I just added a great new feature to my website- Printable coupons. This is a new built-in easy to use feature on Webstorenow. There are many custom coupon designs to choose from which allow you to just add you own text. Presto- you have an instant coupon and it's super easy!
My new coupon is for 10% off any jewelry purchase online (coupon code fallsave10) or from my Wear Me Jewels booth (Eugene Saturday Market). I will also be at the Mushroom Festival (Mt. Pisgah Arboretum- South or Springfield, OR) this Sunday from 10-5pm.
Police what traffic gets counted : Google Analytics- Part 2
Well, I've officially signed up with Google Analytics and find myself fighting the tendency to pour over the statistical overload of numerical info like a nerd with a pocket protector. The first thing that I noticed is that a lot of the traffic to my site was from..... me? Hmmm...... I'm pretty sure that no good will come of that. So, that leads us to the next Google Analytics installment - excluding yourself or any other website that you do not want counted from your visitor and bounce statistics. After all, if you are going to analyze this preponderance of numerical craziness, you might as well be working with good data. Here's what you need to do:
1. Log onto your Google Analytics account and click on the filter manager (bottom, right hand corner). In addition to filtering out your own site from google stats, you can customize the way data is displayed on reports.
2. On the right hand side of that dark grey header - click "+add filter".
3. Now on filter type- click exclude all traffic from an IP address. Don't know your IP address? Find out at Anonymouse.
4. This should add your website(s)- click add. This will add them to the box on the right (selected website profiles). Then click save changes! Your're done!!
Bounce rate- What's that???
One of my goals in 2009 is to understand, track, and improve traffic to my various websites. One of the tools that I will use to do this is Google Analytics (a very powerful and free tool from Google). My first step in this venture was to sign up (yesterday) and get the ball rolling. I have been tracking traffic with hitslink but wanted to try out this more powerful tool. I have to say that it is a bit overwhelming at first. My first question, was what exactly is this "bounce rate"? Mine says 81% for the first day, that must be good right? Yikes, was that ever wrong. The bounce rate is basically all of those Attention Deficit Disorder people (you know you are one) who click on a site and click off within 10 seconds or less. So you could say the bounce rate is your abandon rate, your "nope, not interested" rate.
This is a very basic yet powerful metric to look at when analyzing your site. Once a visitor lands on one of your pages the clock starts ticking. You have only a few seconds to get their attention and convince them to stay on your site. How can you do that? What are the steps you need to take to change your bounce rate from a high percentage to a lower one? Those are a few of the questions that I will be exploring and discussing in future posts. Stay tuned!
Jewelry Business Tip:
I've been spending so much time printing out earring cards, cutting them, and needed something that was easier and more efficient. I came across an idea from another jewelry designer to have the earring cards printed as business cards from Vista Print. It was really inexpensive and works wonderfully. All you need to do is take your earring card design and upload it into their business card design program and flip it so the design is vertical vs. horizontal. If you need help coming up with a design for your cards there are lots of designers on Etsy who would design one for you for a good price. I used For Keeps, a graphic designer on Etsy that was great to work with and will customize a card to your business style. I had my cards printed with a matte finish so that I could write on the front. However, glossy would look fabulous and isn't that much more expensive. You could even have some info about your components or how you design your jewelry printed on the back. Don't forget your web address! This is a great place to advertise your website. If you need a website, I'd recommend Web Store Now (very easy to use, economical, and all-inclusive).
If you are going to sell products on the web you inevitably find that you can have the greatest website, blog, or products but unless you can drive traffic to your site, your products can remain an undiscovered treasure. I recommend a three prong approach. The first thing every business needs is a place for potential customers to view and/or purchase your products. If you sell you jewelry, for instance, at craft fairs or other venues, a web presence will make you look more professional and provide a way for people to shop your product from anywhere in the world. You can use a great site builder like Web Store Now to easily create an affordable and professional full e-commerce site yourself or have it built for you for a small investment.
The second thing that I would recommend is to create a blog. A blog is a great way to promote your site, increase traffic to your site, and catalog useful information pertaining to your products. Your blog should be business oriented and interesting, but not be about the recent tricks you just taught your dog. If you want a personal blog, create a different blog and use it for that purpose.
I recommend a site called Blogger Buster for some great tips and templates to create a fabulous looking blog.
The third suggestion is to start a store on a site like Etsy. It is free except your listing/selling fees, which are very low. Many people just have an Etsy site but doing that does limit the customers that you will have. A customer must be a member of Etsy to purchase and typically must use PayPal. Having both Etsy and a website allows you more flexibility. Your website can be very customized and have any information that you wish, whereas Etsy only allows a short profile and intro. Your website also allows you to have a domain name like www.mystore.com and email accounts (yourname@mystore.com) that are specific to your site. Having all three of these resources provides a well rounded way to drive traffic to your site and different mediums to get out the word about how great your products are and why your customer can't live without them. Best of luck with your business!!
Pixel Cafe offers a large selection of custom graphics for your header, avatar, etc.. The great thing about this shop is that Pixel Cafe will incorporate your business name and theme providing you with a unique and custom look.
In her profile the owner of Pixel Cafe describes her shop and design style. She says, "I am a full time graphic designer and design everything from avatars to web design and just about everything in between. My tastes are a little bit more modern/contemporary. I love vintage and retro styles."
That definitely sounds right up my ally. I love the fun, whimsical, floral, and vintage style of Pixel Cafe. Visit Pixel Cafe at: http://www.pixelcafe.etsy.com
So you're ready to put your business on the internet, to take advantage of the In less than five minutes you can have a website for your business or personal site live on the internet. Many people just like you have used WebStoreNow to build professional websites, complete with web pages, photo albums, email, links and more without ever having built a website before. I'm a jewelry designer (my husband is a software engineer) and wanted to create a site that would make it easy for fellow art and craft business people to have the benefits of a website without the hassle and need to be a web designer.You can check it out for a ten day free trial at : http://www.webstorenow.com
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