Ecommerce Blog Posts
How E-Commerce Companies Can Use Instagram to Drive Sales
With 800 million monthly active users, Instagram has a built-in audience for e-commerce companies. The social media network only sits behind Facebook and YouTube when it comes to monthly users, and it only trails Facebook in daily users. Instagram users don’t just look at pictures. Many have deep pockets, and they are more than willing to spend that money. Sixty percent of Instagram users find new products on the site. That’s no surprise when you consider that Instagram has the highest follower interaction rate of any social media network. The statistics are promising, but how can you convert followers? How… Read More
How Ecommerce Companies Should Handle Returns
Returns are a necessary part of any ecommerce business. Business 2 Community reports that customers return 30 percent of all online orders while they return only 8.89 percent from brick and mortar stores. It’s especially true when the buyer is sending a gift. While you can’t do anything about hurt feelings, a company that handles returns well with a clear policy can keep customers loyal even when they have trouble. Here are some things to keep in mind when you’re handling ecommerce returns. A Policy for Handling eCommerce Returns Businesses used to see returns as only a problem. It costs… Read More
What Does the GDPR Mean for Your Ecommerce Business?
If you make international sales through your ecommerce business, you may have heard of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) recently enacted by the European Union, but you might not really understand how it will impact you. However, with the GDPR going into effect on May 25, 2018, it’s important to be aware of the new requirements it will put in place concerning the ways you collect data from your customers and the steps you’ll need to take to ensure the security of that data. What Is the GDPR? The GDPR is a new regulation that governs the collection, storage… Read More
eBay Sales Tax Fraud
Possibly some of the most difficult and confusing tax laws that online sellers have to deal with are sales tax laws. Part of what makes these laws such a headache is that they are different for every state, and the nature of your business combined with a particular state’s laws will determine if you have to collect and remit sales tax on purchases made by customers in that state. These determinations must be made for each state, and for any state you do have to collect sales tax in, you first have to register for and receive a permit to… Read More
Your Ecommerce Business – Choosing What to Outsource
Time is money. It’s not just a saying – there is a physical limitation on how many hours you can work in a week. Many entrepreneurs are workaholics, but often it’s because we try to do too much. We think success will come just by putting in more hours. Instead, we need to consider how to work smarter, and a key element to that is to determine which tasks you can outsource and finding a reliable resource to handle that work. Reducing the number of tasks on your to-do list, especially “grunt work”, can lead to increased profitability for your… Read More
Ecommerce Trends to Prepare for in 2018
As the end of the year gets closer, it’s important to start looking ahead to 2018 and make preparations for your business moving forward. The ecommerce landscape is ever-changing, and in order to stay competitive, you need to be on top of the latest trends. Of course, a new year doesn’t mean a complete overhaul of the way things are done, and so a lot of what is to come is simply a continuation of what’s going on now in the online retail marketplace. However, because of the fast-paced nature of changes in this area, it’s essential that you review… Read More
Year End Planning for Ecommerce Businesses
As the end of the year approaches, it brings with it the busiest selling time of the year for most ecommerce retailers. It’s also a good time to look back at how things went this year to help you plan for next year. While this may seem like an overwhelming combination of tasks when taken together, it’s very possible to get it all done with proper planning, and it’s a great habit to get into to help ensure your business will continue to grow year after year. Be Prepared Of course, the first thing you need to worry about during… Read More
How to Have the Best Black Friday…EVER!
As the biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday is a huge opportunity for retailers of all sizes. It can also be a challenge, however, to attract customers when you’re competing with so many other sellers. And once you’ve gotten your customers’ attention, it’s often equally challenging to take full advantage of the potential sales at your fingertips. Since Black Friday can have such an impact on your bottom line for the year, though, it’s essential that you get as much out of it as you can, and fortunately there are several steps you can take to ensure you… Read More