How to make a better E-Commerce site?

INDIA: InfoShore Software Private Ltd. has announced a campaign to help businesses reach their ecommerce goals by sharing with them the requirements of a successful ecommerce site.

There is no doubt that good graphics and templates contribute to the success of any web site. But when it comes to selling products or services, it takes more than a pretty face to succeed in ecommerce said the press release.

“The difference between making a sale and losing a customer to a competitor is often as simple as the number of clicks it takes to select a product, put it into the shopping cart, and checkout,” according to Ashish Arora, InfoShore Software’s director.

“I am always amazed at how many ecommerce web sites erect barriers making it difficult for customers to spend money,” Arora added.

One of the biggest issues facing online e-tailers is a phenomenon known as shopping cart abandonment rate. The term refers to instances where a customer will select an item, place it in the online cart, and then leave the site without checking out.

According to a study by PayPal, a leading ecommerce payment service provider, shopping cart abandonment occurs for a number of reasons over which InfoShore Software says every online merchant has control.

“Even ecommerce site owners who use the most popular ecommerce development platforms like OS Commerce, or those who own a Yahoo Store, risk losing customers due to poor shopping cart implementation,” noted Arora.

That’s why he suggests that online store owners partner with an ecommerce development company that understands the technology side of online shopping as well as the human side.

As more people find themselves out of work or caught in the crunch of the global economic meltdown, the number of first-time ecommerce hopefuls is expected to soar.

But Arora warns that “Enthusiasm and dreams are no substitute for a solid ecommerce experience. And that lack of experience is responsible for the current 97 percent failure rate among new ecommerce web sites.”