Working with Ecommerce Developers

As a developer myself, I know a lot of the problems that developers might run into with clients. This is not to say that these things are easy to accomplish, however, it might give you a good idea on how to approach a developer. Before moving on, I want you to understand that I am not complaining about any clients. This is not meant to be a ranting article, but it is intended to give you an idea of how things are approached by other developers in the marketplace. Below is my idea of what you should be doing throughout the process of having your ecommerce website developed.

#1: Layout Exactly What You Want

I have seen a lot of people say, “Hey, I want a website.” The problem is though that they really do not know what they want. For example, I did a website for a young man who was starting up a local graphics company. I advised him that the ordering process should be simple and since all graphics are custom, it might be better to have more of a contact form than an order form. He bounced the ideas around, I ended up having to do the order form over again about three times before he was satisfied. It started out very complex, then went to the contact form, and finally ended with a compromise between the two. These are things you really should think about before you contact a developer though. Get an idea of what you like and what you do not like before you do anything. What I even prefer, is that my clients go out and find websites that they like. Then tell me what they like about them. It gives me a good idea of the design preference as well as the layout of the website.

#2: Be Decisive

In the example above, you may be wondering “Why did you ever get started before asking him what he wanted for the order form then?” In all actuality, I did. I was simply trying to satisfy what he wanted since he was paying me for the work. When I would ask him, “what do you think about doing the order form this way?” His response would be, “That sounds okay.” He really just was not sure what he wanted. Therefore, when working with a developer and they ask you a question, you should know that they are going to take your response to heart. If you say something is okay, that means that it is okay and they can move on with the project. However, if you are unsure, tell them this so that they do not have to redo work.

#3: When you see things you do not like, notify them immediately

Sometimes as a developer I just make it my responsibility to do things like I would like them done. This means that on occasion I can find myself doing something that the customer does not want. This is not a big problem as I take that risk. However, it can sometimes be frustrating to be working on a certain portion of the website for a while, and then have them notify me several days after the fact that I have put hours into it that it isn’t something they want. Just try to keep them up to date.

#4: Be Patient

A lot of times developing a website is done all behind the scenes. Forms do not naturally work as they are intended as soon as you can see them on a website. There is some backend coding that causes them to become functional in the way you would want them to be. Therefore, sometimes you may not see any progress for days at a time. A good developer will notify you of this. However, do not panic if they don’t. Just email them, ask them what the status is, and they should tell you. Most websites will take weeks to develop especially if you are working with an individual so you will have to have patience.

#5: Never Pay All of It Upfront

With any developer, myself included, I would encourage you to not pay the entire amount of upfront. Most developers will require that you pay something. However, this is usually 20% of the total amount in my experience. After this, they may ask you to pay installments as the project moves along. However, you should be leery of developers who want the entire amount upfront.

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Software Shopping Cart for Ecommerce

I understand how it is when you are trying to find a shopping cart. It is kind of like going to shoe store where all there are is small black and white pictures of the shoes. You do not get to try them out, you have a fairly fuzzy point of view of whether they will work for you, and yet you are expecting them to work flawlessly. Unfortunately, ecommerce shopping carts are exactly this way. There are so many on the market it is tough to make a decision without fully trying them out. The demo’s are typically limited so you can not fully see how the shopping cart is going to perform for what you need. Just before making the purchase, you almost have to depend on the developer’s description of what features it includes and take his word for it that it will work for you. Here is some things to really look for though that you might be able to find before you make your decision on which shopping cart to install on your website.

Stick to PHP Shopping Carts

There are numerous shopping carts on the market in several different programming languages. PHP shopping carts, however, give you the security you need along with the flexibility to make modifications. As long as the script is not going to be encoded (which is something you should verify), you should be able to find developers at affordable rates to help you add or remove features as you see fit. This is the key for saving you money down the road.

Find Ecommerce Shopping Cart’s that are as close to what you need as possible

If there is one thing you get from this entire article, it is that you should find a shopping cart that meets your needs as closely as possible. This means from both angles as well. You want a shopping cart that has all the features you need. You also want a shopping cart that limits the features that you will not be using. What I did when I was looking for a shopping cart is print out a sheet that gave all the features a shopping cart had. I crossed through the features that I did not need, I also added to the list with a red pen the features that were not included. After doing this, I evaluated my red markings. If there were tons of things that were crossed through, but I had another shopping cart that just had one thing that I needed added to it, I would go with the one that was lacking my one feature that I needed for my website. In reality, it was cheaper and easier for me to get one feature added than it was to remove tons of features for an overly bloated ecommerce shopping cart script.

This is not to say that if you marked two features off but had one feature to add that you should go with the shopping cart where you need to add a feature. Frequently it is cheaper to remove something than it is to add to a script. So you really need to weigh your options. Other features may not need to be removed at all as long as it is not something that gets in the way of the ordering process or causes problems when trying to maintain the website. Overall, you are looking for the cheapest, yet best option for the long run of a successful ecommerce business.

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How to Buy the Right Shopping Cart Software

With so many shopping carts on the market, assuming that you are looking for one, you may find it a little bit overwhelming when trying to make a choice on which one to purchase. To be quite honest though, it does not have to be as tough as you may think. Below are a few quick tips on helping you narrow down your options to the right shopping cart software for you.

#1: The Shopping Cart Must Have the Features You Need

This is without a doubt the first priority. There is no sense in wasting money on a shopping cart that will not fully work for you. Many people make the mistake of purchasing the software with the intention of finding a developer that will modify it for you. This is a great theory; the problem is that the vast majority of developers out there do not really like to work on other peoples software. You may have to pay quite a bit more than expected to get the software working like you would like it to work. Overall, you should ensure that the script has everything you need before you make the purchase. The only exception would be if you have something in mind that is so rare that there is nothing on the market that would fully work for you without having it modified. In this case, I would get quotes from developers before making the purchase of software.

#2: The Shopping Cart Should Limit Features that You Do Not Need

There are some really hefty shopping carts on the market. They really did not want to just tailor their shopping cart to a specific industry. Instead, they built it in a way that essentially covers almost every type of ecommerce site out there. The problem is that they frequently have features on them that you will not use. This is referred to as bloated software. You may find it harder to manage the areas you need to because there are so many factors and elements of the shopping cart. Be sure that the shopping cart is not too bloated for you.

#3: The Shopping Cart Author Should Have Good Customer Service

Customer service on shopping carts is almost always overlooked by buyers. They assume that documentation is going to crystal clear or that they can get a developer to help them get it setup. The problem is that even developers may have questions that require the original author or shopping cart seller to help them with. The worst case scenario is that you have purchased software that no one knows how to setup and that you are stuck with without anyone answering emails, phones, or support tickets.

There is an easy way to determine whether the company has good customer service or not. You can simply use their method for contacting them to ask them a sales question. Perhaps whether their shopping cart would work for what you have in mind. Evaluate how accurate their response is and how quick you receive a response. This should be a good indication of what you can expect if you ask them other questions dealing with setting up their software and managing it.

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Understanding the E-commerce Software: Single Page Checkout

Today, E-commerce technology has transformed the way customers shop online. While online shopping used to be such a taxing and intimidating experience, it has turned into a friendly and easy experience for people. As a result, the number of shoppers has significantly increased. With the convenience and simplicity it offers, it is inevitable that people would prefer it over traditional shopping.

Over the years, many customers complain and clamored for a faster, better way to shop online. In an attempt to resolve this problem, a breakthrough in E-commerce technology was made. With the development of the single page checkout system, the ease and convenience is taken to a whole new level for every customer. We will no longer have to worry about waiting for at least a couple of minutes just to pay for a certain product or service. We only need to fill out payment information in a single page, without the hassles of having to click pages, which is typical of the 3-step payment process.

A single page checkout, also called one-page, single-step or single-screen checkout, is an internet checkout portal that is one can find in a single page. Just like any online checkout, customers will be able to pay by logging into an account or a guest account if the customer is not a member. A single page checkout allows a customer to information pertaining to billing, shipping and payment. It can be used in various applications such as Flash and the regular HTML.

Here are some simple guidelines you can use when you decide to get a single page checkout for your online shop.

1. The single page checkout should be simple and precise. If the checkout still takes a long time to fill out due to so many extensions, it will just be like the traditional checkout system. Remember, the more time a customer spends to pay for a product, the higher the chances of losing the customer along the way.

2. Sections should be clearly set apart from other sections. Regardless of what type of application you will use, you should make the checkout sections distinguishable from others. For example, the billing should be placed in one area and shipping should be placed in another. Delineation should be clear to avoid confusion.

3. Offer the traditional checkout system to your customers just in case. Although the single page is obviously better than the older one, some customers just feel more comfortable with it so you should offer this option in order to give customers flexibility.

When online shops provide simple, no hassle checkouts, more and more people will be likely to buy their product or service. This amazing technology not only makes payment a one-step process, it also provides other great features. For one, it offers accessibility, which makes it easier to log into the account anytime, anywhere. Next, it accepts all kinds of payment options available online such as payments through credit and debit cards. Third, it accepts credit and debit card payments which allow wider options for customers. Fourth, it provides real-time shipping information such as price quotes from major couriers. Fifth, it can accept coupons and gift certificate codes so you can conveniently use these if you have them. While not applicable to all, some shops even offer payments in multiple currencies.

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Choosing the Right Ecommerce Software

Choosing the right ecommerce software for you can be a difficult task. There are so many on the market, that it may come down to the small things that make the difference in your decision. However, I want to help you quickly narrow your search down to a select few. Start out with a list of shopping carts you have found and are contemplating using.

Find Ones That Work For You

First off, you should start out with a short list of things you would like the shopping cart to include. Try to be as specific as possible so that when looking at shopping carts, you know immediately if it will work for your needs or not. You should keep your list or requirements short, only focus on what is important to you. As you look at shopping carts, quickly mark off those that will not meet your needs.

Easy to Update

One of the reasons to go with third party ecommerce software is to make things easier on you. If you feel that the platform will be difficult for you to use, you may want to avoid going with that shopping cart. Put a star next to those that you think specialized in this area.

Give Their Customer Service a Test

Regardless of how experienced you are in development, you will undoubtedly have some questions regarding their platform. This is especially the case if your intentions are to eventually alter it in some manner. You will want to make sure they have adequate support to help you when needed.

Start out by just sending them a quick email asking them a few questions about their shopping cart. If you have legitimate questions, that is even better. If you are struggling to come up with questions, then simply ask them about the features you listed as being the most important to you.

Review how long it takes for them to reply and the quality of their response. If they take several days to respond, or do not respond at all, I would quickly mark them off of the list of possible shopping carts to use. If you feel they did an excellent job in answering the questions (rather than an automated type response) and did it in a timely manner, you might put a star next to that shopping cart.

Read Other Users Opinions

Lastly, never hesitate to get others opinions. Read reviews on the shopping carts you still have on the list to get an idea of what people liked or disliked about it. Good reviews are a good indication that you might have a good experience with them too. If you see too many negative reviews, I would mark them off of the list.

By this point, you should have a good idea of which shopping cart is best for you. You might take a careful look at those that are not crossed off of the list and have stars next to their name.

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Choosing the Most Proper Ecommerce Solution

When running a business website, one of the most important things to consider is what kind of ecommerce solution you will implement. This is vitally important because it is the ecommerce part of your website that will be actually handling the monetary transactions. A lot of the reputation of your website depends on this aspect too, hence it is important to choose it with care.

The following are some of the points that you need to keep in mind when you are choosing an ecommerce solution for your website.

The Shopping Cart

The very basic feature that your ecommerce solution must have is an effective shopping cart system. This is where your customers can pile up the items that they are wishing to purchase and then later make the payments and check out. The shopping cart has many other jobs to do. It has to compute the total cost of the purchases, implement any discounts or surcharges, keep track of all the offers you have mentioned, etc. Look carefully at the shopping cart software that your ecommerce provider will give you; a lot will be depending on that.

The Inventory Management

Good ecommerce solutions will keep track of the inventory that you have and will send alerts to you when your stock is dwindling. This protects you from going out of stock, which may cause a big dent to your business. Also, when you are tracking your inventory, you are better able to put a finger on the kinds of expenses you will need to make.

Globalization

Most websites cater to an international audience. In such cases, it might be necessary to handle a lot of global currencies. This will also include implementation of local taxes wherever applicable. See if your solution provides that.

Integration with Several Payment Methods

You will be spending on your ecommerce solution in proportion to the number of payment options they provide. You will need facilities such as credit card and debit card payments, electronic and physical check payments, online bank transfers, electronic wire transfers and the like. See what you are getting. Since PayPal is the online bank which is most widely preferred by people who use the Internet, it is best to have integration with it.

Supply Tracking

Most ecommerce solutions of today provide a feature in which they can track the deliveries of the products even after the transactions have been made. The status of the delivery will be shown on the website whenever a buyer logs in to their own account. This generates a lot of goodwill and, most importantly, relieves pressure on your employers who might have to otherwise physically take calls from people asking about their deliveries.

Online Security

No amount of discussion about online security can ever be enough. Since you are going to handle money on the website, which will include several sensitive details such as people’s credit card numbers, you have to make sure you get a great deal of security. SSL encryption is a must, and you must go for as advanced encryption as you can afford. Get the site protected by a security service like VeriSign. Look for all security measures that you can implement and see if your ecommerce provider gives you those.

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