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What do dragons have to do with ecommerce? If you are selling Disneyana, a dragon named Razzle Bathbone is one way to engage shoppers and add some fun and "magic" to the shopping experience.
Online merchant Alix sells collectible Disney pins on DizziPinz.com "Given that my product of choice is Disney related I did have the opportunity to be a bit more creative than one might normally be and it has been fun. I'm also working on a short story that documents Razzle's life to date but it has yet to be finished and posted."
Alix's friend designed the DizziPinz.com website (he does not do website design as a business and doesn't want to start), and he recommended Alix use X-Cart for her ecommerce software. "It is very cost effective. I reviewed everything before we purchased the software and it seemed pretty comprehensive to me. I admit it was easy to go in one direction with my lack of knowledge - but at this juncture I can say it was absolutely the right one."
Alix said once the design was finalized and the software purchased, she then went out with bids for the integration. They chose RyanDesign Studio. "Again - in retrospect it was the right decision," Alix said. "RyanDesign has been very good at the integration and most importantly they have been very responsive to any questions and/or requests that we have had. I would most highly recommend this company. I believe that they also specialize in web design for X-Cart based sites."
Now that Alix has her site in place, she will focus on marketing. In addition to her inventory, Alix also offers personal shopping services and gift certificates. "As I have absolutely zero experience in ecommerce, I have quite a bit to learn."
Her big questions are how to improve search-engine rankings so people find her site when searching Google, Yahoo, etc., and how to build up an email marketing list. She said:
"We currently are currently hosting our Grand Opening complete with promo that was announced via a very carefully targeted e-mail campaign and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. But at this time our search engine rankings are pretty low when searching for a generic term like "Disney Pin." So, first I'd really love to have some suggestions on how to improve our search engine rankings without spending a fortune. We are after all, brand new! I would prefer not to do a pay-per-click campaign as I've heard they are very expensive and fraud is rampant. Second, I'd like to know if there is any way to expand our subscriber list. The option that we wouldn't consider is purchasing an email list and sending out "spam." Other than that, I'm open to suggestions!"
DizziPinz website:
http://www.DizziPinz.com
Discuss the site here:
http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=22079
Note: Read comments for last issue's Critique My Site submission at
http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=22001
If you would like to be considered for an AuctionBytes "Critique My Site" feature, let me know by emailing me at ina@auctionbytes.com.
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