Web Business Overview

There are 6 key components to be addressed when running a successful web business:

  1. Handling of Customer Orders
  2. Handling of Customer Requests
  3. Customer Self Service
  4. Driving Business to your web site
  5. Analyzing the results
  6. Marketing Content
  7. Summary
Download a 2 page pdf of the Web Business Overview.

Web Business Overview, Customer Orders, Customer Requests, Customer Self Service

Web Business Overview, Driving Business, Analyze Results, Marketing Content

Customer Orders


Order Portal allows you to take customer orders over the web. If you want to pass those orders into 2nd Derivative (Order Entry Portal or Financial Portal) or your legacy system, Data Migration Portal enables that to happen.

Customer Requests

Order Portal (in release 1.2) now has a request/question form. When the customer fills out the request, a copy is email to you and the request is sent via the Data Migration Portal into the Sales Portal. In the Sales Portal a new prospect is created in the designated Territory, a sales action is created for the request, and the request is inserted as a note into the prospect. You can track completions of requests through the Information Portal. If you also add the reply into the Sales Portal as a note, you will have a history of customer requests and the replies. This can be used to easily create a custom page in Order Portal of FAQ (frequently asked questions).

Customer Self Service

The customers can sign in and view their orders and order status. Links can be added to UPS or other carriers. This is another logic link to 2nd Derivative or other backend system.

Driving Business

Marketing Portal will be added into the Order Portal. This is where you can add links to Sales Portal and outside sources. Sales Portal is used to track your community links and actions. For Example, if you have ads in Craigs list, you would have that link entered in Sales Portal under a community terrtitory. A Sales Action would be entered to remind you when to renew the ad. The text of the ad would be a note attached to the Craigs list prospect so you can copy and paste. The link, user info, etc. would also be stored here. You would do this for all your contacts, submissions, community, etc. Order Portal can be used for bulk emails for people you opt in over your web site.

Analyze Results

In Marketing Portal you would add a link to your Google Analytics account. In the Order Portal Administration/Configuration - Application Options, enter your Google Analytics account number. This will automatically be included with each page that is displayed on your web site. Google Analytics can show you where your traffic is coming from, what pages were reviewed, etc. Screen resolution information and operating system information can help you in the design of your site. Also we will be adding an Information Portal over the Order Portal data base to help you analyze results.

Marketing Content

There is a lot of info available about content for your Order Portal. If the 3 most important things in real estate are location, location, location. The 3 most important things in a web business are content, content, content. If you have something worth reading on your web site, people will read it. Don't be stingy with your information; give it about. Tell people how to do things, why and why not. Order Portal has a lot of things to help you. Internet Specials allow you to emphasis specific products. Banner ads allow you to not only run ads for other sites, but consider putting up rotating banner ads that feature your products. The Configuration site of Order Portal allows you to easy add unlimited content and customize the look and feel of your site. Through the Admin/misc. options you can easily upload documents and pictures that can be used on the home page and custom pages. If appropriate, consider adding a forum. We use JForum which is also available on sourceforge. Add posts about your products and services. Any time we run into a technical problem, we add the solution onto the randr forum so it is available to everyone.

Summary

There are no silver bullets to being successful over the web, but if you make your Order Portal site relevant, provide useful information and products, tell people how to use them and keep things current, you can be very successful. Keep working, you will succeed. An excellent book on Google Analytics is Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics by Brian Clifton and the Google site has good document.

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