Friday, August 10, 2012

Shopping Cart Software - Common Blunders to Avoid

Shopping cart software is typically very easy to use, especially if you have it as a part of a good website builder. However, it is still possible to make some mistakes with this software if you are not familiar with its use. Here are the most common mistakes and how to avoid them. 1. Being afraid of using shopping cart software without professional help. Many times people are afraid of shopping cart software because they think it will be too complicated. However, with a good website builder, there is no need to be afraid. The shopping cart will be directly integrated with your website, and it will be easy to set up. Just give it a try and see how easy it really can be. 2. Making it too complicated. Often people make things that are easy too complicated because they think it has to be that way. However, with good website builders and their integrated shopping cart software, set up does not have to be complicated at all. If you try to make it more complicated than it is, you will make mistakes in setting it up. The best thing to do is take it one step at a time as explained by the website builder, and take everything at face value. 3. Not entering information accurately. In our haste to get things that we don't want to do done, we often make mistakes. It is important that all of your product and inventory information be entered accurately. It is also important that you enter shipping and tax calculations accurately, as well as prices and payment information. If you fail to enter information accurately you will lose money. 4. Not setting up accounts first. If you start building your website and get involved in the shopping cart software before you have started creating accounts to use with the software, you will find yourself stumped when you get to the part where you set up payment information. You will need to make sure that you first set up your PayPal account and any merchant accounts and have the information handy and ready to go so that when you get to this point in the shopping cart software you have everything you need to proceed. 5. Not keeping shopping cart software up to date. Once your shopping cart is set up, your job is not complete. You have to make sure you keep your inventory up to date, adding to the amount of items being sold on the site when you get more inventory and taking away when you sell items offline. It is very important that you keep your inventory up to date, otherwise you could run into problems. If you don't update your inventory numbers, you could lose out on sales because the shopping cart thinks you are out of product. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nicole_Susanne_Peters