Article Categories

SiteProNews Blogs

New Rules for E-commerce – – A SPN Exclusive Article Part 4

12 2011 Friday

By Victor Arcuri in Ecommerce

spn_exclusive When the Internet was conceived, it was developed as an ‘information highway.’ It has evolved into an e-commerce solution that is a mandatory component for every business. However, the Rules of E-commerce have changed.

In this article we introduce the new rules and how they impact Web Hosting Companies.
• In Part 1, we discussed how the new rules impact consumers.
• In Part 2, we discussed how the new rules impact online merchants.
• In Part 3, we discussed how the new rules impact shopping cart software developers.
• In Part 5 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone application developers.
• In Part 6 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone banking applications.

How the PPOS Operates

The new PPOS is not a storage device, but rather a payment application. None of the data entered on the application is saved or stored within the application. All saved and stored data resides in a cloud computing service, which is usually owned and operated by the bank or the company that issued the credit cards.

Consumers concerned about identity theft need to know that the new digital wallets equipped with a PPOS are guaranteed to protect your identity. The safest place to store your credit card details is with the bank or institution that issues your credit card. The second safest place to store your profile and card data is in one of the cloud computing services designed specifically for that purpose. After all, they already have this information.

When the PPOS is initially launched, you are presented with data collection forms to create your profile and enter your card details. The submit function uploads the profile to the gateway server that encrypts the data, returns an unlock key, and then stores the encrypted file with the appropriate cloud. The returned unlock key is stored within the PPOS, along with a description of the card, but not the card details. For example, the stored description might read Capital One MC Platinum.

Web Hosting Developers

It is estimated that less than 40 per cent of merchants who accept credit cards have an e-commerce enabled website. The new rules for e-commerce mean there will no longer be a requirement for these merchants to purchase SSL Certificates, pay for PCI compliance, or install extra security to protect stored data. There is an extensive list of cost savings.

When merchants learn of these new rules, the reductions in cost, discount rates, incidents of chargebacks, and the lowered incidents of fraud, they will want to enable e-commerce on existing sites and launch new or first time websites.

As the PPOS gains acceptance, there will be a heavy demand from merchants for specific smartphone applications that allow merchants more detailed communications with the consumer. Interactive smartphone applications will become the norm, attracting merchants to launch or upgrade their e-commerce websites.

Businesses offering services related to web hosting will now have an opportunity to be an exclusive supplier of new services, which will help build their businesses.

We are inviting web hosting businesses to partner with us in the promotion of our services to their clients. As a reseller they will earn a minimum of $20 per merchant per month. In addition, we will provide full administration services.

If you want to learn more about our reseller program, click Resellers.

Other Requirements

As the PPOS gains acceptance, there will be a heavy demand from merchants for specific smartphone applications, which will allow merchants more detailed communication with the consumer. Interactive smartphone applications will become the norm.

The same XML file can then be tied to smartphone applications specific to the needs of the merchant. We believe the shopping cart suppliers will be the ideal developers of these new applications, and as such we have a separate API that may be built into these new applications.

Income Opportunities

A limited number of web hosting companies and developers are being invited to participate as part of the launch of these new services. It has been estimated that, during 2012, only 35% of existing e-merchants will convert their shopping cart applications to accept online payments via the PPOS. However, this represents over 100,000 web sites.

Summary

The digital wallet will protect the cardholder’s identity and will provide a new and convenient way to make purchases, both online and on multiple hardware platforms.

The PPOS will be a welcome solution for merchants who wish to save costs on card-not-present sales, chargebacks and fraud attempts. With its ease of implementation for merchants and the inherent acceptance by consumers, merchants will benefit by using the PPOS.

Victor Arcuri is a Canadian businessman who, for greater than 10 years, has operated CQRPAY, Inc., a secure gateway for credit card processing for Internet-based merchants. Our independent gateway service is unique in that it is the only application that connects to every merchant account provider and every bank in Canada and the USA.

Our platform enables merchants to use the service regardless of any affiliation they may enjoy with a merchant account provider, bank, POS device supplier or shopping cart software developer.

We invite your questions by phone 403-234-0844 or e-mail.

For more information visit: CQRp@y.com.

New Rules for E-commerce – A SPN Exclusive Article Part 3

12 2011 Wednesday

By Victor Arcuri in Ecommerce

In this article we introduce the new rules and how they impact shopping cart developers.

• In Part 1, we discussed how the new rules impact consumers.
• In Part 2 we discussed how the new rules impact online merchants.
• In Part 4 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone application developers.
• In Part 5 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone application developers.
• In Part 6 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone banking applications.

How the PPOS Operates

The introduction of this new technology means that shopping cart developers will need to revise their applications. The new model of shopping carts provides merchants with an enhanced level of security. We have developed a complete set of API’s to satisfy all vendors. In summary, here is an overview of how the PPOS processes online purchases.

When the consumer selects the CQRpay button:

1. The shopping cart software generates and uploads to the processing gateway a file containing the merchant identification as well as the invoice details.
2. The shopping cart software receives confirmation from the gateway that the transaction was received, displays a transaction number, and then closes the invoice.

At this point the merchant has an open unpaid invoice with no knowledge of the consumer’s identity.

3. The consumer then opens the PPOS and retrieves the transaction number.
4. The PPOS displays the identity of the merchant, the invoice number and the invoice details as well as a number of payment options.
5. The consumer selects the payment option and processes the payment.

Once the transaction is processed:

6. The PPOS will display the authorization number and save a record of the transaction.
7. The gateway then sends the authorization to the merchant to complete the transaction.
8. The merchant then sends an e-mail confirmation to the consumer.

The same file, passed to the transaction processor, can also be read by smartphone applications specific to the needs of the merchant. The invoice file passed to the consumer at the time of purchase can include a variety of additional information, including the ability to alert the consumer of up coming events, specials, coupon offers, etc.

If you would like a copy of the developer’s API for shopping carts, click Cart Developers.

Other Requirements

The same file can then be tied to smartphone applications specific to the needs of the merchant. We believe the shopping cart suppliers will be the ideal developers of these new applications, and as such we have a separate API that may be built into these new applications.
Income Opportunities

Once we launch our PPOS application, shopping cart developers who install our API will have about a one year window of exclusivity before their competitors launch a competitive product.

Summary

The digital wallet will protect the cardholder’s identity and will provide a new and convenient way to make purchases, both online and on multiple hardware platforms.

The PPOS digital wallet will be a welcome solution for merchants who wish to save costs on card-not-present sales, chargebacks and fraud attempts. With its ease of implementation for merchants and the inherent acceptance by consumers, merchants will benefit by using CQRPay.

The CQRPay PPOS digital wallet will become the distinct leader and will set the standard in digital wallet technology by meeting the security needs of cardholders, merchants, and card issuers.

Our platform enables merchants to use the service regardless of any affiliation they may enjoy with a merchant account provider, bank, POS device supplier or shopping cart software developer.

We invite your questions by phone 403-234-0844 or e-mail.

For more information visit: CQRp@y.com.

FTC Seeks to Regulate Online Merchants With Proposed Changes to Mail Order Rule

12 2011 Monday

By Chip Cooper in Ecommerce

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is proposing amendments to the Mail Order Rule that would result in its regulation of all sales made over the Internet regardless of how a buyer might initiate the purchase.

If you’re an online merchant, the ramifications are significant.

The Mail Order Rule

The Mail Order Rule (Rule), actually The Mail or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule, was issued in 1975 and later updated in 1993 for purposes of clarifying a merchant’s obligations regarding shipment of merchandise. The FTC passed the Rule to force merchants to consider and state the time of shipment, or at least to ship within 30 days. That’s why the Rule is often referred to as the “30-Day Rule.”

Under the current Rule, a merchant must have a reasonable basis to expect that they can ship merchandise within he time frame advertised, or at least within 30 days of the sale. If the merchant is not able to ship within the time frame originally promised, or within 30 days if no time frame is promised, the merchant is required to get the customer’s consent to a later ship date or refund the purchase price.

The Rule originally covered mail order and telephone sales. In the early days of the commercialization of the Internet the Rule arguably covered online sales because dial-up modems using telephone lines were construed to be telephone sales. Fast forward to today, and the widespread use of high-speed broadband connections has cast doubt on the applicability of the Rule to most online sales.

The Proposed Changes

Concerned that their regulatory authority over online sales has been compromised by changing technology, the FTC recently proposed 4 changes to the Rule by:

* explicitly stating that it covers all sales placed over the Internet regardless of how the purchaser accesses the Internet;

* allowing merchants to provide refund notices and refunds to purchasers “by any means at least as fast and reliable as first-class mail” which could include notices by courier or email and refunds by electronic funds transfer (the current rule requires that refund notices be sent by first class mail);

* expanding the list of covered payment methods to cover debit cards, prepaid gift cards, and online payment services in general; and

* shortening the maximum allowable refund time to 7 working days for third party credit card purchases, and 1 billing cycle for the merchant’s own credit card sales.

Conclusion

The FTC argues that the “proposed amendments are necessary to remedying unfair and deceptive acts or practices and ensuring that buyers receive timely delivery or timely refunds.”

If you’re an online merchant, it’s recommended that you review your shipping policies and procedures now to make sure they are meeting the proposed new requirements, particularly regarding refunds for credit card purchases to be made within the 7 day limitation.

This article is provided for educational and informative purposes only. This information does not constitute legal advice, and should not be construed as such.

Protect your website and your business with near-custom Website Legal Documents. One size doesn’t fit all. Leading Internet and SaaS Attorney Chip Cooper’s “done for you” online legal documents service does all the work for you. No special knowledge required -
http://www.digicontracts.com/whichdocs/.

New Rules for E-commerce – A SPN Exclusive Article Part 2

12 2011 Monday

By Victor Arcuri in Ecommerce

ecommerce When the Internet was conceived, it was developed as an ‘information highway.’ It has evolved into an e-commerce solution that is a mandatory component for every business. However, the Rules of E-commerce have changed.

In this article we introduce the new rules and how they impact online Merchants.

• In Part 1, we discussed how the new rules impact consumers.
• In Part 3 we will discuss how the new rules impact web hosting companies.
• In Part 4 we will discuss how the new rules impact shopping cart developers.
• In Part 5 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone application developers.
• In Part 6 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone banking applications.

How the PPOS Operates

New Rules Protect Merchants

The prime concern of all online merchants is cost. The PPOS will be treated as a card-present sale, so its use will reduce discount rates, lower incidents of charge backs and help to fight fraud. In addition, merchants will no longer need to purchase SSL Certificates, additional firewalls, or secure Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance. The average online merchant, with 150 transactions per month at $86 each, will save over $2000 per year.

Once implemented, the PPOS will be the basic building block for the further enhancement of a merchant’s advertising and marketing efforts, as more merchants turn to the deployment of smartphone applications tied to the PPOS to promote sales and build customer loyalty.

In summary, here is an overview of how the PPOS processes online purchases. A consumer visits a website, selects the items he/she wants to purchase and adds the items to the shopping cart. When the consumer selects the check out feature, he/she proceeds to the payment area of the website where he/she is presented with a number of payment options.

When the consumer selects the CQRpay button:

1. The shopping cart software generates and uploads to the processing gateway, a file containing the merchant identification, as well as the invoice details.
2. The shopping cart software receives confirmation from the gateway that the transaction was received, displays a transaction number, and then closes the invoice.

At this point the merchant has an open unpaid invoice with no knowledge of the consumer’s identity.

3. The consumer then opens the PPOS and retrieves the transaction number.
4. The PPOS displays the identity of the merchant, the invoice number and the invoice details, as well as a number of payment options.
5. The consumer selects the payment option and processes the payment.

Once the transaction is processed:

6. The PPOS displays the authorization number and saves a record of the transaction.
7. The gateway then sends the authorization to the merchant to complete the transaction.
8. The merchant may choose to send an e-mail confirmation to the consumer.

The same file, passed to the transaction processor, can also be read by the smartphone application specific to the needs of the merchant. For example, consider how a hypothetical grocery chain might take advantage of the methodology employed with the PPOS. Assume the retailer provides a smartphone application and offers a loyalty card. The invoice file passed to the consumer at the time of purchase could include additional information, including the ability to alert consumers of upcoming events, specials, coupon offers, etc.

Let us assume this grocer includes a meal planner as part of their smartphone application. The consumer can plan meals for the week, select main course items based on the grocer’s advertised specials, and receive suggestions regarding additional ingredients such as seasonings, vegetables for the meal, etc. The app may then offer recipes, appetizer suggestions, beverages to include, and perhaps a dessert selection. Over time, the app could track shopping habits and remind the consumer of purchases made in the past, such as milk or sugar, or whatever the household has purchased on a regular basis.

To register as a merchant and to download the application programming interface (API), click HERE.

Summary

The digital wallet will protect the cardholder’s identity and will provide a new and convenient way to make purchases, both online and on multiple hardware platforms.

Our platform enables merchants to use the service regardless of any affiliation they may enjoy with a merchant account provider, bank, POS device supplier or shopping cart software developer.

We invite your questions by phone 403-234-0844 or e-mail.

For more information visit: CQRp@y.com.

New Rules for E-commerce – An Exclusive SPN Article – Part One

11 2011 Wednesday

By Victor Arcuri in Ecommerce

ecommerce When the Internet was conceived, it was developed as an ‘information highway.’ It has evolved into an e-commerce solution that is a mandatory component for every business.

In this article we introduce the new rules and how they impact consumers.
• In Part 2 we will discuss how the new rules impact online merchants.
• In Part 3 we will discuss how the new rules impact web hosting companies.
• In Part 4 we will discuss how the new rules impact shopping cart developers.
• In Part 5 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone application developers.
• In Part 6 we will discuss how the new rules impact smart phone banking applications.

E-commerce Rules Have Changed

In September 2011, both Visa® and MasterCard® launched their own digital wallets as mobile payment (m-payment) applications for smartphones equipped with NFC chips. With the introduction of these two applications, the rules of e-commerce have forever changed for both the bricks and mortar retailers and online merchants.

On the surface there does not appear to be a real advantage for bricks and mortar retailers to adopt the new hardware required to be installed at the cash register. However, there are significant advantages to the online merchants and the businesses that offer online sales.

The new digital wallets (DW`s) will be a complete m-payment solution. They will not only provide all the functions of existing retail Point of Sale devices, but will also provide several new levels of security and identity protection. In the future there will be hundreds if not thousands of DW`s offered to consumers by not only Banks but also Major Retailers.

In summary all DW`s will consist of two components. The front end will be the Bank or retailers smart phone application and the back end will be the payment side consisting of the new NFC or QR codes for payment at the retail counter and a fully functioning Personal Point of Sale devices (PPOS) for payments online via an e-commerce enabled web site.

This article discusses the new rules for e-commerce and the performance of the PPOS.

Initially, the PPOS is being deployed to interact with e-commerce enabled websites. The shopping cart applications will no longer ask for any information from the consumer. The software will simply generate a transaction number that will be pasted into the PPOS.

How the PPOS Operates

New Rules Protect Consumers

Doing business online can be an alarming situation for both merchants and consumers. Merchants are concerned about fraud, chargebacks, high discount rates, and being sued if someone steals data from them. Consumers are concerned about identity theft.

It seems to us, the solution to both problems is the same. The consumer never gives the merchant any data that can be stolen. In reality, the merchant never needs the consumer’s identity or card details. The merchant only needs confirmation the credit or debit card was approved. If that is all the merchant needs, then why does current shopping cart software ask for so much more information that could be deemed to be confidential?

The new PPOS will guarantee:

1. The User is, in fact, the owner of the PPOS.
2. The Merchant is, in fact, the operator of the website and duly accredited.
3. The Service works with every merchant account provider.
4. The Service operates across all web-based applications that accept credit cards.
5. The Service will work with an ever-growing collection of smartphone applications.
6. The Data collected within the PPOS is not saved on the application but with a secure cloud.
7. The off-site data storage facility, or facilities, allows for data retrieval in the event the smartphone is ever lost or stolen.

When the time comes to make a purchase, the consumer simply enters the transaction number and selects the card description. The PPOS uploads these two pieces of data, along with the unlock key, to the gateway processor. The processor then retrieves the card details from the cloud and processes the transaction.

These security features and the employed methodology of the PPOS guarantees that confidential information of the consumer is never revealed to the merchant, and thus can never be saved, stored or compromised.

The new PPOS is a smartphone application that will be introduced in three versions. The first application is for older model smartphones which do not have forward facing cameras. The second is an application for newer model smartphones with forward facing cameras. This application will employ facial recognition software to confirm the owner of the PPOS. Third is a desktop application that will also employ facial recognition software to confirm the owner of the PPOS.
Summary

The digital wallet will protect the cardholder’s identity and will provide a new and convenient way to make purchases, both online and on multiple hardware platforms.

The PPOS equipped DW’s will be a welcome solution for merchants who wish to save costs on card-not-present sales, chargebacks and fraud attempts. With its ease of implementation for merchants and the inherent acceptance by consumers, merchants will benefit extensively.

The PPOS equipped DW’s will become the distinct leader and will set the standard in digital wallet technology by meeting the security needs of cardholders, merchants, and card issuers.

Our platform enables merchants to use the service regardless of any affiliation they may enjoy with a merchant account provider, bank, POS device supplier or shopping cart software developer.

We invite your questions by phone 403-234-0844 or e-mail.

For more information visit: CQRp@y.com.

Seo Friendly E Commerce: Is Your Ecommerce Software SEO Friendly? – A SPN Exclusive Article

10 2011 Monday

By Andrea Berretti in Ecommerce

spn_exclusive Everybody agrees that ecommerce software is invaluable in any online business. However it can even be more useful to you if it is SEO (search engine optimization) friendly.

And that is one of the reasons why it is very important for you to find out whether your ecommerce software is capable of attracting traffic from popular search engines like Google, or not.

These days we have lots of ecommerce software on the market. Some of it costs a fortune while we even have free software or at least where you can use it for free on a trial basis of 30 days. Sadly most entrepreneurs who purchase this software are just concerned that the very basic functions work. We are talking about functions like the shopping cart and ability to process credit card payments online. Once they satisfy themselves that the software can achieve these basic requirements then they are completely happy about their ecommerce software and will never raise any other questions.

However they miss the point completely. The most important function in your ecommerce software is its’ ability to allow your pages to attract valuable targeted traffic from search engines. How else will you be able to achieve and sustain a high volume of prospects landing on your web pages? Like any other business, online enterprise is a numbers game. Meaning that the more people who land on your pages, the higher the number of those who will ultimately purchase something from you.

Being SEO friendly starts with your URLs. You will have a huge advantage if your urls can be keyword filled so as to boost you rankings with search engines. Improving your rankings will obviously increase the targeted traffic landing on your pages directly from search engines.

The shopping cart is also very important.. Most ecommerce software packages use query string parameters to display all products through a single page. This is disastrous as far as search engine traffic goes. For starters it dramatically limits your Google rankings and indeed rankings with other leading search engines. What you need is ecommerce software that includes relevant keyword text in the separate product pages generated.

Ecommerce software that is SEO friendly should be able to automatically generate page titles, meta tags alt text and URL of every page that ensures the best search engine placement. It should also allow you to skip automatic settings. This is the best environment for SEO to thrive and win you ecommerce site valuable traffic directly from search engines. Equally important a function should be an ability to “remove” long control names in the HTML mark up. What this does is that it usually results in a higher keyword to mark up ratio which will definitely impact negatively on your SEO and traffic from search engines.

Many online entrepreneurs have experienced the horror of suddenly losing all their traffic. The reason being that Google will always drop all existing links if visitors receive a 404 File not found error when they try and access your pages. You need ecommerce software that allows for easy re-directs.

Andrea Berretti – Marketing Manager of eBizzers International. www.ebizzers.net. Taking the trouble to ensure that ecommerce software is SEO friendly is definitely worth the trouble. Try eBizzers Cart for free 30 days, your new Seo friendly E-commerce solution at www.ebizzers.net

3 SEO Tidbits Every Ecommerce Site Should Know – A SPN Exclusive Article

07 2011 Wednesday

By Chris Warren in Ecommerce

Ecommerce webmasters face unique problems when trying to optimize their sites for SEO. The standard logic behind listing products on the web is often in conflict with current SEO best practices. To make it even worse, it is generally much harder to change the structure of a site that has hundreds or thousands of categories and product pages even when it is clear a change could provide a great benefit. Due to this unique nature, ecommerce sites have different priorities as compared to other SEO campaigns.

Pay It Forward

A common situation in ecommerce is that a site owner learns that their site is in violation of some SEO logic and wants to solve the problem immediately. A few examples would be poorly written or generated title tags, long URLs and messy site structure.

Most ecommerce owners will likely have run into at least one of these issues and figuring out how to proceed from that point on is critical. If your URLs are too long you cannot simply shorten them, 301 redirect the old pages and hope for the best. That might result in a significant loss in link juice that outweighs the benefit you receive from shorter URLs. It is important to realize that you cannot transform your site overnight so create a plan of attack with an understanding that you do not want to undercut your current traffic.

The best plan in this example would be to have shorter URLs on newly created pages and test out redirecting a small sample of pages to see if there is a potential benefit. It is critical to remember that your competitors are in the same boat as they do not have perfectly optimized sites either. Think about how to use your discovery to create an advantage in the future. If you are already ranking and getting organic traffic this means you are in contention so executing a forward moving plan can result in sizable advantages.

Get It Indexed

It might seem obvious that indexing your content is important, but for large ecommerce sites this should be one of your primary concerns. Ecommerce sites often struggle to get links pointing at their product pages, so ranking these pages for less competitive longtail keywords is an essential source of highly targeted traffic. Take a look at your Google Webmaster Tools account under the sitemaps section (assuming you have submitted sitemaps!), and see the ratio of URLs you have submitted to the URLs showing up in Google’s web index. I highly recommend having separate sitemaps for different sections of your site as this will reveal more information than a single sitemap if one section is underperforming. In doing so you will have a basis to compare against which will aid in identifying the causes of the indexation problems.

Another critical aspect of getting pages indexed is to understand that not every page on your website is created equal. Google typically will index by crawling the pages with the most link juice and navigate outwards via links from that page. In most cases this is going to be the homepage so the pages you choose to link from there should be your most important. A common mistake for a large ecommerce site is to link to just the main categories or to be linking to too many pages. You want to use your homepage’s link juice to highlight the best pages on your site and this often may not be your main categories.

Furthermore, the closer a page is to a well linked page on your site the better the chance it gets indexed and ranks well. This means you will want to be linking those pages from your homepage and be cognizant of how your site structure prioritizes your pages in Google’s eyes.

Site Wide Improvements

As mentioned earlier the difficulty in managing SEO for an ecommerce site is often caused by the breadth of the categories and products already on the site. However, this can actually be a strength when you are able to make a small improvement that will have a site wide effect. Increasing your site’s overall rankings by 5% could increase your traffic exponentially higher than 5% because of the mechanics of how people click on search engine results pages (higher results get the majority of clicks). Things like improving your site’s loading time or getting some extra backlinks are massive opportunities for ecommerce sites to receive an across the board boost to their rankings. As Google moves towards supporting strong brands, the benefits of this kind of improvement cannot be understated. A trusted site will often rank competitive words simply on the strength of their domain and these branding benefits will likely be even greater in the future.

While ecommerce sites do present uncommon challenges when embarking on an SEO campaign, understanding the nuances is an area where large opportunities still exist. Because SEO for ecommerce has an added degree of complexity, it is a great barrier to help you differentiate from your competition making it all the more worthwhile.

Chris Warren is a web content specialist for www.batteriesinaflash.com an ecommerce store for batteries, chargers, solar panels and accessories. Follow him on twitter @BIAFgreen.

How The Current Sales Tax War Involving Amazon May Affect All Ecommerce Websites

04 2011 Monday

By Chip Cooper in Ecommerce

ecommerce Amazon.com and big box retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target are locked in an all-out war over the collection of sales taxes. And cash-strapped states are also backing changes in sales tax laws in more than a dozen states.

While small ecommerce websites are relegated to observe the struggle from the sidelines, the impact of these changes on them could be huge.

Background – Sales Taxes v. Use Taxes

For starters, regarding sales taxes, the general rule is that a state may tax goods sold within its borders to the extent permitted under the U.S. Constitution. Sales taxes are collected by sellers on the sale of tangible property within the seller’s state. So, for example, a consumer in California who buys a widget from a local retailer pays a sales tax that is collected by the retailer.

Use taxes compliment a state’s sales tax and are imposed so that a consumer would theoretically have nothing to gain by shopping out-of-state. It works like this: in the above example, if the consumer purchases the widget out-of-state (say from online retailer in New York), he/she would be liable to pay a use tax on the purchase at the same tax rate as if the purchase had been from a California retailer.

The catch is that while sales taxes are mandated to be collected by retailers, use taxes are imposed directly on consumers, and most do not report and pay a use tax on out-of-state purchases. The result: states lose significant tax revenues on out-of-state purchases of tangible goods. Because individuals generally fail to pay use taxes, states have sought to find ways to impose a sales tax collection burden on the out-of-state retailer.

In 1992, the US Supreme Court ruled that states could only require out-of-state retailers to collect a sales tax if they have a “nexus” (i.e. a physical presence) in the state. The Supreme Court reasoned that the current patchwork of approximately 7,500 taxing jurisdictions in the United States is so complex that it would place an unreasonable burden on out-of-state retailers to charge and collect sales taxes.

Should Online Retailers Have to Charge Sales Tax?

The current battle focuses on what constitutes “nexus”, which the big box retailers and various states want to expand from a merely a physical presence in a state to states in which a website has marketing affiliates (even though they do not have a physical presence).

One example is Illinois which recently passed a new law that requires an out of state retailer to collect sales tax if it employs marketing affiliates in Illinois. Amazon retaliated by reportedly terminating approximately 9,000 affiliates to avoid collection of sales taxes in Illinois, just as Amazon had done previously when Hawaii, North Carolina and Rhode Island passed similar legislation.

Following Amazon’s termination of its Illinois affiliates, it’s been reported that Wal-Mart and other big box retailers offered to work with the terminated Amazon affiliates. This action has led to Amazon’s claim that the real reason for the tax law changes is to allow big box retailers to poach its affiliates.

States reply that it’s just a question of “fairness.” Why put brick and mortar businesses at a competitive disadvantage?

Conclusion

For small ecommerce companies watching from the sidelines, the potential effect of the current trend in state sales tax laws could be huge in terms of the cost to comply.

Moreover, one of the key reasons for the explosion of entrepreneurial activity on the Web is that there’s a relatively low barrier to entry. If these laws become universal, many start-up entrepreneurs may simply conclude that it’s really not worth the hassle.

Leading SaaS lawyer Chip Cooper has automated the process of drafting website legal forms. Use his free online tool — Website Contracts Determinator — to determine which documents your website really needs. Discover how quick, easy, and cost-effective it is to draft your website legal forms at DigiContracts.com.

Applying SEO for E-Commerce Sites

04 2011 Friday

By Jason Drohn in Ecommerce

ecommerce Search engine optimization is a requirement for any website that plans to get organic search engine traffic. E-commerce websites already are using plenty of marketing tactics. But this does not indicate that they should not look towards the search engines for more exposure. However, it appears that either people with e-commerce websites are either unknowledgeable when it comes to SEO or they are not paying enough attention to it. In order to truly reap the benefits of search engine optimization for your website, you should keep various factors in mind. The purpose of this article is to help your e-commerce be able to use the search engines to their advantage in order to get needed traffic.

Being an e-commerce website owner, you should not overlook how important it is to optimize your website’s graphics for the search engines. Your website will contain pictures that can be utilized in order to get rankings for particular keywords. Add your keywords into the alt tag of your pictures because the search engines like to give tons of juice to these particular tags. Each image that is uploaded to your website must have your particular keywords placed on them so that they are optimized for the search engines.

Besides that, you need to be as specific as possible with the keywords that you place in the ALT tag of the images.

Be concise in your approach. This is because you do not want to be accused of stuffing your keywords. This is why it is important to conduct the right keyword research for your website. Ensure that you pay attention to this.

Your e-commerce website has to be appealing to the social media in a whole lot of ways. By utilizing social media sites to your benefit, you can get directly get in touch with your specified market in addition to using the search engines. Make it possible for people to share your website via different social media sites. This is a sensational plan for increasing your website’s exposure and for getting plenty of inbound backlinks. Social sites such as Twitter, Facebook, Digg, Delicious, etc. have great respect in the eyes of the search engines.

If your site is very visible on these websites, it will be highly respected by the search engines.

Do not forget that the title tags of your website are one of the most important parts of the site because these are the words that people will see when the search engines provide results for them. So you have to ensure that your title tags contain your target keywords. All parts of your website should be useful for optimizing your website and getting it ready for the search engine spiders to crawl.

But, the title tags are the most important. A few e-commerce websites only put the company name in the title tag, which is the wrong thing to do. The title tags will give you a sensational way to boost your search engine rank for your specific keywords. If you know how to handle this, getting very specific customer traffic to your website is not a hard task to accomplish. Once you start applying what you’ve learned here, you’ll come to know that SEO isn’t as complicated as it sounds. It is not hard like rocket science. You must remember to do these things if you want to get a lot of consistent traffic to your website.

For more free tips on getting your e-commerce site ranked in the search engines and getting search engine rankings, read this article http://marketinghackz.com/optimizing-your-e-commerce-site-for-the-search-engines/. Another resource that you’d be interested in is http://marketinghackz.com/rankbuilder-review/. It’ll give you everything you need to get inbound links so your site is generating pretty serious traffic!

Some Legal Aspects Of Operating An Online Store

03 2011 Friday

By Vladimir N Tuporshin in Ecommerce

When starting any kind of business, there are always various legal issues which must be addressed. Although e-commerce might seem like a paper and tax-free business to you, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, your online store is no different from any other kind of “physical” store or business. Here are some things to keep in mind and research well before opening an e-store:

Store Business License

The regulations for a store license vary by country and within countries, by region or state. License requirements differ depending upon the type of products you are selling.

In most cases, obtaining a license is a relatively easy process; however, licensing to sell alcohol, firearms, pharmaceuticals, etc., are often more complicated. A current business license is usually required for a business (rather than personal) bank account.

Taxes

You will definitely need to report your taxable items revenues and pay income tax according to the laws where you reside. This means you must record all revenues and expenses, and retain documentation of same. Entrepreneurs in the USA should be aware that beginning in 2011, banks which process your credit card sales and PayPal are required to report your gross proceeds to the Internal Revenue Service if you process $20,000 or 200 transactions in one year. A tax return must be filed showing that income, and it is imperative that you keep track of all costs and expenses in order to deduct them against the gross proceeds in your tax return. If not, you will be assessed tax on the gross amount.

VAT and local sales taxes must also be collected by online merchants. Your shopping cart software should make this job easier; however, you must research and apply the applicable laws for your operation.

Advertisements on Your Website

Be careful that your marketing text is true, and do not make claims that cannot be substantiated. If you have other advertisers on your site, it is your responsibility to ensure that pay-per-click ads placed on your site are not fraudulent.

Product Liability

If you are selling merchandise which can be dangerous in any way, consider a limited liability legal structure for the business and be sure to carry liability insurance.

Important Documents

Keep the following up to date: license, vendor and buyer agreements, terms and conditions of sales, terms of services, etc. You will also have to prepare contracts for third-party services and affiliate programs if you plan to offer these.

In general, always be sure information placed on your site and sent out in e-mails to customers is accurate and authentic, and use current technology to protect your site from spam and hackers.

We have tried to summarize the broadest and most important issues in this article, but every new online merchant will have unique needs and requirements. Careful research and planning will prevent unpleasant and unprofitable surprises after you begin operations. You can obtain more detailed information on legal aspects of e-commerce business online from many legal websites.

This article was written by Mr. Vladimir N.Tuporshin, founder of WebAsyst and several other software development companies during a successful career spanning more than 20 years. His company offers free and inexpensive applications at http://www.WebAsyst.net to help you manage your business effectively, including the Shop-Script (TM) shopping cart which is invaluable for online merchants.

« Older Entries

Webmaster Headlines

Facebook Malware Scam Takes Hold

Google Hires Bouncer to Give Android Malware the Heave-Ho

Top 10 Google Chrome Plugins for Small Businesses

Young People Followed SOPA News More Than Election News

Anonymous Shows How Easy it is to Intercept FBI Conference Calls

Brand Protection in 5 Simple Steps

7 Super Social Media Marketing Links

Learn From Adele - Build Your Platform

What's the Fastest Growing Online Ad Format? Video!

How to Build an Advanced Keyword Analysis Report in Excel

Recent SiteProNews Articles

RecentSiteProNews Articles

How to Generate Leads With Linkedin

Technology Solutions: Cloud Computing

9 Common Title Tag Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Top 5 Link Building Strategies for Your Site

6 Things You Don’t Know About Online Video Marketing – A SPN Exclusive Article

Buying CRM: A 10-Step Guide

SiteProNews Blog News

Google Celebrates Art Clokey’s Birthday
Not many people will recognize the name Art Clokey. But a lot more people will recognize the green c...
more >

Reader Rescue : Should My Meta Description Tags Just Duplicate My Title Tags?
Hi Everyone From early days learning SEO, I went ahead and did all my meta descriptions with a bi...
more >

Death of Steve Jobs Fails to Break Twitter Record
We all heard the sad news yesterday that Steve Jobs, founder and visionary at Apple, had died at...
more >

SiteProNews

Article Categories

SiteProNews Blogs

New Rules for E-commerce – – A SPN Exclusive Article Part 4

New Rules for E-commerce – A SPN Exclusive Article Part 3

FTC Seeks to Regulate Online Merchants With Proposed Changes to Mail Order Rule

New Rules for E-commerce – A SPN Exclusive Article Part 2

New Rules for E-commerce – An Exclusive SPN Article – Part One

Seo Friendly E Commerce: Is Your Ecommerce Software SEO Friendly? – A SPN Exclusive Article

3 SEO Tidbits Every Ecommerce Site Should Know – A SPN Exclusive Article

How The Current Sales Tax War Involving Amazon May Affect All Ecommerce Websites

Applying SEO for E-Commerce Sites

Some Legal Aspects Of Operating An Online Store

Subscribe to SiteProNews Articles

Webmaster Headlines

Recent SiteProNews Articles

SiteProNews Blog News

Recommended Links