Electronic Commerce Tips

Electronic Commerce for the Small Business on the Internet:

Willard Van De Bogart owner/operator of the Portal Market - 415 258-7356

Jagat Rainbow Chief Financial Officer of the Portal Market - 415 456-4221

Former Managing Director for E-Commerce in SE Asia with Sakon Singapore

Today the Portal Market has over 550 products from over 20 countries, and enjoys sales once a day from customers all over the world. As a small business on the internet there are several factors which are making the Portal Market successful.

1. The market niche was established to be the human transformation movement , the human potential movement or the self help movement.
2. Exclusive distribution of products on the web site.
3. Having the url of the web site advertised on those sites where exclusive representation takes place.
4. Personal response is made with each inquiry with e-mail and a personal letter for each product sold.
5. Becoming part of a larger general store.
6. Placing the Portal Market within a larger web site i.e. Earth Portals which offers consciousness related ideas.
7. Becoming part of cross marketing projects.
8. Consistency in design and order fullfillment.
9. Philosophy and mission statement clearly stated.
10. Logos
11. Awards displayed
12. Providing business aids.

Elaboration of the above points

1. The key factor in selecting products for the Portal Market is they have to satisfy the market niche area. By establishing this niche you can develop a product lines that will always support the underlying philosophy of the market place. By establishing a category for products the customers are more likely to view the other products and thus increase the chances for sales.
2. Exclusive distribution can be beneficial since no one else can sell the products on the internet. This approach definitly puts the buyer in your market place and assures sales.
3. Being linked from other web sites that are in different countries enables people from say, Spain, as in the case with the muscian Michel Huygen, to visit the USA and see what is available there on that countries web site. Many orders are now being generated from the Spain, and other countries due to this technique.
4. Every time there is an e-mail inquiry a respone is sent out immediately. This one factor gives the customer the confidence that someone is interested in their needs and helps very much in closing a sale.
5. There are other web sites that already have existing stores in the real world and also have put their stores on the internet. Banner exchanging is very helpful here. By putting the other stores banner on your web site any orders made at the other store is credited to your personal account. Mother Natures General Store is a good example of this tecchnique.
6. In designing a web site often times the sale of products will be a separate section on the web site, but the majority of the web site is information driven. If the information out weighs the intent to sell the linking to other like minded sites increases. Many web sites do not like to advertise other peoples products, but will definitely link to information driven sites.
7. Cross marketing is very effective in generating sales. The web daily Calendar was a good example. By having your web site featured in a calendar, radio show, magazine, etc you create attention from other media outlets. Earth Portals is featured on July 23rd 1997 in the 1997 Web Daily Calendar.
8. Design. How easy is it to find the products. The Portal Market has a quick index so a person can see all the products in a list. Each page that advertises a product has the same order fullfillment design. The strategy gives a look and feel that is familiar much like a popular store such as Banana Republic or LL Bean.
9. Philosophy: What does your business believe in? Letting customers know why you are in business and what your mission is can be very important in establishing a connection to the way people think. Unlike a real store where you can touch and smell items the web has to resort to color , logos, and descriptions.
10. Logos: What best symbolizes your market? Names alone are not enough. Its important to create a signature image that can be easily identified and used throughout the web site. The spiral is used for the Portal Market.
11. Awards: There are many places to receive recognition for your web site on the internet. However, to be associated with a small business award will allow other small businesses to locate you and use your design strategies as they see fit.
12. Offering business aids is another technique to make a small business web site useful and helpful. Make marketing and advertising newsletters available for other people. Offer money exchange rate web sites and also show how there are web sites that your products support. The Dolphin Necklace is an example of this technique.

There are no set rules on how to do business on the internet. It is a brand new approach to selling. Small businesses have the distinct advantage of using the same technology as the larger businesses. Customer satisfaction, and word of mouth are still important and internet linking is essential. Finding more and more unique and creative ways to let people know you are there will always increase sales.

Related links

• The Internet Marketing Center