Starting a Business Online - Term Paper Example

? Starting a Business Online Part 2 Lecture: Georgia is a medium size clothing business that started almost a decade ago. The business operates in New Jersey Boardwalk and is managed by the two brothers. Previously our business was operating manually until we started to offer our services online. A few months ago, we got a $1000 grant to buy our own domain name. Though we have not provided e-business services for long, our merchandise offer the internet is very familiar and especially to our. Our domain name has gain popularity and a lot of organization has been requesting us to buy from us. This is because our domain provides has given a very good reputation for our business despite being new in the domain. The domain has acted us a promotional avenue where it draws the potential clients and the well displayed contents encourages people to choose or buy service from the website. Determining whether to sell or not a domain name depends on the business value of the domain name (Kalakota & Robinson 2003).  A domain valuation is a key tool of determining the value of the website. The process is relatively complex for individuals who do not have experience. The URL brokers are very critical aspects in determining the domain value. I will turn down the offer to sell the domain name since it will have negative implication on the business. The business sell will drop down if we sell the domain name. Moreover, finding our business in the internet will be very cumbersome. The reputation and the hard work that has been invested in the business to make the business credible and relevant will be hugely jeopardized. Most companies which have excelled in terms of domain have supplied a lot of determination and hard work. The usability and the convenience of the software used in e-commerce is a very critical aspect when it comes attracting and maintaining. The however most software developers do not consider when they are developing their systems. Usability is how the easy the users can use the module of a system. If the module for example the catalogue module is simple and clear, then it can attract the attention of the user. How organized the module is assisting the users in accomplishing their task with a lot of simplicity. The availability of effective shopping cart abilities is critical in ensuring that the customer’s purchasing via internet is increased. Lack of an effective shopping card result less sells and waste of time. The module ensures automation of the complete shopping process. This makes the whole purchasing process simple and automated. Shopping card saves money, time and makes the happy. The criteria of creating a shopping are very critical since the usability and the effectiveness of a shopping process is very crucial. The processing of purchasing transaction process is equally important. The transaction process starts from ordering, processing, payment and delivering process. The procedure should b short and clearly so the records of all the procedures are recorded and processed in an effective manner. Moreover, the processing of the purchase involves the transfer of money. The security of the payment processing is critical since the security of money is very crucial. The web usability can be increased by ensuring that the all the usability features of the different section are effectively attended to. For instance, the ability of a customer to go through the ordering process within the shortest time possible assists in attracting more and maintaining those who have used the service. The most effective ways of improving the usability of a website is by increasing web traffic, SEO and market segmentation. Search engine optimization is the best way of improving the traffic. Search engine optimization is a method used to increase the traffic to a website using techniques which raises the ranking of you search engine in the website. The technique is related to Google. Some of the aspects which are considering in maximizing search engine include: Check out- the web manager should regularly check if there is large number of web users who abandons their shopping card procedures before they are complete. Such a situation is attributed to design or technical problems. The problem should be addressed so that the business does not lose sells. Some of the aspects to be considered include cart accessibility, payment terms and helps instructions. Another very critical thing for improving usability of a website is navigation. Ensure that it is intuitive and easy to navigate different section of a website. To ensure effective navigation conduct a research with people who are not familiar with the website then use their feedback to single out the weaknesses then make the adjustment. The other aspect which can be used to improve the usability of a website is the security and privacy. Thing such as fine print can scare away website users especially when it comes to sensitive information such as credit card information. Prominent security features can be integrated and proper policies can be applied to ensure the security of a website. The most appropriate market strategies for my e-business are targeting and market segmentation. Market segmentation involves splitting into small segments of clients or. The intention of segmentation is to ensure that each group of is satisfied. Targeting on the other hand involves evaluation of every market segment to determine the right one to enter. Segmentation can be narrowed down to find a market niche. This is applied mostly by the small and medium firms. Another marketing strategy is the use of social media. The customers can share information concerning the product via social media platforms such as twitter, blogs and face book. Moreover, the company can use various downloadable marketing applications which can be integrated with the social media. These application ensure direct and two way communication between different audience. Real-time communication between the customers and the management is a vital thing in business. In fact, it is the ultimate way of ensuring that business benefits like improved, use of staff time efficiently and wider range of services and products delivered to the . Another marketing strategy is Link bait using social media. This involve Posting an event that worth being news such as wall posts, tweet or a picture that is amusing. This can catch the user’s attention. This is the best way of convincing the customers. The post made should not necessarily be about the product. It can just be an amusing message and a hint of the company for example giving a URL that will lead the user to the company’s webpage. The other one is having a fun page in face book or twitter that can be used by the customer to encourage other to look for the services of a particular company. The fact that the social media are independent not controlled by the company gives the customer the freedom of using the media in any way he or she likes. Pay –per-click and search engine optimization are the key advantages that are provided by Google analytics as marketing strategies. The usability of the Google sites lures customers into spending more time in the web pages and hence can translate to the companies turn over. This makes it necessary for the company to ensure that the programmer that develops the website should have massive knowledge of software usability and flexibility (Castronova 2005).  This is facilitated using methodology such as creating an interactive websites, availing online chat, use of emails, use of blogs such as face book. All this technique enables the administrator to get the feedback instantly. Another benefit is eliminated the cost of producing print marketing materials. On line advertising can also be used. This is product-price-promotion-positioning is used based on the process that has been proven by other people. The basis of this strategy revolves around the nature of business transaction that the company uses. All the activities that are carried out in the business such as reservation process and how the payment is availed are taken into consideration. It also touches on assessing the customer’s satisfaction basing on the feedback that they get from the customers. References Castronova, E. (2005). Synthetic worlds: The business and culture of online games. University of Chicago Press. Kalakota, R., & Robinson, M. (2003). Electronic commerce (pp. 628-634). John Wiley and Sons Ltd.. Markey, R. G., & Hopton, C. (2000). E-customer loyalty—applying the traditional rules of business for online success. European Business Journal,12(4), 173-79. Read More