Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi dear,

Sorry... just saw this post! Must have missed it some how. :confused2:

I suppose to each his/her own, when it comes to this kind of online stores, I’m never a big fan of Multiply.com, I prefer livejournal and blogspot to multiply, kind of difficult to navigate, probably it’s just me, as I see that u have quite good customers’ response. :applause:

Other than the pictures being a bit small, you have a nice collection of baby clothings, so perhaps u can consider other baby related stuff eg educational toys.

You should have realized that your products are aimed that a very specific group of customers, so it’s important that you seek feedback from them on what they want, what they hope to see, and that’s how u can improve. My feedback here is not going to help u much. Word of mouth is a very powerful advertising tool, so make use of the good customer rapport which u have already established to further expand your customer base.

Good idea to include your baby photos, videos, comments n blogs because they draw people’s attention, but don’t over do it for the same reason, some people may get too engrossed with the entertainment and forget about your products…Of course what u want to include and how much u want to add on, it all depends on your objective of creating this online sales cum personal blog. Some create an online website to earn extra $$$, some for the purpose of sharing their bundle of joy, but no matter what, passion drives u further and make u better in whatever u do. Enjoy life’s every little moments and all the best to you! :yippee:

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi,

I set up my blogshop 3 mths ago. My clothes target more to age group 16 - 25. Would not consider sales as good, still have lots of clothes piling at my home. Recently, I noticed that the traffic flow to my blogshop is quite slow. And have ran out of ideas of the places to advertise my blogshop. I have tried advertising on blog directories, yahoo groups, forums, classifieds, and friends. However, contiune advertising is important as well. Would like your help to a few queries below:

1. Would like to know which are the more popular

a) blog directories
b) yahoo groups
c) forums
d) classifieds

that people usually would go to find clothes.

2. is there other more effective advertising avenues?

3. is there areas that i could improve on.

Hope someone can assist me. Nevertherless, I will still persist with this small biz as this is my dream and my goal.

thanks! :)

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

HI,

I set up my blogshop 3 mths ago selling female apparels and handmade accessories, targeting age group from age 16 - 25. Would not consider sales as goods as there are still lots of clothes piling at my house. I have run out of places to advertise and contiune advertising is important to gain awareness of the blogshop. Have a few queries and hope that someone can assist me.

Would like to know which are the more popular:

1. blog directories
2. yahoo groups
3. classifieds
4. forums

that ppl would go to look for clothings?

is there better avenues of advertising?

or is there any ways that i could improve on?

Really hope to get some advice. Nevertheless, I will persist to run this small biz as this is my dream :)

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi, ermmm... i have no online shops so am clueless as to which are the more popular directories, classifieds and/or forums shoppers will go to. Perhaps u can do a poll and get fellow forummers to vote :juggle: otherwise, any one out there, can help studioye??

Better avenues of advertising? Of course! If u can afford the extra cash, meaning that you are operating within your advertising budget, u can consider putting up an ads in the newspaper since u have already tried most of the ways as u have said. But before u advertise, I strongly encourage you to beef up your collections. I noted that for each collection, you only have 2-3 designs which is really pathetic. As a shopper, I may be thrilled initially but if every time I return to your blog for your so-called new collection, and there are only 2-3 designs, I'm not going to waste time returning when there are so many other online shops out there selling.. ya... similar clothings as yours.

1st impression counts. When i enter your blog, the main pic featuring each collection is blurr. Individual pics in each collections are ok.

Mailing List and Customers' Feedback should preferable sit at the top or at the side, prominently featured, instead of being left at the bottom. To me, it marks that unspoken respect u have for your customers, you valued their feedback, you appreciate their support, and yes, u really want them to come back again and again.

Your "Mailing list" contains some exciting benefits for your customers, surely u want to bring this happy news to them before they even start shopping! So it makes even more sense to highlight this section first. "Won't u join our mailing list?" Can't remember off the top of my head that word which people used to describe your style of writing... Instead of saying "won't u", perhaps simply says "Join our mailing list now!" or "Mailing List & Membership Privileges"

Customers' feedback are actually very powerful. Positive feedback helps to boost confidence of potential customers who are planning to buy from you. If you do get a negative feedback, which I see that u don't have any for now, and hopefully never, it's not the end of the world, simply seek clarification from your customer, and improve on it.

You must have realised by now how competitive it is to operate an online stores. You have the price war, the traffic war, and i bet there are many other "wars" to fight... Yup, persistency is as important as passion, there is no failure except in no longer trying. If u really want to keep going, increase your number of products....if money is a problem, then sit back and work out a budget and see how u can go about enlisting financial helps from family and/or friends, otherwise with your collections, I seriously doubt u can survive long. No hard feelings, juz speaking what's on my mind. Good Luck!

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

I doubt people will use directories & classified. However, getting listed into top directories eg. yahoo, business, dmoz, etc may help improving your site page rank which in turn increasing the likely-hood to get listed on many major search engines.

If you are willing to spend $ on advertising. You may use many PPC program. eg. google, yahoo, bidvertiser, adbrite, multiply, etc. However, in the long run, you cannot depend too much on online advertising.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hihi FF Fashion,

Thank you for the piece of view of my blog..Many many thanks..
will create another site at blogspot once I have my new stock in.
Many thanks for your effort. Hope the best to u too:thanx:

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

My pleasure! :) If u have plans to do a new website, do ensure a smooth transition for your loyal customers. ;) Take care!

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi FF Fashion,

Thanks for your advice. Really appreciate your help and your valuable views. Will improve on my site.

Thanks. :)

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi,

Can elaborate on the listing on top directories like yahoo? Tot that $ is needed to get listed on Yahoo?

Thanks.

:)

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

one way i heard is getting a online broker or have affiliation - I am looking into this option with my website but I also do lots of leg walk to retailers and events. Hope to have magazine to feature my product. Your feedback?

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

studio,

Yes, you may have to pay $ on most of quality directories (either yearly or one time). However, do not expect that you will receive tonnes of clicks even when you are listed in those directories.

In our case, we submit to lots of quality directories for search engine optimization.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

This is a very good and informative thread :) I've seen a few sites already as I read through, but where I am, the internet sucks so I'm having trouble loading some of them.

I'm no expert but here are a few things I've learned as I stumble along in my online biz adventure.

1. If you have a bit of money, invest on PPC (Pay per click). I've tried a few and Google Ads is by far the best. What I do is just use it for a month and then pause the campaign and restart again when I feel like spending a little.

2. Customer Testimonials are VERY important. It puts your visitors at ease and please don't put fake comments! I've been to a few sites and I can tell they are fake. Don't be afraid to ask your customers for feedback. Just draft a couple of questions and email it to them. Even if you send to 100 customers, and only ten replied, it's good enough. And don't fret about getting a criticism. I actually put up criticisms on my site anyway and reply to it online to be transparent. I don't think there is such a thing as a perfect business and your customers know that.

3. Being able to browse easily is another important part of online business. Just like you want to be able to walk around a shop without bumping on shelves, you would like to be able to browse without hitting dead ends, page not found or links that sends you to Malibu.

4. Your site needs to be clear and transparent. There's nothing worse as a site saying *approximately* 7 days and then the shipment comes after 30 days. If you know it will come in 30 days then you have to say it. Managing customer expectations from the beginning is the key to having them coming them to you.

5. Your cost plays a big part as well. Having a internet connection and being able to shop online means you have the ability to check the retail prices. The one thing I found when I look for a certain product is the huge difference in price between a Singapore shop and a US shop selling the same thing. At the end I bought from the US shop even if it means I have to pay the shipping fees. I would rather put $20 into shipping instead of the owner's pocket. There is definitely a cost to getting your online shop up but don't get greedy! :) it's still a lot cheaper than getting a retail shop.

6. Last but not least, be available. Customers appreciate a quick and courteous response. No matter what, nobody likes to be told that they don't know how to read or no need to buy from us again. One customer lost is a lot of negative word of mouth. Even if you don't feel it now, you will feel it later. Even if the information they want is stated clearly on your site, it's okay just let them know again.

I know this is a freakin long post :) but I hope it helps! I write a lot of articles too on the net some of it is to promote online businesses as well as my hobby store. The above is a part in my next article. Oh, and article writing will bring you loads of traffics too!

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

I'm planning to revamp the layout of my blogshop.

Can give me comments on what exactly how should i change so that my blogshop will become a more pleasant place to shop?

There's alot of good advice here.but i'm still abit lost to how to implement the tips given:-(

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

if you may, allow me to suggest some ideas which I apply to my own blogshop.

maybe you can ask yourself a few questions, like:

1) imagine you being the shopper. how would you prefer the site to look like? something simple I suppose?

2) request from a few friends / regular customers of yours for honest comments and have them to tell you how they prefer your site to look like. identify the common issue(s) that they have raised, then work on improving it

3) avoid having too much information on one page. not only it takes longer to load for the end-user, it also makes the entire page look very clustered. some people just don't like too many things in one common page as it gives them 'headache', like myself.

4) the overall design, font, theme, colors must be soothing to the eyes. have a look at other blogshop's design, try to get some inspiration (but don't copy!) from there

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi is there anyone can advice as i need someone to create online for me so that i able to sell my fashion wear in Web or others. Please advice..:thanx:

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Any comments on my blog:
victoriasecretbags.blogspot.com

Btw, how to get featured on magazine and apply for zouk flea.
Anyone can advise on that please!

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Please be careful with website designer i have been cheated several times when i wanted a website for my retail shop.
I was cheated 3 times before I found a good one that really set up a simple and easy website for me to manage.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi can you provide me the one tat is good one as i dont wan to get cheat too if you don mind are you able to send by email. :thanx:

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi,

I am considering of setting up a online shopping site. Can anyone share :

1) what is the cost structure like for designing a website? (ie, go by no. of pages in the site or what?)

2) What is the cost structure like for online payment facilities? (ie, VISA and Paypal)

Many thanks in advance

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi all,

To reply ahpeow first....

1. I guess for most first-timers, I will recommend an easy-to-use solution. Our experience for building websites for clients, the best solution is a Wordpress blog platform with e-commerce plugin.
Something like this: http://www.ultimateworkshops.com/demo
That will probably set you back from 1k to 3k, depending on how experienced the firm is. For us, we incorporate our branding services inside as we are a design firm as well.

2. Our advice to people is to allocate 10% of your sales value to Paypal, which means for every dollar earn, you must factor 10 cents going to Paypal. Paypal by far is the easiest and cheapest solution for first-timers, registration is free, zero setup fees, no charge unless you earn, accept credit cards...

Thanks!
Wee

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Many thanks Wee...!!!

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi all,

since we are at the topic of starting an online shop...

Here's an important tip:
Get a domain name.

Here's why:
It shows you are serious about your business.
It allows clear branding of your online store.
You can use emails such as mary@maryclothing.com

AND...
Both web and domain hosting is cheap nowadays.
About $100 can get you a website for a year.
Preferably, it is a .com.
.com.sg costs more... you should buy it if you have more cash.

one last tip...
remember to buy a linux package
if you want to use wordpress...

Thanks!
Wee

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi People,

Dont mind please do view my website and give me comments too?

Appreciate & Thanks!


Clothings : statuesquecharm.blogspot.com
Jewelry: statuesquecharm.wordpress.com

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

If you want to start with something simple, you can start playing around with prestashop. It's an open source script.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi FancyPocket,

interesting you would recommend prestashop...
i'm pretty sure your site is not on prestashop...
what is your site developed on anyways?

well, for me, i have developed a number of sites...
and by far, for a full-fledged ecommerce solution,
i would recommend zen-cart.
it is stable, has a wonderful support forum and very customizable.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

I recommend presta, because it is the simplest in term of features, templates, structures and programming for custom modifications.

I used customized x-cart, because it can handle hundred thousands of items without lagging and they offer paid support. SEO module is great and you don't have to worry abt duplicate content.

As for zen-cart, it seems that development has stopped for quite sometimes. if you need features, magentocommerce has tonnes of it.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Anyone interested to take a look at il-bello.blogspot.com and give your feedback pls? :)

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

hi all. i am running a perfume business online. please view my website and give me some comments. thank you~

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

hihi! the infor given by everyone has been very helpful!

i've also switched my site from ourglassmansion to now alldolledup.oursecrethaven.com , with a hiatus from about feb-jun as i was busy and sales have dropped considerably! everything i had done is still the same (in fact i think my new site and photos are much cleaner and brighter than the previous one), there's an ok flow of traffic, but sales are really much lesser..

can frou frou and anyone else give advise too? thanks!!

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

setup a mailing list. it helps alot.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

hihi! yes i do have a mailing list! =)

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi, my friend's business is not really that good. Can you give her some good tips on how to improve? Thanks.

her website is runawayjoke.livejournal.com

Can you email me to [Removed] instead? Because i don't really know how to use this, and i'm new to this site. THANKS A LOT :D

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hello! Thank you very much for the informative thread, and the very wise advice from Frou Frou and Mejaflora.

Absolutely identify with the issues that many of the online shop owners face, as I'm also wanting to attract more people to my website.

Could I request for some advice and comments on my website as well? Your time and attention is very much appreciated.
le-chic-boutique.blogspot.com

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Haiz...nows day the business are hard. i recently post a online fashion blog.thinking that earn some pocket money. but hardly sell 1 until now...i even post my blog on friendster, facebook. also no help.:( :( :( :(
siao liao....

lovethemoon.wordpress.com
this is my blog. can someone give me comment?

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi Elaine,

1. Apply for online processing payment. Most people will prefer to make direct payment online rather than ATM/Bank transfer.

2. To little description on your product title. When a spider comes to your site, they hardly see words to be indexed.

3. Your site has a page rank of N/A which means it has not been visited by spiders yet.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

thanks fancy. but how can a blog apply for online payment? as i an IT idoit.
my education not high...you said N/A, spider. i don't get it....sorry

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

you can apply for paypal.

Page rank is a value assigned by Google to weigh the importance of the page on the internet. The higher your ranking, the fastest the spider/bot to index any changes done on your website.

Spider/bot is actually a program sent by search engines to your website to crawl the pages, index them based on their algorithm and list them on search pages.

Hope this will help :)

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Thank you very much!!!Fancy....you give me a lot of inform...:thanx:
hope can rise up my blog rank. thank you.

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

Hi, i just set up an online blog too. I get decent pageview but i wished sales could be better.

Appreciate comments to attract more traffic to the website.
peanustore.blogspot.com

Thanks in advance!

Re: How to attact/get more people to buy from your online store?
 

hello
i sent many new letter from my previous clients, but no luck, can you review my site have any problem?