The new CreaCity Quadriga Shop is available now

creacity — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 10:38:40 +0000

Yesterday we could finish the programming for our new CreaCity Quadriga WebShop and the product now is available for sale.

From the beginning the idea behind the concept was, to offer a shop where the owner and the customer get an easy-to-use solution for a great price. No hassles for building in certificates, having SSL, database and dedicated IP addresses as with other shops. The credit card function is handled by PayPal and absolutely secure. Filling the shop with products is easy to learn and done within minutes.

We have shown the new shop to some international partners in Canada, the USA, Australia and Sweden today and got a lot of compliments for this solution.

Check it out now:
English version: http://www.creacity-group.com/en_shop_usd
German version: http://www.creacity-group.com/de_shop_chf

Until 30th September 2008 we offer a discount of 15 %.

–
Julia Siegert, Creative Director
CreaCity Group
a division of
INTERTRADE ENTERPRISES LTD :: Blegistr.25 :: CH-6340 Baar/Switzerland
Phone: +41 44 5866974 :: Fax: +41 44 2742350
julia@creacity-group.com
http://www.creacity-group.com

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do you know our ‘WebSpecials’?:
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

10 visions for successful e-commerce

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:24:07 +0000

1. A clear vision and goal
They know exactly what they want to achieve. This “laser like focus” helps form an unshakeable conviction and dedication to building a successful online business.

2. Patience and a long-term view
They constantly measure if they are gradually getting there. And they can live with the paradoxes in online retail. For example the Internet changes quickly but organic SEO is a relatively slow process. Every day, every week, every month gives feedback measured in many ways against targets.

3. Taking calculated risks
Taking necessary risk and being prepared to invest is key. Investment is the fuel of a business so choosing where to spend money is critical. Successful websites invest money in activities that generate growth or make them more efficient – ideally both at the same time.

4. A commitment to “Kaizen” or continuous improvement
Winners know this and delight in every little enhancement they make. Whole redesigns are common every 6 – 12 months. The search engines love it. These websites never rest on their laurels because within a few weeks someone could come along and take some of their business. Which is not part of the plan.

5. Successful sites employ good advisors
No one can be expert at everything and having specialist advisors you can trust and follow (and measure results from) is essential. ECommerce does not get simpler as time goes by. Winners pay for the best advice when it comes to strategy, tactics and growing the business.

6. They make decisions quickly and change their mind slowly
In the world of web retailing three months is a long time. Too long for inaction. In general, winners make decisions quickly then measure results and adjust accordingly. All improvements are based on measured results against documented targets – even if the targets are frequently revised.

7. The consumer is King
Changes and improvements should benefit the consumer and in doing so convert more consumers into customers and existing customers into bigger and more frequent spenders. Elegant design might be satisfying but frequent and multiple site enhancements whose effectiveness shows on the bottom line is even more gratifying.

8. Successful sites embrace technology and change
There’s a million teenagers out there who want to steal your business. If they had the funding they’d be doing it now. Keeping abreast of developments online is key in online marketing, news, shifts in online culture and understanding how to read basic web analytics. Being clueless to these things will eventually leave you for dead.

9. Be fair and honest with customers and suppliers
Building a well-loved and respected business is key. The real money is made over the long term through repeat sales and referrals. So by offering great customer service and being fair in all business dealings, long-term relationships can flourish with both customers and suppliers. Customers may take a long time to get but can be lost in an instant through poor customer service. Don’t be afraid to give people their money back. Even smarter sometimes is to offer it very willingly and then chat through other options.

10. There is no such thing as “easy money”
There’s an army of wannabees online wanting to make a million for little or no work and hoping that it is possible to make money for doing next to nothing. Successful retail website owners know that this is a myth and the Internet is like any other business. It is focus, hard work, constant improvement and – if you.re targeting and measuring right – great fun!

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

Technical equipment of our WebShops

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:22:49 +0000

Arbitrary currency attitudes (several currencies parallel possible)

Assortment of category/products for each category freely selectable

Attitude of a product in as many categories as desired by means of simple linking

Control of the products on the start page

Creation of notes (memos) to each customer

Creation of several administrators with different rights

Banner Manager for advertisings

Several tax zones definably

Number of product-categories, category depth and products are without limits

Adjustable use of different layouts for each category and each product

As many options and variants as desired (attributes)

Prices, special offers (sellout function)

Weight for forwarding expenses computation

Automatic production of Thumbnails by the Shop

Free number of usable pictures per product

Sales of digital download products

Innovative price system, customer group prices,

Graduated prices depending on customer groups

Access right system for products and categories (the release depending on individual customer groups)

WYSIWYG editor for product descriptions and category descriptions, etc..

FSK18 restrictions for product/customer groups

Import/Export function for products as csv data

Customer administration, order management, creation of customer possible online

Statistic functions with export function (sales, etc.)

Full integration of our Credit Card Management

Integrated Shipping Modules:
Check and money order, Cash on delivery, Austrian Post, Swiss Post, DHL Austria, German Post, Worldnet, FedEx, Hard Price forwarding expenses, forwarding expenses per piece, self-pickup, tabular forwarding expenses (progressive rate freely selectable), zone based forwarding expenses

Customer groups, B2B/B2C in the same Shop possible, by separate tax attitudes per customer group

Input mode for USTID (TAX ID) of the customers + validating by Shop via gateway

Newsletter system, (registration through double opt in)

Dispatching/purchase of coupons possible

Possibility to start public coupon campaigns (customers getting discounts or privileges by by input of a coupon code)

Evaluation of conversion and orders

Orders are capable for editing (adding/removing products, change of prices)

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

Top 10 ecommerce mistakes

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:20:23 +0000

The novelty of shopping on the Internet has worn off, and today’s customers are sophisticated and discerning. Because the competition is always just a mouse-click away, you need to make sure your site is the very best it can be. Because if you do not do e-commerce right, your visitors will find someone who does. Try not to make any of these common mistakes.

1. Trying to sell the wrong product online.

Not all products will sell successfully on the Internet. Inexpensive products that require a shipping charge are typically not worth selling, particularly if they can be easily purchased in most local stores. Other products, such as specialized high-end clothing, may be more difficult to sell because people prefer to try them on. Research how other e-commerce sites have fared with similar products and what tactics that have used to entice shoppers into ordering online.

2. Lack of marketing.

Just because you have a product and a Web site does not necessarily mean anyone will find it. You need to market your site both online and off. Focus on your company’s competitive advantage, and do your best to convince the customer that you are offering a great deal.

3. A poorly designed Web site.

In their haste to get online quickly and start selling, too many e-commerce novices do not display their wares well. Many would-be Web designers crowd their sites with too much information or cram too many items on a single page. A professional-looking site that features a dozen items with clear photos and descriptions is more effective than one that includes 50 sales items all bunched together. Also, be wary of too much color, Flash animation, or graphics that can slow downloads.

4. Falling behind the times.

If you do not keep your site current, you will lose out to competitors that do. Stay on top of the industry and post new items often. If customers visit your site over the course of several weeks or months and nothing has changed, they may assume the site is no longer maintained, and they may look elsewhere. A successful e-commerce site is one that stays current and appears vibrant.

5. Poor checkout procedures.

Once your customers decide what they want to purchase, it should be easy to go to the shopping cart and pay without having to answer questions or jump hurdles. Make completing the transaction as easy and painless as possible.

6. Not testing your site.

All the links on your site, including product descriptions, photos, the shopping cart, feedback, and others, should be routinely tested to make sure they work.

7. A hard-to-find or nonexistent privacy policy.

Although most people will not actually read your privacy policy, some shoppers will want to know what you will do with the information you collect.

8. Poor order fulfillment.

Word travels fast on the Internet, and just one or two unhappy customers can do irreparable damage to your reputation. Before you launch your site, make sure you are prepared to fill the orders your customers place, and do your best to deliver your product in a timely fashion.

9. Straying from your objective.

If your goal is to have an online childrens furniture business, do it; dont start selling patio furniture or antiques. Too many e-commerce sites lose their primary focus and start spreading themselves too thin. Stick with your area of expertise.

10. Poor customer service.

Perhaps this is the most significant area of all. Web consumers today are very conscious of customer service, and they are apt to go elsewhere if they feel you are not providing them with the level of service they deserve. If you heed only one thing from this list, make it this one. Provide excellent customer service and your satisfied customers will spread the word.

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

WebSite translation – Russian

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:17:12 +0000

Q:
Our corporate website needs to be translated to Russian, because we have some new customers there and we want to take the chances of this new market. Can you do the translation work for us and built the russian pages for us?

A:
Yes, we can.

Please use the inquiry form to get a quotation: http://www.creacity-group.com/en_website_quotation_check.php

See one of our samples for an English/German/Russian website at
http://www.hildebrandindustry.com

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

Your website project – how it works with us

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:15:33 +0000

After your basic ok we will work out design samples for you, which you will get as images by email. Now the prepayment can be sent by Credit Card or bank transfer.

The test pages will be developed after your design choice. You can see them while the construction of your new website is running.

When the production is finished we will transfer the pages to your existing server or our server in Zurich for free. Now the rest payment is due (Credit Card or bank transfer)

If you decide to keep your server please note that the following functions must exist:
Linux System, PHP+CGI (newest releases), FTP access with Admin rights

Our server comes with 10 email accounts which can be configured individually for you. Also webmail (worldwide access to your email accounts) is included as well as Antivirus and Anti-Spam.

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

Upgrade your site and never stop thinking

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:13:56 +0000

Once you’ve got your site working well, spend time regularly thinking of ways to upgrade and improve.

First, troll other sites for ideas – not only rival sites, but also sites that are only distantly related or analogous to what you sell or do. For that matter, occasionally set aside some time to browse through completely different sites to see what ideas you can steal, adapt, or transmogrify.

And everybody, without exception, should drop by Amazon, eBay, and Apple iTunes once in a while to see what bright ideas they’ve come up with lately. You won’t be able to do much with most of their bright ideas, because they depend on elaborate implementation including a level of programming talent you probably can’t justify buying.

But it stimulates the thinking – and if you can think of a cheap sleight-of-hand way of pulling off some clever imitation of a notion that works well on Amazon, let’s say, you might see a big jump in your business.

For your site, think of things you can add to make it more “self-helping” for your customers and visitors. What can you provide? Video clips? Demos? An interview with a talking head or a key figure? Visit a customer site and write up their use of your product? Or videotape same and offer it as streaming video? Spec sheets? White papers? Engineering backgrounders? Customer enthusiasms? Dazzle ‘em!

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

How to write effective text for your website

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:12:37 +0000

The first step is to write down a list of what you want to accomplish with the piece you’re writing. Be specific. Be general. Think of as many things as you can – brainstorm. They can be lists or random ideas. Don’t bother putting them in any order. Don’t bother with spelling or punctuation or grammar. Just put down ideas – as many as you can.

Don’t stop yourself from putting down an idea because you think it might “sound stupid,” or you’re afraid someone else will make fun of it. No one needs to see this list except you. People often throw away good ideas because they think they’re too obvious or too silly or that someone else may have thought of them. Don’t edit yourself yet or you may lose some good ideas.

Once you have as many ideas as you can think of (and remember, you can always add things later as they come into your head), it’s time to make another list.

The reader wants to know “what’s in it for me ” not “what’s in it for you.” You’ve got a product or service to sell, but readers will only buy it if it does something for them. Saving them time and money are the “standard” things that most products or services offer – so you need to be more specific than that.

Start with the ways the “basic needs” manifest themselves – usually, how will your product or service make a person happier. “My house looks old and dull -I wish someone would come in and make it look beautiful for me.” Or, “My last vacation was a nightmare, I want someone to plan the perfect vacation for me,” or, “I want to show my mate how much I love him/her, what should I do?” or “I hate my job, can’t someone help me find one I’d enjoy?”

You might even think of your readers as characters in a play. Imagine their lives and see where you or your product could fit in to make them better – something you can do with yet another list.

There’s a reason why “features and benefits” lists work – because it’s not enough to know about a feature. Readers need to know why each feature is important to them. This may be obvious to you – but it also may be something the reader has never considered. Here’s an example.

Feature: “Our designs are tested for readability.” (If you wrote this, then you should know why this is important, but your reader may not, so you explain.)
Benefit: This means our designs don’t just look good – they actually work for you and get your point across.

Other examples: “Our staff has traveled the globe -that means they know, firsthand, which hotels are good and which aren’t-ensuring you always get the best.” Or, “Our flowers are flown in fresh, daily – this gives you a world of choice and means nothing is ever out of season.” Or, “We don’t design to win awards for ourselves, we design to win business for you.”

OK, now you have three lists: what you want to get out of the project, what the reader wants to get out of the project, and the features and benefits of your product or service. Now what?

Now it’s time to organize. One of the most common writing mistakes people make concerns scattered and unfocused information. Organizing your information can solve both of those problems at once it will help you find the focus that gives your writing a structure.

Most of today’s word processing programs have an outlining feature. Fortunately, this feature is nothing at all like the dry outlining you had to do in school. This is an easy and fun feature that makes organizing your writing as easy as dragging the mouse (and using your brain, we hope).

To make your text into headings you can drag around, highlight all your text, and choose the Heading 1 name from your toolbar. Go into Outlining mode (usually under the View menu). You’ll see little minuses next to each item. The minus means this item has no text “under” it (like a paragraph under a heading). Once you start arranging items and creating a hierarchy (“Here’s is the main topic and that idea there should go under here…”) plus signs will appear next to topics that do have other items under them.

Journalists are taught to put the most important elements of the story at the beginning. There are two reasons for this one is that readers may not read the whole story, so you want them to get the most important information first just in case they stop reading.

The other practical reason is that stories often need to be cut to fit into a given space, and they’re cut from the bottom where the least important items are. There’s plenty of room on the Web, so unlike printed matter, you probably won’t have to cut what you write. But even so, it’s a good idea to put the most important information first. Some Web pundits claim that shorter is better when it comes to writing for the Web. We at eFuse.com don’t necessarily agree with that; we feel more content, depth, and detail is better. But if you do agree with “short is better,” then putting your most important information first makes it easier to cut your text.

By Importance: You’re going to do the same thing put the most important items first then work down to the details. You can do this visually by dragging the items up or down the list (grab them by the minus or plus sign).
By Topic: Once you have them in order of importance, it’s time to start thinking sideways. No, that doesn’t mean you’re allowed to be crabby at this point. It means that you’re going to organize by topic, you’re going to find the main point of a topic and take the other elements and put them under it. You do this by dragging them up or down the list to the right topic, then dragging them to the right so they’re “under” the heading above.
When you’re finished, you should have a few Heading 1’s (your major topics), and each one of them should have several Heading 2’s (sub topics), and each of those may have several Heading 3’s. Don’t feel compelled to fill out all six levels; three is usually enough.

What you might not have realized all this time is that you were creating the structure of your document the skeleton. Now that you have your headings, you just need to fill in the blanks write about each topic under its heading.

Once again, don’t edit yourself. Just write. Don’t dwell on any one point too long; if you can’t figure out what to say, then just move on. You can add to it or change it later. Write as much or as little as you want. The more you write, the more you have to work with – but longer isn’t necessarily better. You want to get your points across and when you’ve accomplished that, stop writing. As you fill in the blanks, you might feel the need to change or rearrange your outline- go right ahead.

Now that you’ve written, it’s finally time to rewrite. This is the part that most people hate, because they think what they’ve written is perfect. It usually isn’t even professionals spend a lot of time rewriting.

Before you start editing, you should save your file under a new name so you don’t lose your first draft as you edit. You might want to refer to something in the first draft and if you don’t save a copy, it will be lost.

It’s a good idea to give a copy of what you’ve written to someone whose writing you admire. They can read it on paper or they can read it electronically and use your word processor’s “revisions” and “annotations” features to make notes, just as they’d do on paper.

When someone gives you their notes (get them in writing), look at them the day you get them. Then put them away and don’t make any changes because you may not agree with most of their notes as you’re still in love with what you wrote. Look at the notes again the next day (or the day after that) and by that time, they may start to have some validity.

Here’s my personal rule about notes from others: If one person tells you something and you disagree, you can ignore it. If two people tell you the same thing, you should seriously consider what they say. If three people tell you the same thing, you’d better either make the change or be passionately sure of your own genius.

Of course, this is predicated on giving your writing to the right people- it’s easy to find three people who don’t know what they’re talking about, in which case, even if they agree, it still doesn’t count!

There are a couple of things that make rewriting easier. The first is to read your copy out loud into a tape recorder.

Many people are under the mistaken impression that they have to write differently than they talk. While this is true in a few technical or academic situations, “perfectly correct” writing often comes across as stilted (which means it’s harder to read, which means fewer people read it, which means it defeats its own purpose, so what’s the point?).

If you want your writing to be easy to read, you’ll want to write conversationally, so the writing “sounds” in the reader’s head as if you’re speaking to them. If your writing sounds stiff, simply rephrase it in your head and say it out loud. Then write it down. If you want, use a tape recorder, then type what you said, just as you said it. Just this one simple step will instantly make a world of improvement in your writing.

An added bonus of reading your text aloud is that you’ll also find errors, sentences that make no sense, ideas that aren’t clear, or thoughts that ramble on.

Whenever possible, cut out anything that’s not essential. You want your piece to make its point as succinctly as possible.

Shorter sentences are better than long ones.
Simple, common words are better than long, unusual ones. You don’t want people to have to pick up a dictionary just to understand you. “Eschew obfuscation” means the same thing as “avoid confusion.” Guess which one is more effective the one most people understand. Big words won’t impress people, they’ll just obfuscate them.

Finally, go back into Outline View and make sure your structure still makes sense. If it doesn’t, drag your subheads up or down the list, and the text below them will move automatically.

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

Starting a small business blog

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:10:28 +0000

If you run a small business you may want to consider starting your own blog to raise awareness about what you do.

There are some basic strategies you can use to start your blog. Consider who your audience is and write on subjects that will make them want to read your blog. Select a blog service that helps you build traffic and sends alerts if a reader comments on one of your posts.

Use an angle that will be compelling to your readers and at the same time be sincere in your views. Provide links on your blog to other sites that are related to your business and read the other blogs to stay informed about events or news that is happening in your field. Eventually other bloggers will start linking to your blog.

Keep your blog up to date so readers don’t become frustrated with outdated content and will keep returning to see what you are saying. Keep tabs on your traffic to your site and don’t be afraid to try other ideas to capture a larger audience.

Search engines like Google or Yahoo are another part of attracting readers to your blog. To generate traffic, use keywords in your headlines and blog postings that are related to your business.

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html

Competing with big companies

creacity — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:08:39 +0000

It can be difficult to compete with the big boys, but there are steps you can take to make your business seem bigger than it really is.

Branding

The best way to appear as large as possible to your customers is to form a well-known brand. Make sure you have a solid logo and get it out there where people will begin to recognize it. Use social media marketing, search engine optimization, and every other form of promotion you can think of to get your brand seen. You want your image to be burned into your customer’s mind. When that happens, chances are they won’t perceive you as a small company.

Design

Make sure your web site is designed in a professional-looking manner. Large companies do not tend to have poorly designed sloppy looking sites. A good design can build credibility and overshadow the appearance of being a small business.

Corporate WebSites:
http://www.activefax-distribution.com
http://www.creacity-group.com
http://www.intertrade.cc

–
Do you already know our ‘WebSpecials’?
http://www.creacity.ch/en_webspecials.html