Author: Dailyusastory

“Ask an Expert” is an occasional feature where we pose questions to seasoned ecommerce practitioners. For this installment, we’ve turned to Ann Smarty, the founder of Smarty Marketing, a search engine optimization firm, and a longtime Practical Ecommerce contributor. She addresses Google’s policy on content produced by artificial intelligence tools. Practical Ecommerce: Does Google index and rank AI-generated content? Ann Smarty: Google published “guidance about AI-generated content” in its Search Central blog in February 2023. The guidelines are vague but worth reading nonetheless. Ann Smarty To summarize: Google allows “helpful and original” AI-generated content. The post doesn’t offer examples of…

Photos are one of the most important elements of your online store.  Lifestyle photography shows your products being used artistically by your target market in their natural state. Also referred to as candid shots, this style of ecommerce photography helps online shoppers see your products used in a model’s day-to-day life. And, whatever you can do to shorten the customer journey from browse to purchase can only work in your favor.  If you don’t have the money to hire professional lifestyle photographers, this guide will show you how to take lifestyle photos of your products on a budget. What is…

Launching a dropshipping store on Shopify is straightforward for new and established businesses. Shopify tools and apps handle inventory management, freeing you to focus on sales and growing your brand. Use one of three methods to start dropshipping on Shopify: Connect your store to an automated dropshipping app. Partner directly with a supplier and manage your products using Shopify. Add items to your existing product line with Shopify Collective. As you dive into your chosen method, you’ll encounter challenges unique to your business. How you overcome these obstacles will define your dropshipping journey and shape your success. 1. How to use…

In the fast-paced world of beauty and skin care, longevity is rare. Yet OSEA Malibu, a brand that offers seaweed-based skin care products, founded in 1996, has not only survived but thrived for nearly three decades. CEO Melissa Palmer, daughter of company founder Jenefer Palmer, has steered the brand from its humble beginnings in Malibu, California, into a global presence. Today, in addition to its online Shopify store, the brand is sold by major retailers like Ulta and Nordstrom, and in thousands of spas worldwide. Melissa has learned over the years what it takes to create a business model and…

You’ve probably experienced virtual reality by now: You put on a headset and enter a virtual world that stands apart from the one you live in. Augmented reality is similar to VR in that it lets users interact with virtual objects that don’t exist in the physical world. But unlike virtual reality, augmented reality technology stays grounded in a real-world environment. Essentially, augmented reality works by placing computer-generated objects into an image of the user’s environment. AR can be a great tool for ecommerce. If you want to show your customer how a new sofa might look in their current…

A fierce independent streak is an essential ingredient in launching and sustaining a startup. But it’s just as important to recognize and capitalize on the benefits of a dynamic startup community or ecosystem. Data shows startups are most successful when run from within robust startup ecosystems, like the San Francisco Bay Area. Even though San Francisco and Silicon Valley are the most famous examples of these sorts of communities, entrepreneurs have plenty of other options as well. So what elements should an entrepreneur look for when setting out to put down roots? Why opt for a San Francisco, a Boston,…

Marketplaces are as old as human commerce. From the bazaar to the bodega, they exist in every culture. Today, they also exist online, as ecommerce has globalized and democratized the selling and consumption of wares. For small businesses, this is a particularly impactful change: It’s no longer necessary to have a warehouse, a logistics coordinator, or even a physical storefront to have a globally recognized brand. Although dozens of online marketplaces exist, two of the most popular and established options are Amazon Handmade and Etsy. What is Etsy? Etsy is an online marketplace for vintage and handmade goods from around…

Free resources from the design community can enhance an ecommerce site. Here is a list of new web tools and design elements from summer 2024. There are AI video tools, vector collections, website builders, analytics tools, animation editors, converters, UI components, and more. All of these tools are free or have free plans, though most also offer premium versions. Free Design Tools Wisp is a headless content management system that allows users to add blogs to their websites without knowing code. The free plan offers core features; premium plans start at $16 monthly. Wisp Seline is a clean and minimalistic…

An omnichannel approach to selling can help your brand reach more customers in more places. If you already run a Shopify store, layering on a marketplace like eBay can improve customer acquisition and drive sales. That’s because you’re showing up in search results where your target customer is already hanging out. If eBay is the right fit for your products, consider adding this sales channel to your mix. Ahead, understand how you can integrate your Shopify store and eBay account to sync inventory and manage eBay orders more efficiently through Shopify. Connecting your Shopify store to your eBay account Several…

Estimated read time: 3 minutes, 11 seconds We recently announced our new HubSpot integration as a part of our improved B2B offering. Today, let’s dive deeper into the feature itself and see exactly what it offers and how it can improve your sales-assisted transactions while using FastSpring as your Merchant of Record. If you’re interested in using the HubSpot integration with FastSpring reach out to our sales team or submit a ticket to our customer team here. Our new integration simplifies the operational management of your products, pricing, and user accounts via automatic data transfer from our systems to and…