Podcasting can become a very significant tool in driving traffic to ones shopping cart site. Therefore, I always recommend that my customers incorporate podcasting in to their online marketing plan. What is Podcasting? Well, podcasting gets its name from Apple’s iPod product, and at first it implied any audio that could be played on Apple’s exclusive audio player known as itunes. Nevertheless, as the technology has spread like wild fire over the past few years, podcasting has taken on a whole new meaning to basically sum it up it now refers to multimedia on the web which follows an arrangement of a regularly-recorded show.

Now that you know the history of Podcasting it’s time to get down to the nuts and bolts of how to create your very own personal podcasting show on the internet. There is no need to spend lots of money on equipment, especially if this is your first time doing a podcast. Here are the tools you will need to get started.

• A High quality microphone (I usually suggest a USB mic)
• A mid range sound card, but even if you have an onboard card it should be fine.

Once the hardware is out of the way it’s time to focus on the software. With software you have two avenues to go, the first being free and the second paid.

• Propaganda (http://www.makepropaganda.com/) is paid software which will record, optimize and publish your podcast.
• Audacity (http://audacity.sourceforge.net/) is a great free alternative, but it might require some more technical knowledge.

In my next shopping cart software post I will review a great podcasting software which will create your audio RSS feed as well as manage your online podcasts.

Every WebCart hosted solution shopping cart includes Ecommerce Hosting. WC uses dedicated servers that are engineered specifically for E-commerce to provide you with an unparalleled ecommerce hosting environment.
By using the best technology and state of the art Linux systems we provide guaranteed 99.9% uptime.

Our protected servers are dual 3.0 GHz processors, with 2.5GB of memory each, sitting on top of a superfluous, multi-homed, dedicated network.

We understand that reliability is a big concern for online store owners; therefore, WebCart pays our hosting supplier to make sure that packets of information are delivered to the end user’s eyeballs. This can offers significant advantages over simply peering with the major backbones. Peering agreements hardly ever include Service Level Agreements (SLAs) so no one is responsible for lost packets at crammed exchange points. Because we actually have SLAs with all our providers, we are able to promise that all packets will leave our network at full speed.

Since security is a big threat too many small online businesses WebCart’s data center is inaccessible from everyone except four technicians. Unrestricted access is strictly forbidden. Admittance to the floor of the data hub resides on is restricted to those holding military-grade pass cards.

In my last few posts I discussed how using a shopping cart can benefit a typical  brick and mortar business, by reaching out to the entire word through the internet. However, what about people who don’t have the slightest idea of what to sell? One look online and you will find hundreds of products available, but how does one go about figuring out an enjoyable and profitable online venture? In the spirit of the criteria for shopping cart software, I will try to point you in the right direction.

Before I get in to what you should do, let me be specific about what you want to stay away from. The mistake many people make when they start selling on line is copying what everyone else is doing. An example would be selling DVDs, cd’s and designer clothing online. The biggest problem with selling items like the ones I described is the market is saturated with online sellers selling the same exact thing. Therefore, it’s imperative to find a unique product that is in demand and has a high mark up.

Second, try to sell things which are you are passionate about. A great example is Renee, a recent client of WebCart, who sells health food products via the web. When Renee starts talking about her teas and vitamin supplements a sense of pure passion and excitement comes over her. I know Renee will be successful in her online business because she loves what she sells.

If you’re having a hard time coming up with an ideas check out: Lisa Suttora of whatdoisell.com This site provides a wealth of information about product hotspots and ideas. Another great website I would recommend is www.trendwatching.com. If you’ve looked though the web, and are still not sure I would recommend going to a local shops within your area. Talk to the owner or sales person about their business, and think about how you can integrate it online. Good luck with your online venture!

Starting an online business can be a dream come true for many people. Who the heck enjoys making other people money, when they could be making it for themselves! If you’re like most WebCart clients you are either selling online or thinking about starting an online business. Therefore, the next logical set of questions should be how do I know if I really need a shopping cart? What is the criteria for shopping cart software? Where do I start my research? I will attempt to answer all these questions within this post.

When does someone need a Shopping Cart Solution?

Often times you might not even need a shopping cart. If you’re only selling a couple of products then your best bet would be to use paypal, and set up your two products manually. You will find that managing a shopping cart for two items may become counterproductive. Second, be prepared to spend some money on your cart. Weather you choose open source or a paid shopping cart you will need to pay for cretin services like domain registration, hosting, SSL, and a credit card merchant account if you plan on accepting credit cards via the internet.

What is needed for a shopping cart solution?

You have two options for setting up a shopping cart. The first is hosting the cart on the provider’s website. An example would be WebCart’s managed solution. For $78.00 a month WebCart will host and protect your shopping cart on our server. The second option is hosting and installing the cart on a server of your choosing. For starters, you will need a domain name, and a hosting package which supports PHP, ASP or Cold Fusion. In addition, you will need to order an SSL certificate to provide security for your online customers.
Depending on the brand of shopping cart, a designer and developer may be needed in order to customize the look and feel of your cart. With WebCart, we offer seven different templates to help customize a unique look for beginners

The best way to start researching a shopping cart solution is to request as many demo’s as possible. Play around with the cart by adding products, and categories adjusting the look and feel and setting up custom pages. By doing this you are assuring your self of a smooth eCommerce experience. .

Thus far in this series I have covered WebCart’s technical support, and shopping cart software security, as it compares to osCommerce. I sincerely hope that I have written everything in a clear and easy to understand manner, while sustaining the criteria for shopping cart software. In this post I will describe custom functionality as it relates to the two shopping cart solutions.

Custom Functionality:

osCommerce add-ons

One very impressive feature of osCommerce is its enormous library of user submitted contributions (aka plug-ins) which it offers, free of charge to internet users. Over the years a large collection of contributions had developed, ranging from add-ons like credit modules to templates with exciting features like dynamic dropdowns. Before you get excited, let’s get in to a little more detail on how these contributions function. Navigate to http://www.oscommerce.com/community/contributions/category,13 and click any module which happens to catch your eye. I personally clicked on the points and rewards module. At first glance the contribute seems interesting, however, at a closer examination I find a long description with no installation information.( the installation instructions are usually found inside the zip) At the point I don’t plan on installing this conribute, but what I will do is show you a very interesting piece of text found near the end of the description.

If you’re a professional web developer then I wish you luck with your installation. However, if you are like the majority of internet users, and don’t know how to create new database tables, or edit templates then the sad reality remains that it will be difficult for you to successfully install the “points and rewards module” or for that matter many other contribute similar to it.

WebCart’s Functionality:

Early on it was clear that WebCart needed to have the ability to extend itself beyond its basic functionality. Let me be clear, before WebCart 11 was released, our research and development department conducted extensive research on what extra features and functionality online merchants would like to see. Our programming team spent countless hours incorporating features like real time shipping, paypal checkout and many other that come standard with WebCart 11.

Despite the effort to include a large collection of add-ons, we understand that many eCommerce merchants might, at some point need custom modules installed. With WebCart’s shopping cart, developing custom functionality has never been more affordable or easier to develop as it’s today. Because WebCart was pre-built to have added functionality, our programmers can build and install custom add-ins for any of our clients for very fair rates.

Over the past few years, osCommerce has become an extremely popular choice for online business’s looking for a shopping cart solution. To those who love free (open source) software, osCommerce is and has been a dream come true. Given the choice, uneducated eCommerce store owners will usually opt for a free cart vs. one which  will cost money.
I personally, don’t believe that osCommerce has a faulty product, and my aim is not to convince anyone of this. However, I do want to outline a few specific differences between WebCart and osCommerce, and let you the consumer decides. .

Tech Support - For Many beginners technical support is critical for setting up a presence on the web. With osCommerce there is no phone or email support. The only method of installing their shopping cart is by reading the online documention, and posting questions of the forum. Look, don’t take my word for it visit http://www.oscommerce.info/docs/english/c_installation_and_upgrades.html and take a look for your self.

WebCart on the other hand makes the shopping cart . In fact we don’t even have installation documentation because we install WebCart for you. After talking to clients who were previous users of osCommerce, I can tell you that most of them, who were intermediate web users, had an extremely difficult time going through the installation documentation. A simple Google search for “osCommerce installation help” will produce a wealth of websites trying to sell you an installion service.

Over the next few posts I will continue to compare the features of  osCommerce and WebCart so please stay tuned.

To maximize online sales many eCommerce merchants offer a bundle of two or more products at a discounted rate. The option to offer bundle packaging to consumers is usually a win win situation for both the online retailer and the consumer who is making the purchase. Many shopping cart solutions offer bundle feature, but often times, it’s difficult to set up, and many online webmasters don’t realize what a boost bundling products together can give them.

MagazinePromotion.com, an online magazine subscription super store has been offering its customers a bundle of magazines option, for the past two years. The model is fairly simple, if a customer wants to purchase maxim magazine then they are likely to be interested in other men’s style magazines like FHM or Stuff which they can get together for a discounted rate.

Another example of a big online retailer using a bundle system is, Amazon.com. The feature is known as “better together” where amazon recommends a book which is simpler in subject and price to one that you are browsing. This sort of cross selling is very beneficial for online retailers because it offers a way to showcase products that consumers may not yet know about.

WebCart’s criteria for shopping cart software has lead to a re-engineered bundle system that combines the power of something similar to amazon’s “better together” feature with the ease of use that WebCart has become famous for.

What is the best way to keep online customers updated about special offers? I would personally suggest an RSS feed with new products and sale items, but since many online consumers don’t have or use RSS readers, the next best option would be a newsletter. Sounds simple enough, right? The sad reality is that it may sound like an easy task, but most online store owners don’t know where to begin. Part of the frustration comes from a lack of software which incorporates a robust online shopping  cart with a strong newsletter feature.

WebCart has taken the newsletter feature in to a new dimension which increases the criteria for shopping cart software worldwide. What one person finds interesting, might be thought of as mind-numbing by someone else. Therefore, WebCart has engineered a shopping cart newsletter tool which can be specific to a master category. Let me explain what I mean.

Robyn sells household accessories online. Her online store includes antique, midrange, and high end accessories which are available to the public. If Robyn were to generate a general newsletter it would not appeal to all her clients. The antique devotee does not necessarily want to read about upscale home accessory. While, Robyn’s mid range clients can’t afford her antique or high end accessories, and would rather not read about it. How can Robyn make everyone happy? She could use WebCart’s newsletter tool to offer special deals per master categories which she can designate. By doing this, three unique newsletters are able to be emailed to her customers.

The criteria for shopping cart software are being set high, and in this final post I will conclude the series on WebCart’s affiliate module.

To view the previous post click here

Let’s get started…

Affiliate Payment Control:
The internet can be a dangerous place when it comes to fraud. Affiliate fraud is nothing new, and has been around for years. I will explain how a typical fraud could happen, and the steps WebCart built to minimize it.

Let’s say I sign up as an affiliate for a website that sells speakers. Each stereo speaker sold though my affiliate link gets me $10.00. I forgot to mention that the owner of the Stereo site gives his customers the option of mailing in a check as a form of payment. Once my link was approved I would solicit a gang of my friends to purchase speakers though my new affiliate link, but have them pay with a check that they will never mail in. Of course my friends have no intention of mailing the check in, but credit was given to me for a sale. Can you see how something like this could destroy a shopping cart owners business?

WebCart’s affiliate payment control gives the webmaster the option of disabling checks, and adding an extra blanket of security for online payments. Although this blanket does not eliminate fraud, it does help by diverting fraudulent activity on your site.

Cookie Time:
Can you think of a time when you clicked a link for a product, but didn’t make a purchase right away, but came back a few days later and purchased the item? Well if you never did anything like that; let me assure you many people have. It’s something that many people who sign up with an affiliate program are concerned with.

Take the affiliates view for a second. They are sending you traffic, and just because the person didn’t make a purchase the same day, the affiliate loses a commission. With WebCart’s affiliate module a cookie is set inside of the user’s browser so if the user comes back within a two month span of time the affiliate will receive credit for the sale.

I hope this helps you understand how to run a profitable shopping cart solutions. Please feel free to post any questions you may have.