The more time you spend shopping online, the more you want to shake web developers and site owners. If each site owner spent some time buying from their top competitors and then tested their own site, then surely they too would be pulling their hair out in frustration at the stupidity of their website.

Well e-shop owners, if you just read and implement this guide from Smashing Magazine there will be no more hair-pulling for us customers…if you need help in implementing these efforts into your e-commerce website contact us.

Now go and read 15 Common Mistakes in E-Commerce Design

Today we’ve launched a new online shopping directory for Australians. The directory comes from my personal hobby of online shopping and started as a way to keep a list of all the sites I like to use I thought it might be useful for everyone to have a place they can find shops that deliver to their area. I’ve also enabled voting so people can rave about really good service. The directory is still in early stages and for all intents and purposes lets call it the beta version.

The aim of the directory is to be able to drill down to your local area, so either Sydney, or Northern Beaches for example so you can find sites that deliver specifically to your area, such as butchers and green grocers. If you have an online retail shop and you service Australia, go ahead and list your business for free for the first year.

Visit Online Shopping Directory

It felt like only a few blogs ago we were blogging about the expensive shipping fees with the launch of JC Penney and there was some hefty discussion about this issue. So it’s sad that already they’ve closed their doors after only two months in Australia.

I’m sure it wasn’t the hefty shipping fees, but the miserable Australian dollar that played the biggest part in the demise of JC Penney.

I’m hoping now DJ’s and Myer don’t think they don’t have to play in this online space. There really is a niche there, but it needs to be onshore so postage is ridiculous and doesn’t take weeks. All online retailers should take a leaf out of Zodee’s book. I ordered some products over the weekend and they arrived on Monday – less than a day later. That’s the most impressive online experience I’ve had in a while…

The BBC has reported from Silicon Valley the next stage in online communities is exclusivity. Following on from a report by HP researcher, Bernardo Huberman, they both talk about the amount of information and groups which is freely accessible to everyone on the internet.

“Everybody has access to the same kind of information and the same array of products,” he said. “Those who manage to convince you to part with a lot of money in exchange for being exclusive, feeling different, and feeling part of an elite group are the ones that are going to make it.”

I think this is a valid point. As consumers expect a level of free stuff from the internet, they are finding out most of it is garbage, which will condition them into thinking they will have to pay for quality.

Read the full article here

In the second million dollar SEO deal this year, Freestyle Media have been acquired by Q Ltd for $1.36m. Slightly less than the Found Agency, and 100% ownership with a three year contract seems like there’s room for them to be pushed out, or maybe retire? Is it just me or does there seem to be a buying spree across Sydney based Search Engine Optimisation firms?

You can read the ASX press release here:
http://www.asx.com.au/asxpdf/20070605/pdf/312skxmns62wx4.pdf

Congratulations, I think Fred has to be one of the hardest working SEO’s in the business, I don’t know him personally but he always seems to presenting something or writing excellent blog entries.