The Ecommerce Blog

Based on feedback from BigCommerce online retailers, we know how important product photos are in selling. But did you know there’s a huge difference between posting an average product photos versus one that you’ve taken the time to carefully craft yourself? In this article I want to explain how investing in high quality photography for your products will put you far, far ahead of your competitors and generate tens of thousands of dollars more in sales for your e-commerce business.

It really doesn’t matter what you sell online – the photos you put on your product pages determine (along with price, shipping cost, availability, etc) your conversion rate. That is, the number of people who buy something from you relative to the total number of people who visit your online store.

Think about this. If you sell the latest, most stylish Italian leather shoes online but each product only has one lame photo (such as the photo on the left), how likely is someone to buy from you right then and there? On the other hand assume you’ve taken the time to professionally photograph the same leather shoes from 5 different angles using a realistic light source and professional studio. You also upload the large version of each photo so shoppers can zoom right in close to see the exceptional quality of these Italian shoes.

How likely is someone to buy from you now?

Yes, having all of your products professionally photographed comes at a cost, but think about the benefits:

• You own the photos for life and can add your watermark to of each photo so they can never be stolen or repurposed by your competitors.
• More people will shop with you because they appreciate the high quality photos you provide for the products you sell, while your competitors continue to post tiny, low quality photos for the exact same products.
• You pay for the photography once but can use it forever. Depending on your margins you’ll make the cost of the photography back after your first few orders of each product.
• You can even make back the cost of the photography by offering to lease copies of your photos to competitors for display in their online store.

Amazon is know for its excellent, unbiased product reviews and if you’re competing primarily on price then using professionally taken photographs of your products can give you the edge you need to increase your prices and/or attract more shoppers who appreciate the extra effort (and cost) you’ve put in to improve their buying experience.

P.S. The ability to upload an unlimited number of product photos at once, SuperZoom photo zoom and support for an unlimited number of photos per product are all included in the BigCommerce 5.5 software update which is being rolled out to all new stores next week and as an optional free, automatic upgrade for all current BigCommerce online retailers shortly after that.

Update: It became impossible to reply to all of the comments on this post, so we’ve switched back from the Disqus commenting system to Wordpress’s default commenting system. We read every single comment posted here and appreciate the feedback. To make things easier, we’ve just launched our new community center where you can post questions, ideas, comments and more. BigCommerce team members as well as clients are available to assist in answering your questions. Click here to visit our new community center.

Adding multiple photos at once for a product

Paging, filter and bulk update options for product variations

SuperZoom photo zooming on product photos

Inline popup window with carousel for product photos

As we wrap up our internal testing on BigCommerce 5.5 we’ll be pushing the software live to all stores in the coming week or two. Most of the features in the upcoming release were added based directly on your feedback and that from other BigCommerce retailers, so we’re hoping you’re looking as forward to the release as we are.

This is one of the biggest product releases we’ve ever worked on, and includes:

• Google Website Optimizer Integration – Easily test different versions of on-page elements such as the “Add to Cart” button, home page promotional banner, product images, descriptions and more to see which results in more orders.
  
• Image Thumbnails, Zoom and Custom Sizes – We know from your feedback that images are the most important part of your online store, so we’ve added the ability to display thumbnails on the product page. There’s also image zoom on rollover and custom (configurable) image sizes for different sections of your online store.
• YouTube Search and Embed – Search for videos on YouTube right from your “Add a Product” page and have them display in a beautiful video player on your product pages. Easily find (or upload) video reviews for products you sell, add them to your product page and watch your order rate increase.
• QuickBooks and StoneEdge Two Way Sync – Easily sync your orders, products, customers and more to/from Intuit QuickBooks or StoneEdge Order Manager with just a few clicks.
• Change the Store’s Header Graphic – You can make changes to the existing header graphic in your store’s design or even download a plain version of the header graphic to modify as required.
• Auto-Generated HTML and XML Sitemaps – The HTML sitemap will allow the search engines to crawl and index all pages in your online store, while the XML sitemap can be submitted using Google Webmaster Tools to get more details on crawling/indexing problems which you can then correct to improve how your online store ranks in the search engines.
• Search Products, Categories, Brands, News and Web Pages – Your customers will be able to search more than just products in your store. They can search categories and brands by name and even content in news items and web pages you’ve created. Search results are separated into easily-accessible tabs and are fully configurable.
• Accept and Process Payments When Taking a Phone Order – You’ll be able to take payment then-and-there when adding a phone order through your store’s control panel. No more processing payments manually after you take the order.
• More Varied Store Designs – We’ve crafted over 15 additional store designs for a wide range of industries, bringing the total of over 60 store designs available to all BigCommerce store owners absolutely free.
  
• Embed Videos Into Product Descriptions – Just paste in a link from YouTube, Vimeo, Metacafe or Megavideo and we’ll automatically create the HTML code and add the video to your product’s description.
• Photo Gallery – All uploaded images are accessible from the new photo gallery, so if you want to use the same photos for multiple products you only have to upload them once. You can even use photos that have already been uploaded to other websites.
• An AddThis Button on Product Pages – Take advantage of product recommendations with the AddThis button. In one click shoppers can easily share a link to a product in your store with their friends via email, Twitter, FaceBook and dozens of other social media services.
• Abandoned Order Report – See a list of all incomplete orders along with shopper details so you can follow up and see why they didn’t complete their order. You can choose how many days these orders remain in your store’s control panel before they’re removed.
• Sales Tax Report - Easily create a sales tax report filtered by date range which you can export into Microsoft Excel for further processing or to send directly to your accountant.
• Various Improvements – Along with new features we’ve also improved existing functionality. A complete list of improvements will be included with the change log upon release.

As we get closer to the release we’re continually posting useful information and sneak peek screenshots of new features on Twitter, so make sure you follow us and don’t miss out!

On Wednesday night from 5pm-7pm we held the first of many BigCommerce partner events in Austin at Union Park. Judging by the attendance and interest in the BigCommerce platform, as well as the non-stop conversation and questions, I’d say the event was a definite success!

Around 75 web designers and business owners attended the meetup, curious to learn more about BigCommerce and mingle with our Austin team. Chris did an excellent job running the BigCommerce demo/Q&A stand and was overwhelmed with questions, interest and lots of “ooooohhs” and “ahhhhhhs” as he showed what BigCommerce can do – specifically how easy it is for web designers to roll out completely customized and fully functional stores for their clients quickly.

Lee, Dave, Scott, Travis, Amanda, Ryan, Luke, Brian and Caroline entertained guests and answered questions about BigCommerce (and our new partner program) while everyone enjoyed complimentary food and drink. I’ve included some pictures below that were taken on the night. A big thank you to everyone who attended, and we look forward to working with you through the BigCommerce partner program to grow your business!

Yep, you sell stuff online. Cool. But who do you sell to? “Everyone who needs my products” is the wrong answer. Who really needs your products? Is it women aged 18-34 with a household income over $50,000 in a C-Level executive position or is it college students aged 17-22 with a personal income under $10,000? If you don’t know then I’ll show you how to figure it out in this post.

I’m a big fan of competitive analysis – that is, finding and then investigating your competitors like you’re a spy. Learning as much as you can about their business. And customers. And profit margins. And marketing strategies. And customer acquisition cost. And retention rate. If you’re serious about selling online then you need to identify your top 5 competitors and uncover their positioning strategy, which simply means how they present their products/services to potential customers.

Let me give you an example. Go to Grasshopper.com (formerly GotVMail). You immediately know that if you’re not an entrepreneur then you shouldn’t be on their website. They make it crystal clear that Grasshopper stands for entrepreneurs who want to sound bigger than they actually are, through the use of a customizable VOIP phone and routing system.

When we just started the business and before we had our Austin sales team (in around 2005) we used GotVMail to route our 1800 number to the various sales reps we employed all around America. They were all working from their home offices but gave the impression to our clients that we had a big sales office in North America. They positioned their product to entrepreneurs like me and we become a loyal customer. Now that we’ve got a full office in Austin, Texas we no longer need Grasshopper, but the point is that they were able to clearly position their offering to the market. And they grew (and continue to grow) like wildfire.

So how can you position your products effectively? Well you need to pick a MAXIMUM of 3 potential clients you’re trying to attract. For example, we sell to web designers, non-technical business owners and business owners switching from a competitor. When you’re positioning your product you need to fulfill the questions of your potential clients, so don’t be afraid to call them out on your web site, such as “Are you a small business owner? Click here. Are you switching from a competitor? Click here.”.

The trick is to position your product so that it sounds like it was created JUST for the person reading your web site. Lead them down a path of text, video, images and testimonials that speaks directly to them and their specific needs. If you don’t know who you should be targeting then it’s time to create a survey and send it to your existing customers.

If you’ve been in business for a few months then you should have a feeling for the types of customers you attract (if you don’t then you’re too disconnected from your business), so just ask one question in the survey: “Which of these best describes you?”. Setup a multi-choice question where the answers are the types of customers you think you attract. Just in case you’re wrong, give them an “Other” field so they can tell you who they are.

Finally, figure out the questions they have about your product and answer then in your online store. Simple, yes. Effective, yes.

A few weeks ago we sent out an invite to a few thousand randomly selected BigCommerce clients for the 2009 Internet Retailer Survey. We had an excellent response to the survey and the results were quite interesting. If you sell online then you should definintely read through the responses (embedded below) to see how other online retailers responded.

If you’re in a rush, here’s a summary of the survey responses:

After analysing results of the 2009 Internet Retailer Survey, conducted by BigCommerce, it’s clear that the vast majority of online retailers are new to selling online. Apparel, software and computers/accessories are the most popular products being sold online and the overwhelming majority of sales for those surveyed come from their online store as opposed to a traditional bricks and mortar business.

In regards to the next 12 months, the majority of online retailers take a hopeful view towards improving sales from their online store and haven seen the best return on investment from email marketing (37%), Google AdWords (37%) and social media (15%). Email marketing (71%), Google AdWords (60%) and blogging (42%) comprise the major marketing strategies which will be implemented by those online retailers surveyed going into 2010.

34% of respondents use FaceBook to communicate with potential customers, while 32% use Twitter. The typical online retailer posts between 0-2 tweets per week and when asked how Twitter affects their online sales, the majority (39%) reported that they weren’t able to track the results Twitter has had on their sales. Similarly, 34% of online retailers who reach out to prospects and customers on FaceBook reported they didn’t have a way to track sales made from their social media efforts.

With the holiday season just 2 months away, let’s look at 8 tips to help prepare you for more customers and more sales. If you have any tips you’d like to add please feel free to leave a comment.

1. Make your order cutoff deadlines clear. During the holiday season customers want to know that their order will arrive before Christmas, so make sure you clearly state your order date deadlines in your online store.
2. Order more stock for popular items. You’ll generally sell more products over the holiday season so make sure you have sufficient stock on hand, especially for your popular products. Christmas is one time you can’t afford to delay shipping on orders due to low inventory.
3. Get your top sellers on the home page. Make sure your top selling products stand out on your home page and use incentives such as “buy [popular product] and get [less popular/cheap product] free” to move the less popular items that you sell and to offer better value to shoppers.
4. Try a holiday-themed store design. Get your online store into the holiday spirit by switching to a holiday-themed store design and/or adding a holiday element as part of your logo, such as Christmas lights or mistletoe.
5. Make your newsletter signup box prominent. Keep the sales going after the holidays by putting a strong focus on your newsletter signup box and asking shoppers to sign up. Give them a great reason such as discount coupons or useful information and you’ll grow your email list quickly.
6. Group products by recipient. For example, group products into categories such as “Boys 0-5″, “Boys 6-10″, “Boys 11-15″, etc to make it easy for shoppers to find gifts for their loved ones. Remember that a good percentage of online shoppers start out not knowing exactly what they want to buy so the easier you can make it for them, the more you’ll sell.
7. Create a “Holiday Specials” category. Find about 20-30 products which you can sell at cost price and add them to a new category called “Holiday Specials”. You can then use Google AdWords to advertise these discounted prices and use the loss leaders to entice shoppers to buy other gifts from your online store.
8. Keep customers in the loop. Customers love to track the status of their order online so make sure you assign UPS/USPS/FedEx tracking numbers to your orders from your store’s control panel. You’ll get fewer (if any) order inquiries and your customers will put their trust in you for shipping on time as promised.