Links
- What Is Social Commerce?21 February 2012, 5:18 pm
“Social Commerce” was THE ecommerce buzzword of 2011 and if you walked through the exhibit halls at Internet Retailer, eTail or Shop.org you were bombarded with people trying to get you to jump on the Social Commerce bandwagon. But what is Social Commerce? You’ve... > Read More... - Why I Love GetElastic and Sh*t Ecommerce Consultants Say17 February 2012, 2:44 pm
If you haven’t heard of GetElastic.com, an ecommerce blog run by Linda Bustos, here’s your introduction: It’s great. A few reasons why: 1. Linda Bustos shares some of the best tests and case studies on social media, website usability, and conversion rate... > Read More... - Selling on Amazon: Amazon Marketplace vs. Amazon Product Ads15 February 2012, 11:00 am
What’s the difference between Amazon Product Ads and the Amazon Marketplace? I’ve discussed before the differences between marketplaces and comparison shopping engines. In Amazon there are two ways that merchants can advertise their products: 1. The Amazon Marketplace (a cost per acquisition marketing program). 2.... > Read More... - If Only Robots Could Do SEO14 February 2012, 1:11 am
Whenever I tell an online retailer to work on their SEO I feel like crap. Their response is usually one of four things: 1. a long silence 2. a grunt 3. a sigh 4. a trailing, “I know…” Even if I give... > Read More... - What’s In An AdWords Ad? It’s More Than 25-35-3510 February 2012, 7:05 pm
Lisa Raehsler is a PPC Strategy Consultant with more than 15 years of marketing experience. A Google Adword Partner and columnist for ClickZ, Lisa is an expert in search engine marketing and analysis. Below Lisa talks about high level strategies that search... > Read More... - Ecommerce SEO Strategy: A Must Read Expert Round Table9 February 2012, 5:19 pm
There’s no easy way to say it: SEO will continue to gain importance in online retail. Google+, Pinterest, Google’s crackdown on duplicate content, Bing’s partnership with Facebook…Social, search, and online sales are becoming more connected by the day. Hence this post. 12... > Read More... - Bidding and Budget Options on Google AdWords8 February 2012, 10:58 pm
You’ve done your homework. You’ve got a quality website and a service offering or action you want searchers to complete. You’ve toiled over a fool proof method to organize the campaign hierarchy, and selected the locations and languages your Ads will be served in.... > Read More... - Tom Critchlow vs. Will Critchlow: The Ultimate Sibling Rivalry8 February 2012, 5:52 pm
The Critchlow brothers are two of the most respected SEOs on the planet but unlike Venus & Serena Williams they can’t determine the most talented sibling through an athletic endeavor. So how are we supposed to tell which brother has the upper hand? It... > Read More... - New Targeting Options Available to AdWords Mobile Advertisers7 February 2012, 2:13 am
Google AdWords has allowed businesses to reach potential consumers through mobile advertising for quite some time. They recently expanded this service offering with mobile targeted ad campaigns for businesses to specifically reach users of mobile phones, tablets, and wireless laptop computers, introducing two... > Read More... - White Men Can’t Handle Social Media? How Woody Harrelson’s Attempt Went Limp4 February 2012, 2:23 am
In the era of social media, you don’t make just one enemy at a time, you make an army of them. Take for example Woody Harrelson, who in a few short hours has reached infamy status on Reddit: considered by some the... > Read More...
- 3D Printing: Digital Rights Management for Physical Goods?22 February 2012, 8:09 am
When I was a kid, I dreamed of a machine that would spit out Barbie clothes that I designed with a push of a button. I thought I had a wild imagination, but little did I know that in a few decades toys-on-demand could be a reality. The technology is 3D printing, a process of [...]... 
- Is F-Commerce "Fail" Commerce?20 February 2012, 8:04 am
Last week we posted a little video parody on the things ecommerce consultants say. One of the tongue-in-cheek examples is “Social media isn’t about driving sales, per se…what do you mean you don’t have a Facebook Store?” The next day, Bloomberg published an article reminding us that big retailers like JC Penney, Gamestop, Nordstrom and [...]... - The Rise and Rise of e-Textbooks [Infographic]17 February 2012, 8:03 am
Today’s infographic Friday looks at the shift from hardcopy to digital textbooks. While it’s too early to say if Apple’s iAuthor application is going to catch on with educators, the wheels are already in motion. Check out these amazing stats from OnlineEducation.net: Perhaps the best part of e-textbooks is wearing a backpack the one-strap “cool [...]... - Sh*t Ecommerce Consultants Say [Video]16 February 2012, 8:03 am
At the risk of jumping on a meme that has already passed its expiry date, I couldn’t resist. We ecommerce consultants say the darndest things! Sh*t Ecommerce Consultants Sayby: GetElastic RSS and email subscribers: Can’t see video? Check out this post on Get Elastic If you’d like to embed this video on your own site, [...]... - 3 Rules of Digital Disruption [And Why Any Business Can Be A Disruptor]14 February 2012, 8:08 am
When you think of innovation and “digital disruption,” it’s easy to point to Xbox Kinect, Amazon Kindle and Apple iAnything — the platforms that have turned entire industries upside down. These innovations did not come quickly, easily or cheaply – and not every company will develop the technologies that change the world. But that doesn’t [...]... - The 17 Rs of Mobile Marketing13 February 2012, 8:03 am
I recently received a review copy of Go Mobile, by Jeanne Hopkins and Jamie Turner. As with my other book reviews on Get Elastic, today’s post is an excerpt that I found valuable to share. Enjoy! The 17 Rs of Mobile Marketing 1. Review your mobile analytics and determine what percent of your visitors are [...]... - Bounce Rate Demystified [Infographic]10 February 2012, 8:02 am
This week’s installment of Infographic Friday is courtesy of KISSmetrics. A question I’ve often been asked is “what should my bounce rate be?” And of course, the pat consultant answer is “it depends.” According to this data, the average bounce rate is 40%, which is interesting. But whether your target bounce rate should be 40%, [...]... - 3 More Alternatives to CAPTCHA8 February 2012, 8:02 am
If you missed it, Monday’s post explored 6 ways to reduce friction in the prove-you-are-human process. Thanks to our wonderful readers, we have 3 more CAPTCHA alternatives to cover: animated NuCaptcha, gamified Vouchsafe and a tip from “Anton” that we could describe as a “honeypot button.” NuCaptcha NuCaptcha combines video-animated CAPTCHAs with behavioral analysis to [...]... - 6 CAPTCHA Alternatives to Improve Conversion6 February 2012, 8:03 am
CAPTCHA is more than a catchy name, it’s an acronym — Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart. But in practical terms, CAPTCHAs are often Consistently Annoying, and Prevent The Conversion from Happening A-Lot. One study by Stanford University (link opens as PDF) found 3 human users agreed on the “translation” [...]... - Mobile Games: The Economics of Freemium [Infographic]3 February 2012, 8:03 am
Who creates a game only to give it away for free? Where’s the $$ in that? The freemium business model is taking over — an estimated 65% of revenue generated by the 100 top grossing apps in the App Store, and an estimated 72% of total App Store revenue comes from freemium mobile games. In-game [...]...
- What are Your Biggest Conversion Optimization Challenges?21 February 2012, 8:14 pm
The Conversion Rate Optimization industry continues to evolve and the challenges organizations face are different now than they were 5 years ago when we began WiderFunnel
We're curious to hear about the conversion optimization challenges you face in your organization today.
Would you take 30-seconds to answer this one-question survey? You'll be able to compare your results with your colleagues immediately.... - Play the Landing Page Optimization Case Study Game3 February 2012, 12:53 am
Learning doesn’t have to be boring. WiderFunnel has just launched a new (free!) online game for marketers to allow you and your colleagues to test your conversion optimization skills. You by guessing on the results of real landing page experiments. Take 4 minutes to try it out!... - Last Day to Register for OMS Conference – and book a 1:1 lab3 February 2012, 12:52 am
Do you wait until the last minute to plan your travel details? You’ve been hoping to go to Online Marketing Summit in San Diego next week, but just haven’t had the time to get your tickets. Or maybe you’re one of the smart ones who realize that ticket prices can only go down as the [...]... - The Long-Term Impact of a High Landing Page Bounce Rate – It Could Hurt Your AdWords Quality Score23 January 2012, 12:30 am
If you advertise with Google AdWords, bounce rate is important. Not only does each bounce cost you directly by losing a paid visitor, but now a high bounce rate can serious impact your campaign efficiency more than ever before. Your visitors can choose to "block all ads" and give Google a good reason to reduce your Quality Score.... - WiderFunnel is Growing and I’m Thankful24 November 2011, 4:42 pm
On this day when our American friends are celebrating Thanksgiving, we have a reminder to take a few moments to reflect on what we have to be thankful for. What are you thankful for? I am thankful to be living in a country where the people’s rights and freedoms are protected and we are encouraged [...]... - NEW Google AdWords Bid Per Call Strategy for Lead Generation3 November 2011, 11:14 pm
Have you heard about Google’s new bid-per-call feature in AdWords? Do you have a strategy for using it? With Google's announcement last week of new phone call bidding in AdWords, you now have an exciting new lead generation tool to utilize. Here are two major aspects to consider in crafting an AdWords bid-per-call strategy:... - Book a Meeting with Chris Goward at PubCon Vegas26 October 2011, 6:45 pm
Do you have challenges with your website that need expert attention? Will you be at PubCon Vegas on Nov 9 & 10? If so, you’re in luck, but you’ll have to act fast. I have led the strategy for all of our clients since we founded WiderFunnel in 2007. From the in-house playbook we’ve developed, [...]... - Rotating Offers – the Scourge of Home Page Design23 October 2011, 1:56 pm
In our Conversion Optimization work, we regularly run A/B/n and Multivariate tests on our clients’ home pages. One of the most common elements we come across is the rotating home page offer banner. I decided to visit an arbitrary sampling of home pages today and found nearly all of them featuring some form of a gallery rotator. Unfortunately, it is also often a cause of Relevance, Clarity and Distraction problems. Let's find out how to avoid those problems.... - New Case Study Just Posted: Why this Conversion Optimization Test Delivered +17.4% Downloads but Surprised the Experts20 September 2011, 10:58 pm
Someone recently Tweeted that WiderFunnel had the largest collection of Conversion Optimization case studies anywhere on the web (even I didn’t realized that!) and today we added one more: the PluralEyes Software case study. Our 30th posted Case Study tells how testing PluralEyes Software increased its Free Trial Download rate by over 17%. This, of [...]... - You Are Invited to Play the Conversion Optimization Skills Game Beta (and we need your help)12 September 2011, 8:14 pm
Readers of this blog will remember that last month we announced the Alpha version of the ConversionSkills.com game — and today I am excited to announce the imminent launch of the Beta, and invite you to sign up to play the Game. If you are passionate about Conversion Optimization testing, you’ll love this game! ConversionSkills [...]...
- RWC launches dental marketing website for practice in Fayetteville, North Carolina3 February 2012, 1:31 am
We recently redesigned the website of Day & Night Family Dental, located at www.DayAndNightDental.com. Day & Night Family Dental is a cosmetic and family dentist in Fayetteville, North Carolina. The impetus for the website redesign was to increase the new practice’s patient volume. After putting up a quick, rudimentary website, Day & Night Family Dental [...]... - RWC Launches New Website for the Louisa County Department of Economic Development10 January 2012, 3:12 pm
We recently wrapped up work on a website redesign for the Louisa County, Virginia Department of Economic Development. Louisa County was ready for a new economic development website that would take the county’s online marketing to the next level. In addition to a fresh look, the website boasts powerful features that make it easy for [...]... - Greene County Partnership Website Redesign Launches23 November 2011, 3:59 pm
We recently partnered with the Greene County Partnership of Greeneville, Tennessee to redesign their economic development website. We worked with the Partnership to give them a website that was feature-rich and easy-to-use, and that would effectively market Greene County, Tennessee to site selectors and business consultants. The website’s new features include: A revamped homepage that emphasizes [...]... - Timmons Group website launches4 November 2011, 2:43 pm
We’re excited to announce the launch of the website redesign for Timmons Group, an engineering and technology consulting firm that provides civil engineering, environmental, GIS/geospatial technology, landscape architecture and surveying services. Timmons Group has been recognized by Engineering News Record as one of the Top 500 Design Firms in the country. The website features a [...]... - Building our team: Shannon Sullivan joins as Content Specialist28 October 2011, 2:52 pm
We’re thrilled to announce that Shannon Sullivan has joined our team as a Content Specialist. Shannon is an incredibly talented writer who’s already making an impact after 2 short days on the job. Before joining us, Shannon was the Director of Internet Marketing at Key Web Concepts. She earned her B.A. degree in English (with [...]... - Filtrona Porous Technologies website redesign launches5 October 2011, 3:21 pm
We’re happy to announce the website redesign for Filtrona Porous Technologies, a global B2B company that designs and manufactures custom fluid-handling components. These components can be found in everyday products, including printer cartridges, wound care dressings, writing instruments, make-up applicators and so much more. The website features a much cleaner, professional design that is in [...]... - Thomas Jefferson Partnership website receives international honor26 September 2011, 2:34 am
The Thomas Jefferson Partnership for Economic Development (TJPED) website, which we launched in 2010, recently received an Honorable Mention for Excellence in Economic Development Award in the category of General Purpose Website for communities with populations of 200,000 – 500,000. The honor was presented at the International Economic Development Council’s annual meeting and is our second IEDC award [...]... - Rick Whittington Consulting launches economic development and tourism website17 September 2011, 3:36 am
We’re happy to announce the launch of a website for our economic development and tourism practice, www.EconDevWebsites.com. After three years and eight economic development clients, we decided to create a special website to showcase these projects and explain our capabilities that are suited for economic development website design. The website was launched before the 2011 [...]... - New thoughts on measuring website traffic1 August 2011, 5:01 pm
Business online has changed from five years ago. Website visits used to be the only way to measure online interaction with your brand. Today, we have social networks, externally-hosted blogs and other interactions with our brands that occur away from our carefully-crafted websites. So is measuring website visits enough? Here’s the situation. I recently met with one of our [...]... - Gardner Grins website launches25 July 2011, 2:12 pm
Combine an orthodontist with a uniquely fun personality and a website design firm with creative flair and you get GardnerGrins.com, our newest website launch. Working with SEO firm Your Search Advisor, we created a website for Dr. Gardner’s orthodontic practice that embodies the experience of visiting their office and is optimized to grow the practice. [...]...
- 9 Things To Check Before a Big Traffic Event on Your Ecommerce Site (Part I)21 February 2012, 1:28 pm
Expecting a large influx of website traffic to your online store? Are your products being featured on a TV show like The Today Show or Good Morning America? Odds are unless you’re already a big company, your hosting account is probably not ready for this burst of heavy traffic. Not being prepared will likely result [...]
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ShopSite Handles Large Ecommerce Stor... - ShopSite MoreInfo Product Pages Only Get Created Once15 February 2012, 8:29 pm
A ShopSite more information page only gets created once. Sounds like a simple and intuitive statement. For the most part it is. However, it’s not completely cut and dry if you have a product assigned to more than one page in ShopSite… First come, first serve Even though a moreinfo page is created once, what [...]
Related posts:7 Reasons Why a ShopSite More Information Page is Not Created or Updated
ShopSite Tip – Three Ways to Remove the Add to Cart Button for a Product
ShopS... - Website Tip – Why Are My Images Broken?9 February 2012, 12:37 pm
It’s happened to every web designer at least once, and it’s a question we receive quite often: Why are my images broken? We’re going to cover the most common causes below, as well as some tips specific for ShopSite. Where does your browser think the image is? The first step to track down the cause [...]
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Best Practices – Do’s & Don’ts for File Names
Google’s Need For Speed (and 3 things yo... - Top Ecommerce Blog Posts and Articles for January 20126 February 2012, 9:28 pm
Six more weeks of winter it seems if you believe the esteemed Groundhog. It’s been a busy start to 2012, but I managed to find a few articles worth reading if the topic is of interest to you… Stay warm! TOP PICK: Use Pinterest to Raise Consumer Interest – Practical Ecommerce This is the hot [...]
Related posts:Top Ecommerce Blog Posts and Articles For January 2011
Top Ecommerce Blog Posts and Article for October 2011
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... - US Postal Service, A New Year, An Old Failure23 January 2012, 11:50 pm
Last year around this time, I wrote a blog post about the 2011 USPS failure. They made a major unannounced change to their rate service that thousands of ecommerce applications depend on for returning shipping rates to customers. It caused major issues and rate problems for many online merchants. Fast forward to 2012, and the [...]
Related posts:US Postal Service (USPS) 2011 Failure – What We Can Learn From It
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Wh... - 4 Key Topics When Planning Your Online Store17 January 2012, 12:52 pm
When you're starting an online store one of the largest decisions to make is which store software you are going to use. Before making that decision it's best to plan ahead to make sure the software you're selecting will be able to cover all the features you're looking for.
In this post we're going to highlight 4 key areas that we recommend you review before selecting the software and building your store.
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Testing Your Store –... - How We Helped a Client Receive Over 1,000 Orders in Less Than 2 Hours10 January 2012, 12:19 pm
One of our ecommerce hosting clients contacted us a few weeks ago, excited about an upcoming opportunity. Their company was going to be featured on Good Morning America in the popular segment "Deals and Steals". We have worked with clients who have appeared on The Today Show and Oprah, so we had a good idea of what to expect.
Related posts:How We Helped eShave Handle 5,000 Orders in Under 4 Hours
Getting the Most Out of the Oprah Effect – How LexiConn Helped Cosabella Increase Sales 2000... - Our 2012 Business Goal: Be Like Scotty5 January 2012, 12:45 pm
Which Scotty? I’m referring to the Engineer from the original Star Trek – He always managed to fix things much faster and better than his initial assessment would seem to indicate. (I’m sure he was padding the time/estimate to look better.) Playing off of this (minus the padding), our 2012 goal is: Accurate support that [...]
Related posts:Did We Meet Our Goal For 2011?
Best Practices – Your Business Email Address
Why We’re in the ISP Business (Internet Solution P... - Top Ecommerce Blog Posts and Articles for December 20112 January 2012, 5:21 pm
A new year has begun! Ushered in by Mayor Bloomberg and Lady Gaga (quite the pair). I’m excited for what 2012 has in store. And I have yet to abandon any New Year’s resolutions. Before we wipe 2011 out entirely, here are a few good reads from last month in the world of ecommerce… TOP [...]
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... - Did We Meet Our Goal For 2011?27 December 2011, 1:48 pm
In January, I set our 2011 goal: Be Awesome! It’s not easy to measure quantitatively, but you can have a gut feel for how you did. We always tried to exceed expectations, go the extra mile, and do the little things that so many hosts just blow off. Do I think we accomplished our goal? [...]
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Top Ecommerce Blog Posts and Articles for July 2011
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- StreamSend Releases Email +Video13 February 2012, 11:07 pm
... - StreamSend Share Delivering 20% More Email Views31 January 2012, 10:51 pm
... - Driving the ROI of Email and Social Marketing28 November 2011, 9:01 pm
... - Email + Social: The ROI Rules of Engagement11 November 2011, 9:49 pm
... - Make New Friends with StreamSend Social ListBuilder!17 October 2011, 10:07 pm
... - Email + Social = Great Opportunity to Build Your Business8 September 2011, 3:40 pm
... - Ten Steps to Make Email Campaigns Work Harder, Deliver More Social Impact24 August 2011, 6:16 pm
... - We're Getting Social - and You'll Love What it Does for Your Business23 July 2011, 8:06 pm
... - Automatic check for Mailing Address implemented26 May 2011, 11:09 pm
... - Success Story: Two Sacramento non-profit organizations4 May 2011, 11:34 pm
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