Live from DMA05: No-Nonsense Tips on How to Increase Web Sales

[mandy]

Article presents tips for increasing web site sales: 

Sending e-mails to people who have abandoned their shopping carts can recover up to 25% of lost sales.

The two also urged marketers to maximize the value of the home page header by including, among other things, a link to the company's satisfaction guarantee, the company's call-center telephone number, and the customer's shopping cart status.

They also recommended displaying top-selling items on the home page...

full article: http://multichannelmerchant.com/news/inc...ales_1019/

[xppman]

satisfaction guarantee…..    Yes
customer's shopping cart status……    Yes
top-selling items on the home page……    Yes
*call-center telephone ……  :oops: no
====
But I include Customers Comments, Custom Orders,
FAQ's, Our Privacy Policy, and Our ReturnPolicy links on every page.


*call-center telephone number: hmmmmmmmmmmmmm
If they can’t do the email thing (for now at least), they can simply hit the back button.

I do understand the need for the call service number but can’t
justify the overhead to hire someone to sit by the phone all day and night.
I as well as all, would like to be able to speak to a real live human on the phone
to process an order or answer a question or two.

But ALL the info they seek is already at their finger tips ON THE SITE.
(with the exception of quotes for "custom orders")...

I’m actually going to implement a simple system in the VERY near future
(like with-in the next week) and let those customers who are uncomfortable putting their CC numbers on the net at the gateway, the option to e mail us with their telephone number and we
will call them back and gladly take their order over the phone.

Then we can process it ourselves with our virtual POS terminal.

I don’t usually get too many requests for that, but it has happened in the past.

And of course PP has no way to my knowledge, for you to interface like that.
Sadly folks don’t realize that over the phone is “less secure” than on a secure server, but hey,
if they want to give me the cc number and info over the phone.
I will gladly take it down and process it for them.

This procedure / option will be a bit more hidden on the site than the conventional
methods to pay for a purchase, but nevertheless I feel I must give them this
option which in turn will give me more $$$ and provide even a
DEEPER level of customer service that the customer longs for.

I’m using a thierd party cart now and honestly I’m not sure I want more than the First and Last name, the e mail addy and zip of my customer being disclosed before the cart info is passed to the gateway.

Those are the only REQUIRED fields I have set up.
Besides I know I hate to put down all that info in a non secure environment
only to go to another screen (at another server), and have to put it all down again possibly.

Kind of redundant and allows the xfer of the information to possibly fall into the wrong hands between passing from servers. I would think. :

I’m still learning about all this stuff but think I’m on the right path.

[bargainbloodhound]

satisfaction guarantee…..      Yes ("If you are not completely satisfied with your order you may return it for a refund")
customer's shopping cart status……      Yes
top-selling items on the home page……      Yes
*call-center telephone ……       :-\  Maybe (not a call-center, but a telephone number to call for support)
====

But I include...
Customers Comments  :-[ No
Custom Orders  (not applicable to our items)
FAQ's  Yes
Our Privacy Policy  Yes
Our ReturnPolicy  Yes (complete with Return Merchandise Authorization request form)
... links on every page.

and let those customers who are uncomfortable putting their CC numbers on the net at the gateway, the option to e mail us with their telephone number and we will call them back and gladly take their order over the phone.

One of the payment options we offer in our checkout is 'credit card by fax/phone' ....or it will be as soon as we figure out why the javascript for the fax form isn't working. :oops:

[xppman]

Great minds think alike.

One of the payment options we offer in our checkout is 'credit card by fax/phone' ....or it will be as soon as we figure out why the javascript for the fax form isn't working.

To me, if they can figure out how to use the fax, they should be able to figure out how to use email.

I like e mail because it does give a DOCUMENTED flow of what is going on in any particular transaction and can be easily stored electronically.

I’d say drop the java and use a simple FORM for faxes.

I'll man the phones but I would want to see the girl who is sucking the "cherry".
Who is that.??? Oh  Mandy....

Yummy