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2013
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2012
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Recent Posts
ShopVisible’s First Quarter Marked By Growth, Innovation
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ShopVisible Publishes Influence & Impact Report
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MobileShopTalk : Mobile Payments Backed By Credit Cards? Not So Much
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eCommerce Bytes : Mobile Shoppers Use Alternative Payments
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Pymnts.com : ShopVisible Publishes Influence & Impact Report
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Advancing Your SEO: Best Practices For Better Search Results
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2013 World Alliance Conference Keynotes Top National Business Leaders
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Online Retailing: 2012-13 E-commerce Award Winners Announced
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3 Best Practices For Retailers On Pinterest
By Lauren Smith
3/7/2013 12:38:00 PM  
Are you capitalizing on an audience of 25 million that spends nearly double the average shopper?

Ecommerce consultancy firm RichRelevance recently released a study that tracked 700 million shopping sessions originating from social networks. In this study, they found that an online shopper originating from Pinterest spent an average of $170, while shoppers originating from Facebook and Twitter spent $95 and $70. With a predominately young, female user base with disposable income, the site has quickly become a way of window shopping via your iPad.

In short, if you're not actively creating a presence for your ecommerce company on Pinterest, you're leaving a lucrative opportunity untouched.

But how do you keep up with another social network when your marketing dollars (and time) are stretched thin?

It's Not All About Your Products

With its clean, ad-free interface, Pinterest is the prime place to share imagery that fits the mission of your brand. Consider sharing styled images where the product is not the main focus, but clicking on the image leads the user to the products in the photo. We've found that photos of this nature are highly successful in click throughs compared to their plain product shot counterparts.

It's Called "Social" Networking For A Reason

Like any social network, it's important to engage with your followers. Pinterest provides an excellent opportunity to run creative marketing campaigns. Examples include sharing images from bloggers that feature your products, reposting Instagram photos that are tagged with your brand, and even creating contest boards that allow your followers to repin an image for a chance to win a product.

It's All About Timing

Unlike many social networks that have peak traffic periods, studies show that traffic consistently peaks on Pinterest in the late evenings - around 7:00 PM EST and continues until around Midnight PST. Users cite Pinterest as a way to relax, as they mindlessly browse content. Concentrating your Pinterest activity during work hours puts it at the bottom of their feeds. But using a service like Pingraphy lets you schedule your pins to appear at the right time for optimum exposure.

Have you seen your traffic from Pinterest increase? What strategies are you using to drive engagement? We want to hear your thoughts in the comments!


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3M ESPE Is Blazing Trails And Receiving Recognition For It!
By Lauren Smith
2/27/2013 1:59:00 PM  
Already known for their industry-leading approach to innovation, as evidenced by their recent recognition by the Annaheim Group as the most innovative company in the worldwide dental division for the eighth year in a row, 3M ESPE is also blazing trails in online business-to-business (B2B) commerce. 3M ESPE was recently interviewed at the Chicago midwinter dental conference. In the interview, 3M ESPE speaks to new Buy It Now functionality that creates a consumer-like online shopping experience for their dental product buyers. Buyers can now add products to a cart directly from the 3M ESPE website, without disrupting their existing relationships with their distributor of choice - a great example of enriching and enhancing the business buyer's online commerce experience. Kudos to ShopVisible client, 3M ESPE, true leading edge innovators.

To watch the interview and learn more, click here.

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Get CSE Savvy : How To Gain Customers Using Comparison Shopping Engines
By Lauren Smith
2/12/2013 10:41:00 AM  
Comparison Shopping Engines (CSEs) bring customers who are ready to buy to your commerce site. While these shopping engines are a great tool for retailers, it's critical to understand how to use each CSE for maximum effectiveness.

Join us on Friday, February 15th at 2:00 EST for a complimentary 30 minute webinar. Our ecommerce expert, Will Devlin, will walk you through the do's and don'ts when implementing Comparison Shopping Engines and how to make them pay dividends for your business.

Register here for this free webinar.

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Popularity of Mobile Infographic
By Lauren Smith
2/5/2013 4:46:00 PM  
It's no secret that smartphone use is on the rise. And with it, comes the rise of mobile commerce. In fact, industry research firm Forrester predicts that by 2016, mobile commerce will grow to a total revenue of $31 Billion.

So how do you take advantage of this growing commerce category? Using ShopVisible clients, we examined transactions across our platform to provide you with industry benchmark data, as well as tips and tricks on how to make mobile a success story for your company.



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Learn How To Be Effective With Online Marketplaces
By Lauren Smith
1/18/2013 10:00:00 AM  
Since online marketplaces have been around for a long time, many e-tailers assume that getting up and running on marketplaces is simple – a “just turn it on!” approach. However, getting your products on marketplaces in an effective way takes time and forethought to make it a worth-while investment. Next Friday, Ecommerce expert Will Devlin will walk you through the do's and don’t's when getting into marketplaces and how you can make them pay dividends for your business.

Don’t miss this quick, 30 minute webinar packed with key insights for your business – Register Today!

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Learn How B2B Commerce Is On The Move
By Lauren Smith
12/10/2012 9:20:00 AM  
According to Forrester Research, B2B commerce is well positioned to reach $559 billion in US sales by the end of 2013. This presents a tremendous growth opportunity for companies that adapt to the unique needs and challenges of B2B buyers.

Commerce expert and ShopVisible CEO, Sean Cook, will share more about this opportunity in this Thursday's webinar, "B2B Commerce on the Move: How It's Changing How Businesses Buy and Sell." You will learn 4 key ways that it's changing how companies buy and sell online, and key predictions for the future of B2B commerce.

Join Sean & ShopVisible for this 30 minute webinar on Thursday, December 13th, 12:00 PM EST. Register today.

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Introducing ShopVisible's Shop60 Series
By Lauren Smith
11/14/2012 7:00:00 PM  


This week we're excited to share the launch of our new Shop60 series. We know how busy you are. That's why we created Shop60 to give you key strategies to improve your ecommerce site, all in less than a minute.

Our first episode focuses on ratings & reviews. Did you know adding ratings & reviews to your website can provide an 18% lift in sales? For more statistics like this, watch the latest episode below, and be sure to check out part two on our new Shop60 resources page.


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5 Tactics To Reduce Barriers To Conversion
By Lauren Smith
11/7/2012 7:00:00 PM  
As we enter into the holiday season, you might be looking for ways to get customers on your site, to the product they're searching for, and through the checkout in record time. Since consumers are rushed to buy gifts, it's worth examining whether your commerce efforts are assisting them in their purchase path, or whether you've got barriers to conversion to eliminate.

Tactic 1: Optimize Product Search

66% of shoppers begin product research online - but you must address the different behaviors these consumers exhibit when searching. Your site's search functionality is critical. Be certain to address buyers who come to your site knowing exactly what they're looking for, those that have a rought idea of waht they're looking for, and those that want to browse.

Tactic 2: Include Ratings & Reviews

Approximately 50% of shoppers depend on ratings & reviews to inform their purchasing decisions. Additionally, ratings & reviews provide fresh content to your site, improves product pages, establishes credibility, and provides SEO benefits.

Tactic 3: Implement Social Sign-In


Barriers annoy consumers and lead to cart abandonment. A study by Gigya found that 66% of customers prefer to use an existing account rather than create a new one. Allowing consumers to checkout with a social account that they're likely signed in to while browsing your site speeds up the checkout process.

Tactic 4: Make The Checkout Form Simple


Average cart abandoment rates hover around 65%. With all of this money being left on the table, it's necessary to eliminate distractions during the checkout process. Provide a clear checkout path with visual confirmation along the way.



Tactic 5: Provide Alternative Payment Options


Whether they're browsing on mobile or desktop, allows them to choose how they want to pay for their purchase. For mobile, offering alternative payment methods like PayPal, Amazon Payments, or Google Checkout allows them to quickly pay for their purchase while on the go, without having to pull out their credit card.

To learn more and see how to implement these tactics, download the full webinar.

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Meet Your Ecommerce Match - A Three Part Series
By Lauren Smith
9/7/2012 10:18:00 AM  
We all dream of a world where, with the flip of a switch, orders come pouring in. This dream is a reality for many who found their ecommerce match - the perfect combination of personality and technology. Over the next 3 weeks, ShopVisible will help you find your own ecommerce match. We'll guide you through the right questions to ask yourself and potential candidates using our Who + What + Where formula. Your perfect match is out there - go find them!

Here's a quick peek at our formula:

Who
Who is running your ecommerce initiatives? Do they have the skills to address today's highly connected consumer? Do tey have the tools they need to take your ecomerce business to the next level?

What
What are the qualities that you should be looking for? What sort of capabilities should the right commerce platform partner bring to the table?

Where
Where is the convergence of your perfect candidate's skills and your technology? Know the things to ask yourself when selecting a commerce platform to ensure that you'll have the tools you need to properly flex your commerce muscle.

Check back weekly as we take a deeper dive into each part of the formula!


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3 Tips to Prepare for Holiday Shoppers
By Lauren Smith
8/24/2012 11:35:00 AM  



In the heat of the summer, it's somewhat surreal to start talking about the holidays, but the reality is that it is never too early to prepare. It is important to start thinking about the busiest shopping season before the rush starts, so that when the rush sets in, you're set and ready to go. Here are some of our best tips to prepare:

"If you haven't already, implement mobile commerce." - Will Devlin, Ecommerce Manager at ShopVisible 

With the tremendous growth in mobile device use, retailers would be well served to get their mobile commerce solution and strategy in place now. Today's consumers rely on their smart phones and mobile devices as their central hubs of activity, and it only makes sense to give them the convenience of completing a transaction on them.

But to truly maximize on your opportunities, you must make the experience mobile-friendly. Utilize in-site search, optimize for speed and navigation, and create an easy checkout with features such as alternative payments. It's wise to also include a persistent cart feature, if the consumer wishes to complete the transaction on their desktop.

"Add ratings and reviews to your site." - Lauren Smith, Senior Marketing Coordinator at ShopVisible 

Consumers want to make informed decisions. A recent Google study reported that the average consumer uses 10.4 sources of information before making a buying decision. One of the most heavily relied on are ratings and reviews of fellow consumers. If they don't have a friend that had a direct experience, they're able to make a better informed purchasing decision by reading the ecommerce reviews of others.

As a nice bonus, the fresh content each rating and review provides to your site will provide a nice SEO boost. But you have to start now. Get them in place immediately so that the content has plenty of time to populate before the holiday shopping season. Talk to your commerce provider about adding ecommerce reviews to your site.

 "Create a multi-touchpoint strategy to reach as many buyers as possible." - Sean Cook, CEO at ShopVisible

In commerce circles, a lot of great and descriptive phrases such as multi-touchpoint and omni-channel strategy are being used with a high degree of popularity. A multi-channel strategy addresses today's reality that consumer buying preferences drive where businesses need to be.

Placing your products on channels like NexTag, Google, Amazon, or eBay allows you to expand your market presence and proactively reach an audience that might not have found your website organically.

If you don't have a multi-channel strategy in place, now's the perfect time to start. Make sure your CSE and marketplace integrations are well developed and tested before entering the holiday season.

What questions do you have about preparing your ecommerce site for the holidays? 

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