Importance of Website Technical Support

If you thought  your website’s work ended after development and launch, it is not so. Working with the site is a non-stop process  that constantly requires the attention of developers because there are always additional tasks that require the prompt intervention of professionals. For optimal site operation in any area, it is always necessary to carry out many technical procedures for support, optimization, and development. In this article, we would like to reveal the topic of technical support, tell you what it is, why it is essential, and what it includes.

What Is It Support?

IT website support is understood as a set of tasks, or any assistance in ensuring the stable operation of the website; most often, such support is aimed at eliminating a specific issue . Problem-solving is mainly understood as a technical issue ; rarely, when it is content, design or other services, however, some IT companies can solve these problems. The company can provide support services through outsourcing or internal support.

There are various ways in which the company will work with you:

The first way can be a one-time work in which the team will solve existing and critical problems, and this support option; is most often used when they urgently want to change something in the site settings.

Another way is monthly site maintenance work; which  is good if you need to consistently make changes to your site.

And the third and most popular way is the constant support of the site. This support method is considered optimal since only with this method will your website be as convenient as possible for users and work without problems and errors all the time. Most importantly, your site will never have critical issues with constant support on the site.

In most cases, a business outsources technical support because only with this method can you get maximum help and, simultaneously , reduce costs. The main advantage is that you can focus on your main business goals and be sure that your site works as well  as possible.

If you have doubts about outsourcing a team, this article will help you quickly deal with this problem, you will find all the pros and cons of working with an outsourced team, find out what services can be outsourced and what outsourcing is in general.

Sometimes a business decides to use internal technical support, which means it hires its technical support team. This support is only necessary if your website needs help  for regular business operations or if the company works with data that cannot be transferred to third parties. This method is more expensive but in some cases, entirely appropriate.

Now let’s move on to a more important point, and determine what issues tech support solves.

What Issues Does IT Support Solve?

• Software and technical issues.Cover various topics, which can arise for various reasons, but let’s break down the common problems that IT support can handle.
• Updating Sites. No matter how thoughtful in detail the site is, over time, it and its content will still need to be updated. In such a case, it may be necessary to rewrite texts on given pages, update databases with products, refine filters in catalogues, change icons, refresh the menu design, add a new section or remove the old one. By doing all of this – the site will always be up to date.
• Web Server Administration.
• Website Development. Track the industry and competitor sites, in particular, evaluate the prospects for different resource development options, choose the best solutions for their implementation, and the like.
• Problems with Password Recovery and Access.
• Viruses, Malware, Security Breaches. Support solves such a problem as cyber security, an essential aspect for any business. Preventing cyber attacks or reducing the risks of an attack will help your business stay afloat.
• Storage of Backups. Backups are saved in critical situations when performance problems arise, or a virus is detected.
• Maintenance of the Mail Server.
• Setting Up Analytics Tools, Adding New Conversions, Uploading Data to External Sources, Creating Reports and Other Tasks.
• Communication with Hosters. Not all business owners have time to correspond with the hosting support service.
• Troubleshooting Hardware, Software, Server Maintenance and Other Technical Issues.
• Monitoring of DNS Servers. They affect the performance of the site.

As well as many other issues that technical support can solve, it all depends on what conditions you agree to approve.

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Service

The most significant advantage of the technical support of the site is that without causing you to waste time on their decisions, the tech support  is taken over by a team of professionals. Such sites can only exist with backing  of  an online store or similar projects. We have prepared a list of technical support’s advantages and disadvantages.

Technical Support’s Advantages:

• Constant Control;
• The Site Will Be Under Reliable Protection 24/7;
• Virus Protection;
• Optimization;
• Content Update;
• Guaranteed Resource Performance;
• Unlimited Scaling: Under the supervision of an experienced developer, you can move to a new server, make changes to the project infrastructure or change the content management system;
• Reliable Storage of Backups — always Fresh Updates.

Technical Support’s Disadvantages:

• Dependence on ThirdPparty Specialists: The work of the site will depend entirely on whether the developer notices the problem;
• The Need to Conclude a Contract;
• Extra Expenses: Of course, no one wants to pay more, but this is the case when these costs quickly pay off.

Communication: Challenges for Business Owners and Developers

Effective communication during project implementation is essential, especially between the business owner and the development team. After all, only with high-quality communication can a developer do his job efficiently and solve all the problems, and business owners will receive solutions to all communication challenges in the workplace.  Lack of communication and failure to understand the client’s needs can lead to big problems.

When communication with business owners and the development team, there can be misunderstandings and problems. In this article, we want to consider the main  communication issues in the workplace that may arise when speaking with developers and offering solutions for these problems, and how to make your work as prosperous as possible for both parties.

What Communication/Relationship/ Understanding Problems Exist Between Developers and Business Owners?

Various Focuses and Priorities

Developers and business owners see solutions differently. The owner wants to make their website attractive and easy to use. And the developers, first of all, want to make it faster and safer. A successful business includes all these qualities, but there can be much a controversy.

Solution: Tell the developer your goals and requirements so he understands your priorities and what needs to be addressed. The development team can help you analyze all your ideas and will do their best to share your vision, offering suggestions and improvements. In this way,, you can find a solution for your store and establish a stronger and more trusting relationship with your development team.

Problems With Understanding

The developer needs help explaining   his actions or the proposed solution in understandable language. He describes all his suggestions and improvements in complex technical terms, gets nervous, needs help understanding how the other person can not understand and refuses to start regular communication.

Solution: Look for a team that “speaks your language, and impresses you”.  Try to communicate through a project manager who eases  this issue and helps build communication. Business owners, developers and managers have very different roles in a project, but each part is essential, and with proper communication, you will achieve dizzying results.

Another Way of Thinking

The developer may have a different worldview and image of SOAP from yours due to their  culture and background; the more dissimilarity to begin with , the more significant the differences between people will be.

Solution: The easiest way to solve this problem is to work with developers from a similar culture. When looking to outsource tech work , offer this job to a company based in your country or a neighboring country, with a culture  similar to yours and, then  the work will be much easier.

The Language Barrier

The developer may be a native speaker of another language, and there is a chance that you will not be able to understand each other. Of course, it is accepted that the language of developers is English. Still, the level of English proficiency may differ depending on the specification of the project or on the country. Unfortunately, having an insufficient level of English, it will not matter what communication skills the developer has and what kind of professional he is.

Solution: Find a team that speaks the same language as you, or choose a technical team in English-speaking regions. Another solution is to talk to the people you plan to hire ahead of time and see if they can have a meaningful conversation in English.

Communication Quality and Quantity

Developers needing more communication with the business owner/client may  need clarification. The developer may need to understand your vision entirely, or it could lead to errors, delays and inability to deliver the right product. It is optional to communicate with the developer, but recommended. The optimal frequency of communication is once a week.

Solution: Keep in constant contact with your partners, ensure you do it correctly, check that you have covered all the details, structure all your ideas,  and send them to the developers in a presentation or email. To make sure you get the most out of your thoughts, you can create diagrams for various processes or use project management tools to make it easier for the team to understand what they need to achieve and when. In this way, you can be sure that all participants received all the information you wanted to convey and that there is no room for misinterpretation.

The Developer Doesn’t Care About the Idea

The developer writes the code rather than delving  into the business problem and the project’s goals—- they do not start from the problem being solved by some feature but write  the code.

Solution: Set goals, communicate with the developer, and explain  the problem and goals you set for yourself. In this case, the developer will select the best  options and delve into the specifics of your business.

As you can see, a customer of services can face many problems, and you already know how to solve them; we want to help you choos a web development team. Picking the right development team for your business can be a daunting task.

How to Choose the Right Development Team?

Below are some guidelines on choosing the right web development team; following these tips, you will find your ideal team.

Take a Look at the Team’s Portfolio

First of all, pay attention to the level of expertise of the future team, and ensure that the team has enough experience to complete your project. After looking at the portfolio, you can evaluate the work done on ready-made projects, functionality, usability, design, and all other functions that interest you.

Ask for The Contact Information of Previous Clients

You can ask for the contact information  of existing customers and chat with them. You can learn more about the experience of working with the development team of your choice. If previous clients are happy, you can rest assured that you are in good hands; if not, it is better to find another team.

Read Company Reviews on the Clutch Platform

The folowing  excellent method is to read reviews from previous clients. For IT companies, use Clutch. This site specializes in collecting reviews of IT companies around the world. You will be able to find out what businesses the company has worked with before, learn about the merits and awards of the company, and how widespread the team is among colleagues in this area.

Evaluate the Quality of the Company’s Website

A company website can say a lot about a company’s quality standards. Analyze the site, social networks and the quality of the published content, and you will be able to conclude whether you like the site’s design, its functions and the quality of the images. Pay attention to modernity and the use of the latest trends.

Speed of Response to Your Emails

The speed of response to your requests is also essential. The optimal response time to your request is 24 to 48 hours. The team is interested if the team responds quickly and answers your questions.

Summing up, the main thing is quality communication will be able to give you an accurate assessment of the project.

Outsourcing Problems and Their Solutions

Many want to know why outsourcing is bad or good, so let’s discuss the outsourcing problems.

For any business, the practice of outsourcing is a smart solution. Outsourcing can bring many benefits to a company; in addition to profitability, outsourcing eliminates recruitment problems, improves operational efficiency, reduces bottom-line costs, distributes responsibility, and improves growth opportunities.

Outsourcing is popular with many companies around the world. In addition, a company that decides to work with outsourcing companies has the opportunity to focus on its core activities.

But despite all this, of course, outsourcing has its drawbacks. We will help you determine the main reasons and fears for outsourcing. We will also help you dispel the myths about working with teams on outsourcing, understand the most common problems you may encounter if you use a company for outsourcing and how these problems can be handled.

But first, let’s look at what outsourcing is.

What Is Outsourcing?

Outsourcing is hiring outside the company to delegate responsibilities. Companies mainly use this practice as a cost-cutting measure.

To this day, the practice of outsourcing causes many controversies. Those against outsourcing believe that such a business model leads to the loss of jobs within the country. Proponents say this incentivises businesses and companies to allocate resources where they are most effective.

What Services Can Be Outsourced?

The outsourcing company will be solely responsible for your website’s maintenance and support. Some companies hire multiple companies for different functions.

We have prepared for you a small list of tasks that you can outsource:

• Web Hosting
• Cloud Services
• Site Optimization
• Support or APP Control
• Data Centre Management
• Cloud Services
• Email Management
• Cybersecurity or Threat Protection

There are several types of outsourcing, such as offshore outsourcing (outsourcing work to a company located in another country where the cost of services is less), internal outsourcing (hiring employees in the same region but from another company or hiring an entire company), cloud computing (using an external IT service provider to provide IT services over the Internet)

What Are the Challenges of Outsourcing?

Let’s take a closer look at the problems of outsourcing that may arise when working with an outsourcing team.

What Are the Disadvantages of Outsourcing?

As with any business model, outsourcing has drawbacks that any business owner can face, but let’s see if this is critical.

Security Risks. Security is a severe issue these days, and by transferring processes involving personal data, you can compromise the privacy of others or your company’s security. However, if you hire a team of trusted professionals, you can be sure that the data will be under control.

You Lose Some Control. Transferring work to employees for outsourcing means  communicating with employees infrequently and not controlling the work process. However, if you correctly state all your desires, needs, and recommendations when agreeing, the outsourcing company will be able to do its work as precisely as you want; most importantly, act carefully and clearly and trust the company you hired.

Additional Expenses. Outsourcing can sometimes come with unexpected costs. When making changes and improvements, companies may need more resources, sometimes these changes are necessary, and sometimes they are not. We advise you to carefully read the proposals, draw up quality contracts and study them carefully; then, there will be no problems with outsourcing.

Different Time Zones. When choosing an outsourcing company from another country, you will often need help with this because  the team will likely work in a different time zone than you. In an urgent situation or an urgent question for an outsourcing partner company, you may find yourself  working extra hours and receiving  a delayed solution to the problem.

Details Lost in Translation. When working with a company at a distance, or  a company from another group or a neighboring city, when  tasks are forwarded remotely, whether, by mail or phone, details can be lost. Therefore, the right solution is to prescribe duties and instructions honestly to get a good result.

The Quality of Service Is Not in Your Hands. Outsourcing technical issues can be a problem for your business if the company  needs more experience to provide services or needs to be more incompetent. However, this happens very rarely. If you choose the right company, ensure that you hire experienced partners and that they will satisfy all your expectations and requirements.

As you can see, all problems of outsourcing are solved when choosing a good company that knows its business and works conscientiously. Since we have considered all the cons of outsourcing, let’s move on to the outsourcing pros.

What Are the Advantages of Outsourcing?

Economic Efficiency. Outsourcing the technical support of your site will help you reduce costs because the prices for the same services in different countries may differ; it can help you save a lot.

Focus on Core Business. Website support outsourcing will allow you to focus on your business, and professionals in their field will support your site. You do not have to spend time and resources on managing and hiring a support team.

Productivity Improvement. When looking for an outsourcing team, look for a professional who can meet all your requirements and progress.

Hiring Top-Level Experts. Outsourcing allows hiring the best professionals with the most experience in a particular niche. By hiring a company of professionals, you will get a team that has already gone through a lot, is aware of new trends, and is ready to solve any issue.

Access to Global Talent. Outsourcing makes it possible to find professionals with varying  skills, knowledge, and abilities, whether it be knowledge of the Korean language, unique technologies, or an understanding  of a particular market.

Trustworthy Partners. By hiring one team and building relationships with it, you get a partner you can trust, who will ensure you do not put all your eggs in one basket and can effectively distribute tasks;

Easy to Replace. Outsourcers are easier to replace than employees. The business relationship ends when the contract ends/breaks.

Saving Time and Resources. While the outsourcing team is working on your tasks, you and your team are working on other business priorities.

If you are a business that wants to be as productive as possible. Consider that outsourcing companies can do their work while you sleep. Outsourcing teams can do information technology work during downtime, bringing huge benefits.

Only you can decide if outsourcing is the right business solution for you; Is outsourcing good or bad? We can only say that we know the solutions to outsourcing problems and if you are interested in hiring a technical team for outsourcing, we are ready to help you with this.

Best Ways to Optimize Your Website for Mobile Page Speed

This is our third and final article about page load speed. Today we will discuss page loading speed on mobile. It has long been no secret that every year, more and more people prefer to visit the site and make purchases from a mobile phone.

Mobile web traffic accounts for 52.3% of global web traffic — Statista. In this regard, the rules for ranking a search query are also changing, and they have begun to focus primarily on mobile devices. Therefore, we advise you to pay special attention to adapting the mobile version of the site because each user still expects the page to load at lightning speed, and if this does not happen, your potential client simply leaves the site.

Let’s look at the methods that can be used to improve the download speed on mobile devices.

How to Increase Page Speed for Mobile Devices?

You already know how to optimize page speed for desktop, so optimizing page speed for mobile isn’t difficult because the steps are similar, although there are some differences.

To Optimize page speed, you need to do the following:

Make Your Web Design Simple 

Data processing on mobile devices takes longer than on PCs or laptops. You need to make sure that your website is configured correctly. Reducing the code and using a minimal design to increase the speed of loading web pages on mobile sites is preferable.

Minimize Redirects

It takes time for the server to find and retrieve the original document that the user requests through the original link that no longer works. This redirect takes enough time for the user to leave the site.

Avoid Using Too Many Custom Fonts

For a more correct and faster loading, it is better to use a small number of fonts. Using fewer fonts will look more aesthetically pleasing and help reduce page loading speed

Activate Google Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP)

Use the AMP project to ensure your web page looks good and loads quickly on all devices, smartphones, and tablets. Minimalistic AMP HTML code will help reduce loading time.

Shortening the Registration Process

With  a few steps, you can eliminate unnecessary code, reducing page loading speed, which will also help optimize check-in times for your customers, preventing them from leaving out of impatience.

Optimize Your Mobile SEO

As we said at the beginning of the article, Google prioritizes mobile devices when ranking websites. Your website will consistently rank well with a user-friendly design and good mobile optimization.

Make Sure Browser Caching Is Enabled

To speed up page loading on subsequent access, ensure browser caching is enabled on smartphones, tablets, and desktop browsers.

How to Check Mobile Site Loading Time?

You have already seen a list of services that can help you check page loading speed on a desktop, among which there were those in which you could also check the mobile version. We have added a few more services to help you check the site’s loading time on mobile.

Think With Google

Think With Google: It helps you check the speed of your mobile device because the service uses a 4G connection. Think With Google will also recommend speeding up the work and sending a full report in PDF format.

WebPageTest

WebPageTest: It can become your indispensable assistant in checking the site’s loading speed. You will be able to set many settings for your test. It is also possible to do advanced testing, where there will be even more control over the test (you can set parameters such as various Android and iOS devices or connection speed emulations). Service will also generate a report with recommendations on improvingthe site loading speed.

Dotcom-Monitor

Dotcom-Monitor is a service with a large selection of regions and  devices for which to check. After analysis, like previous services, Dotcom-Monitor will generate performance analysis, query graphs, host data, errors, and recommendations.

Website Load Time – How to Check the Page Load Speed

We continue our series of articles about Page Load Speeds.  We have already said that the speed of displaying web pages on the screen affects the overall impression of the site. Due to high competition, the requirements for sites begin to grow, and visitors stop waiting for the site to load but simply visit another one, which entails a decrease in conversion.

In addition to everything we have already discussed, we would like to pay attention to how download speed affects SEO. This is because customers and search robots behave differently regarding  page load times.

A slow page is known to have a higher bounce rate than a fast one. When a user clicks on a slow page, they wait for the site to load and then leave once it displays nothing for several seconds.

This behavior indicates that the website is not worth the visitors’ time. In addition, it shows that the search engine algorithm has a negative view of low-value sites. A second delay in the page load time can reduce page views by 11%.

Google’s crawler, a software program that indexes websites, only spends a limited amount of time on each page. If a website’s entire response time is slow, it will not be able to index all its available pages, which can negatively affect its ranking.

The faster a site loads, the higher it will rank. In other words, everything important to users, such as ads and content, will be equal between the sites that load faster.

This article will analyze how you can check the page load speed and what services can help speed up the time it takes to load a page.

Page Load Speed Statistics

 Now let’s look at the page load speed statistics. The Statistics immediately speak for themselves.

* A delay of 1 second reduces the number of page views by 11%. (liveseysolar.com)

* If the site load time is 1–3 seconds, the bounce rate is only 32%. (envisagedigital.co)

* 39% of people will stop interacting with a website if images don’t load or take too long to load. (hubspot.com)

* 44% of customers will share a story about long loading times with their friends and family, which can reduce direct visits to your website. (thrivemyway.com)

* Each 3rd party script added to the website slows the website’s loading time by approximately 34.1ms.

* 52 % of online shoppers said fast page loading is essential to their site (loyalty.clarity-ventures.com)

* Buyers are often distracted while waiting for a page to load. 14% will start shopping on another site, and 23% will stop shopping or move away from their computer. 

* 88.5% cite slow page loading as the main reason they leave a website. (review42.com)

And now, let’s move on to services that will help determine the page load speed.

How to Check Download Speed?

We would like to consider several services to help you check the download speed.

Google PageSpeed Insights

Google PageSpeed Insights is an official tool from Google that will help determine the loading speed of the desktop and mobile versions of the site. The service will check and give recommendations. The test result will be shown as a point; 90-100 points is a good result.

The final number of pointscomprises estimates of the site’s speed  for several time characteristics. In the “features” and “diagnostics” sections, you will find tips that the service offers to speed up the site.

The service can also check the site loading speed on mobile devices. We suggest you listen to the advice this service gives, since it is Google that determines the position of your site in the search results.

Of course, besides this service, alternative options for checking the site loading speed exists.

Pingdom Tools

This service will be useful for a one-time speed test and continuous monitoring. You can set the verification options so that the service checks your site every 30 minutes and sends you reports. 

Pingdom analyzes web resource uptime, performance, and user interaction, and just like Google PageSpeed Insights, gives general recommendations, among which are page speeding.

You can check sites using this service only by choosing the countries where the check will be performed (the USA, Australia, Brazil, and the like). Pingdom Tools also givesesults from 0 to 100 points; 90-100 points is good.

Gtmetrix.com

Gtmetrix.com is another useful service for checking page loading speed. This service has an extensive functionality of settings you can choose to check: location, Internet connection, connection type, and so on. 

A useful feature is that the service includes Google PageSpeed Insights and YSlow analysis, and Gtmetrix stores data from past checks. Service, like the previous two, offers recommendations for various indicators.

Gtmetrix offers a paid version with more features and extensions and a free version.

Uptrends.com

The service immediately offers many settings. You can directly set the verification parameters: on mobile devices or a desktop, select a city, browser, screen extensions or the gadget model.

Just like Gtmetrix,Uptrends.com also shows the score from Google PageSpeed Insights. After the analysis, you can get a full report and all the necessary recommendations. This service also has a paid and free version.

We told you only about a few services that will help you check the speed of loading a site online. There are many more services that can help in this matter. If you notice that the speed of your site is lower than it should be, you shouldn’t put it off until later and immediately deal with it.

How to Increase Website Page Speed

Every business owner wants content to get conversions, traffic, coverage, recognition in search engines and other related business parameters—ROI, LTV—and sales. It would be best to take care of your site’s performance; page speed is critical to accomplish this.

It depends on how well the page loading speed is configured and whether the user will like to interact with the site. Online stores with low performance and slow pages will get low conversion rates in SERPs. As a result, the business will overtake competitors.

Your potential buyers are waiting for an instant page load! That is why we decided to discuss this topic.

What Is Page Speed?

Website loading speed is the time that passes from the moment a user clicks on a link to the moment when he sees a fully loaded page.

Many often forget about page loading speed to make the site more beautiful for users, add creative design, and develop unique content with lots of graphics and videos. At the same time, this factor plays a decisive role for users.

Page Loading Process

Site loading speed is divided into two types: client loading and server loading. They are equally crucial for page loading speed, but each has its characteristics. Server loading responds to all requests and stages related to the server’s speed (DNS request, establishing a secure connection, HTML page request and waiting, and the like). Client loading is responsible for all stages of page loading, depending on the site and its initial content.

Let’s break down the page load cycle:

1. Immediately after the search query, the client follows the hyperlink to the site
2. The browser sends a request to the web server
3. The web server processes the request.
4. The web server sends a response to the browser.
5. The browser receives the information.
6. The browser parses, loads, and displays the page’s content.
7. The page becomes fully accessible in the browser.

Considering the page load cycle, it is already becoming clear that placing content close to your audience is the main thing.

What is happening on the server at this moment?

On the server, the process of searching for the necessary information is as follows:

1. The server receives a request from the browser. Special software deals with the processing and analysis of the request, which interacts with handler programs, such as PHP.
2. The generated response is forwarded to the browser. The answer consists of encoded information about how the web page should appear.

What Happens on the Browser Side?

The browser can also help your site display faster. Now it’s time to discuss what the browser does:

1. Authentication of the site’s IP address happens in the following sequence: the browser accesses the browsing history — cached data — or uses the DNS server. Not finding the necessary information will redirect the request to servers of a different rank.
2. Create an HTTP request to get the desired content.
3. Receiving a response from the server and sequentially displaying data — basic HTML code, additional elements such as videos or pictures.

The optimal loading time is 2–3 seconds, and the ideal user reaction time is 0.5 seconds. However, for highly loaded web applications, the optimal speed may differ.

Let’s start by discussing download speed issues.

• Loading speed ultimately affects the conversion: sales and earnings of the store — more orders, more receipts.
• It also affects the user experience, emotional impression and return of customers to this site — customer base size, and brand loyalty, recommendations to acquaintances.
• The higher the download speed on mobile, the higher it is rated by search engines and higher in the search results. The more chances to get more visitors and, as a result, orders.
• If the site takes a long time to load — more than 3 – 4 seconds, and sometimes two seconds — patient buyers get annoyed and leave the site for the competitor’s site. We are already used to it, and it annoys us when the store does not load on a smartphone.
• If the page takes a long time to load, it can also spoil the impression of the appearance and operation of the site as some of the essential design resources do not load on time.
• It is essential to optimize sites, namely Core Web Vitals, which are critical indicators in the Google test) — they  rank sites.
• The most important thing is that the product, category and checkout pages load quickly. The first two types account for 72% of site views, checkout being the most important final step.
• After fout seconds, the “conversion zone” closes and buyers leave.
• Loading speed on mobile is even more important than on desktop.
• If a brand invests in advertising, download speed will be affected. 

What Factors Affect Website Loading Time?

Some factors that affect boot time cannot be changed, but you can eliminate some.

Web Hosting

You can choose between different types of servers provided by hosting companies. However, the main thing is to choose the right web host. After all, if your hosting does not have enough server resources, you will face the problem of slow loading.

Images, Videos and Files

A large number of files and large file sizes on a page will take longer to load, which means you need to optimize all of your images.

Plugins

To extend the functionality of a website, WordPress website owners often add plugins. However, you should carefully choose the number of plugins.

Browsers

The browser also affects the page load time, and older versions of the browser may not be compatible with the code and new resources on the pages.

Clearing the cache

When you visit a website, cache information is stored on your computer, and this helps you access them faster. However, when clearing the cache, the download speed will be slower.

How to Increase Website Loading Speed?

Working on increasing the speed of loading the site is the task of programmers. And here’s what they can do:

– Image Optimization

Images greatly affect page speed, and large images can significantly slow down a page and take up a lot of screen space resulting in poor page performance.

To achieve this goal, you will be able to:

• Set image parameters by width, height, and weight
• Compress large images
• Add previews to large images so they load faster

– Remove Unnecessary Plugins, Counters, and Modules: Always keep up-to-date installed plugins, modules, and codes; this will speed up the site. We advise you to pay attention becaue problematic plugins can slow down your website and expose it to certain security risks, including hackers  and attacks. Also, make sure that your website code is well-optimized.

– Use a Content Distribution Network (CDN): Enabling a reliable CDN can further increase your site’s page speed,because when users are browsing the Internet, the physical location of your servers can affect page loading times. Unlike conventional networks, a CDN hosts your website in the cloud, delivering content to servers as close as possible to your customers. In addition, CDNs help reduce hosting bandwidth through caching, ensuringmore efficient delivery and rendering of the content of your web pages. A CDN can handle different types of content, including HTML pages, JavaScript files, server-side videos and images, and style sheets. CDNs offer several other benefits that go beyond reducing load times. In addition, these networks can protect your website from distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, which hackers often launch to overwhelm a website and cause it to crash. CDNs also protect against other types of attacks and hackers and can ensure that content is always available in the event of traffic spikes or malware intrusion.

– Choose 1-2 Fonts: For a more correct and faster loading, it is better to use a small number of fonts;this will look more aesthetically pleasing and help reduce page loading speed

– Enable Caching: Allowing browsers to cache and save site information will make reloading the site much faster.

– Enable “Lazy Loading” of Images: LazyLoad, or “lazy loading”, is an option in which images are not loaded immediately and not automatically, but only if the user needs them.

A Beautiful Mistake – Talk About 404 Error Page

We are sure that at least once in your life, you have landed on a page with a well-known 404 error; getting to this page, you probably experienced not the most pleasant emotions. After all, a meeting with this page implies unsuccessful attempts to search for something. From here, you want to leave quickly – and it’s good if you go to the home page and not back to the search. However, we can ensure that the potential buyer returns to the site even after that.

An example of our 404-page show is in the banner.

With this article, we’d like to help you find the perfect solution for creating a 404 error page and share how to optimize it, make it work, and bring aesthetic pleasure to your customers. We have also prepared several examples with 404 error pages that many of the brand’s customers have already fallen in love with and will tell you what exactly attracts people to these pages.

What Is a Custom 404 Error Page?

404 is the HTTP (Not found) status code that the server returns if the user tries to access the URL of a page that doesn’t exist:

Simply put, a 404 page is a failed attempt to open something on a website. This automatic page opens if the requested site cannot be found.

This error usually occurs when

• changing the structure of the site;
• broken links;
• changing the URL of the page;
• the page or site no longer exists.

It would be best if you worked out these reasons and replaced all broken links. When changing the structure and URLs of the site addresses, correctly configure 301 redirects to existing pages. Sometimes 404 pages also appear in everyday situations.

For example:

– The web page has been removed (in this case, the appearance of a 404 page is inevitable and logical for search robots)

– A person enters the wrong site address or follows a non-existent link (this happens if you deleted the old link, but it remained in the search index).

In such cases, a great option would be to create a template and set up a 404 server response code for non-existent pages. The main thing to keep in mind is SEO: a 404 page should return an HTTP 404 (Not Found) code and be appropriately configured so that search engines do not index it.

Firstly, such pages will be counted as duplicates. Secondly, it can negatively affect behavioral factors. After all, if a person from the search gets to a 404 page, he will be upset because he expected to see something completely different. Therefore, it will quickly leave and return to the search again.

You shouldn’t do a 301 redirect to the home page. Thus, you mislead the user: he expected to receive one page but incomprehensibly ended up on the main one. From the 404th page, there should be a link to the main one, but not a redirect.

Do I Need to Create a Custom 404 Page?

Sometimes, 404 pages are designed in a standard way and look something like this:

Agree that it’s not very loyal to the user, and we are more likely to lose it if we don’t create a unique and valuable 404 error template.

Sometimes site owners are unaware of such errors. It is difficult to monitor the correctness of links on large portals with thousands of pages. Therefore, users periodically encounter the inscription “404 Page Not Found”. Sometimes the 404 page appears due to the user’s error if he manually enters or adjusts the URL. A 404 page can occur on any site and cannot be controlled entirely.

How to Make a Custom 404 Error Page?

The page should be simple and understandable for the user. Let it be creative and harmoniously continue the concept of the entire site, but do not complicate the path to the main space, for example, to the product catalog or the main page.

Tips for Creating a 404 Page:

Be Creative

To smooth out the negative impression of the user that he did not find what he was looking for, you can try to use an original and attractive design with a bit of humor. Use images that are witty and relevant to your topic. People will remember it, and they will remember your brand.

At the same time, in the page’s structure, you can leave the header with the logo and the site’s footer. The main thing is not to overdo it; design the page in the same style and tone as the rest of the site.

Be Kind

Apologize to the visitor and explain in detail why he ended up on the 404 page. Tell the visitor that the page has been deleted or an error has occurred, and help return to the site’s main pages.

Invite the visitor to check the accuracy of the address or provide links to topics that have been recently moved and provide links to the product or articles relevant to the search.

Make a Helpful Page, and Suggest a Solution

Don’t limit yourself to a funny picture. Help the user solve the problem; for example, offer to go to the “Home”, use the “Search Site”, or view the “Site Map”.

You should prove to the visitor that you care about him, increasing your site’s credibility. It will be good to provide links to popular materials/categories/sections of the site, hot discounts, and promotions if you have an online store. It is necessary to transfer the user’s attention to something useful for him. Offer to visit the page with promotions and special offers.

You can also offer to subscribe to updates so that the visitor follows the new materials and news of the site.

Provide Opportunities for Feedback

State your availability. Allow users to contact you and personally report a broken link/page.

Place a search bar so the site visitor can find what they are looking for—for example, a category in an online store or an article on a news portal.

Show the Visitor a Quiz or Mini-Game.

Mini-games and quizzes are a great way to keep the negative user experience to a minimum.

How to Find 404 Error Pages?

We have selected for you a selection of various tools that are the most effective for finding 404 errors on the site.

Google Search Console

To find a list of all 404 pages, sign in to your Google Search Console account and select Diagnostics > Crawl Errors. Once you click Not Found, a list of all URLs that result in a 404 error will appear.

Google Analytics

To find a list of all 404 pages, you need to know the standard title of the 404 page on your domain. Go to Behavior > Site Content > All Pages and set the primary setting to “Page Title”. From there, you will be able to filter the results by entering the title of the 404 page in the search field.

WordPress Plugin

Broken Link Checker is a free WordPress plugin that looks for broken links throughout your site and determines their status. You can also search for all missing, redirected or broken connections from one panel.

Serpstat

The tool has a wide range of possibilities. In addition to broken links, it shows the quality of domain optimization and a graph of the check depth. Allows you to analyze competitor sites.

This task can also be solved using Site Parsers.

A Site Parser is any program or service automatically collecting information from a given resource.

How to Prevent a 404 Error From Appearing on a Website?

• correctly form permanent URLs for pages;
• regularly check broken links on the site – both internal and external and eliminate them;
• do not delete old content, and if you do, put 301 redirects to alternative pages;

Custom 404 Page Examples

A well-designed and usability 404 page will help the user understand what to do next. See how the most creative companies solved this problem.

Lego

The 404 error page by Lego is entirely consistent with the brand’s concept, and the page is also fun, engaging, and easy to understand. There is no technical language or references to a “404 error” that some people may not understand. Short but humorous text and a call to action turn a user error into an opportunity to sell products and increase revenue.

Netflix

The 404 error page by Netflix shows an image from Lost in Space. Page 404 uses the metaphor of being lost in space, giving it a movie feel. The 404 page allows you to navigate to the main page and makes it easy and natural. Such solutions always encourage users to ignore the broken link and keep browsing.

Disney

The 404 error page by Disney matches the brand perfectly. Disney’s 404 page shows an image from their famous cartoon Monsters on Vacation. A hilarious picture and a cartoon joke are a great way to bring users back to the Disney universe. In addition, they have a search navigation bar that helps the audience find the section they need.

Adobe

The 404 error page by Adobe is functional and visually pleasing. The page contains a list of popular links that the user most often needs and a perfect photo that symbolizes the metaphor of a broken or lost page. This combination helps customers quickly navigate to the desired section and continue shopping.

Yves Saint Laurent

The 404 error page by Yves Saint Laurent is entirely consistent with the site’s design; a non-intrusive call-to-action button prompts you to go to the main page. The main categories are also presented on the page to make it easier for the user to find the right page.

Under Armour

The 404 error page by Under Armour is visually pleasing and matches the site’s design. The page contains a beautiful, relevant image and text, a user-friendly interface for a feedback form, and a call-to-action button at the top. Such a page will quickly redirect your customers to the right section and remove the unpleasant impression of a 404 error. In our opinion, this is an incredible 404 error page for an eCommerce business.

We have demonstrated to you a few good examples of the design of the 404 page. Someone strictly adhered to their corporate identity and made classic error pages. Others, in turn, were not afraid to take risks, joke and experiment with design. The main thing to remember is that the right design can turn an annoyed visitor into a buyer!

If you liked our tips and want to improve your 404 pages, we have found tutorials on how to create a 404 page on Laravel, create a custom 404 page on WordPress, and create a custom 404 page on Shopify. By reading these tutorials, you can answer all your questions and learn how to create a custom page on Laravel, edit 404 pages on Shopify, what templates are available for this page on WordPress, and edit error pages on WordPress. After that, you can easily win the hearts of your customers who land on the 404 error page.

Free People: Mix of Perfect Navigation, Useful Features and Aesthetics

We continue our series of articles with a website overview, the interface and the design that helps solve business problems. Good design helped more than one store, and unique and personalized features delighted and attracted customers.

We have prepared several points that you should pay attention to for your eCommerce store:

1. The interface must fully correspond to your target audience (compare to the nature, vision and nature of the target audience)
2. Convenient navigation and interface and usability (the store should be intuitive, logical and most convenient to use)
3. Personalized service (interest-based search results, customer acquisition, upsell, cross sale)
4. Website adaptation for all electronic devices

The main task of any online store is to lead the visitor from the first click to the moment of making a purchase using many elements, taking into account the convenience and psychological perception of the client.

To help you decide on the ideal design and functionality for your store, we analyzed the main features of the American bohemian apparel and lifestyle retail company “Free People“.

Brand History

To begin with, We would like to share the history of this brand, their vision, and aesthetics, and then it will be easier to understand why their store is designed in such a way and how they personalized their brand for their ideal consumer.   

In 1970s, Dick Hain opened a store in Pennsylvania called Free People, and a store focused on people who were looking for freedom in the clothes they wore. When Dick Hain decided to expand and open a second store, the name was changed from Free People to Urban Outfitters. Over time, the demand for products became immediate, and to meet the demand, Dick and his wife decided to create a wholesale line. For a while, the wholesale line took on many personalities: Bulldog, Ecote, Cooperative, Anthropologie, and then in 1984, a new life was breathed into the name Free People.

In 2001, the brand decided that Free people embody favorite images, femininity, courage, and spirit. And Dick Hain chose to return to the original concept.

Free People has become a more mature, modern brand. Now the clothing brand embodies each girl’s intelligence, creativity, and individuality while maintaining its high quality and affordability.

This is exactly what the free people brand wanted to achieve: a 26-year-old girl, smart, creative, confident, and comfortable in all aspects of her being, free and adventurous, sweet to tough to tomboy to romantic. A girl who likes to keep busy and push life to its limits, with traveling and hanging out and everything in between. Who loves Donovan as much as she loves The Dears, and can’t resist petting any dog that passes her by on the street. 

Once you have found your ideal customer image, the brand offers a wide range of options where there is something for everyone, for every lifestyle, and every occasion. Looking individual, attractive and free is very easy with the free people brand.

Free People has four wholesale showrooms in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and London. The Free People team is constantly looking for clients who believe in the Free People aesthetic and want Free People to be a part of their lives.

User-Friendly Home Page

On the main page, you can immediately find categorized pages with the most important categories. Here you can find the standard “New”, “Top Rated”, “Dresses”, “Clothes”, “Swim” and so on. On the main page, you can immediately find categorized pages with the most important categories. Here you can find the standard “novelties”, “Top ratings”, “dresses”, “things”, “swimsuits” and so on. But besides this, you can also find such categories as “New under $100”, “The FALL collection”, “The bottoms edit” and a “New season shoes”.

In addition, we would like to note that the entire main page is divided into useful sections. The beauty of the photos is also impressive, and even if customers did not want to buy anything from a certain category, after looking at the photos taken by the brand, they cannot remain indifferent and come at least to consider this product. And this is one of the most important tips that can be given to any brand, the main thing is to take high-quality photos.

Now let’s talk about navigation on the site, since the site is thought out thoroughly, here you can easily find the necessary product. As you can see in the outdoor clothing example. In addition to the usual, classic categories of goods, there are also categories by type of activity as well as by collections, which can greatly facilitate your search for the necessary goods.

Also, you can find links to the store’s blog on the main page. The blog is also a handy feature of the site. A blog will help your store drive traffic, get new customers, and build trust.

We also would like to pay attention to the call to action to go to live broadcasts. Now it is a very popular solution to show how things look in life and the opportunity to look at them, it is also the trend of eCommerce in 2022. In Free People Live, you can immediately go to the product page and buy them.

Free People Live

Let’s take a closer look at what the live broadcast looks like on the Free people website. The most convenient thing is that you can immediately see what product is being considered at the moment, directly ask all your questions in the chat, be the first to see the new collection, and for this, you don’t even need to go to the store. Modern buyers greatly value their time, so that they will appreciate such a feature. So don’t be afraid to experiment and add modern solutions to your e?ommerce store.

Now let’s move on to the product card

Brilliantly Designed Product Card

The product card in the free people store is brilliantly designed. The card describes in detail the characteristics of each product, its advantages, and a huge number of photos and videos about the product, which, of course, can motivate you to buy. 

There is a product evaluation function in the product card, in addition to marketing selling triggers that motivate a person to buy and convenient functions for choosing the most suitable model and its design. At the same time, the evaluation is carried out not in general for the product but according to its key characteristics. The rating at the beginning of the page is average, based on the ratings of customers who leave it in their comments.

This is a very convenient and helpful feature because on its basis, you can draw subjective conclusions about the product. Another plus in the product card is the interaction of the store with its customers.

It is also convenient that there is a transition to similar products. This method will help increase sales, as the client can make an additional sale in addition to the main product or replace the selected product that the client has changed his mind about buying. 

Now let’s move on to the details and product description and size chart. Store free people have chosen the tactic of a very detailed product description, size description and even care tips. It is also a good solution to describe the size that is on the model and the size, so if the client of the same parameters can clearly see how the model will sit.

As for the size table, it is standard and useful here. But since each product has an additional feedback scale in which customers leave feedback on sizes, it is very difficult to make a mistake in size.

Free People care about their customers and post a return policy on every product card. That also encourages customers to be more confident in the product.

By the way, if you do an analysis of the product card, the store is very concerned about reducing product returns, if you read our article, you can know that 60% will read your terms of sale and return before placing an order online. 69% of customers don’t even make a purchase if they do not find an exchange and return policy, and 33% of customers will change their mind about purchasing if they cannot easily find the exchange and return page.

Free People care about their customers and post a return policy on every product card. That also encourages customers to be more confident in the product.

If you analyze the product card, you can conclude that the store is concerned about reducing product returns. If you read our article, you know that 60% will read your terms of sale and return before placing an order online. 69% of customers don’t even purchase if they do not find an exchange and return policy, and 33% of customers will change their mind about purchasing if they cannot easily find the exchange and return page.

The company also uses all the methods to reduce the number of returns that we discussed in our article, such as relevant descriptions of products, VR/AR, dynamic sizing tables, offer alternative products, allows customers to leave detailed product reviews and for sure dynamic sizing tables. Therefore, we advise you to be inspired by working with the store’s “free people” site and take note of these valuable features.

Aesthetic Free People Movement 

Now let’s move on to my favorite page “free people movement”. Free people movement is the unification of people who are close in spirit to the aesthetics of the brand and to each other. In this section you can find things that are ideal for entertainment organized by a team of free people. 

This solution helps to build sales, retain your customers and turn them into true brand followers.

Also, for the brand, this is a huge additional sale, since for each new event or entertainment by the participant, you will need to choose a cool, laconic bow from your shop.

Convenient Payment Method

Free people offer all convenient payment methods. You can purchase as a guest or register.

On the left side, we see the selected products and the payment methods on the right. Also, a helpful feature for any store is the section to postpone for later. Firstly, this section will remind them of the products they want to buy, and secondly, it will help them make additional sales.

This is exactly the case with the “you might also like” section; it creates additional sales for your brand and helps customers find personalized products for the client. It is also convenient that there is a transition to similar products. This method will help increase sales, as the client can make an additional sale in addition to the main product or replace the selected product that the client has changed his mind about buying.

Sustainability Initiatives

The environment, quite rightly, is of great importance to almost everyone these days. Since many consumers are aware of how their actions and daily lives affect the world around them, they now seek to do business only with those who demonstrate brand sustainability, and “free people” are no exception.

The Free People team is committed to supporting our product turnover and reducing waste across all aspects of our value chain from design to manufacturing to the final product, with the goal of moving from a linear to a regenerative model.

Free People on Mobile

A mobile application for an online store helps to increase sales. The “free people” store does not forget about this and implements all the necessary functions into the mobile version.

Going to the mobile version, we see the excellent speed of loading content and the same convenient and intuitive navigation through the site. We can see the same beautiful sections, which are easy and convenient to switch to from the mobile version.

The mobile version also provides the option to pay via Apple Pay. This will make it very easy for your customers to buy.

Ecommerce Returns Solutions for Your Business

eCommerce return is a standard process, nothing out of the ordinary. Almost everyone, for some reason, returned goods to the store; the reasons for return can be completely different, and the requirement to return the goods may not always be legitimate. That is why you need to know how to create a beneficial, simple and pleasant return policy for your business and your customers in your eCommerce business. Although returns are an inevitable part of any business, it doesn’t mean that returns can be left to chance. We will tell you about the most frequent returns, share the eCommerce return statistics, share solutions on how to reduce the number of returns, and give examples of companies with the most customer-oriented return policy.

To get started, we have prepared some statistics that will help you answer some questions right away, and some of the data will surprise you very much.

• 18.1% of online purchases returned 
• 19% of consumers order several variants of the same product at once (different colours, sizes) to choose the most suitable one, and the rest return.
• 22% of the return because the product does not match the one declared on the Internet (it looks different)
• 30% of customers intentionally buy a product knowing they will return it
• 49% of eCommerce businesses offer free return shipping to customers
• 58% don’t want to answer questions about why they are returning products
• 60% of buyers read the return policy before buying
• 80.2% of items are returned to the store because they are broken or damaged
• 92% of customers said they would stay customers even after a return if their return experience were easy

eCommerce Returns Management

What Is the eCommerce Return Process?

eCommerce return process: a process of returning goods from the customer to the enterprise or exchanging goods by the enterprise for the client.

The Return Process for eCommerce Products Includes Five Steps:

• The customer receives the item and decides to make a return and/or refund (this can happen for any reason, whether it’s a change of mind or not being happy with the product)
• The company decides whether the demand for a refund meets the company’s policy
• The decision of the company on how the return will be made by your company (courier) / logistics partners, or the client himself will send it by mail to your warehouse.
• The goods are returned to your warehouse
• Returned item is in stock and ready for resale

The return process always requires a lot of effort, including the cost of many resources. Thus, the hidden costs in the return process in eCommerce businesses are usually high.

Why Do Customers Cancel Their Orders?

There are many reasons why a buyer may refuse a product. We have highlighted the most popular.

Impulse Buying

A buyer in their emotional state can buy a product based on your excellent marketing strategy. After a while, the client realizes what he did and cools down to purchase. And most importantly, at this moment, a person realizes how much money he has spent, and it is then that the processing of returns begins. In this case, the solution may be to provide different payment methods such as installments, buy now, pay last and others.

High Competition 

The client can find the same or similar product from another seller anytime. The solution to this problem can be to give your product uniqueness, add a gift or make a bonus.

Ease of Order Cancellation 

When a buyer sees a cancel order button in their account, they will use this opportunity impulsively to make purchases knowing they can refuse it at any moment.

The Order Confirmation Is Not Fast Enough

If you have chosen the approach of confirming orders by phone number, you need to understand that without confirming the order immediately, the client may already cool down to purchase by the time of the call. The way out is to respond to orders promptly.

Main Reasons for Returning Goods

There are also many reasons for returning goods, but the main one is the gap between expectation and reality. Responsibility for these moments may lie with both the seller and the client.

• The item arrived defective or damaged upon delivery
• Wrong size
• Product inconsistency with the images in the website
• The buyer does not like the purchase.
• Force Majeure

We have listed far from the entire list of reasons that affect the client’s decision to return their goods. We would like to help you resolve your cancellation issues and help you make the eCommerce return process more enjoyable for both you and your customers. 

Solutions to Reduce eCommerce Returns

We have prepared some tips to reduce the number of returns and increase customer satisfaction.

Make your eCommerce return policy accessible, understandable, and easy to find on your website.

We advise you to be open and transparent. The best option would be to create a separate page, immediately answer all customers’ questions, clearly state all the return policies and tell everything you offer, and consider the possibility of free return shipping.

Questions You Need to Answer in Your Return and Refund Policy

• Return Instructions (it’s a good idea to illustrate the return process)
• How much time does the company give the customer to make a return?
• How exactly will the client be able to receive a refund, and for how long
• Who will pay for the return shipping cost?
• Are your return labels and slips included?
• Do you require checks, receipts or transaction confirmations?
• What condition must the item be in to be returned?
• How quickly will the return take place?

By making the wrong eCommerce return policy, you can lose a lot of customers because 69% of customers will not even make a purchase, and 33% of customers will change their mind about purchasing if they cannot easily find the exchange and return page.

Focus On Improving the Product Image

We think it is the most straightforward recommendation, but many people neglect it. Things often look different on the Internet and in life, which stimulates an increase in the number of returns. By providing a variety of images on the site from different angles and in good quality, the likelihood of a large number of returns is clearly reduced, but the conversions will increase.

Relevant Describing of Products

Also, an essential factor in the return may be that the product does not match the description on the website. It is always frustrating to receive something that is not what you expected and has been waiting for a long time. According to the structure, the description may consist of a headline that will hook your audience, a product description (its unique properties and how it can help), share the characteristics and function of the product, share product reviews and what exactly your customers value in your products.

Use VR/3D/AR on Your Website

VR/3D/AR is one of the easiest ways to help customers interact with the product before buying. Using these technologies, you can show customers how certain products will look on them and how they will fit with other products, and you can also compare sizes.

Add Dynamic Sizing Tables to Your Site

Adding to the site different variations of tables with a detailed description of the sizes will also help avoid many returns. This will be especially useful in shoe and clothing stores.

Offer Alternative Products During the Return Process

The customer may remain interested by offering a customer to exchange their product for a product of a different size or colour or similar style. Such a solution will help not to lose the client and the order.

Allowing Customers to Leave Detailed Product Reviews

Such reviews will also help the client choose the right size, understand how the product corresponds to the declared one, and discover what people who have already bought the product think.

Take the Time and Effort to Pack

Choose packaging that will protect your product from any damage during shipping. Also, ensure that this packaging is suitable for the return transport of the order so that when you return the product, it will not be damaged. Adding bonuses to the box (mini gifts, coupons, special scams) is also a good idea. At least this will help to please the client even if they have to make a return or push the client to make another order.

Ask Why Customers Return Products

While 58% are reluctant to share what they didn’t like and why they want to return a product, some are happy to answer all questions and help you improve your products or shipping methods, which will help you reduce returns in the future. 

As you can see, there are many methods and strategies for minimizing the number of returns and return costs. Your competitors will have a considerable impact. When choosing a store, your potential customers can compare the eCommerce return policy and choose a competitor only because their return policy was better.

Examples of a Customer-Focused Return Policy

Using our advice, you can protect yourself as much as possible from losing customers and damaging your business or brand image. Don’t forget that 60% will read your terms of sale and return before placing an order online. To further understand this topic, we have found 4 examples of best ecommerce return policies for you. 

Nordstrom

Nordstrom Inc. — a network of luxury department stores of fashionable clothes, shoes and accessories for men, women and children. Nordstrom does not have a specific return policy. Their policy has no specific time, clearance, or receipts. The store provides free return shipping and the ability to return goods to any place (sent by mail or returned to the store). The refund period is 5-7 days. Even if you don’t have a receipt, you can return items in exchange for a Nordstrom gift card if you can provide proof of identification. Nordstrom has specific terms and conditions for some products, but these restrictions are minor.

Bath and Body Works

Bath and Body Works is a chain of shops selling soaps, lotions, perfumes and candles. Bath and Body Works is very concerned about customer satisfaction with their products, which is why they provide a return of goods within 90 days from the date of purchase, even if the product has already been used but did not satisfy the client. Even if the check is missing, it can still be returned. You can also return gifts at any time and for any reason.

American Eagle

American Eagle is an American chain of clothing and accessories stores. American Eagle offers unlimited returns and is free of charge as long as you have proof of purchase. You can return goods even if there is no tag; the only exceptions are swimwear and underwear. Items can be returned by mail or brought to the store.

IKEA

IKEA is a Dutch manufacturer and trade group selling furniture and household goods. Ikea allows the return of new products within a year. It is also possible to return opened products within 180 days. For any return, you will need an order confirmation. We would like to  show you examples of return policies that are as customer-focused as possible. However, it would be best if you chose the return policy that suits you financially and satisfies all requirements and requests of customers.

14 Steps to Protect Your Ecommerce Business From Cyberattacks

Security should be a top priority when running an eCommerce business. Online scams can quickly put you out of business, and you can’t control them in any way. eCommerce sites are always one of the top targets for cyberattacks. eCommerce sites are a combination of personal and financial data. The cost of data breach or loss can be very high, even before the loss of the enterprise. eCommerce cyberattacks can quickly damage a business’s reputation and violate customers’ privacy.

And the worst thing is that as soon as a violation occurs, you will no longer be able to return your customers or get new ones. That is why the most important thing is that your customers feel safe. That is why safety is a priority.

We will tell you about the most common cyber attacks, provide cyber security statistics, and tell you what methods to use to prevent them and how to protect your eCommerce business from intruders. So enjoy the article and catch ideas.

What Is eCommerce Security?

eCommerce security protects your website from cybercriminals trying to steal your customers’ personal information or website content. The list of eCommerce cyber threats includes hacks, data leaks, phishing and other threats.

eCommerce cyber security includes several different aspects:

• Data security: This protects customer data, physical addresses, names and credit card information.
• Security of payments: one of the most important aspects is ensuring that online payments are safe and protected from any hacker intrusion when financial transactions occur.
• Website security: protection against hacks and attacks on your store

Some Cybersecurity Statistics 

• 34% of businesses believe that cyberattacks or privacy breaches are the most serious digital threat from outside by BDO
• 34% of retailers are afraid to switch to e-commerce precisely because of cyber attacks by BDO
• When data is compromised in an attack, 42% is payment information and 41% is personal data by Verizon 
• 24% of cyberattacks target retailers, more than any other industry by Trustwave

The Most Common eCommerce Security Threats

There are quite a few eCommerce risks that you need to protect your online store from: money theft, phishing attacks, website hacking, misuse of personal data, insecure service delivery, and card fraud. We have covered the most common problems:

Financial Fraud

Financial fraud has been in the online business since its inception. Hackers make unauthorized transactions and erase traces, causing significant damage to the business. Some scammers submit requests for fake returns or refunds. Refund scams are a common financial scam where stores refund money for supposedly purchased or damaged items.

Internet Spammers

It is not uncommon for Internet spammers to leave comments on blogs or fill out contact forms where they leave infected links to harm businesses. They can also send infected links in private messages to company communities on social networks.

Phishing

Phishing is another security threat when hackers disguised as company representatives send messages to your customers to trick them into revealing sensitive information or lure customers to a fake version of your website.

SQL Injection

SQL injection targets a website’s database and retrieves its records. Attackers can often use SQL injection vulnerabilities to bypass existing security measures. This type of attack can also be used to change, delete, or add records to a company’s database.

DDoS Attacks

DDoS and DOS attacks are aimed at disrupting your website. In such attacks, numerous requests are sent to your servers. The goal is for the site to go down.

Password Selection

The goal is to pick up a password for the site and gain access to the administrative panel of the online store. Special programs are used to select passwords.

Viruses and Trojans.

This is one of the most serious threats to network security when attackers can infect a site and gain access to the confidential information of shoppers.

This is not the whole list of cybercrimes that can happen, but each can significantly harm your business.

Ecommerce Website Security Tips

We have put together a list of essential tips for you to help you secure your eCommerce website.

1. Secure Web Hosting and the Right Ecommerce Platform

The most important thing for the safe operation of eCommerce sites is choosing the right platform for your needs and selecting a web host. More often than not, eCommerce website builders already have security measures. However, not all platforms and hosts are the same or even equal. The best option is to find the right combination of host and platform that can meet all your requirements and provide complete protection against the most common threats such as malware and SQL injections.

2. Get an SSL Certificate

Installing a certificate will help encrypt all your customer transaction data and help prevent data leakage. You can obtain this certificate from a hosting provider or a third-party SSL certificate provider.

In general, an SSL certificate is mandatory for all eCommerce websites by the Payment Card Industry (PCI) data security standard.

Any eCommerce business must comply with PCI security standards.

3. Back Up Your Website Data Regularly

Of course, backups won’t protect you from attacks, but help you recover from a data breach or hacker attack. And it will also help against the loss or capture of information. When updating, we advise you to make a backup copy of the website. And also at least once every three days, and preferably every day. We recommend you choose a platform and hosting that offers automatic website backup.

4. Update Your Software Regularly

Update your eCommerce platform, payment processor, and security software promptly. Check that they are all working correctly. Also, ensure your CMS, plugins and extensions, themes, operating systems, tech stack, etc., are up to date.

5. Promote Strong Passwords

If you require participants/customers to create passwords, emphasize the importance for clients to develop complex passwords. We recommend giving examples and specific criteria for a strong password. All of this will help you keep your accounts secure.

6. Watch for Suspicious Activity in Your Store

Use Google Analytics or any other analytics tool to track activity in your store. The main thing is to respond to the appearance of unusual activity quickly.

7. Entrust Payment and Data Processing to Specialists

The correct way not to lose customer data is not to store it unless necessary. The right option would be to use a third-party encrypted checkout tunnel for payment processing. Most popular payment gateways are completely secure. The main thing is to choose a payment platform compatible with your web hosting and eCommerce platform.

8. Perform Regular SQL Checks

SQL injection is one of the most common ways to hack sites and web applications that work with relational databases. This method is based on introducing arbitrary SQL code transmitted by an attacker into a database query executed by an application. SQL injections are one of the varieties of “code injection” attacks. Regularly checking for vulnerabilities will help avoid problems because SQL injections can manifest themselves in any form of fraud. Depending on your chosen platform, you will have a list of software options to help you protect and track these injections.

9. Use an Ecommerce Firewall

A firewall prevents intruders and malware from accessing your computer over the Internet. The firewall only allows secure Internet connections to your computer and blocks intrusions from the Internet. It will protect your site from XSS, SQL injection and fake requests. A firewall will help protect your website from hacking, including brute force attempts. The main thing is to find the right one suitable for all your requirements.

10. Control Administrator Rights Carefully

With your company’s growth and the team involved in vomiting with the site will grow, do not give access to team members who do not need them.

11. Check Third Party Plugins and Apps

Check all new plugins and applications you install from third-party sources, check those plugins that are already there, and check if you use them.

12. Get PCI Compliant

PCI was created in 2006 by Sia Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover and JCB to manage security standards and enhance security throughout the transaction process. The coalition has established a set of guidelines, PCI-DSS (Payment Card Board Data Security Standards), that businesses must follow to avoid fraud. Accordingly, PCI compliance is mandatory if credit card payments are accepted, so if the requirements are not met and followed, you may face fines, fines, or even prevent the business from accepting credit cards as payment in the future. Hence the importance of PCI compliance for eCommerce.

13. Train Your Employees on Cybersecurity

In most cases, cybersecurity breaches are due to human error. We advise you to educate your staff in advanced cybersecurity techniques.

14. Stay Tuned for Cybersecurity News

Being informed about new threats is an excellent way to protect yourself from them

As you can see, there is a long list of things you can do for your eCommerce business to keep yourself and your customers safe from cyberattacks.