If you are looking for after market car accessories, you should be hard pressed to find a site with more variety than shopsar.com.The website, which has been on Volusion’s platform since August of 2007, has over 3,000 leather seat kits and 1,200 grilles alone.  Shopsar came in with some pretty substantial needs early on. “Our customizable leather interiors have nearly 10 different option categories with as many as 80 variables in each,” said Al Isaacs, the site’s webmaster.

After trying both open source software and “another company that shall go unmentioned”, Al and the gang at Shopsar made sure that Volusion could handle a store with so many options. Instead of setting up products and options one by one, Al decided to save time by importing options in a spreadsheet while applying those options to multiple products.

Since Al saved time setting up so many products, he can now focus on the marketing aspects of the site. How can an online merchant increase traffic as well as conversion? Al suggests “finding the balance between what web searches find appealing and what customers will like. Putting together the wording for content that feeds the need for keywords and such while giving the info on a product that is easy to read and makes sense. One brings in the customer, the other gets them to buy. Find that balance and you’re on your way!”

–Michelle Greer, Marketing Specialist
http://www.volusion.com

Technorati Tags: Sell Online, Sell Car Parts Online, Sell Auto Accessories Online, Sell Auto Parts Online, Shopsar, Volusion

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You wouldn’t want a competitor to steal your marketing ideas. So why would you want them stealing the words on your website? Although duplicating someone’s content is not supposed to benefit your search engine rankings, it is not uncommon for someone to steal or “scrape” text from your site

without linking that content back to you.

What can you do about it? There is a site called Copyscape that will show you all of the websites that have and are currently scraping your content. Checking this will ensure that whether you are writing words for a blog, a product description, or a homepage, those words will either remain original on your site or will at least be accompanied by a backlink.

Copyscape has been widely covered by the press and should make a good bookmark for you to check from time to time.

–Michelle Greer, Marketing Specialist
http://www.volusion.com

Technorati Tags: copyscape, copyscape reviews, prevent content scraping, prevent copyright infringement, protect online content, volusion

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Do you have joie de vive after the age of 50? Then perhaps you should join the Red Hat Society, a society of women who believe in their words that “silliness is the comedy relief of life and since we are all in it together, we might as well join red-gloved hands and go for the gusto together.” The Red Hat Society uses Volusion to sell their collection of red hats, jewelry and accessories.Rather than focusing on creating her own online store,

President Pam Schenkle focuses on buying. “I keep on top of the latest trends and fashions for my customers. I also spend a great deal of my time developing relationships with my suppliers to get notice of the latest products and ensure the best prices.” Pam Schenkle chose Volusion Reseller BrandLabs, who currently provides design and consulting for over 15 Volusion stores.

What does the Red Hat Society do with all their spare time? They are celebrating their 10th Anniversary in Las Vegas. Interested? Purchase your red gear and check out details on the Red Hat Society Official Website.

–Michelle Greer, Marketing Specialist
http://www.volusion.com

Technorati Tags: BrandLabs, online shopping cart, Red Hats and More, sell online, volusion

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Austin, TX (Volusion Inc.) January, 2008- Volusion employees set out to make a difference in the lives of families in need during the 2007 Holiday season. The Volusion team adopted a total of eight families to provide for this Christmas, from locations in both Austin, Texas and Simi Valley, California. For each family, Volusion contributed gift items ranging from toys to clothing, along with a full uncooked Christmas meal.

Each staff member took part in contributing to the charity endeavors, with some team members responsible for purchasing gifts and food, while others delivered those items to the adopted families “It was an incredible experience and opportunity to be bring such joy to the lives of so many young children”, notes Craig H., Volusion Customer Care Representative. Craig was one of the members chosen to deliver items to the homes of those in need. “To hear the children’s screams when we knocked on the door was a great feeling. It was nice to know that our company was able to make a difference in people’s lives this holiday season.”

A member of Volusion’s Tech Support department, Kristina K., was touched personally by the overall experience. “It feels great knowing we are helping families in need. People need to know they are loved and cared for, and I felt like we did a great job to do just that. Giving someone that extra boost to help out their family through the holidays is a great experience. I’ve been on the receiving end of a Share and Care program during a very difficult time for my family, so to be able to help give back now is truly a blessing!”

In California, the families were found through Share and Care, a company that is associated with the Salvation Army and based out of Simi Valley. In Texas, the families needing services were found through The Christmas Bureau of Austin and Travis County. An organization that has been around for 47 years, The Christmas Bureau matches needy families with their sponsors. Donations are always welcome and you can find more information on the organization by visiting their online site at www.CBofAustin.org.

-Stacie Leonard, Ecommerce Marketing/Copywriting

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So unless you live in Iowa, you didn’t get to vote in the primaries last night. Not to fret! You can still express your desire to choose something by voting in Small Business Computing’s Excellence in Technology Awards. The deadline to vote is midnight on Tuesday, January 8th.

Volusion barely edged out Yahoo last year, so we would really appreciate your vote (especially you Independents). Take a minute out of your day to vote for Volusion for “Best Ecommerce Storefront.”

–Michelle Greer, Marketing Specialist
http://www.volusion.com

Technorati Tags: Ecommerce Awards, excellence in technology awards, Small Business Computing Awards, volusion

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