This is my journey as an E-commerce Consultant
Shameless Self Promotion (CYT UK)
New eBay Design Offering for 2012 and Girl Geeks in Birmingham!
115 days
On Saturday I decided to go to the launch party for Birmingham Girl Geeks.
It was a unique experience as you are immersed in a room filled with people JUST LIKE YOU.
On my table were business women, photographers working in e-commerce, web designers, social media experts, mobile web designers and even people who had just started at technology companies.
Girl geek meetings are not just for us to let our inner feminist out (men do come too along with their girl geeks) but to understand and provide support, stories and mentoring to each other in a typically male dominated industry.
Denise Jacobs was our first speaker and told a story about her rise to becoming a public speaker, writing a technical book and basically becoming a web diva of extraordinary proportions.
She reminded us to stop beating ourselves up for being female and thinking we can’t progress in this world. She indicated that actually, most of the barriers we feel are self generated and no one will stop us…however male dominated we think the technology industry is.
Us girls of a geek nature also need to shout about what we do. If we are too understated (I suffer from this affliction) and don’t say ‘ Hey, I can do that’ we will never get where we want to be.
We know more than we think we do 
Want to feel inspired? Pop over to youtube: http://youtu.be/FTTj7DWABes
Second up was Karen Strunks from the 4am project – She detailed about using social media to promote her photography at 4am from a insomniacs walk about to a global photography project showing our world at this unique time.
This is Karen’s video (shot by me as I was sitting there): http://youtu.be/v1B18U_KgiY and see our world at 4am on flickr!
Our final speaker was Rachel McCollin taking about mobile web and how she got into the industry from working with the environmental agency.
Her video is here: http://youtu.be/ZzWFCSV365o
So all in all it has inspired me to become more active again, on this blog (and meeting with my fellow girl geeks will give me more content to write again) and also is public speaking. Hey I may even offer to speak at a girl geek event.
IN OTHER NEWS >>>>> (shameless self promotion segment)
A new eBay design offering is hitting the web-o-sphere. A smart phone optimised solution for the SME market with dynamic navigation to die for. Full details will be in the new Tamebay Tools and services guide coming out on the 31st of Jan.
Want a sneak peek of new clients taking advantage of this?
Check out: http://stores.ebay.de/outdoorsportshop24 (still updating hislisting templates), http://stores.ebay.de/HHV-MUSIC (still updating his listing templates) and http://stores.ebay.at/123boerse (who has actually updated his item templates!!)
With a set up fee of 1500 Euros (plus monthly subscription based on volume) this is an ideal solution for eBay sellers.
More info to come of course but if you want to get in touch about this product please contact us via info@widshop.com.
Fresh back from Japan..(ish) and ready for a great 2012
148 days
Well, hisashiburi desu! (it has been a while in Japanese)
I have had a very busy e-commerce 2011. The economy has taken a bashing but online things are still hotting up! The world is our oyster online with the expansion of social commerce and like many sellers looking out to Europe and beyond is the key to success.
This year as been the year for international expansion for my sellers and myself. Most of my eBay clients are moving into France, Germany and the USA as a minimum. Most are going much further.
To stay ahead of the game as always, I am looking into the Asian markets. Strong currency in these countries suddenly makes buying stuff from Europe side cheap and boy is it TRENDY!
While I was in Japan (business and volunteering) I saw that the union jack was EVERYWHERE on clothing, accessories in shops and on the people walking past. It was very surreal.
Language is no longer a barrier. Improvements in translation engines have made things easier.
For a year or two I have bought from Rakuten and Yahoo Auctions Japan (though a shopping service) and each time it gets a bit easier. For instance Japanese sellers are more interested in international trade, probably due to economic conditions in their own countries and better support networks.
So as my clients are expanding in to Europe, Australia and America in the next few years, I will get ready for the expansion east by building relationships, language skills, cultural/business skills and finding sensible solutions.
Oh yeah, and prepare for Widshops…oh yes….eBay design mark deux….
and a picture from my volunteering in Ishinomaki!
Fixing a shrine gate in Onasaki
Onasaki – Rebuilding houses, reflooring, clearing out garbage and putting a shrine gate back up.
Place was completely flooded – government is not restoring electricity and water.
On the way in we passed the shrine at Okawa Elementary School, the team had worked on the clearance of the area so stopped to pay resepect and see the progress – it was completely destroyed, killing 75 of 108 students and 10 of 13 teachers and staff. The teachers and students were evacuating from the school and were swept away by the tsunami while crossing a nearby river bridge.
You could see the part of the bridge ripped out by the tsunami still in the river.
Progression of E-commerce, my own habit changes…
225 days
I have been away for a while. I have been super busy with making sure business are top of their class when it comes to e-commerce….helping them branching out into mobile and social commerce. (as well as develop the basics like eBay/Website)
Social and mobile have changed how I shop. I am normally one of the first on the shopping cart bandwagon as I shop ALL THE TIME and it is one of my favourite pastimes.
Mobile Commerce and the wrath of the eBay iphone app
This revelation has killed my bank balance, eBay has infected my life even more than before – in bed, on the train and even waiting for food as a restaurant the iphone sneaks its way out and I can check eBay. It has some needs, like being able to search a sellers items or more ‘ebay shop’ functionality but it does relieve me of quite a few pounds. I also only shop on amazon via mobile now.
However, if there is no app I am probably not going to buy from you on my mobile. Even the ‘mobile friendly’ versions of e-stores annoy me (but normally I don’t check because they are not the norm yet) and I quite often, switch back to the full site if I can. These smartphone friendly versions have a long way to go before they reach ‘app’ status.
Evils of social commerce
You have to have a facebook page now, if you don’t I forget you exist. Sorry.
Recently we (as in createyourtemplate – disclaimer, I’m pluggin’) designed a facebook page for one of our eBay clients passion4italianfashion and instigated an idea of a weekly competition which involved tagging to get maximum exposure. The account started with around 41 likes and has now grown to over 850 likes with around 80 entries to their competition each week. This page will continue to grow and create brand awareness, keep them in-touch with their customers and grow sales.
Another interesting facebook marketing campaign was spearheaded by a friends company. I love Illamasqua makeup and they did a ‘social sacrifice‘ campaign which in effect you killed all your pictures and you had a set of professional pictures to replace them with Illamasqua makeup-y goodness. As a subscriber to their facebook page I get to know when they are doing promotions as it is an expensive brand so I wait for deals
So, as for shopping habits I have fallen right into mobile and social commerce like a stone. However, quite a few of the people (small/medium businesses) I speak too still don’t think it is anything to worry about or use to their advantage. The managing directors who use sites like Facebook, Groupon or have a smart phone always see differently. They see how they and their families spend money and want a slice of it!
So, get a website, make it social and make it mobile (with an app if you can). Don’t forget the power of social marketing if your demographic fits.
On a side note, I am volunteering in Japan (Ishinomaki) next month and staying with a friend who connects the international kimono community through her facebook page. She has kept us all updated about the real situation and stories from the first shake to her last trip.
Say?nara! Ganbatte!
Createyourtemplate To Sponsor at ChannelAdvisor Catalyst EU Conference
372 days
We (I mean the business ‘we’ as in CYT UK, which is me when I earn money) are a silver sponsor at the 2011 ChannelAdvisor Catalyst EU conference, an e-commerce conference catered to online retailers and industry experts being held 17th-18th May 2011 at the Park Plaza Riverbank Hotel in London.
ChannelAdvisor, a software and services solution provider that enables online retailers to sell more across e-commerce channels, hosts the sell-out event annually. As a sponsor, createyourtemplate will ensure that its message is heard by hundreds of online retail leaders and decision-makers.
We like this event, great food, great people and interesting facts and trends about the obsession we like to call e-commerce! Dang they are having a proper party this year too so I will be out in my kimono! OK, well I will continue the blurb CA sent though so we sponsors could promote the event without having to actually think about what we needed to say, you’d be surprised how busy we get….personalised bits are in italics
Each year Catalyst brings together some of the most innovative minds in the industry—executives, analysts, leading solution providers and other thought-leaders—to discuss current and upcoming trends, exchange best practices and learn about new products and innovations.
This year’s conference theme and programme focus—Accelerate Your E-Commerce—is all about helping attendees boost their online sales.
As a silver sponsor, createyourtemplate will be rocking a stall with sweet sweet eBay design and sugary treats, giving you energy for your invaluable opportunity to connect with a powerful and influential e-commerce community that is growing at an exponential rate and get you searching for solutions to maximise your online business. We are full of information, come and speak to us!
“We are elated by the calibre of the Catalyst EU sponsors this year,” said Scot Wingo, CEO of ChannelAdvisor. “The Catalyst Conference is unique in that we limit sponsorships to ensure quality over quantity. As a result, attendees have the opportunity to interface with relevant industry brands, while sponsors receive the visibility and prominence that enables them to cultivate and strengthen business relationships.”
To register for Catalyst EU today, or for further details, visit: http://www.channeladvisor.com/catalyst/eu/.
However, its sold out so you have to go on a waiting list. Be quicker next time, e-commerce is fast paced you can’t dawdle you know.
See you in London!
Createyourtemplate and Tackle Discounts eBay Shop!
633 days
Tacklediscounts is one of our more recent UK eBay shop launch, so lets have a look at the unique features of this design!
Search is a heavily used feature on eBay so we like to make sure you can get the best out of it. We added some filters for more accurate search for tackle discounts eBay store.
Attribute sorters to help your buyers find what they want quickly and efficiently as well as providing optical guidance for those just browsing. Choosing fishing equipment can be quite complex with many variables and customer are looking for very specific items and ranges.
This is the attribute sorter on the front of Tacklediscounts eBay shop!
Information for buyers is paramount, they want to know certain things like:
- How much is shipping?
- When will I get my item?
- How do I pay?
So we like to make sure we you give this information in various ways, and in popular optical locations on the screen, for example in the sidebar and header.
The header space of the design is great e-real estate, so if you have a great promotion or offer like free shipping like Tackle discounts, well it HAS to be at the top!
Trust is an important factor in any online business, especially eBay. eBay rewards its sellers using the powerseller programme which is being replaced/updated to Top Rated Seller status. Remind your customers of these achievements to increase buyer confidence.
Dynamically cross selling on eBay is essential to increase your buyers cart contents. As your buyers are most likely to find your listings primarily via eBay search, making sure they see the rest of your items is essential.
Below you can see Tacklediscounts up sells hand picked items under ‘you may also like’ as well as from the category and brand. This is located directly under the item description within the template design.
Tacklediscounts has many other great features to boost sales and feature specific items, its best if you see the live store on eBay and check out their listings!
http://stores.shop.ebay.co.uk/TACKLEDISCOUNTS-ultimate-value
