February 18, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Every month it seems that there is a new video game which starts to generate significant buzz before it even ships, sending throngs of people online to pre-order the game ahead of time to ensure that they get their hands on a copy. The latest video game to start topping the video game bestseller charts is BulletStorm from Epic Games. It’s a first person shooter is available on the XBOX 360, PS3, or PC.

One of the things that helped BulletStorm get media attention was thanks to Fox News, who posted an article early in the month asking people if it was the “worst game ever.” Their article didn’t really focus on the gameplay, rather the moral issues in the game since players are rewarded for killing people in creative ways. These creative ways involve special skill shots, like killing multiple people at once or when you cut someone in half. Regardless of what Fox News has to say, it appears that the extra press has only made excited gamers want to want to buy BulletStorm more! This coverage may have led to a recent rise in its rankings on the Amazon’s best selling video game list.

BulletStorm is priced at $59.95, which has pretty much become the norm for games like these, but those people who pre-order a copy for PS3 or XBOX 360 via Amazon.com will receive a $20 promotion credit. Credit is good towards the purchase of items shipping and sold by Amazon, however a few products are excluded from the credit. Gamers get the credit within two days of BulletStorm shipping to them, and the promotion seems to have helped online sales. Video game sites that have reviewed the trailer for the game are giving it very positive feedback, and are actually very excited about the its various skill aspects. Additionally some gamers are picking up the official strategy guide, to help them master them game as quickly as possible. Later next week we will have a better idea of what the masses think about the game, after playing it for a few days.

February 18, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

There are a number of people who are considering starting their first online store in 2011, and many of them are leaning toward using hosted ecommerce software to allow them to start selling. When these new merchants begin their quest to find the right software, they quickly realize what is most important to them. While there may be a variety of things that new merchants are expecting in their software, certain things seem to be a bit more critical, like customer service, reliable hosting, and staying on the cutting edge. Various companies can provide a new merchant with ecommerce software to power their online store, but that is only a small piece of the bigger picture, when it comes to hosted solutions. Below are three things that seem to be at the top of the list in terms of what a new merchant is looking for in a hosted solution.

Reliable Hosting

One of the main reasons why a new merchant chooses to go with hosted ecommerce software is because it allows them to focus on selling, without having to worry about finding the perfect hosting partner and hoping that they can keep their site up and running. Therefore new merchants want to read shopping cart reviews about various solutions, so that they can better understand what kind of hosting they can expect. It is not too hard to search some of the companies in the space, and see if their merchants are tweeting things about their site being down, or to find forum posts about certain solutions having server issues. Luckily there are a number of great companies for new merchants to consider, that have a solid track record when it comes to maintaining up time for their online stores.

Excellent Customer Service

New merchants typically do not have a deep understanding of how ecommerce software works, and all of the possibilities that there are to help improve their online store. This is just one of the reasons why excellent customer service is very important to a new merchant, as they want to become experts in their field, but will need help along the way when they get stuck. They need to know that they can reach out to the customer service team, and quickly get help with their questions or concerns. One way that new merchants test out the customer service at each company they are considering, is to sign up for a free trial of the ecommerce software, which is the best way to understand if you like the solution and the service provided by the customer service team.

Frequent Improvements

One of the reasons why a new merchant would decide on hosted ecommerce software versus licensed software is because they will be able to receive more frequent updates as technology advances. When partnered with a top hosted solution, merchants will receive updates every 4-8 weeks, which will allow them to stay current with the latest features available. Merchants who pick licensed solutions often need to upgrade in a couple years, as they want to ensure that they have the newest features. The top solutions try to keep a constant feedback loop going with their merchants so they can truly understand the current demands, and work to improve their software to please their merchants.

February 16, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

The Borders bankruptcy news is official, as the company formally filed this week and now has plans to close roughly 30 percent of their 674 stores. Now many people are worried that this news has bigger implications for the future of the book industry, as consumers are starting to shift toward digital mediums like ereaders and ebooks. Not many people still take time to go to a brick-and-mortar bookstore, as they can easily order the same book online or perhaps even as an ebook. Borders bankruptcy news does not mean that the company is going under, as they hope that they can reposition the company to be make a come back. However Borders has a serious battle in front of them, and their history is not helping their mission.

Historically Borders has been late to the game when it comes to ecommerce, as they launched their first ecommerce site in 1998, which most industry analysts felt was too late, since Barnes and Noble had already been up and running since 1997.  However the late start should not have hurt them much, as 1998 was still early to be pushing into ecommerce, but Borders did not do well in the space, and by 2001 they had to partner with Amazon.com to relaunch their ecommerce site and feature Amazon.com’s books and music offerings, in hopes of making it a profitable venture.

During the time that Borders outsourced to Amazon.com, a variety of changes were taking place in ecommerce and Borders was a bit in the dark as they were not hands on with the day-to-day work. Over time Borders realized that it might be a smarter and potentially more profitable move to bring ecommerce in-house in 2008, but essentially had to start over since Amazon had been handling it for the past 7 years. Then in 2010 Borders moved ahead to launch their own ebook store, although this was eight months after Barnes & Noble had already launched their site. Barnes & Noble and Amazon also debuted their ereaders before Borders, which again put the company at a slight disadvantage. Despite all of the mistakes Borders might have made, they still have a chance to recover after the bankruptcy if they can succeed in ecommerce.

February 16, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

The most recent rankings from the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) are now out, and overall shopping at Internet retailers is still preferred over going to traditional brick and mortar stores, but there is still a lot of potential for improvement. All up the ACSI score for the ecommerce sector fell 2.6% to 79.3 out of 100, which happens to be the lowest level it has hit since 2004. Additionally there was a 3.6% drop for Internet retail to 80, which helped to drive down the larger ecommerce category. Ecommerce giants like Amazon and Netflix are still doing well in terms of customer satisfaction, with Amazon taking the top spot with a score of 87, just ahead of Netflix who is at 86. In general Amazon had the highest score for any retailer, regardless if that retailer was a traditional brick-and-mortar or an online store.

While it is great to see these companies shine, and help increase the visibility for online shopping, there is another piece of data in the findings which is a bit troubling. Online companies like Netflix and Amazon have the financial resources and the employees needed to ensure that they continually provide excellent customer service. Free shipping is easy for them to offer, and upset customers can get in touch with someone easily should anything go wrong with their order. In looking deeper at the ACSI scores, it appears that the overall drop was led by smaller Internet retailers, who are having a tough time keeping up with the bigger players in ecommerce. Offering the lowest price with free shipping is hard for small ecommerce sites, and therefore they have to rely on providing great customer service. Despite this, customers commonly call out price or lack of free shipping as things that make them dissatisfied. Therefore smaller ecommerce sites will have a bit of a battle to win over customers. Ultimately ecommerce shopping is still superior to driving to a brick-and-mortar store and likely receiving poor service, and hopefully these scores will improve over the next year.

February 16, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

It seems like you cannot go more than a few weeks without seeing a new celebrity owned ride pop up on eBay, and now you can bid on a custom 1965 Ford Mustang that was previously owned by former basketball star Penny Hardaway. Over the past year we have seen other cool finds on eBay Motors like a SLR Mercedes that was owned by Michael Jordan, the original Sublime Van, and an awesome Porsche that was owned by soccer star David Beckham. These celebrity owned cars are not selling super fast, as the economy is still weak, and most people do not have the disposable income to buy a muscle car, which probably gets 10 miles per gallon or less.

The 1965 Mustang has a “buy now” price of $28,995, which many would consider a good deal since the listing mentions Hardaway spending roughly $30,000 with 310 Motoring in Los Angeles to fix to up. There are a variety of great photographs of the Mustang that potential buyers can preview, and there have already been some bids on the ride.

Hardaway is not much of a celebrity anymore, but he was very popular at one time, as part of the 1996 US Olympic Games Basketball Team that won a gold metal. He also played for the Orlando Magic, the Phoenix Suns, and lastly the Miami Heat who released him in late 2007. Over his career he had various injuries that made it tough for him to be as effective as he was when first starting out in the NBA. Recently it was even reported that he hit a game winning shot in a basketball rec league, which is a big change from the glitz and glamor of the NBA. The eBay Motors listing is new, so it will continue to stay on the site for another couple weeks, unless someone moves forward with the buy now price.

February 16, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Online businesses are a booming industry, meaning that more and more merchants out there are looking to start their first online store. As is often the case with a new business, these people are usually working with a limited budget. This narrows down which of the net’s best ecommerce solutions they can consider. Therefore it makes sense that these cost-conscious merchants focus their search on the most affordable solutions, while still getting the features that they want/need.

Luckily there are now a wide array of hosted solutions for merchants to choose from, allowing them to still get great ecommerce software for their online store, but at a price that they can afford. The problem is that while some solutions may seem affordable, when you look closer you may find that the features you wanted are not included. Some entrepreneurs view the setup fee as a big part of their upfront costs and can be put off by a high setup fee. Others do not mind it, as long as they can get one of the best ecommerce solutions to power their online store.

The bottom line is that merchants on a budget want a robust and reliable solution that will give their customers professional-grade online buying experience.

Below are 4 great choices for hosted ecommerce software, all with monthly pricing ranging from $19.99 to $29.

CoreCommerce

In terms of overall value, CoreCommerce is a one of the best ecommerce solutions around. The value only gets better with CoreCommerce’s current promotion: no setup fee! This offer is almost certain to end soon, so be sure to test out their solution via a 15 day free trial ASAP. The most affordable CoreCommerce package is the entry level option starting at $19.99 per month, which allows for 100 products and 1GB of bandwidth. They also offer a hosted package at $24.99 per month, which gives merchants the ability to have 250 products and 2GB of bandwidth. Both options provide merchants with an extensive feature set and excellent hosting from RackSpace. It is a great solution for merchants to start out with, as they can easily upgrade from the $19.99 package to the $24.99 package whenever the time is right. Customer service is also rated very highly at CoreCommerce, which any merchant can appreciate.

3dcart

Merchants constantly rave about 3dcart’s robust feature set, making it a popular choice for merchants starting their first online store. The entry-level hosted package is only $19.99, and for a limited time 3dcart is also waiving their setup fee, another big plus for merchants on a budget. This entry-level package allows merchants to have up to 50 products in their online store with 1GB of bandwidth. 3dcart is also one of the best ecommerce solutions for those merchants who want social media tools on a budget. Anyone interested in testing out the software from 3dcart should try it out via a 15 day free trial. A hands-on test in one of the best ways to make a choice between different ecommerce solutions.

BigCommerce

Through the end of February, BigCommerce is throwing their hat in the ring as yet another ecommerce solution not charging new merchants a setup fee to get going. This is already helping them to attract new merchants on budget. The entry level hosted package with BigCommerce is $24.95, and it allows for up to 100 products and 2GB in bandwidth. Recently BigCommerce achieved PCI compliance, so now merchants can be even more confident in using one of the best ecommerce solutions around. Overall the feature set is solid, and BigCommerce has excellent SEO features for those merchants who like to focus on organic traffic. Any merchants considering BigCommerce should test drive the software on their own with a free 15 day trial. There’s no substitute for for hands on experience in determining if it is the right solution for you.

Volusion

Recently Volusion decided to stop charging merchants a setup fee too, and it looks like it could be a permanent change which makes it more affordable for a new merchant to get started. Volusion has a solid set of features and their entry level package starts out at only $29 per month, and allows merchants to have up to 100 products and 2GB of bandwidth. Volusion has been a big name in the ecommerce software world for roughly a decade, and it continues to be one of the best ecommerce solutions for someone who is new to selling online. They maintain their high level of quality by releasing regular updates and throughout the year and continually improving their ecommerce software. The result is consistently better offerings for merchants. If Volusion seems like a solution worth your time, then consider signing up for a free 14 day trial. It just might be the right choice for your online store.

February 15, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Merchants looking for a shopping cart solution to power their online business have a big job ahead of them. There is no shortage of websites for shopping cart reviews, but each site does them a bit differently. This puts the burden on merchants to understand what goes into each review site.

There is also no shortage of different ecommerce solutions. Merchants looking for a new shopping cart for their online store in 2011 have dozens of choices to look at, but a lot of them may not live up to the requirements that the merchants need.

Regardless of whether you are are a seasoned merchant who has been selling online for years, or new to ecommerce and seeking to start your very first online store, you need unbiased shopping cart reviews to help better understand which ecommerce solution will best suit your needs. Below are a few of the most important things to consider when reading shopping cart reviews.

What Elements Are Evaluated?

Some shopping cart reviews only look at a few elements of the software, and these elements can vary in relevance. A prime example of an irrelevant element of an ecommerce solution would be a review which purports to judge solutions on security. This is because all of the top hosted software solutions are PCI compliant and essentially have the same level of security.

Another thing that you definitely need to understand is if the review site is looking at one specific hosted package or the overall offering. It does not make much sense for a review site to compare an entry level package from one solution to a mid level package from another solution. Review sites need to make it more of an “apples to apples” comparison and pick a focus for the reviews (customer service, SEO, etc.) if merchants are to actually get value out of reading them.

Additionally, the value of each element of the shopping cart software should be immediately understandable. Readers need to know if each factor has equal weight or if certain factors are given more clout, as most merchants have a few features which are most important to them, while other factors are less significant.

How Current Are The Reviews?

Surprisingly search engines like Google and Bing still give high organic rankings to reviews which are over two years old! In the world of ecommerce software this can be an eternity because so many things change each year. Most high-end shopping carts update their software packages at least twice per year. Outdated shopping cart reviews are not useful for merchants (naturally), as they are not a true reflection of the solution’s current capabilities. Merchants who read old reviews could be missing out on learning about new features, or getting excited about pricing options that may not exist anymore. Therefore you should always make sure that the review is less than one year old, so that you know it will be useful.

Do They Accept Payment For Ranking?

Some shopping cart review sites charge a flat fee for the privilege of being reviewed. This is acceptable as long as the review is unbiased as it allows the site to compensate its reviewers and researchers and ensures a professional level of quality. The problem is that some sites accept “payment for placement,” which means that ecommerce software companies can pay get higher rankings. This works against the merchants who are spending their time reading the reviews. Many times merchants want to pick a solution and stay with it for many years, and reading a biased review might end them up with software that turns out to be a disappointment in the future.

Information about payment for ranking is usually found in the “About Us,” “Privacy Policy,” or “Advertising” section.  If you cannot access it in those spots then contact the companies directly or Google them to see what other people say about their shopping cart reviews. The internet can be a very vocal place. When consumers feel that they have been wronged by a company or that its policies are shady, they are often quick to sound off about it.

February 15, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Online coupons continue to be a hot topic in 2011, as consumers become more savvy about their shopping habits and want to save money as often as possible. Rough economic conditions over the past few years have created a more cost-conscious consumer who does not mind spending a little extra time and energy to find a e-coupon for their next purchase. In order to get some insight into the e-coupon niche and where the industry is headed in 2011 and beyond, the ZippyCart team chatted with Aaron Mendes, CEO of Drop Down Deals LLC.

One of the first things we wanted to know was why will 2011 finally be the year of the e-coupons and what factors are contributing? Aaron replied that “Two of the biggest factors shaping the e-coupon industry are time and the economy. As people have less free time and money, shoppers are turning to e-coupons, not only to save money, but also to avoid looking for print coupons, getting in their car, driving across town to look for their product, and then standing in line to purchase it. Coupon browser apps like Drop Down Deals expedite this process by bringing relevant e-coupons to consumers when they need them. A purchase that takes you an hour or more to complete with print coupons can be completed online using e-coupons in less than five minutes.” His answer makes a lot of sense, especially when you combine that with the fact that almost everyone in the U.S. can get online somehow, either via their own computer, smart phone, or local library.

Next we asked Aaron about group buying sites like Groupon and LivingSocial that dominated the news in 2011. Are they set to bloom or fade? Will mega popular daily deal sites cause people to forget about e-coupons? According to Aaron: “Groupon and LivingSocial have had much success in the last year but they are not without their limitations. Group buying sites only offer one specific product or service per day and only after a certain number of people have also purchased it. Most days consumers will not be interested in that day’s offer. However, using e-coupons allows consumers to buy what they want, when they want while still getting a great deal. Each type of coupon serves an entirely different purpose. Groupon and LivingSocial are location-based coupons for mostly ‘brick-and-mortar’ retail outlets, while Drop Down Deals is national in scope and for online merchants. With hundreds of competitors entering the daily deal/group buying space, Groupon and LivingSocial will have an increasing amount of trouble growing. They may fall from the spotlight in the second part of this year. In my opinion, these sites are not causing people to forget about e-coupons.” While the answer is insightful, it appears that Groupon and LivingSocial are here to stay, and this is may be best illustrated by the recent Super Bowl commercials from both companies.

We were also interested in learning more about what factors Aaron thinks have limited e-coupon growth in the past. He said that “I actually don’t think e-coupon growth has been limited over the past few years. It appears to be growing faster than ever. There are now hundreds of coupon websites and aggregators. However, there is a sense of skepticism surrounding e-coupons for a couple of reasons. The biggest reason is that most coupon sites do not remove old coupon codes, resulting in a ton of websites that have expired codes on them. The consequence of that is people spend a tremendous amount of time searching for coupon codes only to find that the code has expired.” This brings up a great point. Many coupon sites are loaded with outdated information, which makes it tough for a consumer to put their faith in them. This often causes consumers to jump around and can make it tough for them to only choose one or two “go to” e-coupon sites to search when the need arises.

We also wanted to know which service areas or product niches that Mendes sees consumers caring most about e-coupons. Aaron let us know that “Electronics and clothing seem to be two of the top niches on Drop Down Deals consumers care most about. People are always looking for the best deals on back to school clothes, baby clothes, etc. Conscious consumers know that these items will be quickly worn out so they look for the best deals, and of course electronics are always sought out items. Consumers are always looking to have the latest gadgets and devices but at discounted prices.”

Lastly we asked Aaron what he had to say about where he sees e-coupons going in 2012 and beyond: “Eventually e-coupons will become highly personalized. Each e-coupon will be determined by personal preferences, purchase trends and amount of money spent with any particular online retailer. Also, as mobile devices continue to flood the market, I suspect that geo-location will become a major feature of e-coupons. This will require more local retailers to offer e-coupons in order for consumers to adopt geo-targeted mobile coupon apps. Currently there aren’t enough local coupons available in most areas for consumers to have a good user experience from their mobile.”

February 11, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Over the last couple years thousands of new merchants have started their first online store, and one of the things they sought out when researching ecommerce solutions was ease of use. One of the reasons why merchants seek out easy to use software is because they do not have the technical expertise to use other solutions in the beginning. Most free or licensed solutions require the merchant to be familiar with HTML, CSS, PHP, and other programming languages. Therefore it makes sense that many merchants would decide to go with hosted ecommerce solutions that are easy to use. Most of the top rated solutions on ZippyCart are quite easy for merchants to work with day-to-day, but some of them are better suited for a more advanced merchant. However there are certain ecommerce solutions that merchants tend to be drawn to when ease of use is one of their top concerns. Below are four different hosted shopping cart options for merchants who want easy to use software, so they can spend more time on marketing their online store and converting visitors into paying customers.

CoreCommerce: There are a number of reasons why CoreCommerce earned the top spot on our ecommerce solution rankings for 2011, as numerous merchants commented to us about how easy their software is to use. Setting up an online store with their solutions will not take long, and merchants know that if they hit any roadblocks they can always reach out to the customer service team to get the help they need. CoreCommerce is continually working to improve their ecommerce software so that merchants do not have to spend more time than they need with day-to-day management, so they can focus on increasing sales. Pricing starts at $19.99 per month and they offer a 15 day free trial so merchants can test out the software.

3dcart: Merchants frequently rave about how easy it is to use 3dcart each day to manage their online store, and with hosted packages starting at $19.99 it makes sense that a lot of first time merchants would be attracted to the solution. They also have great social media tools that merchants can quickly integrate into their overall marketing strategy. Customer support is also solid with 3dcart, so merchants should not be afraid to reach out if they have any questions or concerns about the ecommerce solution. Merchants also have the option to test out the software via a 15 day free trial, which is a great way to see what it is like to use the solution day-to-day.

BigCommerce: Over the past year a variety of merchants have decided to choose BigCommerce as the ecommerce solution to power their online store. In addition to being easy to use, BigCommerce also has great SEO and recently their software became PCI compliant. Hosted packages start out at $24.95, and merchants who want to test out the software can do so via a free 15 day trial. This is best way to determine if the ecommerce solution is right for you and the needs of your online store.

Volusion: Recently Volusion’s ecommerce software got a major update, and each week this company continues to release several enhancements and consistently add new features to help merchants be more successful. Volusion has been in the ecommerce space for many years and continues to be a top pick for a merchant who is starting their first online store. Packages start out at $29 per month and merchants who are interested in testing out the ecommerce solution can do so via a 14 day free trial, which will allow you to decide if Volusion is the right fit.

February 8, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Merchants who are using hosted ecommerce software can easily be overwhelmed with all of the different features that they have in their arsenal, many of which are intended to help boost online sales. However not all merchants are taking advantage of all of the features, and therefore they might be missing out on the chance to generate more traffic that can be converted into more paying customers. This is especially true of new merchants who want to primarily focus on the core duties of running an online store before they start to spend extra time learning about the features they can leverage for increased sales. In 2011 there are thousands of merchants looking for ways to make their online store more successful, and one way to help accomplish this goal is to review commonly overlooked ecommerce software features. Below are 3 of these overlooked features, which are available on almost all of the top ecommerce software solutions on the market.

Affiliate Marketing

Most merchants spend their time working on their SEO strategy and PPC marketing to drive qualified visitors to their online store, but not many choose to add affiliate marketing to the mix. Affiliate marketing is great for ecommerce sites, as publishers will promote your online store on their site, and only get paid if they refer a consumer that makes a purchase. This allows a merchant to easily expand their reach so that a variety of new audiences can find out about their online store. Be sure to review what affiliate marketing options you have with your ecommerce software, as not all solutions provide merchants with the same offering. Some solutions will even limit this feature, and only provide it to those merchants paying for a hosted package that is above a certain price point. Overall you might spend a bit of extra time working on your affiliate marketing program, but that time should translate into increased sales, which is what every merchant desires.

Facebook Store

Social shopping is slowly becoming a bigger force in 2011, as top ecommerce software solutions have added the ability to open up an online store on Facebook over the last year. Facebook is also pushing forward to try and make their site a place where ecommerce transactions take place, rather than just a bunch of friends sharing pictures, status updates, and playing social games. Typically it is quite easy to open up an online store on Facebook, as you just need to get your product feed connected, so that it updates in tandem as you update your core site. Most online stores like to promote their Facebook page on their site, and having a shop set up when they arrive is a great way to try and generate additional sales.

Shopping Comparison Engines

Most of the top ecommerce software solutions have had the ability for merchants to push their products into shopping comparison engines for the last couple years, and this is an area where many merchants have found success. Tapping into shopping comparison engines is usually quite easy, and does not require much on going work to keep it generating revenue. Therefore it is hard to pass this feature up if you are a merchant looking to increase sales in 2011. Feel free to reach out to your ecommerce software company and see how easy it is for you to add shopping comparison engines to your marketing mix.

February 8, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

As we push deeper into 2011 there are a few ecommerce solutions that we expect will be making an impact on the space, and it is likely that we will here a lot more about them over the rest of the year. In particular it is the hosted shopping carts that merchants are getting more excited about, as they are able to make frequent updates to their software throughout the year to ensure that the most current features are being utilized. There are a lot of ecommerce trends for 2011 that merchants are paying attention to, like virtual goods, social commerce, and mobile commerce. They want to make sure they have every opportunity possible to drive traffic to their site, find more customers, and increase conversion rates. Ecommerce solution providers are becoming more competitive, and want to be the best option for merchants, so in 2011 we should continue to see this battle play out. Below are three of the top rated hosted ecommerce solutions that we think will be making waves in 2011, as well as two solutions which merchants should be on the look out for, as they are expected to become bigger competitors in the space.

CoreCommerce

During 2010 CoreCommerce made numerous improvements to their ecommerce solution, which pleased merchants as most of them received the features that had been on their wish lists. Recently CoreCommerce added a GetSatisfaction community support forum, which they also participate in, as merchants are very impressed by receiving quality help directly from the company that created their software. Overall merchants have been very pleased with the ecommerce solution, and CoreCommerce continues to bring on new merchants each week who are either starting their first online store or switching from another solution. Merchants would also be happy to know that CoreCommerce was ranked as the #1 ecommerce solution on ZippyCart for 2011.

AmeriCommerce

Over the past year AmeriCommerce has been a bit under the radar with most merchants, but as of late their ecommerce solution has been gaining in popularity thanks to great reviews they have been receiving for their software. AmeriCommerce also happens to be the solution that powers LOLmart.com, which is the online store for the Cheezburger network of sites. Their solution has a variety of powerful features, and in 2011 you can expect that they will continue to innovate and improve upon an already robust software option for merchants wanting to sell online. On ZippyCart’s 2011 rankings, AmeriCommerce came in 3rd place overall.

BigCommerce

The big news that just came out about BigCommerce is that they finally became PCI compliant, but it took them a bit of time to get this under their belt. BigCommerce is already known as an easy to use ecommerce solution that is great for SEO, and now with PCI compliance it is likely that many more merchants will consider using their software. Recently they passed the 10,000 mark on the number of online stores being powered by BigCommerce, and this number is expected to grow in 2011 as they continue to improve their solution. BigCommerce ranked 6th this year on the ZippyCart top ecommerce solutions list for 2011, and this ranking might have been a bit higher if PCI compliance was complete by the end of 2010. Overall merchants still are quite pleased using BigCommerce, and continue to recommend it to others.

Ecommerce Solutions to Watch Out For in 2011

Ashop Commerce

Currently ZippyCart does not have a major review of Ashop Commerce, but the ecommerce solution has a lot of changes going on to take their software to the next level, which will allow them to be properly reviewed and compared. Ashop Commerce is based out of Australia, but the company is working on pushing into the US market, and therefore it is a solution that merchants should watch out for in 2011. It already has a great set of features, but the pricing model is still being tweaked to better attract merchants.

Warhead

This ecommerce solution is not even live yet, but there has been a lot of hype surrounding the project which has been in the development phase for the last two years. The Warhead team is based out of the Seattle area, and the solution should launch very soon, but an exact date has not yet been set. Merchants can sign up now and be notified when it goes live, and when signing up they will have a chance to win a store for a year.

February 4, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Each year there are thousands of merchants starting their very first ecommerce store as well as thousands of existing merchants who are looking to switch to a better hosted shopping cart solution. Some merchants who started selling online five years ago went with licensed software, as there were fewer hosted shopping carts for them to choose. Over the last few years the options for hosted software have exploded, and now the tougher decision for merchants is which solution they want to pick for their online business. There are a variety of reasons why hosted shopping carts are becoming more popular in 2011, but it seems that there are a handful of things which merchants tend to need most out of a hosted ecommerce solution. Below is a list of these reasons, with a bit of explanation as to why these things push merchants toward hosted solutions.

Merchants Want to Leverage Quality Customer Service

One of the big downsides of most licensed ecommerce software is that they typically do not provide free customer support, as most merchants who purchase the software are tech savvy enough to figure things out on their own. Even when licensed solutions offer customer service, it can sometimes be of lesser quality than a hosted shopping cart solution. This is because hosted solutions want their merchants to stay around for the long haul and they already are being paid each month by the merchants to use the shopping cart software, so it makes sense that customer service needs to shine.

Technology is Advancing Rapidly – Merchants Want Most Current Features ASAP

Another downside of licensed software is that merchants do not receive many updates throughout the year, typically these solutions only upgrade their product about once per year, and in most cases the merchant then has to pay for the upgrade. Some of the best shopping carts like CoreCommerce or AmeriCommerce update their product multiple times during the year, so that merchants can stay current with the latest and greatest ecommerce features. For example most licensed software solutions still have not gotten around to adding social commerce features, which has been available on top hosted shopping carts for the last year.

Merchants Do Not Want to Hassle With A Separate Hosting Partner

Finding your own hosting provider can become a headache in its own right. This is especially true for the merchant who is new to ecommerce, as they want to focus on selling, and not spend extra time sorting out which hosting partner is best for their online business. When a merchant goes with hosted shopping carts they get to benefit from having their online store hosted by top providers like RackSpace. Therefore the quality of hosting at these ecommerce software companies is very important to consider, as the merchant is putting a lot of trust into the software, and if it goes down they can lose a lot of money. Twitter is a great place to watch for issues with hosting, as merchants can quickly get upset if a hosted shopping cart goes down, and want to let the solution providers know that it is unacceptable. Make sure to read shopping cart reviews and customer reviews so you can see what their experience has been like, and if they have encountered any major issues. Luckily, a lot of the best hosted shopping carts have industry standard downtime or better, so there’s little to worry about.

Scalability Included

One thing that can be tricky with some licensed software is that merchants are limited to what the solution provides, whereas hosted shopping carts can allow a merchant to easily scale their business as the online sales start to flow. Many of the top solutions allow a merchant to start small, but can accommodate them growing to an online store that generates millions in revenue each year.

Less Money to Invest Upfront

Some licensed software options like Interspire can cost up to $1,795, and that does not even include hosting, whereas merchants can get started with hosted shopping carts and pay less than $100 up front. Therefore they do not have to put out as much money to start, so they can focus more on driving traffic to their online store and getting people to make a purchase.

February 1, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

Now that merchants have had time to thoroughly recover from the 2010 holiday shopping season, it is time for many of them to reevaluate their shopping cart software, and determine if it is the ideal solution to power their online business. The holiday shopping season is a great time to truly see how an ecommerce solution can perform, as many merchants hit peak traffic levels and more often need customer service help. When hitting peak traffic levels, a merchant can see if their hosted shopping cart software can handle the high volume of visitors, and whether or not they will end up having bandwidth overage charges (for those solutions who limit bandwidth). Below are some top things that merchants take into account when in the process of thinking about switching their shopping cart software.

Quality of Customer Service

One of the big reasons that merchants decide to use a hosted solution is that they also get to utilize the customer service team whenever they have any questions or troubles. Merchants can often come across an issue when working with their shopping cart software day-to-day, and rely heavily on receiving excellent customer support. If you have had a poor customer service experience over the past year with your solution, either having to wait on hold for an excessive amount of time or given rude answers, then you might want to consider moving away from your existing shopping cart software.

Overall Value / Feature Set

Another area of concern for merchants evaluating their solution, is the overall value relative to the feature set provided. Not all merchants price their shopping cart software in the same way, and some do not provide the same feature set for all their packages. Some merchants may be happy that they only have to pay $30 per month, but at that price they can often miss out on social commerce features.  There are some ecommerce solutions though, like CoreCommerce, that provide a great feature set (with social commerce features) for under $30 per month.

Also important to note is the fact that some solutions are still not PCI compliant, and in 2011 it does not make much sense to pay for hosted shopping cart software unless it is PCI compliant. Not only do merchants want a robust set of features, they also want to see that the company powering the solution tries to update it frequently throughout the year. This ensures that they always have the latest and greatest features to help them become successful with their online store.

Another thing to look at when analyzing overall value is how each solution sets their pricing, which includes bandwidth limits, transaction fees, and sometimes there are even charges for customer support. Merchants often get upset when they get hit with big bandwidth overage charges or transaction fees which can eat into their profits, and this can sometimes force them to want to switch their shopping cart software.

January 26, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

In 2011 many merchants are thinking about how they can better use social media tools to improve their ecommerce site and shopping cart experience, and the next couple months is the perfect time to test new things out. This is because most merchants can have less web traffic and fewer sales during the first quarter of the year, because consumers just went all out to shop online for the holiday season. Some of the ideas that merchants will consider are specific to making their shopping cart more social, whereas other ideas will be more beneficial to the ecommerce site as a whole, so that it is more social media friendly. As consumers spend more time on various social networking sites each year, it is slowly changing how they like to shop online, and many merchants want to be on the forefront of change by making things more social. Merchants who are early adopters of social media could reap major rewards in the future if the way in which consumers shop online continues to include more social involvement. Below are a variety of tips that merchants can consider to help make their shopping cart and ecommerce site more social for consumers.

Facebook & Twitter Accounts

One of the first steps that some merchants overlook is to establish a presence on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, at a minimum. There are dozens of other small social sites online that you can also create an account with, but these currently seem to have the biggest impact for merchants, because they are so popular with consumers. Once you have these created, you can add buttons throughout your ecommerce site so that consumers can Like (Facebook) or Follow (Twitter) you. Some merchants treat the list of their Facebook fans and Twitter followers in a similar way to an email list, as the consumers have already expressed interest and want to continue to know about changes to your ecommerce site, as well as specials, deals and promotions. One area where you might not want to try and get people to Like or Follow you on Facebook and Twitter is in the shopping cart checkout. This is because you want the consumer to have minimal distractions so that they can finish their transaction. After they complete their purchase, then you can decide if you want to try and engage them socially either in the Thank You page or through an auto generated purchase email.

Product or Purchase Sharing

There are number of ways in which merchants can allow consumers to share information about products that interest them, or purchases which they just finalized via your ecommerce shopping cart. Some of the more common tools you can use in this arena are social bookmarking aggregators such as AddThis.com, which allow consumers to share products to their favorite social media sites. Most of the top ecommerce software solutions offer this to their merchants as part of their hosted or licensed packages. Product videos are another great way to make the online shopping experience more social for your customers, as they can share the videos with their friends on social media sites to get quick feedback on the product, which they will factor into whether or not they want to complete the purchase.

Another option to help with purchase and product sharing comes from TurnTo, who has tools to help with social purchase sharing and social merchandising. When shopping at a site using TurnTo, you can see what other people purchased in your Zip Code, and even see what some of your friends have purchased (if they allowed their data to be shared with their friends). The offering from TurnTo is still evolving in 2011 and should continue to help merchants make their ecommerce site and shopping cart more social.

Live Chat

Many of the best ecommerce solutions include Live Chat as part of their software, as merchants have started to demand that it be included, because it can greatly improve conversion rates. Live Chat helps your site to be more social because customers can chat right away if they have any questions or concerns. Many customers hate calling up ecommerce sites via the phone, so enjoy when they can quickly use Live Chat to get answers right away.

Becoming more social helps to build a better rapport with customers, and will make them feel more comfortable about coming back in the future to make another purchase from your shopping cart.

January 25, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

There are literally hundreds of unique sites that consumers visit to find online coupon codes to use at sites where they want to make a purchase, but there is not a clear leader in the space, as consumers often do not receive consistent results. This means that one week they can find a valid coupon code at site A, but then the following week they have to utilize a different site to find a coupon code. The process of hunting down coupon codes can be tricky, but there are definitely tools and technologies out their which make it easier on the consumer. Examples would be toolbars or a browser add on that only show you when a site you are visiting has a coupon code for you to use, however not all consumers enjoy using these as part of their online shopping experience. Now that 2011 is underway, merchants are examining their coupon code strategy, and many of them are leaning toward social media as one of the premier channels where they want to promote deals for their ecommerce store.

During 2010 there were dozens of online retailers who leveraged social media as the primary channel to communicate exclusive deals to consumers, as it can quickly generate results, and keep consumers coming back to check on what the next great coupon code will be. If you are a consumer that loves finding coupon codes, and already spend part of your day on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, then you might want a few tips on how to improve your hunting skills.

Twitter Tips for Finding Coupon Codes

There are a lot of coupon codes talked about on Twitter, but most of the accounts are only tweeting in hopes you will click on their link so they can make a little money from referring you to the site to make a purchase. The two best ways to utilize Twitter to find the coupon codes you want are with “saved searches” and lists.

When it comes to Twitter lists, you want to add all of your favorite ecommerce sites onto the same list, so when you log into your account each day you can easily see the tweets from them and more quickly find the coupon codes as they appear. It might take a bit of time upfront, but the upfront work will allow you to better track all of the sites you shop at most, so you can save money throughout the year.

If you want to use saved searches, then you should come up with unique queries that matter most to what you like to buy online. One example of a saved search for coupon hunters would be to use the hashtag #couponcode and a keyword of interest like purses, so the saved search would be #couponcode purses. The hashtag query is not required, but it might help you to find more targeted coupon codes.

Facebook Tips for Finding Coupon Codes

Unfortunately it is not too easy to do advanced searches on Facebook, so the easiest way for coupon hunters to find what they want, is to “Like” favorite brands where they hope to use coupon codes in the future. Then they can make the updates from these brands appear in their Facebook feed, and will find out about great coupon codes as they go live. Also it makes it easier to find the coupon codes when looking at Facebook on your mobile phone, as your favorite brand updates now appear in your feed.

January 21, 2011
By the ZippyCart Shopping Cart Reviews Content Team

When merchants decide on an ecommerce software solution to power their online store, they like to review all of the features that are included with the licensed or hosted package they select. While marketing and social media features are important, many merchants are actually more concerned with the storefront features provided. This is an area of concern that often causes merchants to switch ecommerce solutions, as they can get frustrated if their current software lacks key features they need to be successful. Some of the most important areas that merchants focus on when looking at storefront features include reporting, design tools, and product/category management. Additionally they like to have API options to help make them more efficient in the day-to-day management of their online store.

ZippyCart recently published our rankings for the best ecommerce software solutions of 2011, and as part of our new system we have added six individual awards to highlight various aspects that matter most to merchants. One of these awards is Most Extensive Storefront Features, and in determining the top winners we looked at various elements as discussed above. Below are the top three ecommerce solutions to consider when looking for extensive storefront features.

AmeriCommerce: First Place

Not only did AmeriCommerce earn a top spot on ZippyCart’s top ecommerce solutions for 2011, but they also won the individual award for having the Most Extensive Storefront Features. Their software is very customizable, and has a wide array of robust storefront features including remote carting and an excellent API. Overall merchants have been very impressed, in particular LOLmart.com, which raved about the flexibility of their ecommerce solution.

CoreCommerce: Second Place

It is easy to see why CoreCommerce earned second place for having the Most Extensive Storefront Features, as they frequently put out releases to provide their merchants with the tools they desire.  CoreCommerce also ranked as the top rated ecommerce solution on ZippyCart, and won first place for other individual awards including Best Customer Service and Most Innovative. One of the best ways to see all of the storefront features CoreCommerce provides is to try out their software via a free 15 day free trial (no credit card required).

3dcart: Third Place

Merchants often are impressed with 3dcart and feel that it has great overall value based on the solid customer service they provide and features included in their hosted ecommerce solutions. When merchants are looking to switch solutions, they often test out 3dcart via their 15 day free trial, to see how it stacks up compared to their current ecommerce software.