The web is awash with search engines, directories and portals,
and many of them are purely designed to make a hefty dent in the
consumers' wallet. For many Internet shoppers they are key to
finding that inspired birthday gift or Mothers Day present. For
online retailers they can also be heaven sent. A good listing
within a high profile shopping directory could be the make of
your e-commerce site.
Many surfers first port of call when looking to shop on the web
is their favourite engine. Lycos, Yahoo, Excite all have
shopping guides. But how comprehensive are they? Do they
independently review stores? Shamefully it appears not in many
cases. Many engines work closely with partner retailers to gain
the lion's share of the traffic, which can often mean a big
spend and a hefty dent in the retailer's wallet. But what about
those retailers with smaller budgets, or in some cases none at
all?
Specific shopping directories such as ShopsOnTheNet.com, ShopNow
etc, play a vital role in bringing traffic to online stores.
Games Direct a UK based PC games retailer that works closely
with shopping specific directories and price comparison services
has increased its traffic and customer registrations by over
200%. The moral of the story being that once your e-commerce
site is listed with shopping specific directories you are
opening yourself up to a core group of web surfers that actually
want to shop online. Many registered users of directories
receive tailored e-mails updating them on the latest shopping
sites and product innovations according to their personal
profile. The question is, can you afford not to have your site
listed with directories that announce e-commerce sites and
products directly to seasoned Internet shoppers?
So, how do you go about getting listed? Before you go straight
to the directories and try to get listed, take a look at your
site. Does it offer secure transactions? This is paramount to
getting anybody to shop online with you. With it taking the
average surfer two years to make a purchase online (Forrester
Report), security is a must. Are you using shopping baskets? Do
you clearly show your terms and conditions? Do you have a postal
address for customers to contact? Have you been accredited by an
assurance programme? Such as, Trust-On-Line.com or Web Assured.
All of these points will greatly improve the possibility that a
surfer will get over their initial fears and take the leap of
faith that is tapping in their credit card number at your
checkout.
After you've addressed these issues it's time to get listed in
those shopping directories. You can find lists of them on Yahoo
and all of the other major search engines.
But what for the future? Directories are going to get larger and
larger with more e-commerce sites coming online everyday. This
creates a problem in scale. The sheer volume of sites out there
will mean surfers getting lost in a murky sea of cyberspace. As
a retailer try to strike up relationships with directories, keep
them informed about your web sites developments, products and
special offers. The directory editor will be only too pleased to
have a constant source of editorial at their fingertips,
especially when they have thousands of shop-aholics waiting at
the end of an email just itching to spend their hard earned cash!
About the author:
Roger Donald Senior Web Editor ShopsOnTheNet.com
