I'm trying to get a feel for how to do this.
 
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biophase

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I'm getting started in PPC, and I'm thinking it would be best to direct links to a landing page w copy specific to the ad rather than just direct to category or product pages as I think it would raise the conversion rates.

Bio or others, any experience with doing landing pages for e-commerce? What did you use to set them up?

I'm using Shopify so something that integrates would be nice!

I usually send my PPC to the product page, but just recently started with a one page lander. I'm sending it to a subdomain of my store that is self hosted (adwords says subdomains are ok) and just used a html one page landing template.
 

biophase

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Alright, I'm in the middle of setting up a mock site to test the niche I'm looking at.

Would I get in trouble for using pictures of name brand items, like some sort of copy right offense?
I'm trying to get a feel for how to do this.

You probably won't get any traffic and the people who would care would never see your store.
 

jayc954

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Alright, I'm in the middle of setting up a mock site to test the niche I'm looking at.

Would I get in trouble for using pictures of name brand items, like some sort of copy right offense?
I'm trying to get a feel for how to do this.

I have a client that sells swimsuits and used pictures from their dropshipper. A year later they received legal notification from a huge womens brand to take down all the pictures not knowing where they got those images from. You may not get in trouble now but it could bite you in the a$$ later on if you start getting some visibility from your competitors.
 
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PSK

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I have a client that sells swimsuits and used pictures from their dropshipper. A year later they received legal notification from a huge womens brand to take down all the pictures not knowing where they got those images from. You may not get in trouble now but it could bite you in the a$$ later on if you start getting some visibility from your competitors.

Agreed.

With my legal mind, I'm thinking all manner of cease and desists / IPR claims. Why start your business on dodgy ground? In the future, let's say you've rolled out 50+ products which rely on other people's IPR, could you easily replace those product images? Why not start the right way and do your own pictures, more work yes, but at least you know you have the right to use those pictures.

Short-cuts aren't worth taking if they expose you to liability.
 

PSK

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I usually send my PPC to the product page, but just recently started with a one page lander. I'm sending it to a subdomain of my store that is self hosted (adwords says subdomains are ok) and just used a html one page landing template.

Biophase, have you found this to be more effective?

I ran a PPC campaign which led straight to my 'home' page rather than my 'product page' and didn't convert any of the 400+ clicks.

I'm thinking of changing it to link to my product page and/or possibly a landing page with a sales funnel (and associated tripwire).
 

lovecharm

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Biophase,

First of all, its nice of you to open up this thread, so kudos to you.

Now, I got an e-commerce website, its wholesale clothing, its on the first page of google for the chosen keywords as well.

However, not many orders are coming in, I would say once a month on average, which is quite poor.

Some people told me to change the design of the site and see if that increases the conversion or not.

What would you do if your site was not converting? Would you redesign the site and test it? How do you do the ab testing (if you do it)? The bounce rate is 30% by the way.

M
 
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chrischapman

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Strange, I actually enjoy this process too ... signing a book, throwing it in a box, and dropping it off at the post office. While die-hard "Fastlaners" might say "This is a waste of time!!!" I find it enjoyable. I've never had an issue with the *work* of order fulfillment -- curious that you feel the same. I wonder what the psychological reasoning is behind it ... Perhaps it makes us feel more intimate with the customer and the value you are offering?

Doing things in real life always feels much more of an accomplisment/real action than just in electronic form.

My grandma says to me that she thinks bank transfers for wages is stupid, she remembers getting the cash in her hand and it always felt great. Now people get double the money in their bank as wages and it doesn't feel anywhere near as good.

Same thing as working in construction I reckon. Even though you might get paid less than an office worker, you see the fruits of your labour by building something. The office worker goes home and doesn't know what he has built, or at least doesn't see or feel it.

As for packing boxes and signing and sending books, you feel their joy on the other side as they receive and enjoy your product.

When I did window cleaning a few years back, I always felt a small sense of satisfaction after seeing a clean window that I had done. There is something about seeing and touching the value that you're providing which is different to seeing an e-receipt for an electronic service you've provided.
 

biophase

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I have a client that sells swimsuits and used pictures from their dropshipper. A year later they received legal notification from a huge womens brand to take down all the pictures not knowing where they got those images from. You may not get in trouble now but it could bite you in the a$$ later on if you start getting some visibility from your competitors.

I can't see this being a problem if they were selling the exact swimsuit in the photo. If you are selling Oakleys, I would think you could use Oakey's stock photos of them. Why would a brand NOT let you use their photos? Your client probably used someone else's photos of the product.
 

biophase

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Biophase, have you found this to be more effective?

I ran a PPC campaign which led straight to my 'home' page rather than my 'product page' and didn't convert any of the 400+ clicks.

I'm thinking of changing it to link to my product page and/or possibly a landing page with a sales funnel (and associated tripwire).

If your PPC campaign is for a specific product then you should be linking directly to the product page.
 
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biophase

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Biophase,

First of all, its nice of you to open up this thread, so kudos to you.

Now, I got an e-commerce website, its wholesale clothing, its on the first page of google for the chosen keywords as well.

However, not many orders are coming in, I would say once a month on average, which is quite poor.

Some people told me to change the design of the site and see if that increases the conversion or not.

What would you do if your site was not converting? Would you redesign the site and test it? How do you do the ab testing (if you do it)? The bounce rate is 30% by the way.

M

Have someone look at the design. Maybe it's crappy. Maybe it is your prices or photos. It's hard to tell. My first test would be to drop prices a little and see if anything converts. Then I would take better photos. This is assuming that your design is decent.
 

qvantage

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I have 3 year experience in SEO and SMO so that i think for ecommerce website SMO activities are more helpful to earn and sell products.
 
D

Deleted2BB3x9

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Hey Bio,

what would you recommend if I want to expand my store internationally? I know both English and French so I could write a translation. How much are people willing to pay for shipping? I have a large market in india but shipping cost around 200$. And is it even worth going international?

Thanks,

Ben
 
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MoneyDoc

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How the hell do people ship from Canada...

I currently use a dropshipper from china, but the shipping times would not make my customers order again...

Does anyone have a "secret" to shipping from Canada.. I would owe you for life... This is ridiculous.
 

ebms

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How the hell do people ship from Canada...

I currently use a dropshipper from china, but the shipping times would not make my customers order again...

Does anyone have a "secret" to shipping from Canada.. I would owe you for life... This is ridiculous.

In for answers. I have this problem too
 
D

Deleted2BB3x9

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How the hell do people ship from Canada...

I currently use a dropshipper from china, but the shipping times would not make my customers order again...

Does anyone have a "secret" to shipping from Canada.. I would owe you for life... This is ridiculous.

Don't dropship from China, if you want to sell a product from China then import it into Canada.
 
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chrischapman

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hey @biophase

Thanks for offering your advice and expanding our minds :)

I'm building an audio course to teach Spanish which I generally intend to market with a travel blog and/or Spanish learning blog.

The course is almost done and after testing, editing and recording, I should be done in 2-3 weeks, maybe more, maybe less. Not sure.

A few questions:

1. How do you recommend I start out with pricing/distribution? should I give out for free for a while to establish testimonials/reputation/word of mouth, or start selling at some price point straight away - if so, what price seems to be a sweet spot?

2. Have you got any marketing strategies to recommend?

3. Can you think of any other concerns which I have to address if I'm going to be entering this industry which you can think of? Besides the quality of the product itself, what will be important in getting it out there and selling it?


Thanks mate :)
 

mosdef

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You google the pictures and if someone buys from you, even better! You can either fill the order or tell them that you are out of stock. But do you seriously think that you will get a buyer?


is this legal? I thought it was illegal to take someone elses picture and use it on your website?
 

mosdef

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Hi,

Im have been looking on starting an e-commerce and think i found my niche. The problem im facing at the moment is that in my country only 9 million people lives here. When i se how many searches the word clothes has been searched i only get 70k.

When i search my keywords on the neach only 3k. Tried to search for instagram and only got 300k.

What does this mean for e commerce in my country if only 70k searches for the diffuse search of clothes
 
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mosdef

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Good thing your business lives on the Internet ;)


i know but im only able to sell stuff inside my country? Shipping stuff outside my country will cost alot of money
 

Kyle Tully

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i know but im only able to sell stuff inside my country? Shipping stuff outside my country will cost alot of money

You can dropship from a supplier in another country.

E.g. We dropship some items from china into both Australia and the US.


Sent from my iPhone using magic.
 
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mosdef

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You can dropship from a supplier in another country.

E.g. We dropship some items from china into both Australia and the US.


Sent from my iPhone using magic.


thanks for your info.

Im doing something wrong or is it possible that "clothes" only is getting searched on google 60k times/month?

Cause there is tons of e commerce stores selling all kind of clothes.
 

marklov

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Do some more meaty validation:

1. Build a landing page for your hypothetical product including "buy now" button
2. Build pop up form that says "sorry we're out of stock leave your email and we'll be in touch once back in stock" when a customer tries to buy your product.
3. Set up google analytics
4. Send PPC traffic to landing page.
5. Give it a few days and then analyse the results.

Opportunity to validate and start capturing email addresses

The gold nuggets are here on the forum find em man!

You really wont know unless you actually start/test something.

Hope this helps.
 

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