Setting up an online store– Getting Started</h1> <article> <h1>Setting up an online store– Getting Started</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:39 GMT</p> <div><b><span style="font-weight:normal;font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-size:x-small;"> <p>If you have a successful brick-and-mortar business and are looking to broaden your customer base, you may have considered adding an internet shopping store. An online presence will not only help you reach new customers, it can also help you serve existing customers in a convenient, time-saving way. Your customers will thank you for giving them a choice between picking something up in-person and clicking in their order from home or work. </p> <p>If you don’t already have a brick-and-mortar business, an online venture has many advantages over a traditional business.</p> <ul> <li>Your sales apparatus--your website--can double as a marketing tool. </li> <li>Overhead can be much less since you will not need to rent or purchase physical space for your store. </li> <li>The internet allows you to reach a much larger customer base than you would be able to with a brick-and-mortar shop. </li> <li>Catalog-type sales are much more cost-efficient because you can eliminate expensive printing and catalog shipping. </li> <li>Online shopping carts capture all your transaction and customer information electronically so it is easy to analyze and reuse. </li> <li>The web makes it easier to access your customer if you sell to a niche audience or specialized market. </li> <li>When you decide to start online business operations, visibility, convenience, ease of use, and security should all be considered carefully.</li> </ul> <p>Whatever your business and regardless of whether or not you have already established a successful retail store offline, you will want to construct an online sales strategy. When you start an online business, it is crucial to have a plan for how you will reach your customers, how you will keep your customers coming back to your website, and most important, how you will convert website visits into sales. </p> <p>A website's visibility to search engines such as Google and Yahoo can make the difference between a sales boom and a venture's bust. Good shopping cart software is designed to be spider friendly, so it can easily be crawled and indexed by the major search engines, which means you will get more hits. Once your customers reach your internet shopping store, you will need to make sure it is well-designed so they can find the items they want by intuitive browsing or by searching. Network Solutions <a href="http://ecommerce.networksolutions.com/ShoppingCartSoftware-BestShoppingCartSoftware.asp" class="null">e-commerce software</a> allows you to place items in categories and subcategories and to mark products for browsing by price, manufacturer, and category. The software is also equipped with a robust search engine that will search product names and descriptions. It can also be set to search added keywords, which can be hidden from the customer.</p> <p>If you will be accepting credit cards online and do not have any other method for completing the transaction (such as a physical terminal), then you will need a <a href="http://merchantservices.networksolutions.com/" class="null">Merchant Account</a> and an online Payment Gateway. </p> <p>Other issues to consider are the legal requirements of an online business. These may be different depending on whether you are selling physical items or products that can be downloaded from your Web site, such as software. Issues of return and refund must be addressed. What are the delivery and return mechanisms (e.g., download, FTP, e-mail)? Are they secure? </p> <p>The issues you should think about regarding physical products include "jurisdictional entanglements", if there are limited geographic areas in which customers are legally able to purchase your product. For example, certain plants cannot be shipped to some states in the USA. </p> <p>The terms of an online sale should mirror those of a traditional sale. Ensure that online terms are consistent with on-the-package product warranty and liability information. </p> <p>Lastly, you will need to ensure that all of your terms of sale and personal data collection policies are clearly worded and conspicuously posted on your site. A Privacy Policy is also essential because you will be storing customer data. If you're not sure where to begin, visit the online arm of the <a href="http://www.bbb.org/online/" class="null">Better Business Bureau</a> or the non-profit group <a href="http://www.truste.org/" class="null">TRUSTe</a>.</p> </span></span></b></div> </article> <article> <h1>5 Ways to Boost Your Blog’s Search Engine Ranking</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:50:47 GMT</p> <p>If you haven’t created a blog for your business, there’s never been a better time to start taking advantage of the opportunities that business blogging can provide. Network Solutions® now offers nsHosting™ for WordPress®, a comprehensive package powered by the leading blogging platform. It includes all the essentials you’ll need to make your blog a stand-out success, including:<br /> <br /> • Quick publishing<br /> • Access to thousands of WordPress® design themes<br /> • FREE domain name*<br /> • Personal email<br /> • Plenty of space and bandwidth<br /> • Detailed reporting and analysis <br /> <br /> One of blogging’s best benefits is that it’s extremely search engine-friendly and, therefore, gives you the ability to boost your search engine visibility – bringing you customers you may never have been able to reach before. To maximize the potential your blog holds, use these five simple steps for search engine optimization (SEO):<br /> <br /> <strong>#1. Use Keyword-Rich Content</strong><br /> Choosing your words carefully takes on a new – and more literal – meaning when writing for a blog. Think about the search words or phrases your customers are likely to use when searching for the types of products or services you offer. Then use them throughout your copy. Be careful not to overdo it – keyword cramming can turn away the search engines and make for an unpleasant read for the human eye. Ultimately, search engines and your visitors want the same thing – relevant, readable copy.<br /> <br /> <strong>#2. Update Content Frequently</strong><br /> Even after your blog is created, you should continue to think of it as a work in progress. Blogs are the perfect place for fresh, updated copy that the search engines view favorably. Post often and post wisely – always giving your readers valuable content that encourages them to keep coming back.<br /> <br /> <strong>#3. Build Inbound Links</strong><br /> While it’s always smart to link to other valuable sites within your industry, your inbound links will have the most impact on your search engine ranking. Inbound links, also known as external links, lead visitors to your website, not away from it. Search engines will take into account the quality of your inbound links, so concentrate on ways you can make valuable “friends” who can help boost your search engine visibility. Interact with other bloggers, provide valuable content that they’ll want to link to and even leave comments on blogs that include a link to your site.<br /> <br /> <strong>#4. Use a Unique Domain</strong><br /> When your blog’s Web address is unique -- rather than a subdomain of your website -- you expand your options for search engine optimization. Using your blog to link to your website is a simple way to build inbound links. And when your blog appears in search engine results along with your website, your online legitimacy is strengthened. nsHosting™ for WordPress® includes a FREE* domain that enables you to register a unique Web address for your blog.<br /> <strong><br /> #5. Use an SEO WordPress® plug-in</strong><br /> nsHosting™ for WordPress® includes a pre-installed SEO plug-in that’s simple to enable – a great way to make your blog SEO-friendly with little time or effort. With features like automatic optimization of page titles and generation of meta tags, this plug-in can help your blog be more easily indexed by search engines and even rank higher in search results over time. <br /> <br /> Bulding a blog is an important step towards online success and nsHosting™ for WordPress® gives you the right tools for the job. By using these simple SEO steps, you can make your blog a favorite destination for search engines and customers alike.<br /> <br /> * See Terms and Conditions for <a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/domain-name-registration/popup-free-domain-disclaimer.jsp" target="_blank">free nsWebAddress</a>™</p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>How Search Marketing Can Help Drive Your E-commerce Business</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 21:47:27 GMT</p> <p>Increasing your Web site visibility on the Internet helps drive more traffic to your business, prompts more inquiries for your goods and services, increases leads, and potentially generates more sales.<br /><br />To understand search engine marketing, you first need to understand how things once worked with the traditional Yellow Pages®. For years, people turned to the “phone book” to locate local businesses. Business owners understood that advertising in the Yellow Pages was a critical step in attracting customers.<br /><br />Consumers now turn to the Internet to search for what they need, both to buy locally and to buy online. The Web connects businesses and consumers like never before. But getting found by buyers requires a bit more effort on your part, as a business owner, than simply deciding which category you want your ad to appear in the Yellow Pages. It takes understanding several important search engine marketing concepts: keywords, search engine rankings, and search engine optimization (SEO).<br /><br /><b>What is Search Marketing?</b><br />The goal of search marketing is to attract targeted traffic to a Web site. Consumers conduct searches by entering a search word or phrase (referred to as a keyword) into a search engine such as Google® or Yahoo!®. Two types of results are then generated -- free “organic” search results appear and paid, or “sponsored” results. Free listings are displayed on the main area of the results page. Most search engine pages display 10 results per page; but there can be thousands of listings and hundreds of pages. Paid advertising results usually appear at the top of the page, highlighted in a box, as well as along the right side of the page. <br /><br />The majority of people who conduct searches only select from the first page of listings, although some will go two to three pages deep (that’s why appearing within the top 20 to 30 results is considered to be a high ranking.) Search engine optimization (SEO) refers to the efforts to generate free organic listings high on the results page, while search engine marketing involves paid listing placement.<br /><br /><b>Search Engine Optimization</b><br />The ultimate goal of SEO is to achieve top ranking in search engine results. To do that, you need to take steps to improve or enhance your e-commerce site in such a way that it will consistently display more prominently near or at the top of the results page. <br /><br />There are two primary areas of any site that can be improved or optimized. The first involves analyzing the Web site’s underlying code, architecture, and content – the way it is built. The second involves keywords, those words or phrases that people enter into search engines in order to find what they are looking for. A site needs to have searchable keywords woven in a natural way throughout its content in order to be found. <br /><b><br />How Do Search Engines Rank Sites?</b><br />Search engines use “spiders” to read through the contents of Web sites. Spiders go out and “crawl” the Internet by following links, indexing Web pages as they go. They read the content found on a site and follow all of the related links. Search engines ignore the layout of a site and look only for content that is relevant, up-to-date, and unique (not duplicated elsewhere on the Web). <br /><br />For e-commerce sites this can be a huge challenge. That’s because e-commerce sites frequently sell the same products as their competitors and even showcase the same manufacturer-provided product descriptions. In addition, sites are often designed to show one product per page. If several colors or sizes of a product are offered, it appears as if each of the many different Web pages is a duplicate (that doesn’t add up to fresh content.) The end result: a slew of sites are featuring the exact same items and content, showing several choices for those items, and getting ignored by the spiders. <br /><br /><b>Ways to Optimize Your Site</b><br />So what can you do to increase the search engine value of your e-commerce site? Now that you understand some of these concepts a little better, here are seven steps you can take to optimize your site to improve your rankings:<br /><br />1. <b>Identify keywords.</b> Begin by generating a preliminary list of keywords that focus on your products and services, your company’s name, and related subjects. Then focus on developing a list of variations of those words, using common typos.<br /><br />There are tools on the Web to help you identify the right keywords – the ones that consumers are using to find businesses and products like yours. Google® offers a free keyword tool and provides search statistics for each word or phrase. It can be found at: <a target="_blank" href="https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal?defaultView=2">https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal?defaultView=2</a><br /><br />Another tool, Wordtracker, has both free and a paid subscription versions of their tool. The free version can be found at: <a target="_blank" href="http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/">http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/</a></p> <p>2. <b>Add those keywords to your site.</b> After you identify a good working list of keywords, you need to add them within the content of your site as appropriately as possible. Search engines are very sophisticated and do not like bogus or “forced” placement of keywords on a Web page. The words or phrases must be contextually relevant to what appears on the page.<br />In addition to revising the content, insert keywords into your Web site’s titles, Meta tags, directory names, and HTML code to describe images that appear on the site. (Meta tags are the descriptions that appear as part of the search engine results.) Be sure these insertions are unique to each page, including product pages. Some e-commerce providers include this in the set-up of the e-commerce site.<br /><br />3. <b>Edit your content to be different.</b> To a degree, inserting keywords into your product descriptions will help make your content distinct. But you can do more. Use the manufacturer’s description merely as a starting point for writing your own. Include customer reviews or add some personal thoughts about the product.<br /><br />4. <b>Submit the site to search engines and directories.</b> With your site content updated, you’re ready to alert the world. Site submission tells the search engines that a Web site exists and is ready to be indexed by spiders. Sites can be submitted manually, page by page; or there are <a target="_blank" href="http://www.networksolutions.com/web-site-promotion/search-engine-submission.jsp">tools</a> that can help with the submission process. In some instances, hosting providers offer site submission as part of their service offering.<br /><br />5. <b>Build inbound links.</b> Building links is like building relationships on the Web (and spiders love links). A link is a clickable word or graphic on a Web page that takes the viewer to another place. When two sites on the Web are linked to each other, search spiders will follow those links and discover the next site. Link popularity is based on the number of sites linking to a Web site, as well as the relevance of inbound links in relation to content on that site. Links can be one-way links (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.mysolutionspot.com/optimizing-online-marketing-efforts/building-inbound-links-1148">inbound links only</a>); reciprocal links (where two sites link to one another); and blog links, which can attract inbound links if they are well-written and interesting.<br /><br />6. <b>Measure results.</b> Once you’ve made it through the steps outlined above, it’s time to monitor how your online marketing efforts are doing! Use your keyword list to conduct your own searches to determine if your business is rising in the results rankings. This will enable you to capitalize on what’s working and eliminate what’s not. But give yourself time to see results from your efforts; achieving a high ranking can take up to 6 months.<br /><br />7. <b>Keep up the good work!</b> Optimizing your site is an ongoing process that involves maintenance and effort. Continue to add new content and keywords. Stay current on marketing techniques. Keep building links and monitoring which ones drive the most traffic to your site. And, consider learning more about paid search marketing, so you can begin to incorporate that approach into your strategy.<br /><br />With a solid understanding of search marketing and a plan for how to launch your own search marketing efforts, you can begin to successfully drive more traffic to your e-commerce site and ultimately go farther in increasing your sales.</p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>Bice's Buys Up Domain Names to Boost Traffic and Sales</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 15:43:40 GMT</p> <p>As part of its move toward selling its product exclusively online, Fort Worth, Texas-based Bice's Florist has begun buying a number of flower-related <a target="_blank" href="http://www.networksolutions.com/domain-name-registration/index.jsp">domain names</a> and redirecting the traffic from those domains to its Web site. So far, the company has purchased 35 to 40 domains with names such as FlowerNut.com, eflowersite.com, and nationalfloraldelivery.com. </p> <p>Bice's Florist owner, Keith Riewe, says he chose the domains because they were catchy names that consumers remember from ads. For instance, Riewe came up with the name FlowerNut.com after seeing an ad with the phrase Computer Hut. But since FlowerHut.com was already taken, Riewe decided on the similar FlowerNut.com. </p> <p>In addition, Riewe says he purchases domains that consumers would type in on their own when looking for an online florist. Riewe says he also looks for short character counts and specific terms that a user may enter in a search engine. </p> <p>So far, the strategy seems to be paying off for Bice's Florist. Riewe notes that his company has increased traffic by 47 percent to some 68,000 unique visitors a month, and has increased sales by $1.5 million. Riewe says he tracks which domains work the best and as a result can spot underperforming domains, although he plans to keep them all. </p> <p><span class="cite"><b><a name="369436">"Bice's Buys Up Domain Names to Boost Traffic and Sales"</a></b><br /><i>Internet Retailer (07/03/08) </i></span></p> <p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.internetretailer.com/dailyNews.asp?id=27000">Web Link</a></p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>Online forms and why your e-commerce store needs them</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:35 GMT</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">What information do you collect about your customers? You probably obtain a good deal each time someone is making a purchase; name, phone number, physical and email addresses, etc. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">While this is important, what many forget about are the visitors that don't buy anything. If you are doing well, you might be converting 5% of sessions into sales in your <a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/e-commerce/index.jsp" target="_blank">shopping cart</a>. This means you are probably getting little or no feedback from 95% of the people that hit your site! </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Solution: The wonderful HTML form!</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Every site should have at least one online form as a means of feedback. A simple mailto: link just is not enough. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A form will: </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">1.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Allow you to curve the feedback you receive into measurable data </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">2.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Give users an easy means to give you suggestions about your site, and you may even choose to make the form anonymous - which encourages feedback even more. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">3.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Collect contact information from potential customers </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">4.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Get you in contact with all visitors, showing them you are actively improving your site</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">In less than an hour, you can create a solid html feedback form that e-mails you results. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">How do you get people to fill out this form?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Offer a drawing for a free product. Do this every quarter, or six months. Advertise this fact on your homepage, or on a highly visible page. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Always be honest with your customers. Let them know their feedback is important and that you are always improving service. This will encourage a second visit to see what's new.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">You could immediately benefit from some great suggestions or ideas from your industry's targeted, potential customers - the most targeted group you can get. In the long run, after having collected a good amount of feedback and made a significant amount of adjustments in order to cater your site specifically toward your most common user, you should see an increase in your site's conversion rate.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">The more information you can gather about a visitor, the more likely you can turn them into a lead, and into a future sale. </span></p> </article> <article> <h1>Payment Methods : Which e-commerce payment methods do you offer?</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:35 GMT</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">In the world of e-commerce, you have many options for accepting payment from your customers. Which is the best method for <a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/e-commerce/index.jsp">selling online</a>? Let's compare some popular payment types. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Credit Cards</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Accepting credit card payments is important for any e-commerce site. If you are selling retail, you will not be able to successfully avoid accepting credit cards. Most consumers will purchase using a credit card for online purchases as opposed to cash or check. Consumers feel more secure, and your company has more credibility if you are able to process the 'Big 3' cards: Visa, MasterCard and American Express. To do this, you will need a merchant account. Expect to pay for every transaction. And the credit card companies will collect between an additional percentage of the transaction from you. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">PayPal</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">In addition to a merchant account, you may also consider using PayPal to accept payments. This is an online service that allows you to send money across the Internet using either your credit card or bank account for funding. PayPal charges a percentage of your transactions, but it does not charge any monthly fees. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">If you don't have a merchant account, PayPal can be an effective alternative in order to allow your customers to use a credit card. However, to use PayPal you must sign up for an account, which most customers will not already maintain. This additional step will cost you sales. We suggest offering PayPal in addition to credit card transactions via a merchant account. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">If you sell on E-bay and do most of your advertising there, PayPal will be important to your customers because it is commonly used on E-bay. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">E-Check</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">E-checks provide a handy way to receive payment from customers with no credit card. The downside of accepting an e-check is that the amount of information that your customer must put into the site is greater than when they are simply using a credit card. Because they will need to input a routing and account number, among other things, there will be more room for error, confusion, and the possibility of a lost sale.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Wire Transfer</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">This option is great for large transactions. A wire may cost your customer about $20 to send and will probably cost you around $10 to accept. In a wire transfer, the money is going to show up quickly in your account. There will be no chance for a chargeback, a card to decline, or a check to bounce. Most people will only feel comfortable sending you a wire transfer after they speak with you on the phone. With the fees involved, this payment method is really only good for large transactions. However, if you sell wholesale and have customers making transactions over $1000 it will save you a good deal of money as opposed to a credit card payment.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">C.O.D.</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">We do not recommend accepting or shipping out anything C.O.D. unless you have worked with the customer before; there is a good chance you will end up eating the shipping costs and having to re-stock the product when no payment was offered upon delivery. If you do ship C.O.D., be absolutely positive the driver will only accept a cashier’s check or money order. If they take a check, you may as well have given your product away. All your customer must do is issue a stop payment before the check makes it back to you for cashing.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Conclusion</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Finding the payment method(s) that are best for you depend on many factors. Consider the type of product you are selling, your average ticket, and what type of customers you expect to have. Whatever method you choose, there will always be expenses involved in accepting payment.</span></p> </article> <article> <h1>E-commerce ingredients for success</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:35 GMT</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Here are some tips to get you started: </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Post contact information<a href="http://www.monstercommerce.com/" target="_blank"></a></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">The following information should be posted to the website in an intuitive location: </span></p> <ul style="margin-top:0in;"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">A corporate address </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Product return address </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">An e-mail address </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">A toll-free number</span></li> </ul> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Hire knowledgeable people to take phone calls</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Consumers shopping online have the same number of questions as regular retail customers - perhaps even more. It is important to maintain a well-trained and knowledgeable staff of people to answer phones. The more these receptionists assist consumers, the better the conversion rates and repeat buying. It is also important to provide incentives for your staff to cross-sell and up-sell products.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Big fonts and big pictures pay off</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Isn't it frustrating when you click an image to enlarge an image and it loads the same size? Since customers can't pick up the item (like in a retail store) it is important to show detailed pictures. Large fonts also assist intuitive navigation.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Be Prepared</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">If you are trying to get online for the Christmas season, don't wait until November to build your online store. It takes months to earn solid search engine positioning and will often take some <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold;">professional web promotion</span> to drive the search engines to your site and get your site ranked highly. Once you are up and running, make sure you have allocated the proper resources for the Christmas season. Your site's traffic should increase during peak Holiday months. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Befriend the postman</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">It is imperative that your e-business delivers packages on time. It's even more important that your products arrive in one piece. Nothing is more frustrating to a customer than late arrivals and damaged goods. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Make return policies easy and fair</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Maintain a return policy that benefits the end user. It is important to include return labels with the packaging and provide refunds when requested. Repeat business is your best business. Do what it takes to benefit your customers. Next time they shop they will order from your shopping cart- not someone else's. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Simplify your storefront</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Customers will wait, on average, no more than 10 seconds per page to download before they choose to shop another web store. Remove graphics that take forever to download, and avoid animated clip-art and annoying music. Ensure that your <a target="_blank" href="http://www.networksolutions.com/e-commerce/index.jsp"><b>e-commerce software</b></a> doesn’t slow down the speed at which your site loads.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Intuitive Navigation</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Eliminate unnecessary clicks. By reducing the number of clicks needed to complete a shopping cart transaction, your conversion rates will increase. </span></p> </article> <article> <h1>Shipping products to non-billing addresses - Too risky?</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:35 GMT</p> <table class="MsoNormalTable" style="width: 97%; mso-cellspacing: 0in; mso-table-lspace: 2.25pt; mso-table-rspace: 2.25pt; mso-table-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-table-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-table-left: left; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 0in 0in;" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="97%" align="left"> <tbody> <tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;"> <td style="padding-right: 6pt; padding-left: 11.25pt; padding-bottom: 2.25pt; padding-top: 2.25pt; background-color: transparent; border: #d4d0c8;" valign="top"> <p style="mso-element: frame; mso-element-frame-hspace: 2.25pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;">A consideration you must face in setting up your e-commerce store is your shipping policy. Will you ship products to an address other than the credit card billing address? </span></p> <p style="mso-element: frame; mso-element-frame-hspace: 2.25pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;">While this may sound like an easy yes or no decision, the implications can be greater than you might expect when you run an <a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/e-commerce/index.jsp"><strong>online shopping cart</strong></a>. <br /><a href="http://www.monstercommerce.com/" target="_blank"></a></span></p> <p style="mso-element: frame; mso-element-frame-hspace: 2.25pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;">Shipping to the non-billing address opens you up to possible credit card fraud.</span></strong><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;"> With a lifted credit card number and a little knowledge about the credit card owner, a criminal can submit a product order using a fraudulent card and get away with it. Even real time credit card processing is not fraud-proof as it sometimes takes days or weeks for an unsuspecting consumer to notice a credit card is missing. </span></p> <p style="mso-element: frame; mso-element-frame-hspace: 2.25pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;">A few days is plenty of time for an online shopping spree, don't you think? Each credit card provider has a differing policy on credit card fraud. American Express, for example, will pull the funds directly out of your account for any chargeback that was mailed to an address differing from the billing address. AMEX provides no recourse for the merchant what-so-ever. </span></p> <p style="mso-element: frame; mso-element-frame-hspace: 2.25pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;">On the other hand, not allowing a different shipping address will upset some legitimate customers. Especially if your products are often sent as gifts. Bottom line: If you sell very high-priced items that would be easy for someone to resell, such as jewelry, you may want to only ship to the billing address. If you sell lower priced items or gift type items, you may want to provide customers this option. </span></p> <p style="mso-element: frame; mso-element-frame-hspace: 2.25pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;">It's probably a good idea to make some sort of contact with the few customers that use this payment option. If they have a traceable e-mail address (from their ISP an e-mail should do). If they have a Yahoo or Hotmail e-mail account that anyone can get easily, a quick phone call to double check the order is wise. </span></p> <p style="mso-element: frame; mso-element-frame-hspace: 2.25pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; color: black; font-family: Arial;">Making your decision on this is a lot like buying stocks. Decide how much risk you are comfortable with, and use your best judgment. Also check with your <a href="http://www.monstermerchantaccount.com/" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none; mso-ansi-font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><strong><span style="color: #336699;">merchant account</span></strong></span></a> about this option as they might have varying policies.</span></p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </article> <article> <h1>Which SSL Certificate Does Your Web-Based Business Need?</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:28 GMT</p> <p>Ensuring the security and privacy of your<a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/e-commerce/index.jsp" class="null"> E-commerce</a> customers doing business with you online is essential to establishing customer confidence and trust. That confidence and trust is established through securing communication between your customer's Web browser and your site, generally by way of an SSL Certificate. </p> <p><br /><strong>What is an SSL Certificate?</strong><br />A Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Certificate creates an encrypted link between your Web site and a customer’s Web browser. This link ensures that all data passed between the Web site and the browser remains private and secure. The Certificate also demonstrates to your visitors that your Web site is owned by a legitimate business. Finally, the SSL Certificate puts the "s" in "https" in the Web site address (URL), and puts the closed padlock on the browser — items most consumers look for when transacting business online. You can install an SSL Certificate yourself or one can be provided to you by a Certificate Authority (CA), your Web hosting provider or a third-party transaction-processing company. Network Solutions is one of the leading providers of SSL Certificates. </p> <p><br /><strong>There’s More Than One SSL Certification</strong><br />Online businesses may currently choose between three types of SSL Certificates: Organizationally Validated (OV) Certificates, Domain Validated (DV) Certificates and Extended Validation Certificates (EV). All SSL Certificates include data encryption and trigger the browser to display a closed padlock and the "https" prefix in the browser address window. However, not all provide the same level of validation that the bearer of the SSL Certificate is truly a legitimate business.</p> <p><br /><strong>Organizationally Validated (OV) Certificates:</strong> This level of SSL security validation, currently offered by Network Solutions and other certificate authorities (CAs), assures the validity of a Web site by verifying that the applicant is a legitimate business. Before issuing the certificate, the CA performs a rigorous validation procedure, including checking the applicant's business credentials (such as the Articles of Incorporation) and verifying the accuracy of its physical and Web addresses. An Organizationally Validated Certificate is an excellent choice for any business conducting online transactions and accepting sensitive data, such as personal information or credit-card numbers, from customers.</p> <p><br /><strong>Domain Validated (DV) Certificates:</strong> Domain Validated Certificates have a less rigorous validation procedure than OV or EV Certificates. The less rigorous procedure includes the CA checking only that the applicant's name and contact information matches the registration information in the WHOIS database for the domain name associated with the SSL Certificate. CAs are not required to validate the legitimacy of the applicant's business so Domain Validated Certificates provide a lower level of authentication than do other types of SSL Certificates.</p> <p><br /><strong>Extended Validation (EV) Certificates:</strong> The newest level of Certificate validation is available from Network Solutions. Introduced in early 2007, Extended Validation Certificates are the first SSL Certificates to adhere to industry-wide certification guidelines established by leading Web browser vendors and Certificate Authorities, including Network Solutions. The Certificate application process itself is more thorough and the validation criteria more rigorous for EV certification. Among the new features of EV Certificates is the color-coding of the Web browser's address bar to signal secure connections. The browser navigation bar turns green to indicate an authentically validated site with an EV Certificate, full security, and encryption in place.</p> <p><br /><strong>Why does my business need an SSL Certificate?</strong><br />The encryption provided by SSL Certificates helps to prevent hackers from stealing private and confidential information sent via the Internet. A Web site secured with an SSL Certificate provides a safe place for customers to enter sensitive data such as credit card information, bank account numbers, etc. If you transact business on your Web site, you need an SSL Certificate! </p> <p> </p> </article> <article> <h1>Extended Validation SSL Certificates FAQ</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:28 GMT</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: What is an Extended Validation SSL Certificate?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> Extended Validation (EV) is the newest level of high-assurance security authentication for SSL Certificates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was introduced in early 2007 and it takes advantage of advanced features in next-generation browsers such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7. EV also benefits from being the first truly standardized authentication protocol ever developed for SSL Certificates.<span style="mso-tab-count: 2;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 3;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: How was Extended Validation developed?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A: </span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Awareness of the need to increase the level of security and consumer confidence in E-commerce led a group of leading Web browser vendors and SSL Certificate issuers (called Certificate Authorities) to form the Certificate Authority/Browser (CA/B) Forum. This group, which incl<span style="color: #333333;">udes Network Solutions®, formed the Certification Authority/Browser (CA/B) Forum to address these needs. CA/B Forum members agreed upon both technical and procedural specifications for the new class of "high assurance" certificates, now known as Extended Validation Certificates.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: How does Extended Validation differ from existing certificate validation procedures?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="color: #333333;">CA/B Forum guidelines currently restrict EV Certificates to corporations, business entities (such as sole proprietors, general partnerships, unincorporated associations, etc.), and government entities. </span>For those eligible, the application process for an Extended Validation Certificate from one of the recognized Certificate Authorities such as Network Solutions is both deeper and more thorough than existing procedures. Companies applying for EV SSL Certificates will be required to provide far more detailed information about their business for final verification. Validation and confirmation of this additional data is expected to both enhance the authority of and consumer confidence in the Certificates and to make it nearly impossible for fraudulent or criminal applicants to receive an EV certificate.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: How does Extended Validation SSL Certificates' appearance differ from that of existing types of SSL Certificate?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> The most obvious difference to consumers appears in the Web browser's navigation bar. In addition to displaying a closed padlock image and "https" Web address prefix, it will turn green to signify a Web site secured by an authentic, Extended Validation SSL Certificate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Web sites secured by legitimate Organizationally Validated or Domain Validated Certificates will continue to display both the closed padlock image and "https" prefix but will not turn the address bar green.</span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 5;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"></span><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: Do Web sites using EV Certificates operate differently than those using existing types of certificates?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> No, the Extended Validation process is designed to be as fast and seamless as existing certificate procedures. Consumers will see a difference in the representation of the certificate and secure connection <span style="color: #333333;">(e.g., green address bar)</span>, but will experience no change or slowdown in operation or transaction procedures.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: Does it take longer for me to apply for and receive an Extended Validation SSL Certificate for my business than it does for existing certificates?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> Yes.. As we've noted, Extended Validation has<span style="color: #333333;"> more stringent validation requirements than for other Certificate types</span>. Because of the amount of information that applicants must supply to Certificate Authorities and the amount of time required to verify that information, the application process is <span style="color: #333333;">expected to take about 5 to 7 business days once the Certification Authority has received all required documentation</span>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: Why do Extended Validation SSL Certificates Cost more than other SSL Certificates?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>EV SSL Certificates cost more than other types of SSL Certificates because of the extensive amount of additional verification activity that must be conducted by the issuing Certificate Authority.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: Will my existing SSL Certificates remain "good" now that Extended Validation SSL Certificates have been introduced?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> Yes. If your business is not eligible for an EV Certificate or has a loyal base of trusting customers, then your existing SSL Certificate will likely continue to meet your needs and those of your customers. Network Solutions will continue to offer, support, and authenticate its Organizationally Validated SSL Certificates.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Q: Will my customers using Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 and other next-generation browsers still be able to view my Organizationally Validated SSL Certificates?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> Yes. Next-generation browsers will still support, recognize, and adhere to <span style="color: #333333;">existing <a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/SSL-certificates/index.jsp" target="_blank">valid SSL Certificate</a> standards </span>even after Extended Validation is widely deployed.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Q: Can I upgrade my current non-EV SSL Certificate to an EV Certificate?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">A: </span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Yes, if your business meets industry eligibility guidelines. Please note that industry guidelines require all EV applicants, even those who already have SSL Certificates, to successfully complete the extended validation process before receiving an EV Certificate.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Q: What type of information will a Certification Authority need in order to issue an EV Certificate?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">A:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> When you apply for an EV certificate from a Certification Authority (CA) such as Network Solutions®, you will be asked to provide certain types of information about your business and your ownership of it. This information may include:</span></p> <ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; color: #333333; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Dun & Bradstreet registration numbers </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; color: #333333; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Proof of physical address via database listings </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; color: #333333; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Opinion letter from legal counsel or public accountant </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; color: #333333; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Other corporate, financial, and government documents such as Articles of Incorporation, bank accounts, and business licenses </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; color: #333333; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Government-issued photo IDs </span></li> </ul> <p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">The CA will review and verify the accuracy of these documents. It may also perform additional checks before issuing the EV SSL Certificate. If the applicant's credentials can't be verified in accordance with the CA/Browser Forum guidelines, then the CA will not issue the Certificate.</span><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">The Bottom Line:</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> Network Solutions is a leading provider of Extended Validation SSL Certificates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To learn more about Network Solutions EV SSL Certificate services or to purchase your EV SSL Certificate today, please visit our <a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/SSL-certificates/index.jsp" target="_blank">SSL Certificates Product Page</a>.</span></p> </article> <article> <h1>Building Brand Awareness Online</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:28 GMT</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Having a good a brand on the Internet is now more important than ever before. Without a well defined brand your site will be just like thousands of other websites that offer services on the Internet. There are many simple and inexpensive <a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/online-marketing/index.jsp" target="_blank">online business marketing</a> techniques you can use to build awareness about your company brand online. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">The key to building your online brand, just like your offline brand, is to determine what you do best and communicate that message clearly and repeatedly in channels that reach your target market. The following questions should help you develop your branding message:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">What is special or different about your products or services? </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Who are the target markets for your product or service? </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Why should a potential customer choose your services?</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">What benefits will the purchaser obtain from your services? </span></li> </ul> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Once you have decided the answers to these questions, you can focus on executing your online branding strategy. The first step is to ensure that your web site supports the brand messages that you want visitors to remember:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Choose a domain name that is unique, easy to remember and, if possible, highlights the type of products or services you offer. </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">A clean and meaningful logo is always helpful in online branding. Display your logo extensively to increase brand recognition.</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Communicate the branding message you have developed clearly and frequently. </span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Make sure that your site is easy to use with intuitive navigation, product display and product descriptions. Use top quality images because illustrations and photographs can be a major differentiation factor in online branding.</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Ensure that the content on your web site is optimized so that search engines will index you for the key elements of your brand message. Remember that prospects are 12 times more likely to purchase your products or services after finding your Web site through a search engine than through all other online business marketing programs combined, so you should focus on attracting visitors from search engines.</span></li> </ul> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Once you are sure that your website supports your branding goals, you can start to promote it in appropriate channels on the Internet. Your strategy should be to target search engines but also web sites that are likely to appeal to your potential clients:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 39pt; text-indent: -0.25in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list 39.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Submit your site to all of the major search engines. Search engine optimization companies can help you move your site up in the rankings for specific brand attributes.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 39pt; text-indent: -0.25in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list 39.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Post helpful information that supports your brand message in related forums and blogs. Never SPAM any of these sites – your contributions must be useful to other readers.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 39pt; text-indent: -0.25in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list 39.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Consider developing an online advertising campaign. Pay-Per-Click campaigns can be an inexpensive way to reinforce your brand message and quickly reach customers searching for your products and services.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 39pt; text-indent: -0.25in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list 39.0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Use online press release services to send out news about your products and services. Like your forum contributions, be sure that your press releases contain useful information and reinforce your brand strategy.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">There are many other online business marketing tools available to get the message out about your brand. The key is to be consistent and relevant to your target audience.</span></p> </article> <article> <h1>E-mail Essentials</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:19 GMT</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">E-mail, along with your small business website, is the electronic “face” of your company. To make sure that face is <i>always</i> shown in the best light, your small business web hosting company should:</span></p> <ul style="margin-top:0in;"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Include business-branded e-mails based on your web address: </span></b><span style="font-family:Arial;"><a href="http://www.networksolutions.com/email-account/index.jsp" target="_blank">e-mail addresses </a>tied to your web-based business’s domain name reinforce your business address every time you send an e-mail; your web hosting company should include business-branded e-mail with your web hosting contract.</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Offer multiple business</span></b><span style="font-family:Arial;">-<b>branded e-mailboxes: </b>multiple mailboxes for your business address lets you provide dedicated e-mail for your employees, for departments, for special offers and promotions and so on; the best small business web hosting companies increase the number of mailboxes as customers add additional services.</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Make e-mail aliases available:</span></b><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes;"> </span>disposable e-mail addresses linked to your primary e-mail address let you test new approaches to e-mail marketing without tying up a main address.</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Provide plenty of storage:</span></b><span style="font-family:Arial;"> many web hosting companies include e-mail storage and archiving functions with their e-mail services, providing you with a historical record of your business correspondence.</span></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="><b><span style="font-family:Arial;">Offer reasonable attachment sizes:</span></b><span style="font-family:Arial;"> catalogs, photographs and other, possibly large, attachments are part of doing business by e-mail; make sure your web hosting company includes a reasonable attachment size – 20 Mb at least –without additional cost.</span></li> </ul> <p class="MsoNormal" style="><span style="font-family:Arial;">Few businesses can remember how they ever got along without e-mail – and <i>your</i> web-based business is no different. Insist that your web hosting company provides <i>all</i> of the e-mail essentials, along with the reliability and service that your business needs.</span></p> </article> </main></body></html>