Tips

Fashion eCommerce is a large and continuously growing market.  It is easily accessible for anyone with Internet capabilities.   This saves customers time and allows them to find things worldwide that they would not normally have access to.  Anyone can sell their fashion retail products online once they have an established website.  For more details on how to start a fashion website, please refer to our previous fashion blog post, “What to Know Before Starting Your Own Fashion Website”

Once you have a fashion website established, it is time for you to start thinking about how to market your products online and bring customers to your site to purchase those products.  Not only do you want to have your products listed, but you also need to find a way to set your products apart from similar products on other websites, for we all know there are many brands and businesses in the fashion industry.

What Features Help Sell Products on a Fashion Website?

Along with listing your products in a catalog on your fashion apparel website, it is important to find ways to further help your customer find what they are looking for, or help them find something similar.  If a customer can’t find what they are looking for within thirty seconds, they will leave your fashion website and look elsewhere.  We need to think about ways to prevent them from leaving.  Some eCommerce modules to consider include:

Live Chat which allows an eCommerce customer to click on a button on your website, which will alert your customer support, the customer can then ask the questions they may need to take the final step in purchasing a product. The customer support, in return, can answer questions as quickly as they are received.  If clothing is an item that will be sold on the fashion eCommerce website, it is important to know that the #1 reason why people stop short of purchasing is concern about proper fit.  If there is a customer service representative available to chat with the customer while they are looking at the product, they will have the ability to explain how it fits best and some things about the fit that they want to consider when buying.  Reassuring the customer will help to encourage the sale.

Ratings and Reviews offer an opportunity for new customers to see what previous customers thought about the product that they may be considering purchasing.  On each product, there will be a review below the description, which will show what the past customer’s opinion of that product.  This could help with a sale, especially when they are indecisive about making the purchase.  It will increase their confidence in the product and give them the extra push to follow through.  For example, if your customer wants to purchase a handbag online, they may want to be assured that the product is durable and nicely made.  If there was a previous customer who also bought that handbag and wrote a review, they would be able to see that the customer was very happy with their purchase and pleased with the quality.  This may be the extra boost that your new customer would need to make the purchase.

As well as listing your products on your own fashion eCommerce site, you also want your products to be searchable on other websites.  Shopping Data Feeds work on a “pay-per-click” basis, like Google AdWords.  Using Shopping Data Feeds, you pay for specific words that relate to your products or business based on your choosing the words and how much you want to pay for them per click.  You are only liable to pay for it if a customer clicks on it to go to your website.

Another option is using free shopping feeds like Google Shopping, which lists your product with similar products for your customers compare prices and products side by side.  This tool is free and beneficial for all products.  In addition, Web Shop Manager (WSM) automatically updates your product listings nightly.

Cross-Sell/ Upsell is a great tool to use when you want to show the customer a similar product to the one they are viewing.  For instance, if the customer is viewing a summer dress, you may want to recommend sandals that would work well with the dress, or you could suggest a different type of summer dress.  Cross-selling offers an opportunity to sell more than the one item that the customer was initially considering purchasing, which of course leads to increased eCommerce sales.

How easy is it to Manage an Online Shopping Website?

Deciding to start an online fashion website is a huge decision.  You are probably right where I once was, trying to figure out how you were going to juggle all the business, and creative tasks.  Learning to manage an eCommerce website can seem overwhelming.  Well, it could be overwhelming unless you use WSM as your fashion eCommerce Content Management System (eCommerce CMS).  I know you will be as amazed as I am at how quickly you can add content to your photo gallery, eCommerce fashion blog, and add events to the fashion calendar. 

When you are ready to start thinking about an eCommerce solution that includes fashion website design with a hosted shopping cart remember WSM.  Contact WSM today to schedule your free live demonstration to see for yourself how easy the WSM, our eCommerce CMS is to use. 

Brooke Nevins

Bcat Threads

Interested in a fashion (or fashion planning) website?

There are many reasons why someone may be interested in starting a fashion website, and all reasons are relevant.  Since the Internet is the fastest way to share information, you may be someone who is interested in following trends, keeping up with celebrity fashion, or looking for new ideas for your own wardrobe.  You may be a fashion designer or stylist yourself and need a website to easily show your design portfolio to employers, photographers, models, or potential clients. Or, you may already be established in the fashion industry and need an online presence or website.  Perhaps you own a retail fashion boutique and you would like to develop a way for your customers to be able to take a second look at what they saw featured in your store.  They may look online, find a piece they like, and then come to the store to try it on.  In any situation, having a fashion website is crucial to the development of your brand, and reaching a global audience.

How do I start my own fashion website (fashion website development)?

Before you begin your fashion website development, you should consider drafting a business plan that includes goals for the website.  Once you have established goals, you want to think about what content or site features that will be necessary to differentiate your brand.  In the fashion industry, some of the most important features to consider are a photo gallery, a fashion blog, event calendar, and quite possibly a Shopping Cart website to sell retail fashion items.  The photo gallery could be used to share photos of fashion events that you attended, highlights of seasons’ trends, photo shoots, and wardrobe ideas. 

Utilize your fashion blog to create an online journal of your experiences in the fashion world, to provide insights into your fashion business, show examples of mixing and matching looks, or as a roundup of area fashion events.

An event calendar can pinpoint fashion industry special events happening in your area, around the world, on television, or events where you will be in attendance.  You can list fashion shows, fashion design contests, the upcoming “Project Runway” episode, or new fashion related movies coming out in the theaters. 

How do I design my fashion website (fashion website design)?

Once you have a clear understanding of the goals of the website, and what features are essential to reach those goals, you can begin to think about website design.  Web design is as important as the content you fill the site pages with.  Website design is the first thing that your customers will notice and may be the determining factor in capturing their attention.  Keep in mind that too much clutter (too much text, too many pictures, etc) on your home page will drive a person away from your web site.  Develop a site that is simple, clean, and interesting to look at.  At the same time you will need a website that uniquely represents your brands vision and aesthetic.

If you don’t have a web design background, it is wise to consult an outside source to help you in developing your fashion website.  While most people in the fashion industry have a great eye, understanding, and appreciation for art, this does not mean that they have the ability to develop a tasteful fashion website.  There are people who design websites for a living and know what works and what doesn’t.  All web designers should have worked with both successful and failed websites and will be able to provide feedback about what appeals to the general population based on their previous experience.  So the saying goes “do what you do best, outsource the rest”. 

One of the best ways to find a qualified web design company is doing research on well established website design and development solutions companies who have received positive reviews from clients.  Web Design Solutions which developed Web Shop Manager™ (WSM) has a team of very creative web designers with a vast portfolio of work, who have designed a number of successful fashion websites.  With over 10 years of web design experience, and great reviews from clients, Web Design Solutions and WSM are the perfect solution for your fashion industry website. 

How can I create a successful fashion website (fashion website marketing)?

Once your fashion website is up and running, the most important thing to do is keep it fresh and updated.  Customers will become discouraged when they visit a website and find the same product, and content.  Customers may stop frequenting your website altogether.  Even if you are using your website as a design portfolio, but haven’t created any new work, you may want to change other elements.  This is why a blog is crucial for a fashion website - when you have a fashion blog on your site, you not only have the opportunity to talk about your own work, but you can also talk about related industries or topics that your audience may be interested in.  New blog posts will keep your audience coming back and exploring your website.  Another benefit of having an integrated blog is that you can create an online experience for your audience.  You can cultivate a social network of people who have similar passions, tastes, and styles to you. 

A fashion website will only be as successful as the tools it has to work with.  Make sure you are utilizing the very best web design, development, and web hosting company to handle your dreams and aspirations.  WSM our Content Management System (eCommerce CMS), are the ideal choice for fashion websites.  Eliminate the barriers that are hindering your success, and call WSM today to speak with an industry expert about your fashion website.

Brooke Nevins
Bcat Threads

Deciding that you want to sell your products or services online is exciting. Trying to figure out what you need to make it happen can be exhausting. Finding the right eCommerce solutions company and Content Management System (eCommerce CMS) for developing your site can be frustrating and expensive. I experienced all of these feelings and more when assigned the task to create an eCommerce website for my employer.

If you sell a product or service developing an eCommerce site may be critical to the continued success of your business. Businesses today can no longer afford to think locally. Instead, businesses must think globally, and an eCommerce site expands your business into the global marketplace like no brick and mortar business ever could.

1. Your eCommerce solution must be easy to use for the company and the customer. Find a program that will create a storefront, shopping cart and will process credit card payments with little or no web development on your part. It is always important to select a firm that offers a complete one-stop eCommerce solution. This will ensure that everything can be integrated properly without compatibility problems or relying on several different services or companies to work together.
2. eCommerce Solution Providers must offer exceptional customer service. It is important that you can depend on the company to be there when you need them most, when you have a question or a problem. Find a company with a great track record for reliability.
3. Includes functions for inventory and accounting. You need this to be fluid. Do not make more work for yourself ensure that the program includes features to maintain inventory and offers the ability to export data for use with external accounting programs.
4. Ensures the requirements for SSL, Merchant Accounts and your Payment Gateway are met (critical elements to a successful site). There are several technical and critical components you need to have for a functioning eCommerce site. I recommend finding a company that includes setting up and assisting you with the steps for accepting your payments for goods or services rendered online.
5. Supports and establishes your overall design and menu structure of your site. A company that includes a web design team will take your vision and make it a reality. Also, ensure they take the web design and establish the template for creating your entire site. You should also have the ability to change or add to your menus without creating or editing programming code.
6. Helps you reach your eCommerce goals within your budget and have options for monthly hosting fees. You need options and the options should include different levels for hosting your eCommerce site. These levels should be in line with the size of your business, but would not restrict your growth. Find an eCommerce provider that will allow you to start out small or large.
7. Offers tools to analyze your site activity, i.e. #number of visitors, searched phrases, and # of orders. You will need to review your eCommerce site for enhancements or changes based on visitor activity. There are many tools available for monitoring your visitors. Make it easier on yourself and find a company that includes this data.
8. Includes customizing functions to use for different views based upon the type of customer, i.e. business-to-business, business-to-consumer, or business-to-employee. If you plan to sell your products or services to different groups of people with special prices for each; then you will need to ensure that the feature to set up this type of structure is included in your site development program.
9. Includes features for developing customer friendly information, i.e. image gallery, FAQ, store locator, and news/blog. These eCommerce features engage your customer so they come back more often. They should be easy for you to set up and maintain.
10. Find an eCommerce company that has a track record of short down-time (times when your site is unavailable due to technical problems or not enough band width.) Just remember that bigger and cheaper is not always better. Find the company that has the hardware and structure to support their customers and have plans for growth as their client base increases.

After researching eCommerce solutions providers, get fresh, found Web Design Solutions and their program Web Shop Manager! Not only did their program have all the eCommerce features we needed to easily create our site, but they also have a team with exceptional customer service. Web Design Solutions guided us through every phase of web development and ensured we were ready for our launch. Our site and the tools available to create all the features exceeded our original expectations. Without Web Design Solutions and Web Shop Manager, our site may not have been as dynamic, easy to maintain, and user-friendly. They provided web design, hosting, eCommerce solutions, and Content Management System to let us control as much of the website as we desired whether it's managing our products, the checkout process, or informational pages.

We found that eCommerce website development is quite simple when using the right tools. You can see the results for yourself. Check us out at www.getfresh.net, and then visit Web Design Solutions at www.webdesignsolutions.com to get started on your site today!

Paulette Palladino, get fresh