.NET eCommerce Blog

Higher Gas Prices Means More Online Shoppers; eCommerce Rejoices

2008-04-28T22:43:00Z

With the price of gasoline at the pump nearing an average of $4, and with prices expected to soar in the future, shoppers are looking online to make their dog and cat food purchases (or at the very least a gift for Ma on Mothers' Day). While our European friends and customers are already shelling out about $9 a gallon, for us Americans, spending $4 is enough to feel the sting of a deep puncture wound in the pit of our wallets. So for the web savvy, online shopping is bound to go up, according to this study by Harris Interactive and iCongo. About 33% of adults surveyed said that they're more likely to shop online because of higher fuel costs. And with tax rebates expected to arrive for millions of Americans in the coming weeks, over 40% of shoppers intend to spend it according to recent surveys.

Still, most shoppers will still travel to brick and mortar retail stores to buy their goods, especially for groceries, food, and other necessities. But for other must-want items, such as digital devices, driving out to the local Circuit City doesn't sound as enticing as getting free shipping from Amazon.com from the discomfort of their wobbly office chair. And as the cost of living continues to rise, retail sales will likely go down, but eCommerce is likely to pick up this year.

New York Legislators Approve Bill to Levy Online Sales Taxes in State; How Will This Affect eCommerce?

2008-04-17T19:29:00Z

Tax Season is officially over (procrastinators notwithstanding), but those in the e-business know how complicated tax laws can be and ensuring that your eCommerce platform is tax compliant can be a headache of a task (which I will touch on in a future post.) It gets even more complicated when you're dealing with sales tax laws and regulations at a state and local level. However, there is still no national online tax law that requires eCommerce businesses to charge a standard sales tax no matter which state the customer lives in.

But in the case of New York, tax-free online commerce has been thrown out the window, according to dmnews.com. New York legislators approved a bill that would require out-of-state online businesses, such as Amazon.com, to collect sales taxes from packages sent to New York State. All that is left is for Governor David Patterson to sign the dotted line. It remains to be seen whether other states will follow suit--our home state of California attempted to push a bill that would levy online download taxes--but one of the major reasons for growth in eCommerce sales is tax-free purchases. If other states followed the New York example, how will that affect overall eCommerce sales? My prediction is that sales will remain about the same, but growth will stagnate relative to prior years.

What do you think? Drop your two (nontaxable) cents below.

Reduce that Pain in the AJAX with Visual WebGui

2008-04-16T23:55:00Z

I stumbled upon a gem of .NET goodness after perusing my exhaustive list of Google Reader XML feeds. Visual WebGui, as I discovered, is an open source rapid application development framework, or RAD, that is purposely tailored for developers to create enterprise AJAX applications in no time flat--literally cut down your development time about 90 percent. VWG provides seamless integration between Visual Studio, .NET, and "extends" ASP.NET. If you're a developer that's familiar with WinForms and WebForms then you can appreciate VWG for its ease and simplicity. As we mentioned yesterday, Silverlight is slowly gaining ground in the marketplace; VWG also allows you to create Silverlight applications and deploy and integrate them. And since source code is available for VWG, why not get VWG-built apps into the ECF?

As a major time-saver, it looks like WVG will suit the needs of those who need a few AJAX applications out there fast without sacrificing extensibility and scalability.

Silverlight One Year Later; List of Silverlight Resources

2008-04-15T23:30:00Z

Flash rules the web, with 98 percent desktop penetration in developed markets (apparently desktop users in the heart of the Amazon jungle use SVG or something). In response, as Microsoft almost usually does, they released the Silverlight platform publicly last year to compete with the bevy of other rich multimedia development platforms.

Here's a useful list of resources dedicated to Silverlight development and tutorial by "Michael's Blog."

As Silverlight gains more ground, with downloads totaling "one and a half million per day," according to Microsoft officials, expect future ASP.NET eCommerce platforms to add more interactivity and streaming media to help convert users into buyers.

.NET Developer Tutorial: Using LINQ to SQL in ASP.NET

2008-04-11T00:47:00Z

One of the major new features of .NET Framework 3.5 is integration with LINQ (Language Integrated Query), a database querying component for .NET that mimics SQL syntax. LINQ makes it easier to write up code, rather than use Visual Basic or C# for SQL; it was touted by Microsoft PR to be the "No.1 new feature in Visual Studio." In addition, with the release of Microsoft LINQ to SQL, developers can save time and reduce their workload because C# and Visual Basic.NET code is translated in the background into SQL without much fuss.

Stephen Walther of informIT provides a six page tutorial on Microsoft's LINQ to SQL on how to use it to build database-driven ASP.NET applications. According to Walther, LINQ to SQL is a viable alternative for ASP.NET developers.

eCommerce Sales Expected to Grow This Year; Great for .NET eCommerce

2008-04-09T00:39:00Z

Even with worries of a slowing economy, eCommerce sales are expected to grow this year, according to a piece by internetretailer.com. In other words, online retailers don't have much to worry about, which makes eCommerce the "go-to guy" for robust sales--eating away market share from other sales channels. Moreover, eCommerce sales are projected to grow 17 percent this year to the tune of $204 billion. And according to the Forrester Research report, 85 percent of the online shoppers are expected to spend about the same or more for their online purchases. This makes sense, considering traditional brick and mortar retail often requires gasoline expenditures to drive over, a major con for those weary of increasing fuel prices.

An Easy and Effective Email Marketing Strategy Using the ECF

2008-04-07T23:04:00Z

Here at Mediachase, we've been busy hacking away and getting stuff out the door--including this blog (now the number one ".NET eCommerce Blog" on Google--that is, if you search for ".net ecommerce blog"). We also launched our latest version of our .NET Calendar, AJAX Calendar.NET, a completely new and rewritten ASP.NET AJAX based calendar/scheduler solution. Naturally, with any new product launch, we want to sell this baby like hotcakes to lumberjacks. We want to get the word out as quickly and easily as possible and at a low cost. So we first made an announcement on our homepage. Good. Then, we made an announcement through Twitter. Right on. Lastly, we announced AJAX Calendar.NET through our Community Forums. Super.

However, we had the most important marketing tactic at our disposal: the traditional email campaign. It's functionality built right into our own eCommerce platform that we can take full advantage of right then and there. This is a fundamental feature that all major eCommerce platforms should have; it also serves as an effective way to market, aside from the burgeoning growth of blogs, podcasts, and other social commerce buzzwords. And it was so easy, even a baby could do it (granted the baby can navigate through all the menus and folder hierarchy of the Commerce Manager backend). Spending those extra time and effort to sending out an announcement or newsletter to your registered users will greatly benefit sales (and traffic) over time.

Here's the newsletter we sent out last Friday:

Nice and clean, at least from my point of view. Thousands of our registered users were able to receive it over the weekend. This is a fundamental feature that all major eCommerce platforms should have; it also serves as an effective way to market, aside from the burgeoning growth of blogs, podcasts, and other social commerce buzzwords.

Here's how we do it with our current ECF platform.

1. From the backend, navigate to the top and click on Promotions -> Campaigns. The Campaigns page will appear, with a laundry list of past campaigns and promotions.

2. Let's say, you want to send out a new newsletter or promotion: Click on New Campaign. This will take you to the Campaign Info page.

3. Enter the name of the campaign (in my example, "New Product Launches"), the subject heading (i.e. April 2008 Newsletter and Announcements) that will be on the email, and then your HTML code into the content editor. I recommend using an external editor such as Dreamweaver or Expression Web, clicking Source on the content editor menu, and then copying and pasting your HTML code that will serve as the basis for your campaign content. Just be sure to hard link any images that should appear in the email from a public folder on an image server somewhere. Once you're done, save your changes.

4. You will then go back to go the Campaigns page. Go back to the campaign by clicking on its name. You will be treated with a page that looks something like this:

5. You will have the option now to send test emails or, when you're absolutely ready, send Mass Emails. One of the great things about the ECF is the utilization of customer roles. So you can send a mass email to users based on their defined role. All you do is check the appropriate box. If you want to send the newsletter to every single registered user in your ECF, just check "Everyone" and send the out the email. However, fully test your email before sending it out because once you click on "Send Mass Email" and confirm it, it's out in the open. Send test emails internally and make sure to check all links, images, and code to make sure everything is good and kosher, so to speak. You don't want to bite yourself on the bottom when a link doesn't work, an image doesn't appear where it's supposed to, or a bad typo rears its ugly head (for instance, you meant to say .NET, not Java). Once you're ready, hit the big red button. And you're done! You may receive bouncebacks from old registered emails, but all in all, you've launched a simple but effective email marketing campaign, which still has a high ROI, just behind search engine/SEO marketing. We do have a solid user base to market to--and why not use our core technology to do just that?

What do you think? How will email campaigns remain a viable online marketing tactic with the rise of "Commerce 2.0?" Does email marketing functionality in future eCommerce platforms matter as much as they do today? Is our April 2008 newsletter clean and professional? Please leave any comments below.

Retailers Moving Toward Social Commerce; Still Use Traditional Marketing More

2008-04-02T18:55:00Z

With all this talk of social commerce, Twitter, and Web 2.0, online retailers are starting utilize blogs, social marketing, and social networking techniques to sell products, according to a report by internetretailer.com. Retailers are looking to engage customers with greater interactivity, mobile commerce, and richer Internet apps full of "AJAX-y" goodness, which means they're going to spend more money on improving the overall customer experience on the Web.

However, social commerce still takes a back seat to traditional marketing techniques, including email campaigns and search engines. But as the Internet becomes more interactive and robust (Flash, Silverlight, AJAX, .NET), then the trend is likely to continue in the next few years.

Microsoft Pining for Improvements in its Dynamics ERP

2008-04-01T23:40:00Z

Our own ECF product integrates well with Microsoft Dynamics ERP--the beauty of having source code at your fingertips. However, the ECF can also integrate with Oracle and SAP, two vendors Microsoft is currently lagging behind in the enterprise sector. In response, Microsoft is committed to improving the "usability" of its Dynamics ERP with the help of students from IT University of Copenhagen and numerous "AX 2009" beta testers.

And so far, through enough feedback on the Microsoft side, the development team has established Dynamics templates that will cater to a specify industry or job--a part of Microsoft's plan to make everyone in the corporate domain "happy" and satisfied. But even with the built-in templates, customers will still have to customize their ERP. In other words, it's not the total out-of-box solution that everyone wants--at this point.

Visual Studio 2008 and Built-in AJAX Extensions for Web 2.0 Development

2008-03-31T19:59:00Z

With the recent release of our AJAX Calendar.NET component (yes, we do specialize in other stuff as well), and the next version of the ECF using AJAX heavily in the backend, it's good to know that VS 2008 does have built-in support for ASP.NET AJAX without having to download additional extensions like in VS 2005. Once the dev types open VS 2008, they'll notice two new web templates designed to help you build AJAX controls: ASP.NET AJAX Server Control and ASP.NET AJAX Server Control Extender.

Codeproject offers a deep tutorial to get you started on building your AJAX controls into your web applications. This will also give ASP.NET veterans to crash course in AJAX development as the Web and our own products steer toward faster user interactions and snappier interfaces--especially for an end user such as myself who often demands too much.

Using Twitter as an Effective, Simple, and Zero-Cost Online Marketing Tool

2008-03-27T22:43:00Z

I'm a big fan of Twitter, or an addict in some cases. I like to think of it as the pioneer of the micro-blogging platform. You are imposed a limit of 140 characters or less for each "tweet" or post you make, but that's what makes it a joy to use; it forces you to be brief, concise, and engaging without getting too caught up on the words themselves. In essence, you get the message across without all the fat.

So how useful is it for businesses and for social commerce? I say very much so. It won't replace a market agency, a company blog, or online advertisements, but think of it as a supplement to all three. Your message certainly won't reach every single user among the glut of other tweets on the public timeline (or the glut of someone's homepage who's following 600 people), but the potential is there as long as you use it purposefully, consistently, and utilize its own limitations to your advantage. As my old high school math teacher once said, "Know thy limits." Etch that into your mind and you'll be far more successful.

After perusing countless posts on the "uselessfulness" of Twitter (as coined by Scott Hanselman), I thought it'd be a great opportunity to talk about in detail based on what I've discovered based on my personal uses and my extraction of wisdom from the Blogosphere.

1. Effective

It's an effective means of getting your brand out once you reach out to other "Twitterers" and post content that is relevant to their interests--and you'll eventually get them engaged enough to offer feedback to your posts and links. Twitter asks the basic question, "What are you doing?" but don't limit yourself to answering with "Eating a banana while swinging away at Wii Tennis and penning my latest status report." Instead, post a link to your latest blog entry or make a public announcement--to the world--about your latest product release along with a direct link. Chances are, some interested parties will stumble upon it, click through your link, and generate site traffic. As more and more users start following or subscribe to your posts, there are opportunities to engage with them directly using the "@ (username) (message)" feature. But it's very important to do active outreach to other bloggers who use Twitter and build an initial following that way. With Twitter's popularity rising, and media companies such as ESPN and NPR providing daily updates, it's pushing into the mainstream.

2. Simple

For many, its simplicity can be a turn-off. Some other services offer threaded posts or file-sharing for bare-bones online collaboration, but if you're trying to get the word out quick and easy, then Twitter's feature set is all you need. All you do is update, 140 characters or less, and then you're done. Others will see it and if not, they may see your next update. This is not about gimmicks and wizardry--this is about focusing on your target audience and bringing in residuals who like what you say. And since Twitter posts are indexed on major search engines such as Google and Yahoo!, your brand is out there and permanent without worrying about the SEO.

3. Zero-Cost

Literally. Nada, zero, zilch. You signup for free, use Photoshop and get your colors and logos up on your homepage, but other than that, you reach a worldwide audience with little tweaking and setup. For developers, there's open API documentation to implement Twitter into your Web 2.0 commerce sites once the need arises.

The Final Tweet

Just take Twitter for what it is and run with it. Again, it's not meant to replace any of your core communication outlets. Rather, it's another marketing channel you can leverage to spread information quickly and easily with little hassle. And naturally, we here at Mediachase use Twitter. Because it's the hip thing to do.

If you have any other tips or suggestions on how to use Twitter for marketing purposes, feel free to contribute in the comments.

Blooming eCommerce Presence in Latin America as Number of Internet Users Expand

2008-03-25T01:38:00Z

There are yet untapped markets for eCommerce entrepreneurs to stake their claim and Latin America is no exception. For a region known for its relative technological stagnation, Internet penetration in Latin America has grown from 18.1 million to 122.4 million between 2000 and 2007, a far higher growth rate than in North American during those years. Currently, Chile has the highest number of users at 42 percent, with Argentina a close second at 39 percent. Back in 1999, only three percent of the population in Latin America has access to the Internet, a boom in a very short time span.

Companies like MercadoLibre, as highlighted in the story, and other online retailers have an opportunity to capture an immature marketplace--Latin America is ripe for the taking.

ECF 4.1.2 Maintenance Update Released

2008-03-22T00:17:00Z

We’ve released our latest maintenance update for ECF 4.1. The 4.1.2 update is free for current users. Here is the laundry list of bugs squashed and improvements made in the latest release since 4.1.1:

FIX: Multiple Shipping Options showing up
FIX: Category template not displaying products
FIX: Context.Session not getting initialized
FIX: New MetaDataPlus - product data is not being saved because serialization was not set
FIX: Statistics - Geographics not working
FIX: Deployment licenses - counts active + inactive products
FIX: New ProductSearchByAdvancedFilter script
FIX: Image is null - new sql script + MetaDataPlus
FIX: Statistics upgrade script
FIX: When trying to delete a product that is in someone's shopping cart, a friendly message is not displayed
FIX: Updated version of the DAL.vbgen
FIX: New DatabaseSchema_Tables script to have ECF run on SQL2000
FIX: Logout does not fully clean up ClientContext.Context
FIX: Issue with Stock Quantity
FIX: When "Size" is not checked, no warning message pops up and defaults to a particular size
FIX: Discounts do not accept partial values like 7.5 %
FIX: When deleting Page metafields don't clear
FIX: Values of metafields are not transferred during page copy
FIX: Timeout when duplicating product in admin
FIX: Geographic stats not showing up in reporting - run Stat_ECF4.1.2_upgrade_ip-to-country.sql from migrate folder
FIX: Change of parameter value to "True" in ClientHelper.GetAttributeByName in BindProductOptionControls of the Purchase module

Resources to Get You Started

2008-03-21T20:11:00Z

Whether you're a seasoned .NET developer or a layman who couldn't write "Hello World" even if your life depended on it, here are a few blogs and resources related to .NET and eCommerce our own crack team of developers visit, read, and digest.

dotnetslackers.com - Aggregated list of .NET-related blogs, a great resource for developers

ASP.NET Weblogs - List of blogs focused on ASP.NET

iknowthe.net - Internet and eCommerce consulting blog

Taming the Beast - eCommerce and Marketing blog

Scott Hanselman's Computerzen.com - Developer-focused blog hosted by Scott Hanselman, Senior Program Manager at Microsoft

invespBlog - "Marketing and Conversion Optimization Blog"

Got any favorite eCommerce or .NET blogs or sites to share? Share them on the comments below.

Strong eCommerce Sales Last Quarter

2008-03-19T21:30:00Z

Overall eCommerce sales were healthy last quarter, even with speculation of a slowing economy, according to the US Department of Commerce. In the fourth quarter of last year, the total estimate of eCommerce sales in the US was $36.2 billion, up about 4.6 percent from the previous quarter. Even better, 2007 fourth quarter sales went up about 18 percent from 2006 fourth quarter sales. For the year, 2007 saw $136.4 billion dollars in total sales in eCommerce trading, an increase of 19 percent from the previous year. However, eCommerce sales only made up a small percentage of total retail sales, about 3.4 percent--an increase of .5 percent from 2006.

It remains to be seen how sales for this quarter will turn out, but last quarter benefited from the usual hustle and bustle of the Christmas shopping season. What does seem likely, however, is that eCommerce sales may remain steady this quarter with the higher cost of fuel and the added benefit for the consumer to use the Internet to make more informed purchasing decisions.