Internet Marketing Blog

Unique Features of a Successful eCommerce Website

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E-commerce websites are mainly designed to sell products and their success is very essential for better business results. When designing and developing an e-commerce website, a designer has to face so many challenges in order to deliver the best of all. Hence, it is very essential to analyze all the areas of the process to ensure delivery of a good product. E-commerce is a unique topic in online business with various beneficial features, including global audience reach, high standards, user interaction, valuable information, and customization.

There are a range of essential factors that influence the look and feel of e-commerce websites. The top features include quick & easy navigation, product related simple design for increased visibility of product, effective branding, specific product images, displaying related or recommended products, listing popular products, offers & discounts, simple checkout process, and complete website search option.  

The navigation of product pages should be carefully designed with more options for the users to locate the product easily.  This feature of the site requires thorough user experience testing to ensure all navigational issues are addressed properly. With the help of some simple design approaches, the site will give better visibility to the product, as selling is the key point of any e-commerce website. For better performance of the website, the design should be related to the style of products available and thus making a direct connection with the brand.

Your firm should include product specific photos, especially in different angles.  This will help the user get a feel of the product and to make an easy purchasing decision. They should also make use of the homepage and help the users to find something really interesting by adding offers, popular products, new arrivals and other discounts. Displaying a list of related products on the product details page to the user may result in increased sales of those products as well and serves as a promotional tool for similar products. Users may find it difficult to land with the particular product of their interest even with good navigation, so in order to avoid this and help them gain easy access to the product, it is advised to include search box with range of options.

In total, e-commerce websites with all the above good features provides advantages for small and medium businesses in developing countries reducing operational costs and increasing efficiency.

Posted by Mohamed Mohideen
Posted in 7 Pillars of Internet Marketing, Interactive Marketing, Marketing Agencies, Offshore Outsourcing, Photography, Small Business, Website Design, eCommerce, web 2.0, web development | No Comments »
Tags: eCommerce, Internet Marketing, Mohamed Mohideen, new york web development agency, small businesses, web analytics, web design, web development

The Wild West of Mobile Advertising

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Apple rolled out a mobile advertising platform this summer to much fanfare, and had several strong partnerships on the docket. According to the Wall Street Journal, only Unilever PLC and Nissan pushed campaigns this summer. Other companies have slowly unbundled their platforms, with little evidence of a great impact.
From a distance, one could wonder if Apple’s penchant for proprietary control could catch up with them in the mobile advertising market. Their battle with Adobe over Flash has silenced in the public, but nobody is convinced that HTML5, despite its open source adaptability, can surpass the reliability of Flash video. Adobe executives are incensed at Jobs’ effort to monopolize interactive content. The Android has used Flash Interactive to great affect and continues to creep up the sales chart. Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle, served Google with a suit in the District Court this past Friday, accusing Google of copyright infringement in the Android open source platform. Google had a secret dalliance with Verizon that grew criticism from the cyberworld to the hot dog vendor on Seventh Avenue by FIT.
I spoke with a woman this weekend who was a marketer for Johnson & Johnson, and we both agreed that the rate of interactive advertising growth has exploded beyond comprehension. As I type on this keyboard, the technorati is looking to claim their space within the cloud sector by all means necessary. Government agencies like the FCC may need to rule on intellectual properties with little legal precedent. The platform distribution ranges from television to personal computer to mobile phone to display stands.

It is unclear if the absolute freedom of digital space remains in jeopardy. On another level, one cannot quantify at this point the value of mobile marketing. The potential for revenue is strong if marketers can get applications available quickly. Apple could learn this lesson as they attempt to eliminate third-party applications.

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Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Content Marketing, Flash, Mobile Applications, Mobile Marketing, blog | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, Blueliner, Blueliner Marketing, iAds, Mobile Applications, Mobile Marketing, oracle

Agile Methodology In A Web Design Era

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Common folk who know little about their software besides the name think of the world agile as the physical characteristic they had during Pop Warner days.  It could also describe your abilities when you were a star shortstop in the Babe Ruth or American Legion leagues.  Maybe you were the cheerleader that jumped above the rafters with pom-poms dotting the air.  The prior definitions of agile do not apply in this piece.

We are discussing the agile methodology, which is growing as the choice for web development.  IT professionals have been going back and forth between the waterfall and agile developments.  The waterfall development is a classic linear, sequential approach to software design.  It is a methodical, fastidious approach for product building.  A glitch in the system can crumble a waterfall approach, and new code must be developed again.  A project’s capital structure crumbles if bugs consistently surface.  

Agile methodology fits the namesake like a glove.  The adaptability comes with a low overhead costs and is efficient for smaller teams.  These teams range from the project to the deployment, and break a project into separate puzzles that are affixed into a final portrait over time. A client, therefore, must be willing to take more initiative in the final product.  The rate of software development has increased, especially with mobile technology, and platforms must be ready for the synchronicity between desktop and mobile.  It’s coming by the nanosecond, and project development needs to be agile in a shift age.

In short, waterfall development is good if you have a client with clear, strict guidelines and the resources to cover any potholes in the langorous process.  Once these elements are in doubt, then the agile methodology deserves a review.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Interactive Marketing, Website Analytics, Website Design, blog, web development | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, agile development strategy, agile methodology, bllueliner marketing, Blueliner, new york web design agency, new york web development agency, waterfall development strategy, waterfall methodology

Cyberhealth Search, M.D.

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Once upon a time, not too long ago, we visited the doctor to keep us from eternal woe. Your doctor could have been John or Jack Doe, for all we cared. In the new millennium, things are a little different. We have a national health care plan, although the possibilities of redemption will be told on a future date.  Healthcare consumers are going online to access information and services.  Insurers such as Aetna and Oxford have comprehensive statistics and resources for patients.  Couriers and freelancers have a long-running joke that WebMD takes their temperature.

These elements have forced consumers to become more empowered with personal health care.  Pharmaceuticals have acted accordingly, securing record profits with aggressive online campaigns and sharp website design with comprehensive facts.  According to a 2009 study by Harris Interactive, 78% of US Internet users searched online for health information.  Social media definitely integrates the personal health experience into a far more communicative, enlightened venture than its clandestine past.

It begs to ponder the value of search in our medical experiences.  We can access information from endless sources, but it’s difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff without a specialist.  In turn, the specialist loses value if he or she is inaccessible to citizens who need their routine services.  Specialists also lose value with informed patients, and must be willing to engage in critical discussions to ensure a healthy relationship.  The medical field, unlike others, has been slow to embrace mobile technology in supporting operations.  You may love the WebMD Sports Injury Reports on Fox, but if you’re covered, go see the doctor.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Flash, Interactive Marketing, Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Website Design, blog, online advertising | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, aetna insurance, Blueliner Marketing, harris interactive market research, healthcare, internet marketing nyc, new york social media agency, online advertising, oxford health care, pharmaceutical websites, web md

Little Words Mean A Lot

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The developers at Smashing Magazine are versed in all programs and the transient dynamics of code.  Nobody can keep up, and that’s just factual.  We all know, however, that two sides exist to every coin, even the Canadian ones.  As Niels Matthijs notes, developers can slip up and make errors.  He feels that naming conventions and constructing better HTML templates will translate into better websites.  I’ll highlight a sample of subtopics for the uninitiated.

The Bare Necessities Of Semantics

Nowadays with Google Caffeine, content must be recognizable to all kinds of crawlers and search engines for full SEO optimization.  The engine just debuted, so its effectiveness must be intensely tracked in order to make a proper assessment. If Google Caffeine hits, then surfing the internet will be a much greater experience and e-commerce stands to benefit.

Think Components, Not Pages

Websites should have common components that fit together than a jangled collection of pages. In order to achieve this feat, developers need to focus on a single component at a time.  When one needs to write the HTML code for a product, check each wireframe for product variations.  Then one can write a code that handle the existing variants.  This model will be solid and can be used anywhere.

For more information on semantics, click the photo.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Website Analytics, Website Design, blog, web development | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, Blueliner, Blueliner Marketing, coding semantics, html coding, niels matthijs, smashing magazine, web development, web programming

Threadless Weaves Marketing Dreams

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Threadless has gained praise nationwide for their masterful use of online communities to drive sales.  The Chicago-based company does not have professional designers nor online advertising agencies and other distributors to pirate income.  It took them some time for the open source movement to generate results, but they have commemorated it this year with a 10th anniversary campaign.  The Tour Kick-Off Sale ends July 2nd and includes various price points for men, women, and children that fit anyone’s budget.  They will be in a caravan that covers the nation while stopping at the Pitchfork Music Festival and other points in between to Washington D.C. in October.  Here are the dates.

The company’s tight relationship with its community allows for an amalgam of creative designs and products that allow for test marketing before the product is pushed to the website.  The website is also optimized for clean click navigation, search indexing, and a full board of social widgets.  I believe that the crispness of their website is key to their success.  One receives feedback immediately on their designs from the network while making income for their gifts.  It’s a relationship that benefits the consumer and merchant without a lot of database research or bureaucracy.

Threadless has begun to develop partnerships with Griffin Technologies and Havaianas Footwear to stretch their product portfolio into smartphone cases and flip-flops, amongst other things.  With a rich community of designers and a 10-year anniversary book to cement brand equity, Threadless is an emerging force. Heavyweight marketing executives have wondered for some time about the open source model, and now see it come to fruition.  They should be very afraid.  For more details on Threadless, read this interview from VP of Marketing, Cam Balzer.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Business News, Interactive Marketing, Marketing, Website Design, blog, green marketing, web 2.0, web development | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, Blueliner Marketing, cam balzer, griffin technologies, haivaianas, Interactive Marketing, new york interactive marketing agency, pitchfork music festival, social media, threadless

AT&T Nets Augmented Reality

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Augmented reality is a form of online advertising that is gaining traction. The World Cup, which has seen record figures of advertising revenue, has also become a test board for many firms, including AT&T.  The communications giant created a banner with Zugara’s Augmented Reality motion capture technology called ZugMO.  The banner is an innovative form of Flash and other properties.  It has you heading crosses towards to goal straight from your webcam. The user gets five shots to score as many goals as possible. In the future, we’ll get more in depth about the creation of these banners and their effectiveness in segmentation.  But for now, begin to head for goals here!

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Flash, Interactive Marketing, Marketing | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, AT&T augmented reality banner, augmented reality, banner campaign, BBDO, Blueliner Marketing, digital campaigns, Flash, online advertising, online banners, zugara augmented reality

A Cleaner, Fitter, Jack Georges Website

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Jack Georges founded his business in 1987, bringing a fine collection of leather business cases and accessories for the working male or female professional.  Jack Georges’ manufacturers go to painstaking lengths to ensure that each individual piece has a unique style and quality of its own, standing the test of time.  Mr. Georges solicited Blueliner to develop an e-commerce campaign with the motivation to introduce his collection to new customers.

Our first step in this campaign was upgrading the website design. Previously, the page felt cluttered and lacked energy.  It was also difficult to navigate their extensive inventory.  I would click through on a product link and it would take me to another portal, where I had to click again for more product information.  The drop-down menus are a nice upgrade, and they flow freely.

I also like the pop-up social media tags on the Success Blog, which is filled with tips on business acumen and dress standards from Lance Armstrong amongst others. It is a good resource for topics to discuss in management and human resource trainings.  Success for any firm is a journey filled with successful habits that lead to a destination.

The Twitter feed updates regularly with pictures of inventory, using Flickr for easy connection with your personal account.  Those interested in exclusive news can sign up for an e-mail newsletter on the bottom left corner. Keywords were optimized by the staff to stimulate traffic for brand aficionados. Below are a couple photos of the old and new websites to show the improvement:

Old Website:

New Website, by Blueliner:

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Marketing, Website Design, eCommerce | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, Blueliner Marketing, business briefcases, ecommerce agency, jack georges briefcase, jack georges laptop bags, jack georges success blog, lance armstrong, newyork website design agency, online marketing

Damjan Speaks at The iFRONT Conference

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Our colleague, Damjan Arsovski, spoke last week at the Second Annual iFront Conference in Belgrade, Serbia. The iFront collective is aligned with Front, a design and brand agency from Belgrade that provides business services to clients for their events and conferences.

The conference was just one day, located at The Bitef Theatre, and emceed by Jasna Maltic, the Serbian Minister of Information Society.  It discussed the implementation of internet services to business operations, divided into four areas such as mobile software, web marketing, digital public relations, and the web as a new business platform.  Damjan presented during the web marketing section. His presentation talked about the trends in the digital economy, how they changed the world for the present time, and the importance of users. He felt the audience was engaged overall. Here’s a slideshow of the presentation.

Along with those, I’ve dropped a few pictures from the event below.  Enjoy.  

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Business News, Website Design, web development | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, Blueliner, Blueliner Marketing, Damjan Arsovski, FRONT serbia, iFRONT 2010 Belgrade, The Bitef Theatre, web business development

Stupid Is Following The Conscious and Unconscious

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Back in 2004, I interned with the Press Department of Diesel U.S.A.  My experience was very unique, as I became acquainted with the inner workings of an apparel giant whose influence at the time remained strong with the dynamic and creative.  Despite the high price tag of their denim, sales flourished due to their innovative marketing strategies.  Nowadays, the brand has lengthened their portfolio to the higher end of the spectrum, with a flagship store on Fifth Avenue and the collection Diesel Black Gold.

The decade moved along, with Diesel reaching its thirties. Suddenly, the brand is in competition with an endless labels selling similar apparel.  Recently, Founder Renzo Rosso and his management team decided to recoup market share with a new interactive campaign called Be Stupid.  The message is pretty straightforward, aiming to cultivate those who are not familiar with the brand and its roots in denim.

The website is a tour de force of Flash design.  A streaming video of slogans flow with “Honeytrap” from British dance rock group We Have Band.  After that, we have an application mimicking Upwords, where you can put together various words into your own sentences and share them through social media sites. Here’s my poem.  

That is simply the first part of the campaign.  Once you move on to the video catalog, you get a dance performance with models wearing the spring/summer 2010 collection. If you pause and click on the head of each model, you get a quick bio along with links to their personal social media pages.  You also can click on the clothing to get more depth on where to purchase those pieces, either online or your local store.  The video continues playing “A Hundred Lovers” by Spanish group Josep when you move the arrow off the photo.  It’s a comprehensive use of Flash, and well done.

The website lastly has a contest where you can upload your stupid images and win chances at trips to South Africa, Las Vegas, and other places.  We’ll see the effects of this interactive rush in the future, but Diesel clearly is fueling the consciousness, seen and unseen.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Business News, Flash, Website Design, World | No Comments »
Tags: abdul fattah ismail, Blueliner, Blueliner Marketing, diesel spA, diesel usa, eCommerce, Flash, Interactive Marketing