(BuildingWebsiteNews) Selling on the Web? Keep it simple - Globe and Mail

But his business smarts enabled him to parlay that lack of experience into a successful retail scrapbooking store, and then into an online presence that is poised to outsell its bricks-and-mortar sibling. Piette says his biggest online challenge is helping his customers, mainly women in the 25-to-55 age group, feel comfortable doing business over the Net. He says if he can get wary customers to place that first online order, and make them happy with the experience - "if the product they want arrives promptly and they're happy with it and when they realize their credit card isn't compromised" - they will order online again. Online customers don't shop as often as his retail buyers, some of whom drop in weekly, so online sales tend to be for larger orders, he explains. Piette advises small business operators who are considering launching an online presence to advertise and market their online business "as you would a physical location. For entrepreneurs who aren't sure if there's an online market for their product, Patrick Piette, owner of Scrapbooks by Design in Toronto, advises testing the waters by using a generic e-commerce package, such as those offered by eBay and osCommerce, before making a major investment in software. read more

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