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February 2015

Magento Profitmaker Integration – Worry No More…

If you’ve been to our solutions page, you might have noticed that we offer a lot of integrations. Our top-prized solution is the NetSuite-Magento Connector… Everyone at Times Square knows about that one.

But here at Hara Partners, our geniuses never stop integrating technology.

Introducing Magento Profitmaker Integration… The complete order management, customer service and accoutning package, that will integrate seamlessly into every facet of your promotional products distributor operation.

Read below for some of the benefits of our Magento Profitmaker Connector.

System Benefits

  • Quick access to Customer History
  • Ease of Order Entry (Quote – Order – Invoice)
  • Useful Open Order Reports
  • Ease of Order Entry/Repeat Orders
  • Easy processing of wearable orders
  • Integration with ASITransact (reduce phone calls regarding status of order)
  • Integration with ESP (Start Quote in ESP / Create Order in ProfitMaker®)
  • Flexible Reporting

The process starts with complete audit trails capturing every last detail about every order placed to a fully customized order logic. Magento Morin Logistic Integration can support every default scenario. And if you have special order requirements, our expert staff can consult with you and help ensure all information is captured and communicated correctly.

Software Support

Training Opportunities
We offer numerous training possibilities, from CD’s, online training, regional seminars to training at your business or at our office. Every week, our classroom is in session with companies visiting from all over the country.
Forms & Supplies
Complete line of laser forms designed specifically for use with ASICS software.
Special Programming
Originally custom written programs for a few specific customers that are now available for all customers using ASI Computer Systems software.
Third Party Software
Additional software compatible with or and/or integrated into your ASICS software.
Support Agreement
The most effective solutions to help you get the most from your ASI Computer System.

To learn more, check out the

Magento Profitmaker Integration page.

7 Interesting Ecommerce Facts & Trends

Ecommerce first came to birth in 1971. In the past 44 years there have been quite a number of impressive changes and breakthroughs that have established it as the online medium that we use today to trade products and services.

Below, we’ve compiled ten interesting ecommerce facts and trends that you were probably not aware of.

1. Pizza Hut was one of the first major brands to experiment with online commerce, starting in 1994.

It might surprise many to learn that the first ever ecommerce purchase was not a book or an article of clothing, but a Pizza Hut pizza.

ecommerce facts

The company celebrated the first-ever online purchase last year with a series of promotions.

“We want to celebrate the fact that before consumers could buy books, clothes, music or vacation packages via the internet, they could place an online order for a Pizza Hut pizza,” said Carrie Walsh, chief marketing officer at Pizza Hut.

2. Although it launched in 1995, Amazon wasn’t able to turn a profit until 2003.

Despite having revenues of $1.6 billion, Amazon still managed to lose $719 million in 1999. The situation didn’t improve until 2000, when it was found that Amazon had just around “$350 million of cash on hand,” despite raising billions of dollars.

Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, didn’t finally turn a profit until 2003, which was nine years after being founded and seven years after going public.

Bezos was able to turn things by laying off one-seventh of Amazon’s work force and closing some distribution centers.

3. 80% of the online population has used the internet to make a purchase, and 50% of the online population has purchased online more than once.

‘Nuff said.

4. Apparel and Accessories’ is the fastest growing ecommerce sector of the 9 major categories.

Online sales of apparel and accessories are now growing faster than any other ecommerce product segment, and the category is poised to help US retail ecommerce sales grow 15.4% to $224.2 billion in 2012, after stronger-than-expected sales took the market to $194.3 billion last year, according to a report by eMarketer.

5. JCPenney’s sales are made via Mobile Point of Sale devices

 jcpenney mobile

One-quarter of all J.C. Penney Co. Inc. store sales are coming through mobile point-of-sale devices, and all store associates will have handheld iPod Touch devices by the end of this month, CEO Ron Johnson told Wall Street analysts last week on the chain retailer’s year-end earnings call.

6. 79% of online shoppers desire a tracking option with their delivery

Online shoppers value convenience, notably during the postsales process, with 65 percent of Asia Pacific shoppers rating e-mail or text alerts as the most convenient notification service to track their packages.

7. Asia holds the largest number of web purchases, with South Korea at the top of the list

he South Korean internet market has grown into one of the most developed in Asia and the world. 7 in 10 inhabitants have made an online purchase, making South Korea the most mature e-commerce country after Japan.

What Store Manager for Magento Can Offer

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What Store Manager for Magento Can Offer

Do you need help setting up your Store Manager for Magento?

Store Manager for Magento is a convenient solution for managing your online store. Our e-commerce experts are ready to set you up with a decent package at any point where you feel like you need more value for your business. With a plethora of awesome features that come installed in the software, you’ll find that Store Manager for Magento is unbeatable its capacity to work well with your software, while allowing you to run a lot of cool tools that are simple to install and easy-to-use, even for beginners. Call us with any questions you may have at 212-225-8883.

Learn More About Our World-Class Support

Some companies can install your software, and then leave you dead in the water, scrambling around and scratching your head in terms of what you do. We understand. Not everyone is a tech-savvy software guru like some of our programmers. You don’t need to worry because we’ll have your back. Our IT guys are on 24/7 to help you install your package, as well as respond to any queries that you have once everything is up and running. Just because the software is easy-to-use, it doesn’t mean that you won’t have any questions. Ask us… We’re the experts.

What Else Do I Need to Know?

Once you’ve run the software and asked all the right questions, the next question on your mind will be: what else does Hara Partners have to offer me to improve my Magento experience? Well, you’ve stumbled upon the right guys… We have loads of solutions to offer for you, ready to be installed at any point that you decide to purchase them. With solutions ranging from the NetSuite-Magento Connector to Managed Magento Support, our e-commerce solutions are virtually limitless, which is why we’re the best at what we do. You were probably looking for unique solutions in the first place, which is why you clicked on the contact form for our Store Manager… If you’re ever ready to expand, please call us directly at

212-225-8883, and we’ll be more than happy to hook you up.

 

 

Go back to the Store Manager for Magento page.

BluePay: Secure, Efficient E-commerce Credit Card Processing

bluepay

BluePay helps merchants accept credit cards online with secure e-commerce payment gateways and services that make accepting electronic payments quick, easy and safe.

Increase online sales by accepting credit cards, debit cards and ACH payments on your website.

Simplify the checkout process by integrating with major shopping carts and providing fast, secure transactions.

Comply with PCI DSS standards to protect online data.

BluePay is your one-source solution for all your website credit card processing and e-commerce needs.

E-commerce Credit Card Processing for Every Business

Shopping online safely and efficiently is now as easy as ever, especially when merchants take advantage of BluePay’s e-commerce credit card processing services.

Now, accepting credit cards online is just a mouse click away. Our secure e-commerce payment gateway allows you to accept major credit cards, debit cards and ACH payments for fast, secure Internet transactions, with always-low rates that significantly reduce costs.

Verifying accounts is immediate and easy, boosting your online sales and increasing cash flow right away. Simple, fast website credit card processing tailored to your business— BluePay makes it possible.

 

Keep Online Data PCI Secure

Receiving payments online can be risky business, as technology advances and electronic theft becomes more complex. Count on BluePay’s PCI compliant e-commerce credit card processing services and security features to keep your business, your customers and your data safe from credit card fraud.

Integrate Your E-commerce Merchant Account

With the convenience of online shopping continues to increase, consumers expect flexible payment options and faster checkout.

BluePay can help you to integrate your e-commerce merchant account with major shopping carts, streamlining the transaction process for efficient online shopping and accurate reporting.

Secure hosted payment forms replace shopping cart functionality for merchants looking for a different online approach. Getting started is simple—just contact BluePay today to discuss your e-commerce credit card processing needs, and we’ll get your online account set up and integrated without disrupting your ongoing business procedures.

To find out more, check out Bluepay.com.

The Emerging Role of Banks in E-Commerce

banks in e-commerce

How is the banking industry responding to the rapid development of online commerce?

Many banks in e-commerce are beginning to deliver credit and deposit their products electronically, as well.

Some large banks are also developing products designed exclusively for e-commerce.

As banks venture into the electronic arena, however, they are finding that new opportunities bring new operational and strategic risks.

Many companies are embracing “e-commerce,” or business conducted on-line over computer networks, as a means of expanding markets, improving customer service, reducing costs, and enhancing productivity.

Like other companies, banks are taking steps to expand the use of networking technology in their business operations. For these institutions, however, the advent of
electronic commerce poses questions as well as opportunities.
Our analysis of banks’ entry into e-commerce includes
a look at the strategic and operational risks banks may
face in this arena. E-commerce will create new forms of
competition and compel banks to make choices about the
services they offer, the size of their branch networks, and
the extent of their support for interbank payment networks.

Participation in e-commerce will also increase
banks’ exposure to technological problems. Banks’ success
in coping with such challenges will help determine the
scale of their influence in the electronic marketplace.

Advantages of Banks in E-Commerce

In the last few years, many banks have begun to use the Internet as a supplementary channel for delivering traditional products to consumers and businesses. Some banks are also investigating how they might expand their current service offerings to include some products designed exclusively for e-commerce.

Issuing Electronic Money and Electronic Checks. Two
e-commerce products still in the planning stage are
electronic money and electronic checks. As more computers
become equipped with “smart card” readers, banks are
considering issuing electronic money that could be stored
on these cards and spent over the Internet. In addition, a
banking technology organization is working with the
U.S. Treasury and some banks to test an electronic
version of a paper check. The check could be sent over
the Internet from a buyer to a seller, electronically
endorsed by the seller, and then forwarded on-line to
the seller’s bank for electronic collection from the
buyer’s bank.

Magento Cost: Monthly Managed Support Services

magento cost

Magento Cost: Monthly Managed Support Services

When choosing to purchase one of our many Magento services, one of the primary concerns that you might have is the cost—’just how much is this going to cost me exactly?’

It’s a great question, of course, since most Magento services might not exactly fit your budget. In fact, let’s be honest: most of our services are really freaking expensive.

But like most of the material that we present on this blog, it all depends on who you are and what your needs are. If you own a rocking business and you think you have the budget to support this stuff, then we definitely want your call more than the schmuck who doesn’t even have a penny to his name to pay for Magento.

Magento Cost of Hara Partners Magento Support Services

Magento is a powerful, vast and complex application, as such preventing slow-downs and disruptions requires an experienced and steady hand at the helm. With Magento Managed Services from Hara Partners a dedicated team of Magento professionals and certified developers takes control of your site ensuring it’s running in optimal condition 24/7/365.

Managed Magento Support

Managed Support Services from Hara Partners provides coverage in three important arenas: Issue management, issue prevention and strategic planning, and site set-up/optimization.

magento cost

Issue Management:

Included with Hara Partners Managed Magento Support services is a 24/7/365 Help desk with phone, email and ticket support, so we are never out of reach. Additionally, we provide a daily report outlining any issues that have occurred or might occur so your always informed and part of the decision making process.

Issue Prevention and Strategic Planning:

Once your store is up and running in peak condition we can assess your risk factors and start taking measures to mitigate or prevent any issues. We’ll monitor your site’s uptime and performance so any issues are addressed promptly as well as using our proprietary site–auditing software Health Check to unearth any underlying issues with your site’s code so they can be addressed before causing any harm.

If you’re interested in our services such as Monthly Managed Magento Support Services, please go ahead and contact us.

Unlock Your Potential with Magento AMS Fulfillment

magento ams fulfillment integration

Magento AMS Fulfillment Integration combines Magento with state-of-the-art AMS Fulfillment.

Preparation and Configuration – After you determine the shipping methods and payment methods to be used in Magento, the development team can create proper mapping between Magento and the A2000 Connector.

Incoming, Update Inventory– In addition to the default Magento SKU, each product will have an A2000 UPC. You can update the inventory any time.

Outgoing, Export Order – When the shipment/tracking file has been successfully imported, the corresponding order will be marked as ‘Tracking Received.’

Incoming, Shipment/Tracking. All items in the order are shipped after this shipment. We allow auto invoice after shipment via system config, and the order has been invoiced automatically.

Magento AMS Fulfillment Order Management

In the world of Fulfillment, orders come in many shapes and sizes, and with a seemingly endless array of unique requirements surrounding the flow of order data with our valued clients. With AMS Fulfillment’s unique expertise in large scale product fulfillment for both Business-to-Business (B-2-B) and Direct-to-Consumer (B-2-C) programs, we have come to understand Order Management and order data flow requirements of all types, including: EDI order management to major big box retailers, boutique retail orders, online ecommerce, drop ship orders from ecommerce partners, large scale Direct Response TV, fixtures and marketing materials to retail databases… and more!

From ASNs (Advanced Ship Notices) to custom messaging for ecommerce customers, AMS has seen it all with decades of experience managing orders for a wide variety of fulfillment channels and clientele.

Warehouse Management System

At AMS, our core expertise is Warehousing and Fulfillment Operations, and a vital contributor to our fulfillment expertise is our Warehouse Management System (WMS). With a robust WMS software package that has remained on the cutting edge of technology advances since 2001, and an in-house IT department that has supported the WMS over the same period of time, AMS Fulfillment has established a tremendous WMS technology backbone to support our core business of fulfillment operations.

To find more, check out our page on Magento AMS Fulfillment Integration on our website.

Amazon’s Impact on Brick and Mortar

A recently published report reveals that a number of brick and mortar retailers risk falling victim to showrooming, where consumers go to look at items at a local store before placing orders online. According to Placed: Aisle to Amazon, consumers that showroom and purchase stuff from Amazon are 20 percent more likely to visit Best Buy and 15 percent more likely to visit Target than on average.

The numbers may not seem like much but that’s before you consider that other retailers like Bed Bath & Beyond, PetSmart and Toys ‘R’ Us are even more susceptible to showrooming. Shoppers were 27 percent more likely to visit the home goods retailer and 25 percent more likely to visit the pet supplier than on average. Mega chain Walmart was among the safest retailers despite the fact that they don’t offer online price matching.

brick and mortar

Placed founder and CEO David Shim said Amazon was the clear winner in e-commerce 1.0 and unless brick-and-mortar retailers convert from reactive to proactive, Amazon will again win e-commerce 2.0 by riding the backs of offline retailers.

Real-world retailers are well aware of the changing trend as both Best Buy and Target have adopted Amazon price matching policies to help combat the showrooming phenomenon. The reactive strategy may be working to some extent but as Shim noted, retail stores need to be proactive in their approach to avoid further risk.

Data from the Placed study is based on 14,925 US survey respondents as well as the direct measurement of nearly a billion US location data points. The study directly measured consumers’ paths in the physical world which allowed them to see the impact of the digital world on brick-and-mortar shopping behaviors.

Bargain Countdowns

Bargain Countdowns – A Genius Idea or Trickery?

 

Bargain Countdowns – A Genius Idea or Trickery?

 

We cannot help it.  As customers, we love to believe that we are getting a great deal when we are shopping.  But, are we really getting a good deal?

Retailers know that customers have a weakness for bargain countdowns on sales items, deal of the days, and two-for-one offers.  These offers have a time limit to make the customers believe that if they do not get the deal before time runs down, they will miss out.

And like fools, we fall for it.

 

Bargain Countdowns Generate Profit For Retailers

Whilst we are running riot, adding more sale items to our carts and whipping out our credit cards to get these deals, the retailers are making profit out of our sense of urgency.  What is even more ironic is that half of the sale items are old stock.  Food items will have a fast-approaching use-by date, clothes stores will put bargain countdowns on last season’s stock and electronic shops will sell technology of an older quality.  In simple terms, they are making money out of items which are not of the best quality.

How long will it be of customers pushing each other out of the way to grab that sacred sale item on Black Friday?  How long will we rack through rails, and elbow each other of the way like animals?  Seriously people, we have to gain some dignity here!

Whilst we spend money we probably do not have, retailers are enjoying putting our coins into their piggy banks.

 

Bargain Countdowns – Genius Idea for Retailers

Bargain countdowns define trickery.  But what a genius idea for retailers!

If they can fool customers into believing that the deals on their sale items are actually ending, they can generate massive profit.  Plus, they can shift their out-of-date, out-of-season goods that they would have had trouble getting rid of, if they were sold at full price.  Bargain countdowns on sale items also save storage space in retailers’ warehouses.

Many online businesses have benefited from bargain countdowns and deals of the day. From 2014, Groupon.com has become the most frequently visited coupon site in the United States.  It boosts a whopping 30 million visitors per month and it holds 59.1% of North America’s daily deal market.  Groupon.com perfectly portrays how bargain countdowns can generate a lot of money for an eCommerce company.

 

Are Bargain Countdowns Ever Going to End?

Customers are deluding themselves if they think that the bargain countdowns are really going to end.  There is always going to be another sale, another bargain that we just have to have.  Another few $100 bills down the drain.

And retailers love it!

An example of a website which specializes in bargain countdowns and deals of the day is Overstock.com:  http://www.overstock.com

 

Magento Services – What Are Some of My Best Options?

Magento Services

magento services

 

You know what we’re about… We’re a Magento company. You’ve seen some of our services. 

But we know that some of you who still aren’t convinced that Magento is the greatest thing to come out of God’s green earth are probably wanting to know… 

“What Magento services are right for me?”

Well… We’re not here to sell you anything… Not right off the bat anyhow.

I mean we love to get paid for our hard work. Everyone does.

But at the end of the day, we put this blog up to entertain and inform. That way, after you got all your laughs out of our talented Hara Partners copywriters (and potentially learned something), you can check out the rest of our website and see if the deals we have to offer really match your e-commerce needs.

But first… You wanna know more about our Magento services, don’t you?

Technical Audit

With Hara Partners’ technical audit you’ll get expert individual in-depth analysis with a comprehensive overview of the state of your store’s code quality and overall usability.

Our report includes an executive summary of findings with priorities, detailed explanation of findings and suggested solutions, and an analysis of potential Magento core system modifications.

SEO Audit

Search engine optimization best practices and methods are changing all the time so it’s crucial to conduct regular checkups regardless of your site’s technical stability.

Investing in SEO assessment is a great way to get valuable information about the state of your Magento store because you might be missing significant amount of traffic, customers and sales due to improper technical SEO setup of your store.

Our report includes an executive summary of findings with priorities, detailed explanation of findings and suggested solutions, and top priorities for your developers and copywriters.

Magento Consulting

This service is for store owners who love making data driven decisions. It is intended to bring incremental long lasting improvements, week by week, in different areas of an online store. This service helps you build a stable business and brand.

Magento Development

Being in Magento development world from its very beginning, we can say we are one of the most experienced teams you can find. We are passionate about sharing our experiences with the development community via our blog. This was recognized throughout the community and we’re happy to see over 200.000 visitors come back each month and leave their comments on the website.

Closing Thoughts

As you can see, we don’t just talk the talk… Inquire more about services on our solutions page, or give us a call, why don’t you.

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