Free Ecommerce App to track Web Shop Customers

For a very small Web store, every customer counts.  The more you learn about the people visiting your online store, such as the pages they view, what items they look at and how they find your online store the better. They’re all metrics that can help you grow your business.

The free Lexity Live app is a handy tool for small and medium-sized businesses with an online store.  Most free analytics programs will show you yesterday’s customers in terms of numbers, but Lexity provides you with a keen view of who is browsing and shopping on your site, right now.

Free Customer-tracking App Shows Live Web Shop Customer Data
By Vangie Beal, February 17, 2012

Finally: A Website

I finally managed to find (make) the time to get a freelance technology & business writer website online. Of course, now I have to find the time to keep it updated. Many years ago, during my “I’m a girl gamer” days I managed GameGirlz.com and had the domain name floating around, unused for years – I hope I’m not the only person out there with a personal attachment to a domain name. Being unable to let the domain go, I finally decided to make good use of it:  http://www.gamegirlz.com/

How to Shorten a URL

A URL shortener is a way to make a long URL (Uniform Resource Locator) shorter.  URL shortening services are Web tools (or services) that allow you to provide a long URL to a specific webpage and obtain a much shorter URL from the service provider. This Webopedia reference guide will help you understand what a URL shortener is and how these URL redirect services work.

How to Shorten a URL Using a URL Shortener Service
By: Vangie Beal, 06-22-2011

Is Social Media a Waste of Time for Business?

Social media expert Jason Sadler explains what small businesses are doing wrong when it comes to social media.

The answer to this question isn’t quite as straightforward as one might expect, but according to Jason Sadler, founder of iWearYourShirt, for some businesses: yes, social media can be a waste of time. This is especially true when you’ve taken the wrong approach engaging with customers over social media.

Is Social Media a Waste of Time for Small Business Ecommerce?
By Vangie Beal, June 16, 2011

ClickTale Offers Customer Heatmaps, Form Analytics

ClickTale’s customer experience analytics package goes beyond bounce rates and pageviews to track and analyze a customer’s on-page behavior.

Website analytics is an important tool for any small business or ecommerce business. Popular analytics packages, such as Google Analytics for example, offer site owners a detailed look at how people find your website and how they transition between pages on your site.

ClickTale, a provider of Customer Experience Analytics (CEA), is one company that offers a way for businesses to see more than just page transitions — it provides a way to see in-depth analytics for every page and every customer interaction and experience that takes place within a website.

As a website visitor moves his or her mouse over a page, clicks on an image or scrolls down your page, ClickTale captures that information. With this detailed data you can then see how customers react to your page, what images and links they click and what page elements they interact with while browsing.

ClickTale Offers Customer Heatmaps, Form Analytics
By Vangie Beal – August 23,2010

Do You Know Your Browser History?

Web browsers, often referred to just as browsers, are software applications used to locate and display Web pages on the World Wide Web. While this is the most popular usage, browsers can also be used to access and view content on a private or local network as well. Most, but not all browsers are graphical browsers, which means that they can display graphics as well as text. In addition, most modern browsers can present multimedia information, including sound and video, though they require plug-ins for some formats.

Web browser is actually a software application that runs on your Internet-connected computer. It allows you to view Web pages, as well as use other content and technologies such as video, graphics files, and digital certificates, to name a few. Some browsers will translate only text while others do support graphics and animation. Web browsers are not all created equal, and Web pages also will not be displayed the same in different browsers.

All About Web Browsers
By Vangie Beal, March 06, 2009

Social Media Tips for Online Marketing

Many businesses have primarily focused on getting listed in Google for no reason other than to drive Google’s search traffic to their own Web space. Social media is no different — businesses are looking to leverage social media traffic to help their own sites and brands. Not all businesses need a Facebook page or a blog to promote and advertise on the popular social media sites. In fact, you might do better simply by making your own online presence social media-friendly and let your users carry your product through to these places instead.

Learn more about social media marketing in this Webopedia Did You Know…? article.

Traceroute and Ping: What’s the Difference?

When data is sent over the Internet, it’s sent in small blocks of data, called packets. Messages are divided into packets before they are sent, and each packet is then transmitted individually and can even follow different routes to its destination. Once all the packets forming a message arrive at the destination, they are recompiled into the original message.

Sometimes when you are trying to send or receive data over the Internet you may experience timeouts, or a Web server may be down, which prevents you from accessing services and Web sites. There are two common programs that can be used to test your Internet connection and even help you diagnose congestion between your computer (your ISP) and the destination server you’re trying to reach. The programs you can use are called Ping and Traceroute.

The Difference Between Traceroute and Ping
By Vangie Beal, February 13, 2009

How To Create a Facebook Group

Facebook Groups are pages that you create within the Facebook social networking site that are based around a real-life interest or group or to declare an affiliation or association with people and things. With a Facebook Group, you are creating a community of people and friends to promote, share and discuss relevant topics. The types of groups people can join on Facebook are seemingly endless. Here are step-by-step tips for setting up your own groups.

How To Create a Facebook Group
By Vangie Beal, January 22, 2009

Ruby Lane is a Gem for Online Antique Sellers

Ruby Lane’s design is impressive and the site truly translates the experience of visiting an antiques market or fair to the online world. It is a trendy online forum that offers buyers a chance to purchase highly coveted items, such as glass, furniture, jewelry, dolls and many other types of sought-after collectibles —surprisingly, at decent prices as well.

As a new shop owner on Ruby Lane you will notice some very big differences between this marketplace and other online selling venues. To start with, Ruby Lane is a stickler for making sure that sellers are honest and provide accurate listings to buyers. Actually, a seller cannot even do business here unless they have at least a 50-item inventory. In addition to the store minimum, Ruby Lane screens all shop owners and sets quality-focused guidelines for sellers.

For example, a listing may not use the word “antique” unless the item is at least 100-years-old, and while sellers can include up to nine photos with each item, you may have to provide very specific photos, depending on what you list. Citing the vintage watches as an example, Pekarek said that a seller is required to not only show a picture of the watch face, but they must include a very clear image of the back which shows the manufacturer’s mark and other pertinent details to authenticate the item.

With Ruby Lane experts randomly checking listings to ensure shop owners maintain accurate listings, the site is able to offer buyers a site-wide return policy. Any buyer can return a purchased item within three days for a full refund. This is first worked out through the shop owner, and if needed, Ruby Lane ensures the refund is given to the buyer — something that almost no other eBay alternative offers.

Ruby Lane is a Gem for Online Antique Sellers
By Vangie Beal, February 12, 2009