According to Pymnts.com, PayPal changes the credit card payment model in significant ways. If one compares the impact of interchange regulation in Australia on Visa/MasterCard issuers vs. American Express, it is clear that closed/semi-closed loop payment systems may have an inherent advantage. In partnering with Banks, and not sharing in the topline opportunities, PayPal could seriously affect the balance of the payments eco-system. In that light, rethinking the services offered to banks to assist them with new payment and commerce channels is a critical imperative for the rest of the industry.
Ultimately, innovation is a matter of culture: PayPal is grounded in the advent of eCommerce and Push Payments, both encouraing changes. This not only explains best why PayPal would try where other would shy away, it also exemplifies the challenge for leading providers. It would be reckless for a Visa or MasterCard to try become an Internet-style company. However, they would be well advised to aggressively partner with other new comers such as Obopay, or Bling Nation to capitalize on their "let's do it" outlook on business.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Use SocialShop to Sell Products on Facebook
eMerchants and organizations with Facebook fan pages can now use a new Facebook app, SocialShop from BigCommerce, to display and sell products via Facebook. See the video below for a quick overview.
BigCommerce itself offers the following features on its eCommerce platform:
- user-customizable look-and-feel
- flexible product display
- photo zoom feature
- size/color management
- inventory tracking
- returns management
- coupons, gift certificates
- SEO
- Google Website Optimizer
- promotional banners
BigCommerce itself offers the following features on its eCommerce platform:
- user-customizable look-and-feel
- flexible product display
- photo zoom feature
- size/color management
- inventory tracking
- returns management
- coupons, gift certificates
- SEO
- Google Website Optimizer
- promotional banners
Chosing the Right Web Performance Monitoring Tool
Many of the features on a modern eCommerce site, like image management, Adobe Flash components, video streams, product reviews and "roll-over" details, are provided through Web-based connections to third-party providers, which means that the performance and reliability of your online business is not totally within your control.
To manage this composite Web experience you need to set up not only high-quality Web performance analysis and measurement of your site, but also to gather performance data for all of the add-in components being served up by other vendors. This requires specialized Web tools that analyze your site's performance in a real browser, in the same ways that your customers are going to your site and interacting with your rich Web features.
Be sure to choose a Web performance monitoring solution that tracks the various composite pieces of the pages separately, so you can manage them individually. You can then use that information to tighten your Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with your vendors to ensure that their contributions to your site's sales success are living up to your customers' expectations. If problems are found in the analyses of the site and its composite parts, you will at least have the critical information you need to work on getting improvements from those component providers.
Adapted from RIS News
To manage this composite Web experience you need to set up not only high-quality Web performance analysis and measurement of your site, but also to gather performance data for all of the add-in components being served up by other vendors. This requires specialized Web tools that analyze your site's performance in a real browser, in the same ways that your customers are going to your site and interacting with your rich Web features.
Be sure to choose a Web performance monitoring solution that tracks the various composite pieces of the pages separately, so you can manage them individually. You can then use that information to tighten your Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with your vendors to ensure that their contributions to your site's sales success are living up to your customers' expectations. If problems are found in the analyses of the site and its composite parts, you will at least have the critical information you need to work on getting improvements from those component providers.
Adapted from RIS News
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Ribble Cycles Riding High With Sanderson eCommerce
Just one month after going live with a new eCommerce solution, sales at Ribble Cycles are up 25%, with more overseas sales in the last four weeks than in the previous three months.
Ribble Cycles, a family-owned company based in Preston, Lancashire, in the UK, has specialized in the supply of road and track cycles for over 30 years. The poor performance and lack of integration of their previous Website forced them to evaluate their business objectives and define their online sales and marketing requirements as an integral part of their strategy for the next decade. With a sales target of 25% growth year on year, the company made a strategic decision to invest in a more dynamic eCommerce system.
The new Website had to integrate fully with the Elucid multi-channel software solution which Ribble Cycles uses to run all elements of their business: mail order, warehouse and retail store. An extensive specification was produced for the new site which included expansion of product ranges, visibility across all search engines, functionality to attract and retain overseas customers, sophisticated discounting options and bike-building options to allow enthusiasts to "design the bike of their dreams." The creation of additional payment options with integration to finance companies to instantly approve credit applications completed the list.
After a comprehensive review, the apple didn't fall far from the tree, with Ribble chosing the Elucid eCommerce solution from Sanderson.
Ribble’s recently relaunched Website uses many of the functions of the Elucid eCommerce solution, with an immediate impact on the business. In just four weeks sales are up 25%, with more overseas sales in the last four weeks than in the previous three months.
In addition to the excellent sales figures, the management team and staff have seen significant improvements in managing the business through a single system: visibility across all sales channels, removal of duplicate activities, reduced time spent updating the Website and all key information held in one location.
The new Website has enabled Ribble to introduce new product ranges across three defined market segments. The site also contains dedicated pages to support magazine advertising, further integrating their marketing activities and helping to expand their customer base.
Jim Dove, General Manager at Ribble Cycles, comments: “Future discussions with Sanderson will focus on maximising the Elucid marketing functions, developing an affiliate marketing programme and increasing our online presence through SEO and online advertising programmes.”
Ian Newcombe, Managing Director of Sanderson Multi-Channel Solutions concludes: “We are delighted that the Elucid eCommerce solution is having such a positive and tangible impact on Ribble’s business performance. Both companies worked hard to ensure the specification would meet all of the project objectives and credit should be given to both the Sanderson and Ribble project teams.”
Ribble Cycles, a family-owned company based in Preston, Lancashire, in the UK, has specialized in the supply of road and track cycles for over 30 years. The poor performance and lack of integration of their previous Website forced them to evaluate their business objectives and define their online sales and marketing requirements as an integral part of their strategy for the next decade. With a sales target of 25% growth year on year, the company made a strategic decision to invest in a more dynamic eCommerce system.
The new Website had to integrate fully with the Elucid multi-channel software solution which Ribble Cycles uses to run all elements of their business: mail order, warehouse and retail store. An extensive specification was produced for the new site which included expansion of product ranges, visibility across all search engines, functionality to attract and retain overseas customers, sophisticated discounting options and bike-building options to allow enthusiasts to "design the bike of their dreams." The creation of additional payment options with integration to finance companies to instantly approve credit applications completed the list.
After a comprehensive review, the apple didn't fall far from the tree, with Ribble chosing the Elucid eCommerce solution from Sanderson.
Ribble’s recently relaunched Website uses many of the functions of the Elucid eCommerce solution, with an immediate impact on the business. In just four weeks sales are up 25%, with more overseas sales in the last four weeks than in the previous three months.
In addition to the excellent sales figures, the management team and staff have seen significant improvements in managing the business through a single system: visibility across all sales channels, removal of duplicate activities, reduced time spent updating the Website and all key information held in one location.
The new Website has enabled Ribble to introduce new product ranges across three defined market segments. The site also contains dedicated pages to support magazine advertising, further integrating their marketing activities and helping to expand their customer base.
Jim Dove, General Manager at Ribble Cycles, comments: “Future discussions with Sanderson will focus on maximising the Elucid marketing functions, developing an affiliate marketing programme and increasing our online presence through SEO and online advertising programmes.”
Ian Newcombe, Managing Director of Sanderson Multi-Channel Solutions concludes: “We are delighted that the Elucid eCommerce solution is having such a positive and tangible impact on Ribble’s business performance. Both companies worked hard to ensure the specification would meet all of the project objectives and credit should be given to both the Sanderson and Ribble project teams.”
Thursday, March 25, 2010
iCongo Offers M-Commerce Module
iCongo Inc., a Montreal-based provider of eCommerce, multichannel order management and marketing systems, announced today the release of M-Commerce as part of its eCommerce Platform. iCongo customers can immediately take advantage of their existing platform to explore the mobile channel.
“Our customers count on us to help grow their businesses through iCongo’s growing suite of solutions, services and consultative approach to maximizing online revenue," says Steven Kramer, President for iCongo. "M-Commerce is a growth channel and we want our customers to tap into the benefits early. Consumers expect to buy any product from anywhere and have it fulfilled from any store location, something mobile marketing and a mobile storefront powered by iCongo’s Cross-Channel systems provides. It brings our 'endless aisle' literally to the palms of the consumer.”
Retailers looking to launch mobile storefronts can protect their existing investment using iCongo’s mobile offering, which leverages an existing CMS (Content Management System) and marketing tools to push content to a mobile-optimized storefront. In addition, retailers can maintain their PCI compliance across all channels through iCongo’s PCI-compliant multi-channel eCommerce Platform.
Forrester Research named iCongo a “Strong Performer” in the January 2009 report “The Forrester Wave™: B2C E-Commerce Platforms, Q1 2009.” iCongo’s clients include many world-renowned retailers and brands.
“Our customers count on us to help grow their businesses through iCongo’s growing suite of solutions, services and consultative approach to maximizing online revenue," says Steven Kramer, President for iCongo. "M-Commerce is a growth channel and we want our customers to tap into the benefits early. Consumers expect to buy any product from anywhere and have it fulfilled from any store location, something mobile marketing and a mobile storefront powered by iCongo’s Cross-Channel systems provides. It brings our 'endless aisle' literally to the palms of the consumer.”
Retailers looking to launch mobile storefronts can protect their existing investment using iCongo’s mobile offering, which leverages an existing CMS (Content Management System) and marketing tools to push content to a mobile-optimized storefront. In addition, retailers can maintain their PCI compliance across all channels through iCongo’s PCI-compliant multi-channel eCommerce Platform.
Forrester Research named iCongo a “Strong Performer” in the January 2009 report “The Forrester Wave™: B2C E-Commerce Platforms, Q1 2009.” iCongo’s clients include many world-renowned retailers and brands.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Alice.com Expands CPG Roster
Internet Retailer reports: Alice.com Inc., which operates as an e-marketplace for consumer packaged goods like laundry detergent and toothpaste, is adding several clients per week to its community of more than 150 manufacturers who use Alice.com to sell directly to consumers, says CEO and co-founder Brian Wiegand.
Alice.com, which launched in January, currently carries about 10,000 items and expects to offer 25,000 to 30,000 SKUs by the end of this year, Wiegand says. "We already have something in almost every consumer packaged goods category," he says.
Its clients range from industry giants Procter & Gamble and General Mills Inc. to relatively small niche players like Citra Solv LLC, a manufacturer of cleaning products made with citric fruit extracts, and Vaska, a manufacturer of organic body lotions and shampoos.
Alice.com has also developed for its clients more than 30 branded retail Websites that link to Alice.com to process online sales, and it expects there will be about 100 such retail sites for client manufacturers by the end of the year. Alice hosts and maintains the sites for no charge, though it may charge a fee if a client requests special design work, Wiegand says.
Alice does not buy inventory from its client manufacturers, but covers all the costs of warehousing and fulfilling orders. It also provides free shipping on all orders. It earns its revenue by charging clients 35% of the price charged to consumers, plus other fees it earns for marketing programs. For example, Alice charges manufacturers $1 or $2 for each coupon and free sample included in an order.
Wiegand and Alice.com co-founder and president Mark McGuire also co-founded the former shopping search engine Jellyfish.com, which they sold to Microsoft Corp. in 2007. Microsoft now uses the Jellyfish platform as the basis for its Bing search engine cashback program.
Alice.com, which launched in January, currently carries about 10,000 items and expects to offer 25,000 to 30,000 SKUs by the end of this year, Wiegand says. "We already have something in almost every consumer packaged goods category," he says.
Its clients range from industry giants Procter & Gamble and General Mills Inc. to relatively small niche players like Citra Solv LLC, a manufacturer of cleaning products made with citric fruit extracts, and Vaska, a manufacturer of organic body lotions and shampoos.
Alice.com has also developed for its clients more than 30 branded retail Websites that link to Alice.com to process online sales, and it expects there will be about 100 such retail sites for client manufacturers by the end of the year. Alice hosts and maintains the sites for no charge, though it may charge a fee if a client requests special design work, Wiegand says.
Alice does not buy inventory from its client manufacturers, but covers all the costs of warehousing and fulfilling orders. It also provides free shipping on all orders. It earns its revenue by charging clients 35% of the price charged to consumers, plus other fees it earns for marketing programs. For example, Alice charges manufacturers $1 or $2 for each coupon and free sample included in an order.
Wiegand and Alice.com co-founder and president Mark McGuire also co-founded the former shopping search engine Jellyfish.com, which they sold to Microsoft Corp. in 2007. Microsoft now uses the Jellyfish platform as the basis for its Bing search engine cashback program.
IBM Introduces Smart Call Center Routing Engine
As reported by physorg.com, IBM announced a new service today which uses advanced analytics to match a caller with the optimal customer service representative (CSR) in real-time.
IBM has collaborated with specialty insurance provider Assurant Solutions, part of Assurant, Inc., to develop the Real-Time Analytics Matching Platform (RAMP). The use of RAMP has enabled Assurant Solutions call centers to increase customer retention, increase sales yields and decrease agent attrition.
Most contact centers use a skills-based system when routing customer calls, which only takes into consideration the agent’s product focus and availability. For decades this model has proven frustrating to both customers and contact center agents as the assigned representative may not be the optimal candidate to address the customer’s request.
Using techniques invented and patented by Assurant, RAMP combines data about the individual customer with each contact center agent’s specific skills, expertise and past performance to optimize the routing of calls. IBM Global Business Services consultants designed a “matching-engine” which leverages this combination of customer insight, agent profiles and real-time analytics to provide “individual-level” decisioning and assignment of calls not available in most contact centers' applications.
RAMP is activated the moment a customer contacts the call center. Within seconds the platform uses data generated from previous call center interactions to identify acceptable wait times for individual customers. RAMP then factors in agent performance and qualifications to decide which agent would serve that customer best. At the same time, RAMP determines when the optimal agent will become available using prediction algorithms based on the length of the current call and historical call handle times. The analytics-based decision engine then assigns the caller to the optimal agent and routes the call in real-time to that agent. The engine tracks each call assignment and makes necessary adjustments if an agent's call ends before or after its predicted time.
RAMP is available today through IBM Global Business Services’ Business Analytics and Optimization (BAO) service line. The platform leverages IBM’s deep expertise in analytics and customer insight technologies and joins a growing portfolio of BAO assets focused on helping clients better make better decisions.
The system provides for flexible configuration options and is optimized to run on IBM Software and Hardware platforms. Assurant is deploying RAMP on an IBM POWER6-based system leveraging IBM DB2 and IBM WebSphere software technology to manage their information. IBM is also making RAMP available for other customer contact-centric industries, including: Financial Services, Telecommunications and Cable Television.
IBM has collaborated with specialty insurance provider Assurant Solutions, part of Assurant, Inc., to develop the Real-Time Analytics Matching Platform (RAMP). The use of RAMP has enabled Assurant Solutions call centers to increase customer retention, increase sales yields and decrease agent attrition.
Most contact centers use a skills-based system when routing customer calls, which only takes into consideration the agent’s product focus and availability. For decades this model has proven frustrating to both customers and contact center agents as the assigned representative may not be the optimal candidate to address the customer’s request.
Using techniques invented and patented by Assurant, RAMP combines data about the individual customer with each contact center agent’s specific skills, expertise and past performance to optimize the routing of calls. IBM Global Business Services consultants designed a “matching-engine” which leverages this combination of customer insight, agent profiles and real-time analytics to provide “individual-level” decisioning and assignment of calls not available in most contact centers' applications.
RAMP is activated the moment a customer contacts the call center. Within seconds the platform uses data generated from previous call center interactions to identify acceptable wait times for individual customers. RAMP then factors in agent performance and qualifications to decide which agent would serve that customer best. At the same time, RAMP determines when the optimal agent will become available using prediction algorithms based on the length of the current call and historical call handle times. The analytics-based decision engine then assigns the caller to the optimal agent and routes the call in real-time to that agent. The engine tracks each call assignment and makes necessary adjustments if an agent's call ends before or after its predicted time.
RAMP is available today through IBM Global Business Services’ Business Analytics and Optimization (BAO) service line. The platform leverages IBM’s deep expertise in analytics and customer insight technologies and joins a growing portfolio of BAO assets focused on helping clients better make better decisions.
The system provides for flexible configuration options and is optimized to run on IBM Software and Hardware platforms. Assurant is deploying RAMP on an IBM POWER6-based system leveraging IBM DB2 and IBM WebSphere software technology to manage their information. IBM is also making RAMP available for other customer contact-centric industries, including: Financial Services, Telecommunications and Cable Television.
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