When a shopper provides a merchant website with their credit card they are going to first look for the closed padlock symbol in their web browser indicating that your site is using a valid SSL Certificate.  If your site processes credit card numbers or other confidential information like social security numbers or even addresses then you should be using an SSL Certificate, which encrypts personal information into an indecipherable set of gibberish.

In fact, SSL Certificates are one of the criteria in order to be PCI Compliant.  You will need to make sure your site is utilizing PCI Compliant Hosting as well.  When shopping for a web host, this should be one of your first questions.  If they are confused or don’t understand PCI Compliance then you should move on to the next host because this can put your livelihood at jeopardy.

In order to prove that you are a reputable business you should always put a physical address of your business to prove that you actually exist.  Even if you are running your e-commerce business out of your spare bedroom, you want to make your site look as professional as possible.  It is also always good to have a phone number where customers can reach you in case they have a question or a problem.  Shoppers want to feel confident that if there is a shipping problem or other issue, you will be able to be reached and are honest.

In the e-commerce industry, the PA-DSS has been a major topic lately.  As of July 1^st, all e-commerce payment applications must be compliant with the new Data Security Standard.  Payment applications include software like shopping carts.  It is imperative that as a storeowner, you make certain that your shopping cart is compliant.

Miva Merchant Hosting provided by WebNet Hosting is fully compliant with the PA-DSS and have been premier Miva Hosts since 2004, making them experts in the e-commerce sector.

Miva Merchant Modules are the ideal way of creating a fully customizable online store.  They are easy to install and require no costly outsourcing to a web developer to create custom programming.  Miva Modules typically cost between 1/10^th and 1/20^th of what the equivalent in third-party development would cost.

There is now a large enough market for Miva Modules that there are a number of developers and the competition between them has kept the quality of their products very high.  The main categories of modules available include:

• Website Look and Feel
• Email Management
• Ordering and Shipping
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Checkout Process Enhancements
• Promotions and Marketing
• Store Management

Through the proper use of Miva Merchant Modules, storeowners can truly make their websites stand out from the competition and take their stores to the next level.  Furthermore, thanks to SEO modules, page rank in the search engine results pages can be greatly increased.

With such an abundance of modules for the Miva Merchant shopping cart on the market, those involved in the e-commerce industry will be surprised by their ability to truly customize their websites like never before.  Miva Merchant puts the power into the hands of the storeowner.

Visit MM5Central.com for a list of the best-selling Miva Merchant Modules available.

If you are the operator of an online business and not yet taking advantage of Miva Web Hosting then now is the perfect time to transfer.  With the new “Wombat,” Miva Merchant is now officially a PCI PA-DSS (Payment Card Industry, Payment Application – Data Security Standard) certified shopping cart application.  The deadline for PCI Compliance is very rapidly approaching and all e-commerce sites must comply with the DSS guidelines by July 1^st, 2010.  If an e-commerce website processes and stores credit card transactions and/or other private information then they must utilize PCI Compliant Miva Hosting and all payment applications must adhere to the PA-DSS.

Non-compliance with the rules established by the PCI causes websites to risk increased merchant fees and penalties, termination of merchant accounts, costly fines and even being completely shutdown.  Many shopping carts and e-commerce hosting applications are not compliant with the new DSS, especially carts that are considered “open-source” and lack the funds to go through the certification process.  This is bad news for those operating e-commerce websites that use shopping carts that are not certified.  The risks of non-compliance, highlighted above, are a very really threat to the livelihood of online storeowners.  If your site is not compliant with the new DSS because you are using a shopping cart that is not certified, then now is the perfect time to transfer.  July 1^st is very rapidly approaching and your business could be severely and detrimentally impacted due to non-compliance.

Other features of the new Miva Merchant “Wombat” include:

• Advanced order processing tools
• Innovative inventory management
• Updated, user-friendly CSS interface
• Dynamic pricing
• Ability to take phone orders from the admin panel
• Improved SEO capabilities

The new CSS UI is beneficial for the e-commerce operator in many ways.  It increases functionality of websites by truly separating a site’s content, code and physical appearance.  This new feature allows users to change the visual elements of their website without modifying the way in which it functions, which decreases the chance of a site breaking and not performing to its best ability.  With the new UI, a better site and administrative layout is created providing users with a modern looking and functioning site without any costly or time consuming development.

The cutting-edge, new Miva Merchant Wombat truly takes the online store to the next level.  With this release, Miva Merchant solidifies itself as the leader in customizable online shopping cart software.

Featured WebNet Hosting Site for February 2010

AwesomeAlmonds.com

Each month we profile a client that is operating a successful Miva Merchant site in our newsletter and blog.  This month’s company is Dr. Lankin’s Specialty Foods, LLC, located online at AwesomeAlmonds.com.  This site specializes in selling all natural flavored roasted almonds containing no cholesterol, artificial preservatives, added cooking oils or the guilt that goes along with most snack foods. Here is an interview with Dr. Kenneth Lankin, MD, owner and operator of AwesomeAlmonds.com.

What is the name and URL of your business?
Dr. Lankin’s Specialty Foods, LLC
http://www.AwesomeAlmonds.com

When did your site launch?
2002

Can you provide us with a brief history of your business?
As a physician, I founded the company because I was inspired by the research demonstrating the many potential health benefits of almonds including lowering cholesterol and reducing the risk of colon cancer.   In 2002, none of the large food companies were selling almonds based on their nutritional value.  So along with my business school classmates at the University of New Haven, I created Awesome Almonds® — a line of flavored, roasted almonds made with no added cooking oils.  Since I was in full-time practice, family members and other partners formed a team to run the company.  Going “online” with a website and online store was critical because maintaining a brick and mortar facility wasn’t feasible.

How long have you been using Miva Merchant?  WebNet Hosting?
We’ve been using Miva Merchant since 2002 and WebNet Hosting since 2007.

So you were you using Miva before you switched to WebNet Hosting.  What made you decide to sign-up with WebNet Hosting?
Yes, we used Miva as we started the business.  We switched to WebNet because we were having problems with frequent glitches with our previous hosting service, resulting in lost orders, missing payments and countless hours spent trying to rectify all these computer generated mistakes.  For our Miva makeover, WebNet was one of two companies suggested by Chuck Lasker.  I contacted both and decided on WebNet Hosting because of their superior customer service.  No regrets.

What do you like most about Miva Merchant?
The many available modules and the flexibility to grow proportionally to the needs of your business.

What do you like most about WebNet Hosting?
Customer service is #1.  I enjoy talking to real people who speak clearly and take a genuine interest in resolving issues.  The expertise level is high hence problems are solved quickly compared to talking to a call center halfway around the world where the rep has to put you on hold for 10 minutes while “checking something” (probably finding a supervisor who actually knows something or doing a Google search on your time).  Having said that, the inherent quality of the service is so good; we don’t need to call that often.

What do you like least about Miva?  What are some common problems?
Miva is not intuitive in many ways.  For example, to make adjustments to coupons, one must enter under the hyperlink about “order fulfillment.”  OK … I get it now but that’s not where I’d think to look.  To see the 2^nd page of the list of coupons one needs to hit a button called “update” (rather than “next page”).  Also the maintenance requirements seem complex.

What do you like least about WebNet?  What would you change?  What features would you add?
I can’t think of anything I don’t like about WebNet.  The online features are very useful, for both account and website management.

How many items do you offer for sale on your site?
We offer our three almond products: Cinnamon-Vanilla, Orange-Vanilla & Cocoa-Java — roasted, flavored almonds in various combinations.  We also have Awesome Almonds® mugs for sale.

What Miva feature(s) do you use most?
UPS pricing.

Do you use any modules?  Which ones?  Which are your favorite and why?
Yes.  Basket Tracker.  Buy X Get X Free.  Payment via PayPal.  Checkout button label.  Bread crumbs.  Basket tracker and bread crumbs are among my favorites because they help our customers navigate and track their pending purchase.

Have you had any third-party development done on your site?
Yes.

What do you use for credit card payments and what have your experiences been?
We use First Data Services and Authorize.net.  Authorize.net is awesome.  We have only been with First Data a short while.

How many employees do you have?
None.  We are all very part-time and virtual.  But put together the team makes things happen.

What are your strategies for SEO?
We are consistently on the first page of Google for the search term “almonds.”  The main ingredient, I believe, is our original and relevant content.  Ninety percent of our site is dedicated to providing information rather than selling.  Secondly, we’ve been at this for over 8 years, long before other companies became aware of the health benefits of almonds.   I have to believe the search engines give us some “credit” for our longevity on the topic. We also liberally provide samples of our products to bloggers specializing in the review of quality foods.

What were some of your biggest mistakes? (so that others can possibly learn from them)
Not realizing the differences among hosting options.  We started out with a good but very generic company.  It worked fine as long as we weren’t busy.  Being with a smaller but more specialized hosting company that understands the technical requirements of Miva has resulted in much improved uptime, faster page load times of our site, faster online processing for our customers and less time spent correcting errors.

What have been your biggest successes?
Top 3 Accomplishments:

1)Awesome Almonds® won first prize for two consecutive years for “Outstanding Snack Award” as voted by the Connecticut Specialty Food Association.  The Cinnamon-Vanilla flavor won the 2008 award and the Orange-Vanilla flavor won the award for 2009.

2) Awesome Almonds® was chosen as a supplier to Well Baskets, an enterprise that creates healthy baskets centered on health and wellness.  Like us, they are a family-oriented company who believes in the power of healthy food to help prevent disease and maintain good health.  Well Baskets, LLC is clearly among the premier companies in the healthy gift basket segment.  Their customers are precisely the people who would appreciate and enjoy our products: a physician-created snack.  We are not trying to be all things to all people.  We have a special product.  We really don’t want to be in Wal-Mart or other mass “big box” stores. Well Baskets is exactly the kind of specialized retailer we enjoy working with:  great people, great products, and a harmonious business model.  As we both have substantial presence online, it re-emphasizes the power of the Internet.  Our website is not only for the retail consumer, but also a way of forging new and creative business relationships.

3) We have a customer in England who has been ordering from us online during the holidays for over five years straight.  At times the cost of shipping has exceeded the cost of the product.  I’m sure there are plenty of excellent snack foods available in England but despite shipping costs, Awesome Almonds® has become a holiday tradition for that family.  That’s success!  It wouldn’t have happened were it not for the Internet, continuous improvements, and the excellent service we receive from WebNet Hosting.

Thanks to Dr. Lankin for participating in our interview!

Featured WebNet Hosting Site for January 2010

PlumbTile.com

Each month we profile one of our clients who are running successful Miva Merchant sites in our newsletter and blog.  This month’s company is Plumbtile.com – the premiere online retailer of luxury bath, tile and kitchen products all with the industry’s most competitive pricing.  Here is an interview with Lucy Rojas, CFO of PlumbTile.com.

What is the name and URL of your business?
Plumbtile
http://plumbtile.com

When did your site launch?
January 2004.

How long have you been using Miva Merchant?  WebNet Hosting?
Three years for Miva Merchant and WebNet Hosting.

Were you using Miva before you switched to WebNet?
We signed up at the same time.

What do you like most about Miva Merchant?
The variety of modules and can be applicable for different types of businesses.

What do you like most about WebNet Hosting?
No hosting problems.

What do you like least about Miva?  What are some common problems?
The customer service and technical support. They tend to refer us to the module vendor often times.

What would you change about your hosting?  What features would you add?
We don’t like to request tech support by email. If there’s an important issue we prefer to solve it with a phone call.

How many items do you offer for sale on your site?
Over 275,000 items.

What Miva features do you use most?
Import/Export, upload products.

Do you use any modules?  Which ones?  Which are your favorite and why?
Import/export, discount, feed shopping carts. Our favorites are those too. We get a lot of use out of those. We use a bunch more though.

Have you had any third-party development done on your site?
We have had outside consulting on page views, social media strategies, and the visual design of our site.

What do you use for credit card payments and what have your experiences been?
Authorize.net. We’ve been satisfied with it.

How many employees do you have?
10.

What are your strategies for SEO?
We have directory links, multiple blogs showcasing our products with links back to our site, Facebook and Twitter accounts, meta tag rewrites, properly spider-crawled .txt pages and domains that make sense to our business.

What were some of your biggest mistakes?
Working with inexperienced consultants.

What have been your biggest successes?
Steady increase of sales at above industry rates in a down-turned economic cycle.

Thanks to Lucy Rojas for participating in our interview!