Companies who get serious about data-driven retention efforts have a significant competitive advantage over those who don’t. A new study by RJ Metrics, a site analytics software vendor, underscores the value of tracking customer metrics to determine which customers are most likely to become big spenders-- but that value only materializes when e-commerce retailers make the effort to market to these customers at the right time, using the right methods. The average customer lifetime value over … [Read more...]

Positioning for Real, Sustainable Growth As you likely know at this point in your browsing of Appath, or as one of many satisfied customers, Appath offers tools to effectively automate and streamline your ecommerce order processing operations across multiple channels. The key to this successful automation is Appath's bridging of communication between your selling channel systems, shopping carts and outlets. In utilization of such tools, one can sit back and expect the cash to flow in from … [Read more...]

Poor shipping policies are one of the major causes for conversion failure. The cost for shipping is not the only reason shoppers abandon their carts before checking out. Potential customers can also be turned off by the shipping carrier provided, slow packing and shipping times, no access to tracking and poorly packed goods. Here is how you can build trust in your shipping policies and convert more shoppers into buyers: Give Customers a Choice of Carriers For a variety of reasons, many … [Read more...]

What does it take to ship a package? It is often a lot more than a label, and there are the many technicalities that you, as a retailer, may overlook. For example, if you are a multichannel ecommerce retailer who sells on such popular sites as eBay, Amazon, Newegg, Bigcommerce, and others, you may handle your shipping or you may drop ship. Either way, you have to accept that your shipping process is not "hands free" on your end. There is the need to verify the shipping address, obtain the … [Read more...]

Using proprietary software from your shipping vendors is unlikely to save you money because they won't extend any discounts to you for using their labels, software, and so on. The only way to cut costs with vendors is to negotiate better rates, and this is something few will do right from the start. Instead, they want you to establish a longer term relationship with them, do a specific amount of business, and only then will they decide if they'll give you any sort of discount or special … [Read more...]