UPS live shipping methods now available in DecoNetwork (beta version)

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DecoNetwork now supports UPS live shipping methods on V6 beta. You can request to become a beta tester here: http://www.deconetwork.com/beta

  1. In order to use UPS live shipping methods in DecoNetwork you need to have an account with UPS. If you don’t have it, you can register here: https://www.ups.com/myups/login
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  2.  Once you are logged in, you need to request an access key for your account. This can be done on this page: https://www.ups.com/upsdeveloperkit/requestaccesskey
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  3. At this point, you should receive an email with “access key” which you can add in Manage Fulfillment > Settings > Shipping Methods > Add Live Shipping Method along with username and password as shown below:
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  4. Test your credentials and choose the UPS shipping methods you want to offer.
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  5. Save the changes.

9 SEO tips for your DecoNetwork store

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1. Use Google Analytics.

Google Analytics is a free tool that generates detail statistics about your visitors. It is a great marketing tool which will help you to better understand who is visiting your site, and with what result.

You can register for Google Analytics here:  http://www.google.com/analytics/

DecoNetwork is already integrated with the Google Analytics code, so you don’t need to add this code on every single page in the system. Instead you can add UA number in Manage Fulfillment > Websites > Manage (next to the store you want to modify) > SEO and Google Analytics
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On the next page click on Google Analytics and provide UA number as shown below:
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Save the changes. These changes can take up to 48 to take effect.

2. Use Conversion Tracking.

Conversion Tracking is a tool that shows you what happens after the customer clicks on your ads or link online. It will show you the conversion rate between number of visits versus number of actual purchases. The most popular and free conversion tracking is offered when you are using Google Adwords (pay per click ads).

DecoNetwork is already integrated with Google conversion tracking code and you just need to add “conversion tracking ID” in Manage Fulfillment > Websites > Manage (next to the store you want to modify) > SEO and Google Analytics > Conversion Tracking
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3. Content is king when it comes to SEO

From the SEO standpoint it is very important that you will have a lot of useful content added to your site. This content should include keywords but be also informative, so your customers can find information they are looking for.

In DecoNetwork, you can add your own content to each page in Manage Fulfillment > Websites > Manage > Website Pages
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On the next page, you can click “configure” next to the body content for each page which will let you to add your own content
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Save the changes.

Please see this article which explains that process in more details: http://blog.deconetwork.com/2012/05/23/content-is-king-when-it-comes-to-seo/

4. Submitting your websites sitemap in Google Webmaster Tools

An important part of ensuring a search engine like Google knows your website is to submit your sitemap to the search engine.

Please see this article which explains that process in more details: http://blog.deconetwork.com/2013/03/04/submitting-your-websites-sitemap-in-google-webmaster-tools/

5. Add “301 redirection” to your primary domain.

In DecoNetwork you can add “301 redirection” to your primary domain, so the Google ranking will not get split between the multiple domains which points to your site.  This can be done in Manage Fulfillment > Websites > Manage > Domain Settings
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On the next page select an option “Redirect to Primary Domain”
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Dan Howe, our in house web developer specialist, recommends also checking that your website loads without www at front.

Please see this article which explains that process in more details: http://blog.deconetwork.com/2013/01/01/ensuring-your-website-loads-without-www/

6. Create a 301 permanent redirect in DecoNetwork

If you have ever used your domain with another site in the past, you may want to add 301 redirects from your old pages to newly created pages in DecoNetwork.  This can be done in Manage Fulfillment > Websites > Manage > URL Redirects.
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Please see this article which explains that process in more details: http://blog.deconetwork.com/2013/02/13/create-a-301-permanent-redirect-in-deconetwork/

7. External links

It is a fact that the more websites are linking to your site the higher rank you will get in search results. In other words, the more links you will get the better chance that your customers will find your website. Obviously not all of the links are equal to each other. If you will get a link from the highly popular site which has the good ranking that link will have more power than the link added to your site from the newly created blog. That said, having any type of link is better than not having a link at all.

One of the recommended ways to build your links is by adding your site to local directories such as:

google.com/places
local.yahoo.com
bing.com/businessportal
ubl.org
dmoz.org

8. Press releases

Another way to promote your business online is by creating press releases. To create an efficient press release which can help you with promoting your site online you need to:

- Write it (In general, it should be something interesting and no more than 500 words)

- Find the place online to distribute it (such as prweb.com, prbuzz.com, ereleases.com, emailwire.com, prleap.com, vocus.com)

- Make sure to include keywords and links in your article (You can add keywords and links which are referring to your site in the submitted article)

9. Use relevant data for your online campaigns to be successful.

At the end it is not the most important how many clicks you will get from your online presence (external links, search results etc…). The most important is if your visitors found what they were looking for when they clicked on that link. In e-commerce there is a very simple way to estimate the success ratio and it is a number of purchases that have been made by your visitors. Overall, if your conversion rate is 2% or higher, you can say that your online campaign really works. If your conversion rate is less than 1% then the problem is not necessarily with getting visitors, but that those visitors didn’t find what they were looking for. SEO is not any different than the traditional marketing in this case. Some of the reasons that your conversion rate is low can be:

- Your offer is not competitive (i.e. prices too high)

It is not enough to be number one in search results. If your visitors will notice that the site right below you is offering better prices or/and products they will not buy from you but choose your competitor instead.

- The SEO campaign was misleading.
For example, you could promote a phrase “We are using best DTG printers” in your online campaign. This could potentially get you high in ranks for anyone who is looking for a phrase: “best DTG printers.” In that way instead of getting potential customers who would buy a custom product, many of your visitors would actually have no interest in your products but were looking to buy a DTG machine from you (thinking that you are selling them). As soon as they find out that you are not selling DTG printers they will just abandon your site without the purchase. It is a wasted click which potentially cost you a lot of effort. This is just an example, but it shows the concept, and that you will need to put your marketing effort into SEO, and continuously analyze your data you are receiving. This is not new to you, as you are already doing this for your onside business. The only difference are the tools you are using.

- Online presence.
Take a look at your site, then look at your competitors site, then take a look at your site again. What do you see? This is the same what your customers will see. If you are not happy with your online presence, take into consideration our DecoCoach service where one of our in house web designers can customize the look of your site for you. You can see the showcase of customized DecoNetwork stores here: http://www.deconetwork.com/showcase You can request DecoCoach services here: http://www.deconetwork.com/decocoach

- Anything else
Think about your business and what are your strengths and weaknesses. What your existing customers like the most about you? Whether it is quality, customer service, low prices, or all of it make sure to add your own character to your site. Online customers are not much different than those who walk in to you retail store. They are looking for the same things and they can get happy or upset for the same reasons.

Submitting your websites sitemap in Google Webmaster Tools

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An important part of ensuring a search engine like Google knows your website is to submit your sitemap to the search engine.

What is a sitemap?

First let’s explain how a search engine finds pages. Search engines find pages through links. It looks at a page and identifies all links on the page. Then it travels to that link which takes it to a new page. It then looks for links on the new page and once again travels down those links. This goes on and on and all the links are added to search engines directory.

Sometimes you may not link to all pages from your site so if a link to this page does not exist then a search engine like Google may not find it.

This is where a sitemap is handy!

A sitemap is a list of links or pages you have on your website. A search engine reads this sitemap and adds this URLs to their search directory.

In the case of DecoNetwork we provide an XML sitemap and you access this by adding /sitemap.xml at the end of your wesbite. i.e. http://www.yoursite.com/sitemap.xml

Adding your sitemap to Google

  1. Log into Google webmaster tools: www.google.com/webmasters/tools. If you don’t have a Google account then make one – it’s free! Don’t forget your gmail account is a Google account also.
  2. Log in to access your Webmaster Tools dashboard.
  3. Click the red “ADD A SITE“.
  4. Enter your websites URL such as http://www.yoursite.com
    Google will require you to verify your account. Select the “Alternate methods” to validate your account and select “HTML tag“
  5. Copy the <meta name… … … /> tag.
  6. Log into your DecoNetwork website and browse to Websites and select Manage for the site’s sitemap you wish to add to Google. Select Appearance and then Customize Template HTML.
  7. Select the Custom layout option from the left menu and then check “Override default layout“.
  8. You should past the <meta name… … … /> tag you copied above between the <head> and </head> tags in your website.
  9. Click Save when done.
  10. Return to Google Webmaster Tools and click the Verify button. If the tag was saved correctly your site should now be verified.
  11. Now you need to add your DecoNetwork sitemap. In Google Webmaster Tools browse to the left menu Optimization and select Sitemaps
  12. Select ADD/TEST SITEMAP.
  13. enter sitemap.xml at the end of your Add/Test Sitemap field and click Submit Sitemap.
  14. The sitemap may take a short while to submit and will remain in the Pending status until it is submitted. Once submitted it will give you a report of how many URLs (pages) were submitted and how URLs (pages) Google has indexed to its search engine.

Overtime you should see your indexed pages start to reach closer to you submitted pages as Google adds more of your pages to its search index.

 

 

How to create in-store pickup shipping method

5 Replies

page-supportIn this short tutorial I would like to show you how you can create an in-store pickup shipping method. The entire process is fairly simple, but requires few tweaks in your DecoNetwork system.

In order to make it right you want to make sure that:

- The customer will receive a separate order/shipped confirmation email with all the details about the location from where the order can be picked up.

- In-store pickup shipping method is free.

- In-store pickup shipping method is available to customers only within the same state you are located.

1. First, you can add an email template specifically for this shipping method in Manage Fulfillment > Customers > Email Template

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Next click on Email Templates > “Create” next to the order template

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2. Then click on Customize Template:

a) This will let you to change the name of that template (i.e. Order confirmation – In-store pickup)

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b) Replace the the default text related to the shipping method as shown below (You may want to change this content to something what refers to in-store pickup instead ).

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c) Please also do the same for the text version

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d) Save the changes

Tip: It is NOT required to have any HTML/CSS knowledge to make those changes. If you are not familiar with the HTML there is a simple rule which can help you. In short, feel free to make any changes to content which is written in black (this is the regular text), but don’t make any changes to the colorized section of that content (this is the code responsible for display).

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3. Now, you need to add another custom template but this time for Order-shipped email. Please repeat steps from point 2 to customize this email template with your own content.

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4. Next, you need to create an actual shipping method named In-store pickup. To do it go to Manage Fulfillment > Settings > Shipping Methods > Add Custom Shipping Method.

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5. On the next page, define the name, and choose the newly created email templates as shown on the picture below:

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6. At this point, your customers will receive your custom shipping emails. Now, you need to make this method free for them. You can do it by clicking on Price breakdowns, and put 0 in charge.

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7. You can also limit the visibility of that shipping method to certain state only (in this case, it is Georgia). This can be done on Shipping locations page and then make sure to uncheck “delivers to all states.”

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Tip: If you are having multiple affiliate stores in your system, but want this shipping method to be available in specific store only, you can limit the availability by denying this shipping method to all of your stores, except the one you will select from the list.

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8. Save the changes.

Create a 301 permanent redirect in DecoNetwork

4 Replies

So you decided to move to DecoNetwork from another platform or solution…

andrew_awesomeBut you have some old page addresses and URLs that are nicely ranked in Google and you’re worried you’ll lose them if you move to a new solution…

andrew_bummerWell don’t worry! With DecoNetwork you can create your own 301 permanent redirect which will save your wonderful Google ranking.

What’s a 301 permanent redirect?

Let’s say you had an old website that had your designs on a page www.mysite.com/content/designs. When you move to DecoNetwork your designs page will be www.mysite.com/designs.

If you don’t tell Google and other search engines that your website page has moved correctly, the ranking that old page had may be lost and you’ll be starting again with the ranking of your new page.

That’s where a 301 redirect comes it. It is a server-side redirect which essentially tells Google and other search engines “this page has permanently moved so please update your URL database to point to the new URL”. The page is maintained in Google, but Google updates its database when it next visits your site.

How do you create a 301 redirect in DecoNetwork?

Super simple! Log into your DecoNetwork website and go to the Settings page for the website you want to manage (Websites > Manage > Settings).

Select URL Redirects and add a new redirect.

In the “URL” field enter your website path for your old folder or page excluding the actual URK. i.e. /content/designs/

In the “Redirect To” field enter the DecoNetwork page it should now point to, again excluding the actual URL. i.e. /designs

For example:

redirect_001

Then Save!

Pretty cool huh? Or as Andrew would say…

andrew_awesome