The Importance of Quality Web Host Providers

Many business owners do not understand the benefits that a web host provider can provide for their websites. Business owners often think that hosting companies are all created equal.

That is true, to an extent. People who pay just five bucks for hosting often get the same quality of service as those who pay over $20. Your web host provider also has more to do with our online business success that we often give them credit for. This is because of all the benefits web host providers provide, that we often don’t think about:

Web Host Providers don’t just provide a place for you to build and create your website. Of course, they do that too, but they also do a lot more. Web Host Providers build a place of security and efficiency for business owners to run transactions and build their online business.

If online consumers come to your website and the site is down because of a problem caused by your hosting company, you could lose a sale. Even more importantly, you could lose a customer. Choose a hosting company that is inexpensive, but that has a reputation for not having any down time.

You also want to choose a hosting company that has an exceptionally fast and efficient customer service department so that if the site does go down, or you have other issues, you can contact them quickly. Make a phone call to the number they give you before you order their hosting to ensure that a real, live human being answers the phone.

Good luck as you get started on the adventure that is online business! 

How to Use Facebook to Increase Sales

Successful Online businesses have exploded in 2013 and this upward swing is only expected to increase in 2014. If you want to know how to boost your online business traffic generation, keep reading.

For online businesses, it is all about social networking. Currently, the #1 social networking site is Facebook.  Did you know over 800 million people are on Facebook at this very moment? And among these 800 million people, approximately 700 million minutes are spent on Facebook, each year. The average person spends approximately 87.5 minutes on Facebook each day, per year. That is a ton of time that people spend, just browsing on Facebook.

This is why it is crucial for all businesses to find a cheap hosting partner, get online, and be active with Facebook marketing!

The first step is to create a Facebook Business Page. This is a page that you can promote and advertise for your business. As your customers find you on Facebook, it will instantly help you bring in more traffic, because so many people are online.

Now that you have your Business Facebook Page, it is important to create good content!

PHOTOS and VIDEOS! People respond more often and more quickly to pictures and videos, than they do to words and blogs. If you doubt me, realize that YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world. This is why you should be posting cool and important photos and videos to advertise for your business everyday.

o   People will see the photos and videos of your products and services and “LIKE” them. They may even “SHARE” your photos and videos too, which will help increase the amount of people that see your brand.

o   This creates a link pattern that will increase you sales. If one person “Shares” or “Likes” your photosand videos, then posts it to their news feed, all of their friends can now see your photos and videos! If one of their friends “Likes” your photos and videos too, this is then posted to their news feed and all of the friend’s friends can see your brand too. This can go on an on making your traffic generation explode!

o   With the photos and videos you post, always include a link to direct anyone viewing it to your website to check out your products and services. This will make it even easier for your consumers to find your page and purchase your products. The more accessible you make it for them, the more profitable it will be for you.

If you want to increase your traffic, once your website is created, all you need to do is start social networking on Facebook.

Help your Customers Feel More Secure by Becoming PCI Compliant

Online consumers are becoming more aware of how serious Identity Theft and Hacking is in today’s inter-web world. This is great, because fraudulent activity has dropped with more and more online customers signing up for online security with companies like Trust Guard.

However, we are now coming across the ironic problem where businesses are not taking their online security as seriously as they should be – just when websites have become more vulnerable than ever. If your business is processing credit cards for your business, it is not only recommended and preferred that you are PCI (Payment Card Industry) Compliant, but it is actually against the law to be processing without it.

On a side note, if you are running credit card transactions and are not PCI Compliant then you are, in essence, telling your customers that you don’t care if their information is hacked.

By not being PCI Compliant, statistics have shown that the percentage of sales decreases. Companies who go from non-compliance to being PCI Compliant generally increase sales by 30% in just the first month! That should make any company want to be PCI Compliant regardless of the rules set by the data security council.

So why are some Business Owners ignoring PCI Compliance Requirements? My thought is that business owners may not understand the importance and security benefits of PCI Compliance.

If business owners were to think of PCI Compliance as insurance for their credit card processing, then perhaps they would be more willing to comply. Think of car insurance: no, you don’t get in accidents every day, or even every year, however if you did and you didn’t have insurance --- you would wish you did.

PCI Compliance is the same way. Businesses that do not have a PCI Certificate of Security Seal are going to be out of luck, paying for any losses due to fraud on their own. These charges for fraud and identity theft against a business are usually around $20,000 - $50,000 per case. If you are protected by a PCI Compliant company though, they will offer you protection in these cases and help cover any losses just like an insurance company would.

Being PCI Compliant is not only a smart thing to do for an instance when you are faced again fraudulence and hackers, but it is also the right thing to do. Having security scan and seals that show potential consumers that their information is safe will nudge more of them to purchase from you. Your customers will feel safe and protected when they see that your site is PCI compliant.

What to Expect from Trust Seal Providers

As an online business owner, having the right Trust Seal Provider can bring additional revenue, creating a more successful online business. Many internet consumers will not even look at a site if they feel it is insecure. This is why when you have a respected third-party trust logo displayed on your website consumers are 90% more likely to purchase your products. This basically guarantees more sales.

It is important to know that you, as a business owner, are getting the most from your trust seal provider. You deserve to know that you are working with the best trust logo company available.

One of the best ways to choose your trust seal provider is to compare various products, services and prices among the most respected leaders in the industry.

When I first began my online business, I searched everywhere trying to find the best trust seal provider. After quite a bit of research, I found a provider that I knew was respected by the online e-commerce community. They offered me the best website security protection and beautiful, trust logos that were guaranteed to grow my business, at an affordable price. Trust Guard is the best trust seal provider I found and they offered the following products and services:

·         Daily Vulnerability Scans

·         Fast Approval & Assistance

·         Easy-to-Display Trust Logos

·         Guaranteed, Attractive  Seals

·         Professional,Quick Customer Service

·         Easy-to-Understand Scanning Reports

·         Customizable Customer Dashboards

As a successful online business owner it is so important to find a trust seal provider that you can trust. Make sure your trust seal is constantly active and up-to-date so that your customers will always know that they can trust your business.

By knowing what to expect from the best trust seal providers, you will be able to start improving and growing your online business.

Convert Your Consumers Into Loyal Customers

One of the most important things business owners should focus on is creating their customer’s loyalty. When you have customers who trust you and are loyal to the services and products you offer, you will build a successful business. Consumers that trust a business and its owners talk about it in a positive manner and promote it to their friends and family. Marketing via word of mouth is without a doubt the #1 way to promote your business.

Why? Because, for the most part, people trust other people. People are going to be more willing to go to a business if someone they know refers them. Think about yourself as a consumer. If your best friend tells you about an awesome company with discounts on furniture, shoes, or sports accessories then you are more likely to go in and check it out.

If a customer hears about a promotion from their friend versus seeing an Ad about it on a TV commercial, they are 78% more likely to visit the advertised business. Word of Mouth Marketing is crucial to a successful business, and this is why business owners must create loyal customers who trust their businesses.

The best way to convert your customers into long-term loyal consumers is to create a bond of trust with them. When your consumers feel like they can trust you, they are going to purchase from you more often. This is why it is so important to have a secure trust seal boldly displayed on e-commerce websites.

Trust Seals are the #1 way to build your customer’s loyalty because of three key concerns they address for your consumers.

1.                  Sense of Security. Customers want to know that your website is secure and that you care about being compliant with the security standards created by the Payment Card Industry. A Security Seal shows your customers that you care about the security of their personal information.

2.                  Personal Privacy. Before anyone makes a purchase online, they want to know that their personal information is going to be kept private. They want their privacy be kept secure and they only want it used for the specific purchases they are making. Privacy Seals help customers feel a sense of privacy which creates more sales.

3.                  Business Identity. One of the scariest things about online purchases is that there are so many crooked companies that are set up for the sole purpose of stealing your money and your identity. By having a Verified Business Identity Seal on your website, customers will know that your website is secure and legitimate. Having this business identity seal on the main page of your site is guaranteed to increase your conversion rate because customers trust that you are a legitimate business.

You can create loyal customers simply by having secure trust seals on your website. Loyal customers will market your business for free, increase traffic and conversion rates, and provide your company with constantly increasing profits.

Find a Third-Party Entity to Secure Your Website

Website security and constantly testing against that security are extremely critical parts of the success of your online business. Statistics show that having a secure website should be business owners’ first priority. It is so important for the fact that a secure website proves your business’ credibility. Security trust seals display the protection you are offering your online visitors.

When you, as an online business owner understand the importance of website security, you will be able to take the needed steps to properly implement online security like daily scanning. These practices will help you generate a more successful and profitable online business.

The first step to having a secure business is to find a third-party security trust seal and scanning provider that you can trust. You want to find a business that will take the first three steps to help you become a secure website:

1.     1.  Daily perform a security scan on your website. These scans find vulnerabilities accessible by viruses and hackers and provide specific instructions on how to eliminate them from the website. By having a third-party trust seal provider perform a security scan, you will know that you area secure website that is ready to process credit cards for your customers and accept their email addresses.

2.      2. Display a respected, third-party trust seal. Once you have had a security scan preformed, a trust company can provide you with a security trust seal or logo and accompanying security certificate. As soon as you obtain the code, copy and paste it to your website. You want all of your clients to know that you are a secure website that they can trust.

3.      3. Let your third-party trust seal provider help you increase your sales! When you display this trust seal to your website you will be able to almost instantly see the increase in your sales.