Website Forge Blog

Website Forge Upgrade Annoucement

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 10:26:17 +0000

We have accumulated many upgrades to the Website Forge system. Many are mentioned informally in the "Website Forge Users Group" on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/groups/websiteforge/

Here is an official list:

Flash for IOS - Now you can provide an alternative HTML (Image, Video, Etc) for a flash frame. Since IOS (Apple mobile devices) do not play flash. You can automatically swap it for something else when viewed by these devices.

Multiple Coupons - Now you can optionally DISABLE the ability for a customer to redeem more than one coupon code per order. There is a checkbox that you can use to prevent multiple coupon codes.

Trace Forms - Look at your "Submitted Data" in your Feedback Forms area. You can now look and see how a visitor found your form. Including the search term used to land there. Look for "View Visitor Path". I will also have this info added to the emailed copy of the form submission soon.

Trace Orders - View your order list and look for "View Visitor Path" on each order. You can see how the customer found your web site and the full path before checking out.

Login "Tab Button" behavior - We changed the login box so that when you click the "TAB" key. It jumps to the next appropriate field.

Tracking Abandoned Carts - Some of you already know. You can now view all abandonded carts in your "Visitor Tracking" area. Just use the drop down to choose "Abandoned Carts".

"Direct FTP access to Template" - I'm a little nervous to announce this one. For those who would like to develop their own templates. Or modify their own templates. We CAN provide direct FTP access to your TEMPLATE. You must, of course, know how to code HTML and follow our "Template Specification" guideline. Also any fixes or restores needed are at your own risk and cost. That being said. HTML savvy people can try this advanced access to the Website Forge system.

"Mobile Version" - Just a reminder that we can enable a "MOBILE FRIENDLY" version of your website with just one click. Contact support to test it out. 90% of the time - this automatic conversion works perfectly without changes. You can of course modify the mobile view if you wish using the normal tools.

Sitemap Upgrades - There are always many google sitemaps upgrades going on. Recently we made some modifications to help Bing grab your sitemaps file. This "Google Sitemap" file is now really a universal file for all SE's.

Those are the highlights. Please provide your questions and comments!!

Shane Merem

Website Forge

www.websiteforge.com

Credit Card Fraud - How it may affect your website

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 11:08:04 +0000

Anyone with real sales with their e-commerce website will eventually have a day where a hacker/thief is attempting to buy goods on your website with a stolen credit card.

There could be hundreds and even thousands of attempts.

Your mailbox fills up with declined card notifications.

Your annoyed and distracted all day.

You may even receive a call from your credit card company to discuss this suspicious activity.

Finally you will contact one of us here at Website Forge and ask for it all to stop.

Something like "Can you block this person from attempting to charge this card over and over?"

And here is the answer:

IF the person is making these attempts from the SAME IP address -- YES.

However if they are using many IP addresses, which are usually spoofed, then - NO.

Not without risking blocking actual good customers that might buy. And this is usually the case.

See. IP addresses are generally "Static" or never change on a server or web site. However, IP addresses are generally reused and change often on the consumer side.

The IP address is a unique number used to identify the machine.

Since your customers are intiating the visit to your web site -- their IP address only needs to be the same for that session. Not always.

So if you start blocking all sorts of IP addresses -- you just risk blocking valid users from your store.

What other effects can this have?

Well I know of a customer that had his PayPal account locked out because of too many fraudulent attempts. Not his fault. They locked him out anyways.

I received a call at 7am on a Sunday. And we mitigated his situation. He wasn't very happy at all with PayPal.

SIDENOTE: This is one of the many reasons PayPal is not the best credit card processing solution.

Some customers are later called by the FBI to help figure out who was doing this. Because you weren't the only one getting hammered.

Bottom line: If this happens to you. You are on the map! Yes this means you are somebody :)

Because it seems just as you become successful with sales this type of issue happens at least once.

So I look forward to your call. Now that you know a bit more about it -- you can relax and we work on it together.

Shane Merem

e-commerce website consultant

www.websiteforge.com

What is a "Google sitemap" ?

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 11:21:18 +0000

What the heck is a "Google sitemap"?

Well -- originally a sitemap was a page on your web site that provided an easy way to find other pages within the site. It was popular early on when websites weren't designed to be easy to navigate.

Many sites still include sitemaps in this sense. However, a well designed web site shouldn't need a "map" for the visitor.

The term "Google Sitemap" has become popular and it's really an entirely different thing.

Web sites started as plain HTML which is generally easy for Google to read. When sites became slicker with dynamic content, ajax, and flash -- the ability for Google to understand what the page contained was much harder.

Plus many of the url's (links) in the page might yield different dynamic content depending on what was searched or clicked.

This would cause Google to miss imporant product pages or "get lost" when trying to analyze your web site.

Of course this could hurt the rankings of your site.

So Google came up with a new standard originally called "Google Sitemaps"

Google said. HEY! Why don't you provide us with an XML formatted file that will show us a list of pages we can look at when analyzing your website. And in return your web site could be fairly ranked with it's competitors.

PROS:

- Every single page of your site would be looked at by google.

- You have the opportunity to associate important keywords to each page

- Dynamic product pages would no longer be missed or undervalued

CONS:

- Most "web designers" and even people who fancied themselves "programmers" really could not build a proper xml file per Google's specifications.

- If you could manage to get the file built -- you were required to automatically deliver it anytime google askes for it. This really requires a good programmer.

So even today many of your competitors fail to use this Google Sitemaps function. The same format is the standard for other Search Engines like Bing as well.

I'm happy to say that all Website Forge web sites already have "Google Sitemap" functionality built in.

WHERE IS THIS GOOGLE SITEMAPS FILE?

This file is automatically generated every time you download it.

Just append /sitemap_index.gz to your domain name to see it.

This is the permanent location of your sitemap file.

Example: www.yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.gz

Now, you probably won't be able to read the file unless you are a programmer. Just suffice to know you have an edge over your competitors.

Create a ticket at http://ticket.websiteforge.com with any questions setting up your Google Sitemaps file with google.

Hope this was a helpful article.

Shane Merem

e-commerce website design

Michigan E-commerce Consultant

www.websiteforge.com

CSV Files - The universal format - Website Forge E-commerce

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 16:29:14 +0000

How do I put a whole page of products in my site at once? How do I get all my products back out again?

Almost any data driven system deals with a way to import or export the information to other programs. Salesforce.com, Quickbooks, and many other systems use CSV files to handle sharing of this data.

Salesforce.com and Quickbooks are what you might call a "Proprietary System". Website Forge could be considered "Proprietary" because we don't share our source code with the world.

There are also many different database system like MySQL, Oracle, And Microsft SQL server. All use a "proprietary" storage format.

They don't make their "source code" available to the public. However they use a common file format to allow other systems to share the data that resides within the software.

A CSV file stands for a "Comma Separated Values" file. This is a universal file format used to allow dissimilar system to SHARE DATA.

A CSV (comma separated Value) file might look something like this:

sku,price,color,description

1234,1.99,Red,Red Gloves

3432,2.99,White,Shooting Cap

4432,100,black,Mountain Bike

(each record is on one line and each field separated by commas. Simple)

So you can dump your contacts from SalesForce.com to a CSV file and then import them into your Gmail contacts. And vice-versa.

I know I rarely write articles this technical. I have a good reason.

I was insulted. Yes - insulted.

I was told by a customer the other day that I was "holding him hostage" with my "proprietary system". He asserted he could not get his products out.

You see he decided to move his website to another company. That happens. His web company asked him for a copy of his data in MySQL format.

Website Forge provides an EXPORT TO CSV feature for this very purpose. And we sent him the CSV files, images and instructions for his new company.

Apparently his new host told him they cannot use it.

I won't give an opinion about using a web developer that has no understanding of the most universal file format in existence. You can guess though.

Here is the kicker. The process of importing a CSV file into MySQL is well documented and extremely easy.

The command looks something like this: shell> mysqlimport --local test imptest.txt

Thats it!!!

Now. I googled the words "mysql import csv file" to find this example.

So this post has a two objectives. First, help you understand what a CSV file is.

Secondly. I figured that if I was going to write more instructions -- I could blog it at the same time and make it educational.

Please understand I don't blame the customer for not knowing this. In fact I'm happy to help. I'm just offended that when I offer a solution over and over again -- he would prefer to believe that I would somehow try to mislead him.

I do my best to provide the best service, experience, and value to Website Forge customers. I may not always succeed -- however I won't give up.

Thanks for listening. Hope you find this helpful.

Shane Merem

E-commerce Web Site Design

www.websiteforge.com

Building an e-commerce website really sucks!

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 22:05:38 +0000

Yes. I said it. It sucks!

It sucks trying to find a .com name that isn't already taken.

It sucks coming up wth a logo. Site colors. And a design.

It sucks when you have a picture in your mind's eye and the designer doesn't "get it". It sucks having to go back and forth a million times to get it right -- and maybe you never do.

It sucks when you have to hand key in hundreds or thousands of products. spending hours and hours "stealing" product photos form other websites.. Or worse -- taking them yourself.

It sucks when you talk to 20 "credit card guys" only to be more confused every time.

It sucks trying to come up with the words to put on your pages. Trying to think of the "perfect slogan".

It sucks when you get lazy and lose two weeks because you are paralyzed with all the frustration and work still left to do.

It sucks the first time you get an order -- only to realize the customer meant to buy something else.

It sucks when your credit card company asks you to fill out a million question form about PCI compliance. Whats that? Right?

It really sucks. I have done this for a very long time and I still think it sucks.

THATS WHY EVERYONE DOESN'T HAVE A SUCCESSFUL E-COMMERCE WEBSITE!

Because only the people that get through the "sucky" part of the job get to enjoy the good stuff.

All of you that have succeded know what I mean. Even if you have only succeeded in a little way. Your first few hundred bucks. Or the first time your site ranked on page 1. The first customer testimonial. In many cases pulling in thousands every week.

All of you that still think it sucks. Get used to it. As soon as you finally get used to it. You will start to see the real progress.

So everyone. Let's SUCK IT UP in 2012! I know I will!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

What would you do for MORE SALES IMMEDIATELY? - UPGRADE YOUR CHECKOUT - Website Forge Web Site

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 15:14:32 +0000

Forget that the upgraded Checkout is faster.. Better.. Smoother.. Easier to use.. And has a "Guest Checkout Option"....

You NEED the new checkout because our customers are reporting an average of 15% less abandonded carts.

That means MORE ORDERS!

Don't wait. Contact support TODAY and request a FREE Website Forge Checkout Upgrade.

CLICK THIS LINK TO REQUEST THE UPGRADE http://ticket.websiteforge.com

You can't afford NOT to upgrade. It's free and you will sell more stuff!

Shane Merem

Website Forge

www.websiteforge.com

Google Base Export Changes / Bongo Webinar

support@websiteforge.com (WebsiteForge Support Team ) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:48:08 +0000

Please be aware of these new Google Base requirements. We have updated our System to comply.

First, you should be aware of the changes and required attributes which will go into effect Sept 22nd. Below is the relevant portion of an email from Google which explains the changes.

...We are reaching out to you to inform you about important changes we’re making to our Product Search required attributes and Program Policies. All merchants will be affected by these changes.

We are now requiring a new set of basic required attributes, as well as attributes which are required for certain product categories and target countries. Please read the new Feeds Specification carefully to determine how your data feed will need to change at http://www.google.com/support/merchants/bin/answer.py?answer=188494

You can find a summary of the new requirements in table form at http://www.google.com/support/merchants/bin/answer.py?answer=1344057

Starting September 22, accounts that do not comply with the new requirements will be suspended. For more information about how we will enforce the new policies, visit this Help Center article http://www.google.com/support/merchants/bin/answer.py?answer=188484

Please update your account settings or data feeds as soon as possible to ensure that you are complying with these new requirements by the dates specified above. For more information about these changes, please visit our Google Merchant blog at http://googlemerchantblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/important-changes-to-google-product.html.

The following changes were applied per Google's new requirements effective Sep 22:

Field set changes

1) "Availability" is now a required field.

2) "Image Link" is now a required field.

3) "Google Product Category" field can be added via "Add Mapping". It is a recommended (and required for some product types) field which must contain a category from Google's Taxonomy.

4) "Availability" can be set to "preorder".

5) New fields for apparel products: "Material", "Pattern", "Gender" and "Age Group" can be added via "Add Mapping".

6) The following fields have become deprecated and removed: quantity, feature, manufacturer, genre, featured product, year, author, edition.

Note that our set of required fields is very basic. We require those fields only which are required by Google for any product type. Some products, e.g. apparel, have a broader set of required attributes. You need to read Google Merchant Center manual thoroughly yourself to find out what is requred for your particular store.

Option export

For apparel or variant products, Google requires every variant (size, color, material) etc. to be exported as a separate product. To achieve this, Size/Color/Material/Pattern mappings can be set to "

Automatic Google Base export!

There is a new "Google Base Export" section added within the Ecommerce module (at the end of the Catalog section) which will allow you to set up mappings for an automatic export. This new section (in your WebsiteForge Member's Area ) will display the URL which should then be entered into Google merchant account for scheduled upload. Google will then fetch the data from this url on schedule.

- Please contact Support if you have any specific questions about the WebsiteForge changes.

- You should contact Google with any questions about how their new requirements affect your feed.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Forge Ahead with International e-Commerce!

Register today, for our webinar on Sept 22nd, 1 pm EST

Join us for this complimentary, informative webinar to learn:

- Expansion Challenges

- International Solution - Simplified

- Benefits

- See How it’s Done

- Q&A…

Sign up here to register and make the most of the holiday shopping season!

*After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

Kevin Ledezma

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce web site design

Google Base Export Changes / Bongo Webinar

support@websiteforge.com (WebsiteForge Support Team ) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:04:52 +0000

Please be aware of these new Google Base requirements. We have updated our System to comply.

First, you should be aware of the changes and required attributes which will go into effect Sept 22nd. Below is the relevant portion of an email from Google which explains the changes.

The following changes were applied per Google's new requirements effective Sep 22:

Field set changes

1) "Availability" is now a required field.

2) "Image Link" is now a required field.

3) "Google Product Category" field can be added via "Add Mapping". It is a recommended (and required for some product types) field which must contain a category from Google's Taxonomy.

4) "Availability" can be set to "preorder".

5) New fields for apparel products: "Material", "Pattern", "Gender" and "Age Group" can be added via "Add Mapping".

6) The following fields have become deprecated and removed: quantity, feature, manufacturer, genre, featured product, year, author, edition.

Option export

For apparel or variant products, Google requires every variant (size, color, material) etc. to be exported as a separate product. To achieve this, Size/Color/Material/Pattern mappings can be set to "

Automatic Google Base export!

- Please contact Support if you have any specific questions about the WebsiteForge changes.

- You should contact Google with any questions about how their new requirements affect your feed.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Forge Ahead with International e-Commerce!

Register today, for our webinar on Sept 22nd, 1 pm EST

Join us for this complimentary, informative webinar to learn:

- Expansion Challenges

- International Solution - Simplified

- Benefits

- See How it’s Done

- Q&A…

Sign up here to register and make the most of the holiday shopping season!

*After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

Kevin Ledezma

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce web site design

Tablets? Whats the scoop? Introduction to Bongo - Website Forge

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 17:45:15 +0000

I seem to get at least one call per week lately asking me about tablets. What is the best tablet? Is the iPad the best?

I own an iPad, Galaxy Tab (first version), Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and just sold my Motorola Xoom. Two people in my family have the iPad 2.

I'll give you my opinion. Remember it's just my opinion -- I am known for testing all sorts of new technology.

First when it comes to "usability" it's hard to beat the iPad. iPads are really easy to use and reliable. It's a great product.

As far as speed goes. The iPad 2 runs very slow when it comes to the 3G internet. My sister-in-law has an iPad 2 on verizion and it's much slower than the Xoom or Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (We will call these Android Tabs). The Android Tabs are very fast when comparing 3G speeds. So it's a fair comparison. The Xoom, Galaxy Tab 10.1 and many new tablets have 4G capabilities. That is something the iPad doesn't have.

Also a BIG problem I have with the iPad stuff is the fact they refuse to support Flash. The Xoom runs flash perfectly. My kids can even play Flash games and run the browser version of YouTube easily. Thats why I prefer the newer Android devices.

The Samsung Galaxy was my favorite and I purchased the 10.1 inch Galaxy Tablet. Also consider the SWYPE keyboard. It's terriffic (look it up at tswipe.com).

Last point. The Xoom is terrific however I ran into a bug that causes the keyboard to lag a bit in very large web pages. Not many people are bothered by it. I was so I sold the Xoom.

International Shipping With Bongo International!

Everyone, please checkout http://www.bongous.com if you are looking to reduce your international shipping headaches and reduce fraud!

Bongo provides a domestic shipping address and forwards your international shipments while screening for fraud and helping you make sure it arrives to it's destination!

If you are interested let us know we will help you get this setup!

Shane Merem
www.websiteforge.com
E-commerce website design

Website Forge Mobile Beta and Social Networking - FREE

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 09:36:45 +0000

Automatically deliver a MOBILE VERSION of your web site to your customers instantly! Yes - it's here. We need some beta testers!

Please contact support if you are interested.

Prerequisites:

1. You must be willing to be a beta tester. This means if there are bugs or issues -- you are willing to report them and allow us to resolve them.

2. You must have already upgraded to the new checkout if your site includes e-commerce.

If you qualify. Please contact support and we will upgrade it. It only takes a few minutes to turn it on.

Social Networking Features - Facebook, Twitter, and Google 1+ integration

Now you can add Facebook, Twitter, and Google 1+ to your web site in seconds! Also you can automatically deliver content to your Facebook and Twitter accounts as you post to your Website Forge Blog.

Watch this short video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdVZcZHlXX4 (don't forget to click FULL SCREEN to see it clearly)

Previously:

We have hundreds of support videos ON DEMAND. Go to http://videos.websiteforge.com

New Website Forge E-commerce FREE Checkout upgrade is here. Click here.

Google 1+ (One Plus) Integration added FREE to your Website Forge site!

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 11:05:44 +0000

veryone! Another new feature announcement! GOOGLE 1+ integration. (one plus)

Google 1+ integration is becoming widely used.

1+ is a way to say "This is pretty cool" or "I like this"..

What is it? Check it out here http://www.google.com/+1/button/

Check it out on our home page at www.websiteforge.com (must be logged into your google account to use it).

MAKE SURE YOU Facebook LIKE and Google 1+ our websiteforge.com web site!! And this blog!

Contact support at http://ticket.websiteforge.com asap to add it to your site.

Other recent FREE e-commerce web site upgrades:

- Improved Checkout

- Facebook Integration

- Twitter Integration

Upgrades Coming Soon:

- Instant MOBILE SITE delivery

- Constant Contact API integration www.constantcontact.com

- Go Data Feed www.godatafeed.com integration

Recent Feedback from Website Forge e-commerce web site customers:

Ginger Rushing

says:

June 28th, 2011 at 11:20 am

Edit

Delete

I upgraded both www.yourlightsite.com and www.coppergaslanternsplus.com a few weeks ago. I LOVE the new checkout. A lot of my customers call me to order due to the nature of my products and I am now able to enter their orders while they wait, with ease. If I can do it quickly and easily, I know my customers can also. The wait was worth it. Thanks Shane for this great "free" upgrade.

Cary Anderson

says:

June 29th, 2011 at 10:39 am

Edit

Delete

I upgraded www.westroadcandles.com and love love love it!!! I really like how it shows the customer what step in the checkout process they are at as well as showing them a little thumbnail image of the items they are purchasing. And it still gives the option of creating a site profile, but now doesn't require it, which is nice for those who fear their information will be mismanaged if placed in the wrong hands. So far, no complaints, just big Thanks!!!

Brian

says:

June 28th, 2011 at 10:39 am

Edit

Delete

We here at ShopBakersNook.com have seen a dramatic decrease in cart abandonment rates with the new websiteforge e-commerce check out process. This is a no brainer upgrade that is free and a great addition to the websiteforge e-commerce platform.

Thanks again for all the great feedback! WE ARE LISTENING!!!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce web site design

THE E-COMMERCE UPGRADE IS FREE!!! Website Forge Checkout Upgrade

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 09:52:09 +0000

Hammered with questions after yesterday's blog..... I'm sorry for such an unclear blog post! Allow me to clarify..

The new checkout upgrade is free!

Who has it?

Check out www.shopbakersnook.com and www.gandlclothing.com to see it. Anyone else that has upgraded... Post a comment and show it off!

How do you get it?

Go to http://ticket.websiteforge.com and request it via a support ticket.

How does it happen?

You will be scheduled (usually on a Tuesday). We notify you, perform the upgrade. Then VERY IMPORANTANT. THEN you check it, make any visual adjustments and then PUBLISH your e-commerce web site when you are ready.

Thats it!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce web site design

Upgrade your Website Forge e-commerce checkout! Website Forge

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 17:16:18 +0000

Guest Checkout! Smoother flowing e-commerce checkout screens, change your address on-the-fly and more! ...

Just a few of the upgrades our new website forge e-commerce checkout process offers.

How do you upgrade?

Simply contact Website Forges support and let us know you wish to upgrade. We will schedule an upgrade time so you can review the upgrade and publish these great features!

Look forward to hearing from you!

P.S. For you who have already upgraded. Feel free to comment your experience thus far!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce website design

New e-commerce web site videos posted! - Website Forge

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 10:11:57 +0000

Hey! Check out the new on-demand videos for your Website Forge e-commerce web site!

Go to http://videos.websiteforge.com to check them out!

Also you can subscribe to our YouTube Channel at http://youtube.com/websiteforge

Please provide feedback!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce web site design

.MOBI is out of the bag - Website Forge e-commerce web site design

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 17:09:21 +0000

Well, as Brian Shockly mentioned -- a bit prematurely :) Website Forge plans to provide a .mobi version of your e-commerce web site on-demand.

It's true that Website Forge e-commerce web sites work perfectly on most mobile devices -- some people request that a smaller/ligher version run across a .mobi for a number of reasons.

So "coming soon" -- MOBI functionality for your Website Forge e-commerce web site.

Thanks Brian for making me jump on really fast and make this annoucement at 5:12PM .. LOL

I'm sure there will be plenty of typos in this post. :)

Stay tuned

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce web site design

P.S. Brian's site is www.shopbakersnook.com

Do you really need an Android Or iPhone application for your websiteforge.com e-commerce web site?

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 12:12:21 +0000

Have you considered a "Mobile" version of your web site?

Keep these things in mind:

Do you really need a specialized application just to let people to browse your site?
Are you ready to spend lots of money building, upgrading and supporting a mobile application?
What exactly isn't working when people browse your web site from a mobile device? Tablet, phone, etc...

If you have valid responses to these questions. Definitely contact me or post a comment. Otherwise -- Website Forge web sites are already designed to work on most mobile devices. Ipad, Android, Xoom, etc...

So there really is no need to spend the extra money.

That being said -- if you DO need a mobile application.... We build those too!

Hope this is helpful. Looking forward to comments!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

E-commerce web site design

Coming Soon! Social Media Integration!

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 08:46:03 +0000

I'm posting this Facebook and Twitter comment FROM MY WEBSITE FORGE BLOG!

I am blogging to you AND beta testing our Social Media features right now!

If this goes well. This blog post will be instantly posted to our Facebook Page and our Twitter account.

Stay tuned for the official release of the Website Forge Ecommerce Web Site Social Media features!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

ecommerce web site design

Over 100 more videos added! Video support for all..

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 14:56:31 +0000

Hello everyone. Please make sure you visit http://videos.websiteforge.com and check out our latest additions to our on-demand help videos!

E-learning Videos - Website Forge

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Fri, 27 May 2011 20:52:06 +0000

Hello everyone! Been a while since I blogged.

We have started rebuilding our video library from scratch at http://videos.websiteforge.com

You can also subscribe to our YOUTUBE channel at http://youtube.com/websiteforge

Our goal is to add roughly 20-40 vidoes per month. They should cover basics up to the more complex features!

Take a look at a few play lists on our YouTube channel:

It's really important we get your feedback on the videos. So please feel free to comment!

Have a great Holiday Weekend!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

Website Forge

E-Commerce Web Site Design

SECURE PASSWORDS! Use them

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 11:21:33 +0000

Hello Website Forge Community.

Some of you may have received notifications that ask you to choose more secure passwords for your email.

It is very important you change your email passwords immediately if so. If you choose passwords that are easy to guess -- people can abuse your mail account by sending spam or using your email for illegal activity.

Unfortunately there are bad people out there that are always coming up with ways to hack and abuse web sites. Don't be a victim.

You should have passwords that are 8 characters long and have at least one number in it. This is a bare minumum.

Thanks and have a great day!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

Recent WebsiteForge Updates

support@websiteforge.com (WebsiteForge Support Team ) — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 09:34:01 +0000

Happy Friday WebsiteForge Clients,

As requested in the Forum http://www.WebsiteForge.com/forum (<-- shameless plug) here is a list of WF Updates from the past several months that you may not know about! I'll get right to it...

Navigational Menu frame:
Many already know about this, but some may not. This new frame allows you to add a Navigation Menu literally ANYWHERE in your website (anywhere that's an editable Content Area of course). The process for adding buttons to the menu is similar to the Classic WF "Site Menu".

Check this link to see the Frame Type: http://my.jetscreenshot.com/4815/20101217-v6id-22kb

Here is a shot of the Config Screen with no options configured: http://my.jetscreenshot.com/4815/20101217-tvud-38kb

As you can see, the advantage this menu has over the Classic "Site Menu" is that it allows you to control and edit the look of the menu. You can even upload your own buttons to be used in the menu. Here is another shot that shows more options: http://my.jetscreenshot.com/4815/20101217-m7io-46kb

Automatic SEO-friendly URL's for products and categories:

Old URLs for Categories and Products looked like this:
/6.html?m5:cat=/Accessories/Wallets
/m5_view_item.html?mX:item=CODE001

We have made them SEO friendly without removing references to a page (6.html), a module (m5) and the SKU (CODE001). Now they look like:
/6m5/Accessories/Wallets.html
/m5/CODE001--Black-Leather-Wallet.html

BTW: You can change the product title to whatever and it will not break old URL's because the system will only use the SKU from the URL to locate the product.

Layout Builder: Making fields Members-Only
Now you can make any field in a Layout Builder hidden unless a Member is logged into the site. See here for an example: http://my.jetscreenshot.com/4815/20101217-swlo-73kb

Search for Expiring Members:
In the Modules > Membership > Members & Groups section... If you have Member Signup Packages, you can now search the Membership module for expiring Members. See an example here: http://my.jetscreenshot.com/4815/20101217-olj1-11kb

Mass Mail Members from search results:

In the Modules > Membership > Members & Groups section... See the new button here: http://my.jetscreenshot.com/4815/20101217-lcw5-18kb
This will send the list of Members below to the Mailer for a One Time email. So for example, you could use the new "Expiring Members" option mention above to find Members who are exiring within 2 weeks, then with one click send those Members to the Recipient list of a One Time email.

Membership module: Expired and Unpaid Member Entry Pages.
Using this new Setting you can make expired and unpaid Members automatically redirect to specific pages when they log in. These can be configured in two places: in General Settings of a Membership module, which will specify module-wide entry pages, and in Group properties (go to Members & Groups, then click Edit on a group), which will override these settings for particular groups.

If neither module-wide, nor per-group page is specified for one of these settings, normal entry page will be used instead.

FYI: An "Unpaid Member" is a Member who selected a paid package and was directed to the payment form, but did not finish the payment.

Membership: Upon Purchase Redirect:

This parameter was added to the Frame Settings of an Edit Profile frame in addition to the old one Upon Profile Edit Redirect. This will allows for the Member to be redirected to specific pages depending on if they did a purchase or just edited their profile. See here for an example: http://my.jetscreenshot.com/4815/20101217-qvm1-18kb

Membership: Upon Free Signup Redirect To:
The "Edit Profile" frame, in addition to "Upon Purchase Redirect To" and "Upon Profile Edit Redirect To" settings, now has "Upon Free Signup Redirect To" settings. This allows for different behavior depending on whether the visitor signed up with a paid package or a free one.

Close Menu When Moving Mouse Out:

The option "Close Menu When Moving Mouse Out" has been added to the Site Template and Settings page. Checking this option will allow your Site Menu submenu(s) to disappear when the mouse moves off of the menu.

Have a Very Merry Christmas and a Safe Holiday Season!

Sincerely,

Kevin Ledezma

Website Forge

E-Commerce web site design

www.websiteforge.com

Happy Thanksgiving - Holiday Hours

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 15:02:27 +0000

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you all have a nice Thanksgiving Weekend!

Just as a reminder -- Live chat will be offline until Monday. However if you have any support needs simply email support@websiteforge.com.

The Website Forge team will take turns handling support during this holiday week.

Thanks!

Shane Merem

Website Forge

E-Commerce web site design

www.websiteforge.com

DDOS attack on 11/1/2010

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 21:49:13 +0000

Hello Website Forge community.

Some of you experienced either slow or blocked connections to your web sites around 5:30am on November 1st.

The root cause was determined to be a DDos Attack. DDOS means "Distributed Denial of Service" attack.

DDOS attacks are basically when you overwhelm networks with so much activity that it cannot keep up. Ultimately freezing or stopping all together.

It took a bit of time to track down the actual source of the attack. This sort of attack is usually used on high profile sites like Yahoo, Google, or a banks.

Most likley the attack was targeting someone on our very large network. We blocked the source of the attack once it was tracked down.

You can read more about DDoS attacks here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denial-of-service_attack

I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Thanks, Shane Merem

Website Forge

Ecommerce Web Sites

www.websiteforge.com

support@websiteforge.com

Important Notice: FedEx Outage

support@websiteforge.com (WebsiteForge Support Team ) — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 06:03:51 +0000

Notice to all WebsiteForge Clients using FedEx realtime shipping methods.
Please be advised of the following important update from FedEx. FedEx will be unable to provide shipping quotes within the times listed below. If you currently use FedEx for Realtime Shipping Quotes in your website - it's recommended that you enable Method(s) from another Shipping Service during this time.

---------------------message from FedEx---------------------
November 6, 2010 update:

Start Date and Time	End Date and Time	Duration	FedEx Systems Affected
Saturday, Nov. 6, 2010; 9 p.m. CT	Saturday, Nov. 6, 2010; 11 p.m. CT	2 hours	Production rating, shipping, dispatch and tracking (Production environment)

We regret any inconvenience due to this service interruption, however, please ensure that your appropriate team members are aware of this important update. If you have questions or need technical assistance following the update, please call 1.877.339.2774 and say "Web Services" at the prompt. Support hours are 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. CT Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. CT on Saturday.

---------------------end message from FedEx---------------------

Forging Ahead - Website Forge Tech Tips - 8/9/2010

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 10:24:54 +0000

I have a real short blog post today. Enjoy!

Are you a "skimmer"?
I wrote this on my iPad..
What do successful people have in common?
FREE unlimited Website Forge training classes

Are you a "skimmer"?

My wife says I am. Though I try not to admit it... I do catch myself reading an entire email in one glance. That certainly leaves plenty opportunity for me to miss important information.

It's definitely embarrassing when reply to a customer and theyhave to email me a second time saying "thanks for your fast reply but you didn't address my other two questions..."

I think my best suggestion is to wait until you have a full minute to give a proper reply. In our world of iPhones, iPads, Androids, and windows mobile phones.... We feel compelled to reply immediately to show commitment to our customers. That's great -- just try not to do it at the expense of a valuable reply.

I know those out there reading, know me personally, can cite at least one time where have made this mistake.... Believe me when I say I know I am just as guilty as anyone. I'm always making an effort to slow down.

I wrote this on my iPad in the car...

Yes right now I'm writing in the passenger seat on the way to visit family. Is the iPad just a large version of the iPod touch? YES! It is. In fact I was disappointed when I first tested Andy's iPad (VP of our core development team).

Then I tossed it in the car. Then I started replying to email real fast. Then realized I had not charged the iPad for the last 4 days and it still had plenty of battery. Then realized I could remotely connect to my desktop from anywhere. And on and on...

Bottom line, it's more convenient, more durable, cooler, and more efficient than a full sized laptop. I was not, and am not, an official "Mac fan" -- I AM a believer in my iPhone and iPad. I use them every day.

NOTE!! The hidden benefit is how an iPad can keep my kids occupied for hours at a time when you need a break!

What do successful people have in common?

Google it! I did -- I'll save you the time. The one thing you'll find in every single article or book is -- TENACITY!

That's right. It's not brain power. It's not education. It's not money.

In fact many successful people are too dumb to realize they failed. So they kept trying.

"Successful people are too dumb to realize they failed"

- Successful people wake up every day ready to fight.

- Successful people don't make excuses when things don't go their way.

- Successful people often find very creative ways to solve a problem.

- Successful people may "fail" over and over again. But don't see it as failure.

- Successful people eventually achieve what they want because they keep trying!

Don't buy the expensive books. Google "what makes a person successful.." you'll see the same over and over.

FREE Unlimited Website Forge Training Classes!

I keep saying it and saying it. I'll say it again. Website Forge customers get FREE UNLIMITED LIVE TRAINING. Take advantage and go to www.support.websiteforge.com and sign up today!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

web site design and e-commerce

Note: I almost always sit down and write my blogs in one shot. So it's very possible I don't catch every single typo. I'd rather get more valuable information out there than stress over typos. So don't beat me up too much over it :)

Forging Ahead - Website Forge Tech Tips - 8/5/2010

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:26:59 +0000

Second consecutive day of tech tips! Hope you like them.

Record and broadcast your computer desktop instantly (and FREE)
My favorite remote support tool - BEAMYOURSCREEN
How fast is your Website Forge web site (secret hack to know for sure)
Updated Website Forge Training Class Schedule

Record and broadcast your computer desktop instantly (and FREE)

One of the most popular ways to provide a demonstration on the web is through some sort of "screencast" or streaming video.

Software programs range from $49 to over $1000 to provide those tools.

Low and behold, one of our customers send me a www.screentoaster.com video link to demonstrate a problem with his web site.

I was amazed... ScreenToaster is FREE.

Any computer that supports Java can instantly record and publish videos of their desktop. (most browsers do support java)

Our support staff have been using Screen Toaster to help our customers. Our customers have been using Screen Toaster to demonstrate their products. We like it.

Check it out -- www.screentoaster.com -- I used Screen Toaster for the videos in this blog. Check them out.

My favorite remote support tool - BEAMYOURSCREEN

Many of you have attended our remote Website Forge training classes.

Our instructors get on the phone with several people and broadcast their desktop while demonstrating Website Forge.

We use www.beamyourscreen.com.

BeamYourScreen works on PC's, Mac's and even Linux machines. The best part is their rates are cost effective.

Here is a quick video showing how to setup a meeting.

Free online screencasting tool

How fast is your Website Forge web site?

It is a little known fact that the majority of the time it takes to load your web site depends on your browser.

First your browser requests the page, next the browser downloads the documents and images, finally your browser has to piece it all together as it was meant to be viewed.

In this video I'll show you a secret hack that will let you see the REAL SPEED your Website Forge web site!

Free online screencasting tool

Updated Website Forge Training Class Schedule

DONT FORGET -- you can attend as many training classes as you wish! Learn basic AND advanced features so you can better maintain your web site! Even learn how to blog like me!

The updated schedule is at http://support.websiteforge.com/113.html

FEEL FREE to comment with questions or ideas. Let me know what else I can blog about!

Shane Merem - Website Forge - www.websiteforge.com

Web Site Design and E-Commerce

PREVIOUS BLOG TOPICS

Forging Ahead - Website Forge Tech Tips - 8/4/2010

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 10:18:54 +0000

I wanted to share some of my favorite TECH TIPS and gadgets. Here is a list of things I want to cover:

Why my wife LOVES Google Calendar
Using Skype Phone with the SAME phone number
Scanning Documents with your iPhone or Droid
Updated Website Forge Training Schedule - FREE TRAINING
Instant Mirror Web Site (funny)

Why my wife LOVES Google Calendar

First, I have a personal guideline -- If I have to use technolgy to enter data in more than one place for the same purpose, I don't use it.

Thats why I have always struggled to use a calendar application. If I enter the appointment on my computer I need to be sitting at my computer for the reminder.

If I enter the appointment on my phone -- I may not be able to hear the reminder or may be on my desk phone while it goes off.

Finally I tried Google Calendar. Google Calendar is easy to use. Most impressive is the ability to sync with many applications. I sync it with my iPhone, my iPad, my wife's Droid phone, and portions of my calendar with my team.

It is often said you should not separate your business and personal appointments so not to neglect one or the other. With this in mind, my wife can look at my calendar and enter important social events or doctor appointments for me from her phone. These appointments show up on my calendar instantly. She can also see when I am available for lunch!

I LOVE IT. It's practical and easy. Contact me with any questions on how to use Google Calendar to make your life scheule easier.

Here is an article on how to share your Google Calendar with other devices. http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2009/07/sharing-calendars-with-google-calendar-ical-and-the-iphone.ars

Using Skype Phone with the SAME phone number

I am one of the first to test new telephone products and often the last to fully trust the reliability of phone products. Products like Vonage and Skype have made tremendous progress recently.

I signed up for a Skype account a couple years ago when a client told me his entire company used it for direct calls around the office.

Since our entire team already used a chat application -- it was easy to move to Skype for the benefit of voice and video chat.

I signed up for a phone number so I could make calls just like a regular phone. I found myself using this phone often because it was better than any speakerphone I have owned. The phone number is cheap to own.

The only caveat was this Skype Phone number was different than my normal line. If people called me back using caller ID -- They would have to leave a message at my desk.

A week ago, Kevin Brown at www.garrettauto.com told me he could change the caller id of his Skype Phone to look just like his cell phone.

That is perfect. I can sit at my desk and call anyone I wish. If they call me back -- the will ring to my cell phone! Now I won't miss any important return calls and eliminate any confusion.

The Skype Phone quality is very good and suggest you give it a try.

Contact me with any questions.

Scanning Documents with your iPhone or Android Phone

"Give me that receipt before you lose it..." -- The first words out of my wife's mouth when I return from the store..

I thought to myself "Scanning documents with my iPhone has to be more trouble than it's worth...."

I found the Jot Not Scanner Pro!

it's not! It's very easy. I have scanned everything from legal documents to receipts. I can scan and file a receipt before I leave the store. It's that easy and convenient.

I can scan and email a document in less than 30 seconds with the JotNot Scanner Pro. Check it out. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/jotnot-scanner-pro/id307868751?mt=8

Please don't hesitate to post comments or questions. I'm happy to give advice and referrals on any topic I can.

Updated Website Forge Training Class Schedule

DONT FORGET -- you can attend as many training classes as you wish! Learn basic AND advanced features so you can better maintain your web site! Even learn how to blog like me!

The updated schedule is at http://support.websiteforge.com/113.html

Instant Mirror Web Site

Check out this web site that provides an INSTANT MIRROR....

Record your screencast online

Shane Merem - www.websiteforge.com

Web Design and E-commerce web sites

FedEx - Outage Notification

support@websiteforge.com (WebsiteForge Support Team) — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:31:55 +0000

Please CLICK HERE to view more details.

Thanks,

Kevin Ledezma

Major Cluster Upgrade - HUGE speed boost - Website Forge

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 17 May 2010 13:56:18 +0000

Hello Website Forge Community!

As most of you might have noticed -- we performed a huge hardware and file system upgrade over the weekend.

The most noticable difference will be the speed of your web site. The front end server hardware is significantly faster.

Also this upgrade should resolve the recent intermittent issues that a few of you experienced the last couple of weeks.

The upgrade went rather smooth with very few service interruptions. And any issues were resolved VERY quickly.

We value you as a customer and hope you enjoy the new hardware!

P.S. Just let us know if you have any questions or run into any glitches -- we will handle them asap!

Shane Merem

support@websiteforge.com

www.websiteforge.com

E-commerce web site design

Updated Website Forge Videos

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 03 May 2010 11:01:34 +0000

Hey Website Forge community! I haven't posted in a while. I have lots of good stuff to share.

Meanwhile I wanted to send you a quick update of support videos Eric Huffman, on our support team, did.

Check them out and give us your feedback:

Content Management

Member's Area Navigation

http://support.websiteforge.com/139.html

Site Menu

http://support.websiteforge.com/140.html

Module List

http://support.websiteforge.com/141.html

Frame Background Image

http://support.websiteforge.com/142.html

Media Player Video

http://support.websiteforge.com/143.html

Media Player Flash

http://support.websiteforge.com/144.html

Manage Content Areas

http://support.websiteforge.com/145.html

Miscellaneous Subjects

Logging Into the Member's Area

http://support.websiteforge.com/146.html

Preview Site

http://support.websiteforge.com/147.html

Creating Email Accounts in the Member's Area

http://support.websiteforge.com/148.html

Email Password

http://support.websiteforge.com/149.html

Setting Up Email in Outlook or Outlook Express

http://support.websiteforge.com/150.html

Setting Up Email in Windows Live Mail

http://support.websiteforge.com/151.html

E-Mail User Info

http://support.websiteforge.com/152.html

WebMail Login

http://support.websiteforge.com/153.html

Email Account Options

http://support.websiteforge.com/155.html

Publish Site

http://support.websiteforge.com/156.html

Start Hosting Fees

http://support.websiteforge.com/154.html

Killer Startup Shop Bakers Nook built by Website Forge!

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 09:45:59 +0000

One of our hard working customers was featured on KILLER STARTUPS recently.

ShopBakersNook's owners work relentlessly to provide an excellent web site and customer experience. Couple that with the Website Forge technology and marketing team and you have the "Perfect Storm".

Without driven business owners --this would not be a reality!

Check out this video:

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce website design

Watch while people visit your web site -- IN REAL TIME!

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 09:32:56 +0000

Ok. This has to be the MOST EXCITING UPGRADE to your Website Forge site in quite some time!!

We recently added a new feature called "VISITOR TRACKING" to your web site! This feature includes:

Real time list of anyone on your web site!
What browser your visitors are using..
The IP address of your visitor
How much time your visitors spent on your web site
How much time your visitors spent on each individual page
The FULL history of each and every page visited and how long
The CURRENT search used on your web site
And more....

You have to check out this video to see the Visitor Tracking feature in action:

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce website design

Inventory Control with "Product Options"

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 10:50:50 +0000

Hello everyone. Shane Merem here with a long overdue BLOG post.

Website Forge E-commerce websites have always provided excellent custom options and product view controls.

Recently we added a new level of product option. We call it an "Inventory Grid".

Here is a short video that gives a very brief overview. The KEY BENEFIT to this upgrade is to allow individual SKU or product number inventory tracking to custom options.

Example:

You sell a pair of Levi 404 jeans in 10 sizes and 3 colors. Thats 30 different individual SKU's (product numbers) you might sell from one product listed on your web site.

When a customer purchase a "Size Waist 32" in "White Washed" color. That SPECIFIC item SKU is identified and your inventory QOH (Quantity on Hand) will be reduced by 1.

This is true for any of the color/size combinations.

Contact support@websitefoge.com or use our LIVE CHAT at www.websiteforge.com to learn more if you are interested in using this new feature!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce website

Automatically notify your customers when you add NEW products!

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 11:23:13 +0000

When managing a database of thousands of products -- how do your customer's know?

First it's your duty to keep in touch with your customers without becoming a nag (Yes, I sad nag).

If you nag your customers -- they will stop listening. If you ignore your customers -- they will stop buying.

So take advantage of our "New Product Notification" in Website Forge.

Here is a quick video overview:

Contact LIVE SUPPORT or email support@websiteforge.com with questions!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

e-commerce website design

Website Forge Upgrades 9/24/2009

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:14:22 +0000

Google Checkout now available.... For those of you who have asked and asked and asked.... It's now here.

Some people have read or been told that using Google Checkout on their site shall increase search engine results.

Our research so far has not given us any real indication of that. Also keep in mind that Google Checkout has "terms" that might exclude your site from using it. So make sure you follow all the rules stated.

Also remember, as far as I know, Google isn't a bank. I will include a snippet that will clarify my point:

"Despite all the media attention surrounding alternative payment systems like Google Checkout™, traditional credit card transactions remain the most popular choice among customers for online purchases. According to a recent survey, only 44% of PayPal™ customers and 19% of Google Checkout customers rate their purchase experience as good or very good.*

Alternative payment systems create a middleman between you and your customers, which may hurt your business and confuse your customers. Accepting traditional credit card payments is critical to building a successful business, and all you need is a merchant account and a payment gateway account."

Please provide any feedback you can on Google Checkout -- so that we can share with all our Website Forge community.

NEED CUSTOM PROGRAMMING ADDED TO YOUR SITE?

I recently received some feedback that sparked this headline. Website Forge is designed to handle the vast majority of web site and e-commerce needs.

In fact, we find that Website Forge is a fit for about 80% of the business models out there.

HOWEVER, if you need some customization to your existing Website Forge site -- or -- require special programming for a brand new site. We can do that as well. Remember Website Forge is developed and maintained by WORLD CLASS web application developers. There is no application to big or too small.

So please contact us if you feel you need something special added to your web site.

Thanks,

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

Web Design and E-Commerce

Website Forge Upgrades 9/9/2009

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:48:41 +0000

Here are a few exciting upgrades you should be aware of...

1) New cross-browser editor is available.

Just use a non-IE browser (like Firefox or Mac Safari) and you'll see it. Users with IE are still using the old one. Please test it out and report any bugs you find. We will iron them out quickly.

2) Java uploader addition.

A Custom File option can be configured to accept either all files or images only, and in the case of images only, they can be forced to be downsized to a certain pixel size.

3) PayPal Pro DirectPayment Gateway.

DirectPayment Gateway now sends customer shipping address to PayPal allowing for third-party software which pull order info from a PayPal account.

4) General performance improvements.

We have done several performance improvements.

***DO NOT FORGET to sign up for one of our weekly tele-classes. FREE TRAINING! Go to www.support.websiteforge.com for class schedule.

Thanks,

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

Website Forge iPhone Order Manager is here!

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 16:14:58 +0000

Hello Website Forge community!

I'm pleased to announce that Website Forge has developed an iPhone application to allow you to manage your Website Forge store from anywhere!

Click here to download our new iPhone Website Forge Order Manager!

http://www.websiteforge.com/180.html

I look forward to your comments!

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

7-3-09 Authorize.net Gateway Issues

support@websiteforge.com (WebsiteForge Support Team) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:41:43 +0000

Attention WebsiteForge Customers,

We've have been notified that the Authorize.net Gateway is currently having issues. If you have an Authorize.net account you may experience payment processing errors until this is corrected. This error is not specific to any accounts or WebsiteForge. There is currently nothing we can do about this.

If you have an Authorize.net account and have any further questions - we suggest that you contact Authorize.net for more details.

You may also want to temporarily enable "Manual Processing" as your credit card processing method. This will allow orders to process during this time. The Manual Processing payment method collects and displays CC details within the Order Details screen.

Thank you,

Kevin Ledema

Important Network Maintenance Window - May 22nd 1am-2am

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Thu, 21 May 2009 10:00:24 +0000

During the last several weeks our engineers have been busy deploying a
new Firewall, Load Balancer and Customer Access network infrastructure
based on the latest network gear from Cisco Systems, Fortinet and F5.

This network has been put through rigorous performance, security, and
redundancy, and hardware failure tests to ensure te highest levels of
service availability.

During the following network maintenance window we have scheduled to
migrate your WAN circuits to the new network infrastructure:

Thursday, May 22st, 2009, between 1:00am-2:00am

There will be an approximate 10-15 minutes of network unavailability
during the time when our network engineers physically move your network
interface to the new access router and enable the new router switch port.

If you have any questions or concerns about this process please reply to
this ticket or call support at 888-558-2446. Thank You.

Shane Merem
support@websiteforge.com
www.websiteforge.com

WebsiteForge Update: New features for "Suggested Items"

support@websiteforge.com (WebsiteForge Support Team) — Tue, 19 May 2009 11:26:29 +0000

Hello WebsiteForge Customers and Associates,

Our Layout Builder frame has been updated to include some additional options for displaying Suggested Items. Aside from the suggested item's "Product Title" - you can now show images and prices of the suggested items. We have also added some formatting options which allow you to control their appearance. The image below shows what options are now available (when you choose to show "Images with Additional Info").

If you already have suggested items assigned to your products (and the suggested items field added to a Layout Builder frame) then you only need to change the new "Mode" field to access the new features.

Make sure you contact support@websiteforge.com if you have ANY questions regarding these upgrades!

Kevin Ledezma

Website Forge

www.websiteforge.com

Web Design and E-commerce

Website Forge Upgrades 5/10/2009

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 11 May 2009 15:55:59 +0000

Hello Website Forge customers and associates:

We have a few very helpful upgrades to announce:

- QUICKBOOKS POS Compatibility is here!

This is very exciting. For those of you who operate retail stores with Quickbooks POS, you can now syncronize your products, customers, images and orders in a near real-time connection.

This means:

- When you add products to Quickbooks POS, your products automatically upload to your Website Forge site.

- When you sell products and services from your Website Forge web site, your customer and sales records will download to your Quickbooks in near real time! No importing or additional steps necessary!!

- Contact sales@websiteforge.com for pricing and support regarding this new feature!

- HUGE Email campaign's and product Import's

You may notice a new area under your Dash Board called "Scheduled Tasks". This is great because when you send very large email campaigns or import very large product files -- you won't have to wait for them to finish. Instead you can just walk away and wait for the process to finish.

To do this start your email campaign or import and then view the "Scheduled Task" area to see when it is completed.

Notes: This allows them to run for an arbitrary amount of time not limited with timeouts, session lifetimes etc. No need to split files into smaller pieces. Files up to 50 MB are accepted.

Normally tasks are executed immediately right after another, however if there are many tasks being run by other users, the system may wait until there is more resources available.

- UPS shipping methods now have a new setting called "Every Item in Separate Package"

When this option is enabled, the shipping amount on the checkout form has an informational icon which displays detailed quote when moving the mouse over it. This is for people who ship each item in a separate box and must rate the shipping costs accordingly.

- Multiple images in one field for members.

To enable you need to edit the settings of the Edit Profile frame on the mX_edit_item.html page (for membership) and of the Customer Info frame on the mX_customer_info.html page (for ecommerce). And then set the uploader mode dropdown next to the image field to "Lite (Multiple Images)". This will allow members to upload several images to one image field.

- PayPal PayFlow was upgraded to the latest specs.

- Improved Java uploader stability and error resistance.

Make sure you contact support@websiteforge.com if you have ANY questions regarding these upgrades!

Website Forge

www.websiteforge.com

Web Design and E-commerce

Website Forge Upgrades: 4/5/2009

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:23:29 +0000

The following updates were applied to the Website Forge system this Sunday.

1) Fancy Zooming feature. In a Layout Builder frame (for the Ecommerce and Ad modules) a “Zooming” parameter for an Image field has been added. If it’s set to "Yes", the user will be allowed to see enlarged portions of the image while moving the mouse over it. For this to work, an image must be large enough to see all details. Also, the Image field itself must be set up to show a smaller version of the image (by setting the field’s Width and Height parameters) and the zoom window will display portions of the image at it’s original size.

2) USPS has been upgraded to the newest version of their API. USPS domestic and international methods can now be configured to use different types and sizes of packages (different kinds of Flat Rate Boxes, Envelopes etc.) to fine tune the calculation.

Also, the "Add International Methods" button was added to the Shipping Conditions/Methods form for users who wish to add international shipping.

3) The “FreightQuote” calculation engine has been added. To enable it, you need to add FreightQuote under a shipping condition using the Add Method button in the “Shipping Conditions/Methods” section and configure its parameters according to the type of goods being shipped. Note that FreightQuote is not a general-purpose shipping service like UPS/FedEx/etc., but is used to calculate shipping items of large size and dimensions via different freight companies.

4) Publish notifications have been updated to include an HTML link to the published version of your website.

Kevin Ledezma

www.websiteforge.com

Web Site Design and E-commerce

Power Event Last Night - Update

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 09:51:00 +0000

Hello.

During a normally scheduled monthly generator test, one of the UPS
created a short power fluctuation during the power switching over.

We are working with the equipment manufacturer to determine the cause of
this issue. A few pieces of our network hardware were affected and causes us to have to restart and test some server hardware which took some time.

We do generator tests every month and this is the first issue we have experienced with it.

Thanks,

Shane Merem

support@websiteforge.com

Website Forge News - Feb 15, 2009

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 19:00:39 +0000

Website Forge News Topics:

- Unprecedented FULL 12 Month Guarantee on Website Forge web sites!

- Customer Service at it's Best!

- Google struggles with SAAS solutions

- Take full advantage of your SEO technology

- A look at Dabble DB -- A great new web idea

Unprecedented FULL 12 Month Guarantee on Website Forge web sites!

Website Forge has long been the ONLY company to provide a real 30 day money back guarantee.

The only company to survey their customers every 7 days during their project development.

The only company to provide unlimited pages, products, and bandwith in a CUSTOM DESIGNED web site. The only company that includes hundreds of thousands of dollars of improvements to it's clients every single year....

Once again we have gone over the top.

We are so sure you will love your Website Forge web site we will back it up with a 12 month guarantee. That's right. If after ONE FULL YEAR you don't love your web site -- we will refund your entire purchase price!

No other web site company has the confidence in their company to offer such an amazing guarantee on their custom web site solutions... NOBODY!

Customer Service at it's Best!

I received a call Friday night from Dale Spenrath (CEO of www.posprocessing.com) around 7:00 PM asking me if Website Forge was having any techincal issues.

I told him I was unaware of any problems. Dale was already on the phone with the technical guys at Linkpoint to see why our mutual customer had called him with a card processing problem.

I hung up and a few minutes later Dale called me back on my cell phone and informed me that Linkpoint did, in fact, have some temporary problems and it would be resolved in a couple hours. I was able to notify our clients so they could be aware of this issue.

When was the last time Henry Ford and Good Year's CEO called each other to work out a technical detail for their car owners? I just call that "Customer Service at it's Best!".

Take full advantage of your SEO technology

I make it a point to run our clients through a few questions to make sure they are doing all they can to promote their online business.

1. Have you enabled your "Google Sitemaps" feature in your web site yet?

2. Have you exported your products (if any) to Google Base? (formerly called Froogle)?

3. Have you spent time every day/week/month to improve your site copy with keyword rich content?

4. Have you considered rewriting your product descriptions to help prospective customers make the decision to purchase your product?

If you have answered NO to any of these questions.. Please reply here and we will have our team give you some specific actions so that you can get the most out of your web site...

Google struggles with SAAS solutions

I am a freshbooks.com customer and I ran across a couple good articles. Recenly they posted a message about Google and some problems they have had supporting their SAAS (Software As A Service) products. You will find the article interesting.

www.freshbooks.com/blog/2009/01/30/google-proves-saas-is-hard-even-for-big-guys/

A look at Dabble DB -- A great new web idea

If you are "show me the data" kind of person -- take a look at Dabble DB. You can cut and paste any excel file data into a web page and create awesome drill down charts and graphs in minutes.

I created dozens of charts from a bunch of my boring excel reports and it's a great concept.

Check it out at www.dabbledb.com

Thanks, Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

Web Design and E-commerce

Love it or get your money back!

Website Forge Upgrades 2/1/2009

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 22:29:45 +0000

Hello WebsiteForge community!

There are a couple nice upgrades recently added to WebsiteForge.com

First we have added Product Ratings and Product Reviews! Take a look at http://www.thehomefurnishingsstore.com/m8_view_item.html?m8:item=1651 and try adding a review. You can also see the product popularity within your web site member's area.

Contact support for help with this new feature.

Fuzzy SKU search option is enabled by default for any Search Box frame. "Fuzzy search" means that the system tries to match incorrectly entered SKU numbers. It ignores separators (dashes, spaces etc.) and does not differentiate between "O" and zero.

This "Fuzzy Search" may allow people to find products when your customers do not type the EXACT sku or product number -- increasing the number of successful searches.

I also recently decided to setup a Twitter url for WebsiteForge.com. I'll let you know if I notice any marketing value. If you are on twitter.com, follow us at www.twitter.com/websiteforge and we will post twitter updates regularly.

Shane Merem

Website Forge

Web Design and E-Commerce

Important Migration Notification 1/9/2009 - Website Forge

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 16:28:00 +0000

***** IMPORTANT NOTIFICATION ***

Hello Website Forge Community!

We are performing an important upgrade and migration over the weekend.

On Saturday evening 1/10/2009 we will syncronize our current set of database servers with our new cluster.

On Sunday evening 1/11/2009 we will reconfigure our directors and firewall rules to redirect traffic to the new set of database servers. They may be a few minutes of down time related to this step. Nothing serious is expected.

This new upgrade will provide additional space, bandwith, redundancy and speed to your web sites and e-commmerce applications.

Thank You

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

www.magnusoft.com

Important News - Paypal/Declined Orders/And more.. - Shane Merem

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 14:00:13 +0000

Hello Website Forge partners.. Here are a couple imporant things you need to be aware of...

1. HIGH NUMBERS OF DECLINED SALES?

Some of you experienced unexplained declined sales on your web site. At the time we verified that the Website Forge system was working properly. We have more information that specifies what happened. You can read about the CitiBank system issue here: http://www.websiteforge.com/custom/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=2445#2445

2. PAYPAL EMAIL REGARDING EMAILS?

Paypal sent out a message saying they would reduce the number of email notifications they send. This will not affect any Website Forge customer. The website forge system already sends out emails to confirm orders, etc. So there will just be less redundancy.

Extra Feature: YOU LOVE TO PLAY POKER ONLINE?

Please check out a new web site I just launched. It's a Pre-Flop poker calculator.

It's a great way to learn how to play Poker and figure out your odds. I'm offering you a $10.00 off discount if you would like to take advantage of it. http://www.preflopadvantage.com (Use coupon code 99013 to get the $10.00 discount)

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

Web Site Design and E-commerce

Important News - Website Forge

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 09:37:19 +0000

Hello Website Forge partners....

I wanted to drop you a line with a few important updates:

1) The Website Forge iPhone application is almost here!

We have developed an iPhone application that is called the WF Order Management program. This application will allow you to view and manage your web site orders easily with your iphone. You can view orders, change order status, view customer info and more.... Please contact support@websiteforge.com if you would like to be a beta tester for this application. We need volunteers to help us test and improve the application.

2) Website Forge is PCI compliant! Don't just take our word for it... Talk to our clients. Ten or more (more every day) Website Forge clients have already passed PCI compliance audits from First Data.

An independent PCI compliance consultant has scanned and tested the Website Forge system and Website Forge passed every test.

Since PCI compliance is somewhat subjective hesitated to boldly advertise compliance until a recognized auditor tested the Website Forge system.

You are safe and secure at Website Forge! Every time we upgrade our system we have your security in mind!

3) We never stop upgrading your web site! With roughly 50 key upgrades in the queue -- we will help your site run smoother and continue to make sure your site is secure. Keep an eye on this BLOG for upgrade reports.

4) News releases. We are looking to do some news releases in the near future. We have heard the great success of many of our Website Forge clients and want to share your success.

If you would like to share the growth of your web business. Let us know via support@websiteforge.com and we can include you in our News release.

WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT:

In today's business world. When companies like Circuit City, GM, Ford, Chrysler, and numerous large companies struggle -- you have to appreciate how hard it is to grow a small business. It is not easy.

I once read that the biggest difference between people that "succeed" and "fail" is not education or intelligence. THe most common factor was refusal to quit trying -- Persistence. Don't quit. Because you can't succeed if you are not trying.

Shane Merem

www.websiteforge.com

Web Site Design and E-commerce

Website Forge Upgrades 11/26/2008

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 08:54:44 +0000

Hello Website Forge community. I'm sure you are all preparing for your Thanksgiving feast. Here is a quick update on features added to Website Forge the following couple weeks.

1) We have added new tax application rules. One can now control whether each particular tax is based on billing or shipping address, apply tax to products shipped FROM particular source and with particular value in a field (possible to have different "Tax Exempt"-like fields for different taxes). This will help those who have troubles with new California tax configurations.

2) For sites selling photos, the parent product can now be excluded from shipping (a collage or other processing work) while child products (prints) can be shippable.

3) Recently Viewed Items. You can set up an item list with "Affected By" = "Recently Viewed items". So you can show a list of recently viewed products anywhere.

4) Improvements allowing to export large numbers of orders at once. For high volume sites exporting orders for UPS or other label printing systems.

5) When using virtual wallet / gift certificates, they are enabled by default on the checkout screen and a gift box icon is shown near the note (for those people who may not see the text.

6) Color palette selector for label/value formatting in layout builder. Also can set the Control Line to display buttons one under another (not in one line).

Thanks for all your support and have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Shane Merem

Website Forge

www.websiteforge.com

Web Design and E-commerce web sites

Did you get a UPS upgrade notificiation?

blog@websiteforge.com (Shane Merem) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:12:53 +0000

Hello Website Forge community.

I received the following email from UPS:

-------

UPS OnLine^® Tools Upgrade Notification

You are receiving this communication to notify you of changes that could affect your UPS OnLine Tools beginning March 1, 2009. Action may be required to ensure that the change does not adversely impact your business and use of the tools.

On March 1, 2009, UPS is moving from unchained to chained Digital Certificates to improve security when using the Internet. The change requires your system to support the Secured Socket Layer (SSL) Version 3.0 to be compatible with the new Digital Certificates.

It is highly recommended that you validate your configuration and upgrade your digital certificate to avoid connection breaks to your UPS OnLine Tools application. ........

-----------

After talking to our development team I was told that this should not affect Website Forge in any way.

This email is for the customers that generally email us to ask this very question.

Thanks and have a great holiday sales season!

Shane Merem

Website Forge

www.websiteforge.com

web site design and ecommerce