Ring4Freedom

E-commerce is buying and selling products, information, and services online. E-commerce has experienced tremendous growth in recent years and there is no sign of it slowing down in the near future. The growth hasn’t occurred just because of the need for products, information, and services, it is because it has become easier to set up a website and an e-commerce store. There are many free e-commerce services available. There are some that say they are free, but there are costs and monthly fees involved. Some have high costs and are basically a “turn key” business. The options can be overwhelming. Many Internet entrepreneurs choose to start slow.

Choosing what you want to sell, getting a website, and setting up an e-commerce store can be the easy part. There are also a lot of options for marketing your e-commerce business from doing it yourself to hiring a professional Internet marketing company. Once you get set up to sell a service, information, or a product, there will be the issue of accepting payment. There are different ways to do this. First you will have to have a secure shopping cart program in place and then payment methods set up. Once the e-commerce website starts to bring in some income, there may be thoughts of expanding by adding products, services, or related information.

Expanding an e-commerce business has many benefits including the following:

* Increase in profit
* Added Internet exposure
* Boost in sales
* More leads
* Flexibility
* Cost efficient

Often there will be some costs to expanding an e-commerce business, but often those costs quickly pay for themselves. Some of the things to be prepared for when expanding an e-commerce business is to be sure you will be able to process the increase in orders in a timely manner. Check to see that your web hosting service will be able to handle the added traffic to your website and not end up “crashing”. When expanding an e-commerce business it will be very important to have a variety of payment options. Security will be a very important factor when it comes to orders and payments.

Hiring a payment processing company has many advantages to providing security for online payments for an expanding e-commerce business. The payment process, including verification should be fast and seamless. For e-commerce businesses that also have a storefront, the payment processing for both can be done through one payment processing company. Any business that collects private information will need to stay in compliance with all regulations to avoid heavy fines and litigation if a customer’s private and protected information is compromised.

Read More about The Benefits of Expanding your E-Commerce. For more information about credit card processing [http://www.merchantdatasystems.com] and merchant accounts, visit Merchant Data Systems today.

As the growth of online shopping spreads worldwide, more and more businesses are looking to capitalize on this trend by starting an international e-commerce site to sell their products globally. As online shopping becomes more popular around the world, online stores in the United States are seeing a spike in visitors from abroad. The problem is most of these stores are not equipped to handle orders from overseas. Simply being able to ship products abroad is not enough to cater to all of your international customers. You must make their shopping experience is as easy as possible, this includes having the right translator software, been able to receive payment in their currency, and using a reliable global delivery service.

There are certain challenges you should expect to face when starting an international e-commerce business. They include the following:

1. Communication barriers – Even though English is the most used language on the Internet, it cannot take the place of a person’s native language. To ensure that all visitors can fully understand what it is you are selling and how to use it properly, you must have your website translated in multiple languages. You will need a very precise translator software to get the job done.
2. Forms of payment – Customers from other countries expect to pay for products with their own currency. You cannot have an international e-commerce business without being able to accept different currencies from around the world.
3. Shipping issues – The success of your business depends on being able to ship your products out on time at a decent price. Doing this for your international orders becomes even more complicated. You need to have a reliable global delivery service to carry out this job for you.
4. Tariffs and duties – You will be subject to the tariffs and duties set up by the different destination countries when you ship to your international customers. You must find out what they are and let your customers know so they are not surprised by hidden fees.
5. Import/Export regulations – There is also a chance that your products are going to be subject to import or export regulations. Find out if you are able to ship your products outside of the United States and if they are allowed into different destination countries.

A good way to handle most of the international e-commerce challenges is to use an e-commerce solution that is able to do the following:

• Offer multiple language translator software to change basic words in the product name, category name, description, images and teaser sections
• Display price conversion for the different currencies on the site
• Can be integrated with payment processors that handle international payments
• Calculates shipping in real time for major global delivery service companies such as UPS, USPS, DHL, FedEx, Canada Post and Australia Post
• Supports all advanced tax calculation methods
• Allows international date formatting

There are also a number of things you can do to provide better international e-commerce in addition to using the right e-commerce solution. The first thing you must do is inform all of your international visitors of your ability to accept their order. In order to do that you should use plenty of visual indicators throughout your site such as flags to depict available languages and special links to display global shipping policy. If there are additional fees, be sure to let customers know about it before they place the order. A good way to increase conversions and decrease returns is to give very detailed instructions on how to return an international order. An even better way to get more international customers to make a purchase is to lower the cost of shipping your products abroad.

Combining the right e-commerce solution with a couple of on-site tips is the winning formula for creating a successful international ecommerce [http://www.trycorecommerce.com/international-e-commerce/] business. Expose your products to more online visitors by using a multiple language translator software. Get them to make a purchase by making the order process as easy to understand as possible. With the right payment processor and global delivery service, the order can be completed without any problems.

Core Commerce is a full service all-in-one hosting, design, and marketing software made specifically for e-commerce businesses. You can set up your store in minutes, and with powerful tools to help with not only international electronic commerce, but also SEO, product marketing and mobile commerce, it’s no wonder why it has been rated one of the best e-commerce solutions. [http://trycorecommerce.com] to try it absolutely free for as long as you need to, no credit card required!

With every e-commerce business that springs up, there is another great e-commerce suite that follows in its footsteps. That is the way it seems by most accounts, but the fact remains there are but a few differences in the core features offered by e-commerce service providers. Finding the “Ultimate e-commerce suite” may be about as easy as finding the Holy Grail. The next best option during your research for an e-commerce suite is to find the features that you are looking for. The e-commerce service industry is growing as fast as the e-commerce vendors are so the features that are offered do vary. One of the toughest tasks to complete is to separate the e-commerce service providers from the payment service providers. Once your research has divided the two service providers you will be ready to find “A Great E-commerce Suite”.

The standard payment service provider is just as the name indicates, their core business evolves around providing online payment services to allow the vendor to accept credit and debit cards online. Services from these providers offer the vendor the basics for conducting business online. This type of service providers can offer many different payment options and methods but are generally limited in other benefits that today’s vendors need. If an online vendor’s needs are only the secure payment gateway then this may suit the vendor’s needs. Remember this type of service provider “Only” provides the basics.

An E-commerce platform provider on the other hand offers a multitude of features that enhance the average online vendor’s business. Not only a highly secure payment gateway but services that include solutions to many of the industries issues along with providing an e-commerce platform to make the vendor’s business more successful. The e-commerce services take the payment options and methods a step further and acquire both global and localized options. In the localization of solutions for the vendors the e-commerce platform includes more personalization to all of their services. These providers take the service a step forward and include features that assist the vendor in positive marketing, increasing conversion rates, advertising exposure, promotional needs, and even by creating additional avenues to sell their products and services online.

So as the hunt for the perfect solution for your online business continues, carefully weigh the needs of the individual business model that you will be using the services for. The differences at first may seem transparent but the end result is phenomenal. There are substantial differences for e-business models when the products range from a vendor who wants to sell software online and those who sell clothing online. So remember that the “Great E-commerce suite” will only be found to be the perfect match for your business model’s needs and one that provides the services that are best suited. With the information gathered from the research of service providers in hand, keep in mind that a complete platform can be compiled specifically for the needs of the vendor. This platform should include complete features to cover payment methods and options, promotional tools, security and the personalized customer service that will prove to be extremely beneficial.

Dennis Michael Gannon
Marketing Communications Representative
Gate2Shop – E-Commerce Solution Provider

The impact of e-commerce on the global economy is far-reaching. It is having a profound and radical effect on businesses throughout the world, leveling the playing field for businesses outside the traditional economic powerhouses in many ways. Because people can shop online, without ever leaving their homes, and shop at any shop that has an online commerce site no matter where the business is located, global commerce is more competitive and has less barriers to entry than ever before.

One way to measure the impact of e-commerce on the global economy is to realize how it has affected traditional brick and mortar businesses. There is no ability for traditional brick and mortar businesses to stay out of e-commerce; the business simply will not thrive without a web-based component.

Smaller businesses and retailers no longer have to commit to the expense of a brick and mortar location, because their global reach makes it possible to achieve enormous success with e-commerce. Because the impact of e-commerce has been so great, the methods by which businesses market to their target markets have been radically affected as well.

Online marketing allows e-commerce businesses to reach a larger target market more effectively. No longer are businesses marketing only to the people who can drive to their stores; now, anyone who fits the target profile, anywhere in the world, can be targeted through effective online marketing techniques.

The impact of e-commerce has affected everything from the cost of doing business to the level of service companies are capable of providing to the ways in which marketing occurs. These changes are not going to disappear; if anything, the challenge will be to stay a step ahead of the shifting nature of technology in order to take advantage of the power and reach afforded by these new marketing venues.

Ultimately, the impact of e-commerce will be to level the playing field among economically disadvantaged countries. As the infrastructure required fore-commerce to be possible reaches even the smallest communities, borders and political power will be less influential in terms of success than a company’s ability to effectively market online, build a community of followers, and create lasting relationships with their target market.

Success will come first to those in e-commerce who are flexible, embrace change, and are willing to risk trying new marketing approaches and platforms in order to extend and deepen their reach. In the near future, it’s likely that traditional shopping through brick and mortar locations will transform even more radically, becoming secondary to the online experience or possibly disappearing altogether.

Yahya Alnaami

[http://FastOnlineSuccess.biz]

[http://AchieveSuccessZone.com]

WordPress is a powerful and very popular blogging script that is easy to use and maintain. It’s well coded flexibility allows for many uses beyond blogging including content management, social networking, directories and portal sites. Have you ever given thought to using WordPress as an e-commerce site though?

Using the WP e-Commerce plug-in you can transform WordPress from a mild-mannered blog into a full featured e-commerce site. Features include multiple shipping and payment methods, tax zone management, shipping estimates and product attributes. Payment options supported include Google Checkout, PayPal and Authorize.net. WP e-Commerce also uses a nice one-page checkout system that smooths the checkout process out for your customers and increases conversion rate.

With WordPress as the foundation of your e-commerce site you will enjoy all the benefits of one of the most powerful content management systems in existence. It’s update feature and very intelligent administration panel give you the ability to easily add plug-ins and themes to customize your e-commerce site.

Add widgets to your side bar or other areas in your theme. Add social networking features, user profiles and even forums and classifieds to your e-commerce site to help draw traffic and incoming links. Most hosting providers allow you to easily install WordPress with one or two clicks. From there, WordPress gives you the ability to add most plug-ins and themes easily through search features in the administration panel.

Another benefit that WP e-Commerce gives you for your internet store-front is simplicity. Many e-commerce scripts can be over the top and cumbersome for the typical internet store-front. Often they require too much customization and configuration to be practical. With WordPress and WP e-Commerce configuration is fairly straight forward and customization is easy through the use of a robust WordPress theme system.

Have a little e-commerce project that you’ve been considering? Get web hosting and give WordPress a shot. You might find that an exceptional blogging platform can be a great e-commerce platform too!

Visit Hosting Fanatic for hosting reviews [http://www.hostingfanatic.com] and budget web hosting [http://www.hostingfanatic.com/cat/directory/web-hosting/budget-hosting/] that will support your new WordPress e-commerce site. Hosting Fanatic is proudly powered by WordPress.