{"id":1037,"date":"2018-06-15T14:52:05","date_gmt":"2018-06-15T14:52:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.goantiques.com\/blog\/?p=1037"},"modified":"2018-06-20T16:39:06","modified_gmt":"2018-06-20T16:39:06","slug":"is-your-storefront-working-for-or-against-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goantiques.com\/blog\/dealer-in-depth\/is-your-storefront-working-for-or-against-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Your Storefront Working For or Against You?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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“When customers first encounter your eCommerce website, they do exactly the same thing they do when they walk into an unknown traditional storefront \u2013 look around, size up the place, and decide whether or not they trust the merchant enough to buy something from them. If you want them to buy something from your website, you need to do everything you can to make sure they find you trustworthy enough.”<\/span>\u00a0~Susan Ward, author,\u00a0Small Business: Canada<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

5 Ways To Make Your Storefront Mighty!\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Did You Know That\u00a0Your Storefront Set-Up Will Either Help or Hinder You\u00a0in gaining the Buyer trust AND the increased exposure that lead to purchases?\u00a0 If you want every customer who sees your inventory to WANT to buy from YOU, read on!<\/strong> <\/span><\/p>\n

Leading eCommerce marketing experts all agree that one of the most critical keys to generating sales, is inspiring Buyers\u2019 confidence. eCommerce specialist ECWID\u00a0states,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u201cAn e-commerce merchant is asking a lot of its potential customers: to part with their credit card details, to share their shipping address or the\u00a0location of their home. These can be significant hurdles along your route to customer conversion. To make purchases confidently, a customer must be able to trust the vendor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Your Storefront represents your business, so what does say about it? <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Do you have a professional looking banner image? Are your policies thoroughly explained and complete? Does your Storefront more resemble a last-minute garage sale?\u00a0Accruing Buyer trust requires that Storefronts not only be seen, but that they inspire Buyer confidence in a Seller\u2019s business. Social Media exposure draws traffic not only to individual Sellers, but also the entire site.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0“…(One) incredibly effective way to relay your message on a global scale is to make your presence known on social media sites. With social media having taken the world by storm, the more social media channels you connect to, the bigger and better your online presence will be.”~E-Commerce Platforms<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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GoAntiques posts daily to\u00a0<\/span>social media channels on Instagram, FB and Pinterest, generating over 500,000 monthly views, and over 17,000 clicks to individual items posted to our Pinterest boards. We do this<\/span> for our Sellers, free of charge, because we want our Sellers to be visible, and to attract buyers. <\/span><\/p>\n

We regularly pin our Sellers\u2019 items, with titles curated to draw attention, and make it clear the items are for sale.<\/span> When a Pinterest viewer clicks on an item they find interesting, it goes directly to that inventory item in your storefront. <\/span>However, \u00a0a lack of a Storefront Banner, \u00a0or completed storefront fields (descriptions, policies, etc) will not create a fabulous impression of a Seller’s Storefront, and can damage GoAntiques credibility as a trustworthy marketplace. <\/span><\/p>\n

So, because we want every impression we create to be a positive one, <\/span>GoAntiques’ policy is that we do not create social\u00a0 media links to, or highlight Sellers,\u00a0<\/b>until<\/i><\/b> their Storefronts are complete, and their\u00a0<\/b>inventory terms<\/b><\/a> are accurate.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

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“The customer experience is the next competitive battleground.” ~Jerry Gregoire, Senior VP, CIO Dell<\/span><\/i><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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STOREFRONTS THAT ARE INSPIRING & COMPLETE INCLUDE:<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n

If you want a great and complete Storefront that will optimize the likelihood of <\/span>Browsers becoming Buyers, here is a breakdown of required Storefront elements, with suggestions and best practices for inspiring Buyer confidence.<\/span> <\/b>As soon as your Storefronts are complete, send me an email (<\/b>minto@goantiques.com<\/b><\/a>) and I will make a point of making sure you have some items pinned!<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

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1. A UNIQUE STOREFRONT BANNER IMAGE\u00a0 also called a \u201cHero Image\u201d)<\/b>: <\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

Also called a \u201cHero Image,” this photo is the online equivalent of the brick & mortar exterior signage you\u2019d display to show the public you were open for business. Think about what would interest visitors to stop, and \u201cinquire within.\u201d Think about what will make your business look solid, interesting, and well managed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Your uploaded photo should be a horizontal image, particular to your Storefront, (not the GoAntiques placeholder, a minimum of 650px wide by 350px high, JPEG format. It can be a photo of your brick & mortar storefront, or text that functions like signage.<\/span><\/p>\n

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“Every great business is built on friendship.” ~JC Penney<\/i><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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2. A GREAT STOREFRONT DESCRIPTION:<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

PERSONALIZE YOUR BUSINESS<\/b><\/p>\n

People want to know who you are and what sets you apart from others. A Storefront Description that includes your story, the history and passion behind your business, what you specialize in, and how long you\u2019ve been in business, will make you more relatable to your customers, helping customers feel as if they know you. <\/span>This will make them more comfortable in buying your items. A unique story can also be a valuable tool for distinguishing oneself from the crowd, as well as building a repeat clientele.<\/span><\/p>\n

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“Profit in business comes from repeat customers; customers that boast about your product and service, and that bring friends with them.” ~W. Edwards Deming,\u00a0adviser, consultant, author, and teacher to some of the most influential businessmen, corporations, and scientific pioneers of business process re-engineering, directly responsible for inspiring and guiding the spectacular rise of Japanese industry after World War II.<\/span><\/i><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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3. A PHONE NUMBER & ADDRESS TO GIVE YOUR ECOMMERCE STOREFRONT A PHYSICAL PRESENCE<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n

A simple yet effective way to build the confidence of your online customers is by adding a phone number to your website. A phone number means that you exist in reality, rather than just in the virtual world. You can add your physical address, that of your brick & mortar store, or of your warehouse. <\/span><\/p>\n

If you have an independent website, you are welcome to include it here, as well your store hours. The need for a physical address is even more important when you are selling items of a high value. \u00a0Sites that do not provide this information generally experience lower sales.<\/span><\/p>\n

NOTE:<\/b> You can create a personalized GoAntiques URL<\/b>, by going into your Seller Dashboard to Tools>Seller Storefront >Storefront Options>Nickname. \u00a0Add your store\u2019s name as a single word, with each words\u2019 first letter capitalized. Example: \u201cMinto\u2019s Amazing Antiques\u201d would be added in the Nickname field as: MintosAmazingAntiques. <\/span><\/p>\n

The URL for my Storefront would then become <\/span>\u00a0<\/span>http:\/\/www.goantiques.com\/members\/MintosAmazingAntiques<\/span><\/a> instead of \u00a0\u00a0<\/span>http:\/\/www.goantiques.com\/members\/4747474<\/span><\/a> (my imaginary GoA membership number).<\/span><\/p>\n

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“Loyal customers, they don\u2019t just come back, they don\u2019t simply recommend you, they insist that their friends do business with you.” ~Chip Bell, world-renowned authority on customer loyalty and service innovation, writing over 600 articles for many business journals, magazines, and blogs.<\/span><\/i><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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4. POSTED REVIEWS & REFERRALS<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n