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Do I Want An Interactive Business Tool?
The web allows for real-time interactions between a company’s
site and its visitors but because the web is a venue that spans time zones
a site may be visited at any time of the day 24/7. You want
to provide for interaction between you
and your customers at the time of their visit. Delayed
interaction could cost you business. A static
brochure site does not allow for real time information.
In the fashion apparel business the only constant is change!
New lines are always arriving. Styles, colors, sizes are dropped or added
often. Sales and events are scheduled. Change!
A data-driven site allows you to make changes instantly
as they become necessary and without the intervention of a technically skilled
(expensive) work force.
As an inexpensive alternative to the static site there
are generic, data driven, online applications; for example, eBay stores. They provide
excellent general eCommerce functionality in order to service
any possible product.
A custom
built, data driven, interactive site would
be the most expensive to build. A great example is shopbop.com. The company that engineered
its functionality quotes a minimum of $15,000 to set it
up and $3,000 per month to license its
use. That does not include the web design or content creation.
As an alternative, there are apparel industry specific
online applications from ApparelLink. If you can accept a certain amount of standardization,
these are by far the most cost effective. The standardization is in functionality.
These sites can and should be customized to your own individual “look & feel”. There
is no set up cost and the license is only $180.00 per month.*
*These prices are for FBI members but the savings is so
great that virtually everyone joins.
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