| Frequently Asked Questions Question: I would like a secure online store for my business but I'm not all that technical. Besides, I'm too busy running my business to mess around with web pages and such. What can I do? Answer:
Sierra Tel Internet has a staff of web designers who specialize in building
web sites and online stores. STI web design rates are by far the most
reasonable anywhere. For more information, visit STI's web
design web page or call toll free 1-877-638-7787 and ask for the web
design department. Question: I've finished my store but it's not listed in the GigaNetMall directory. How can I get my store listed? Answer:
To be listed
in the GigaNetMall directory your new store must go through an approval
process. To submit your store for approval, please send an email to webmaster@sti.net
with the URL of your store. Question: Why don’t the images I upload appear correctly? Answer:
You will notice that every image in the /media directory has a .gif or
.jpg suffix. If an image is uploaded without that suffix, your browser
will not recognize it. It will appear as gibberish. If that is the case,
you should upload the image again and append an appropriate suffix to
the file name. Moreover, if you attempt to upload a file with a space
in the file name, it will not work. You will need to re-upload the file
using a period or an underscore character to separate words. Question: How do I get a domain name for my store? Answer: Sometimes companies have phone numbers that correspond with letters to make them easier to remember, like 1-800-FLOWERS. The Internet equivalent of a phone number is an IP address, and the domain name is simply a word or group of letters that corresponds to an IP address. You
can buy the rights to your own domain name, and have purchases go into
your secure shopping cart from your website. We would be happy to register,
administer, and host your domain for you. Registration is available at
a special rate of only $15 per year, and STI offers domain name hosting
for as little as $10 per month. Call toll free 1-877-638-7787 or visit
http://www.sti.net/w-domains.asp
for more information. Question: Why aren't more people visiting my site? Answer: If you're
asking this question, you probably haven't done all that you can yet to
publicize your site. Read the Seller's
To-Do List for more information. You should also visit STI's guide
to online marketing at http://www.sti.net/b-marketing.html. Question: People
are visiting my store, but they only look at a page or two before leaving. 1. Your front page is unattractive, unprofessional looking, or does not adequately represent your products. 2. Your front page does represent your products, but the people who are visiting are not interested in them. If your Web site is unattractive, your store may be in need of a makeover. You may need to hire a professional to cure your woes. Read about giving your site a makeover at http://www.shopsite.com/help/4.1/sc/pro/ugly.html. You may also want
to re-examine your business plan. Is there a market for your products?
Far too often people have an idealistic view of the Internet. They think
that just because something would not sell in a store, it will somehow
sell on the Internet. However, if you believe there is a market for your
products, then it could be that the right people aren't visiting your
website. Online marketing is a complicated issue these days; be sure to
do your homework before investing in any marketing ventures. Question: People come to my site, so why aren't they buying? Answer: Most likely, you're being impatient. Commerce on the Internet is still new, so people are a little wary of buying on line. They are especially wary of buying from a store that they have not seen before. Much of this fear is unfounded, so you must do your best to reassure them. The site must look professional and contain a name, address, e-mail address, and phone number so people know that they can contact you. Even if you are brand new, try your best to appear established, reliable, and stable. Also, think of your site as a mail-order catalog. A person's first visit to your site is like the day the catalog arrives in the mail. People generally do not snatch the catalog from the mailbox and immediately call and order. They stow the catalog away and keep it for future reference. In your case, they will explore and bookmark the site. The first order may come weeks or months later. Just make sure that you make a good first impression, or your store will be thrown in the trash like junk mail. If your store is difficult to navigate, if it's unattractive, or, most importantly, if your products are undesirable or overpriced, people will come, but they won't buy. That's where knowing the market comes into play. If your competitor, who's just a few clicks away, sells the same products for less, then you will not make the sale. Pay attention.
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