Magento comes with built-in Google Analytics support, no code-modification necessary. However, the description in the wiki on how to set it up isn’t exactly self-explanatory.

The built-in version comes with some simple conversion tracking that isn’t very accurate. What’s better is to configure funnels in Google Analytics. We’ll go over how to do this in a later post. For now, let’s just deal with the basics.

1. Get an Analytics Account
First you’ll need a Google Analytics Account. Go to http://analytics.google.com and either sign-in with your existing Google ID, or create a new account.

2. Create a Website Profile
Once you’re done creating an account, you’ll land on a page called “Analytics Settings” which is a summary of all your analytics set-ups. Towards the bottom of the page, there is a link which says “Add new website profile”. Click it.

3. Create your domain
Add the URL for your domain in the box provided and select “Finish”.

4. Ignore the mess, copy down the Web Property ID
The next page has a whole bunch of information that we don’t care about. What we need to do is ignore all of this messaging and look for the Web Property ID. It usually starts with “UA-”. We need this number to feed to the Magento admin. Write it down!

5. Go back to the Magento Admin and put it in
Go back to your Magento Admin and go to System->Configuration. Click on “Google API” in the left nav. Open up the blue box that says “Google Analytics”. Uncheck the two boxes that say Enable and Account Number. Set Enable = “yes” and put your “UA-” account number in the box below it.

6. Make sure Google can read the code.
At this point, google analytics is running on your site and starting to collect data. To double-check, you can go back to google analytics and click on the “edit” link for the site profile you just created. On the next screen, click “check status” towards the right top of the screen. Google should swap the status to “Receiving data”. You’re in business!

Coming up next we’ll discuss how to configure this for multi-store set-ups and walk through some advanced funnels.

Tags: analytics, google, magento, repoting
Posted in magento | No Comments »

From jpost.com

“While e-commerce is taking off at national level, it is still relatively uncommon for consumers to use the Internet to purchase goods or services in another Member State. The gap between domestic and cross-border e-commerce is widening as a result of cross-border barriers to on-line trade.
From 2006 to 2008, the share of all EU consumers who have bought at least one item over the Internet increased from 27 percent to 33% while cross-border e-commerce remained stable (6%-7%). According to the report, one-third of EU citizens would consider buying a product or a service from another Member State via the Internet because it is cheaper or better.

Some of the barriers to cross-border on-line trade relate to language, demographics, individual preferences, technical specifications or standards, Internet penetration or the efficiency of the postal or payment system. Thirty-three percent of EU consumers say they are willing to purchase goods and services in another language, while 59% of retailers are prepared to carry out transactions in more than one language.

Other problems are the inability of consumers to access commercial offers in another Member State because of mechanisms that prevent them from placing orders. Eight percent of consumers who had made a cross-border purchase in the past year have been prevented from purchasing cross-border because they lived in a country other than where the trader was located (on average for all retail channels). Therefore, 33% of consumers reported that sellers refuse to sell or deliver goods or services because they are not resident in their country (on average for all retail channels).

The report found that the Internet has created heightened expectations on the part of consumers regarding the availability of goods and services, which are not always met by businesses. It is also a problem for consumers when some traders do not explicitly state where they are prepared to deliver in the EU.

In addition, traders may be unwilling or unable to expand to other EU markets in the face of a number of practical and economic obstacles, some of which have regulatory underpinnings. Regulatory barriers result in significant compliance costs for businesses, which considerably diminish the appeal or feasibility of cross-border expansion.

Although measures have been taken to foster harmonization, regulatory barriers continue to affect a number of areas, including consumer law. Law and regulation involving VAT, the territorial management of copyright necessary to offer legitimate on-line services and the national transposition of the European legislation on electronic-waste disposal have been modified.

The report found that it is crucial to address these potential market barriers so that future growth is not stymied and to unlock the potential of cross-border e-commerce. As a result of these barriers, traders may refuse to serve new markets or may develop on-line business models that fragment the internal market along national lines.

Solutions to these problems may consist in streamlining regulatory hurdles that increasingly appear unfair and unjustifiable to consumers and businesses on a national and European level.

Promoting the transparency and comparability of information on the Internet should also have spill-over effects on retail markets in general. In addition, it might be necessary to promote on-line trust by strengthening on-line and cross-border enforcement, putting in place efficient and speedy dispute resolution, and by enhanced market monitoring and information. “

 By limiting online sales to their own country, EU online retailers are significantly reducing the potential impact of their business. In the next few posts, we’ll examine some of the things that EU companies could do to embrace their international audience.

Tags: eu, international
Posted in international | 1 Comment »

This Internet Retailer article discusses how several brick & mortar chains which had stalled a bit in retail sales, dramatically expanded their web businesses in 2008. Most of the chains mentioned are apparel stores: Aeropostale, American Eagle, American Apparel, Skechers, etc. but CableOrganizer.com is also listed.

The reality is, though consumers are spending less right now, they are more price-sensitive than ever. Online shopping is going to continue to grow in several channels as people leverage the web more frequently for classes of items they weren’t previously buying online.

Listen to what Valerie Holstein, CEO of Cableorganizer.com had to say: “When forecasting for 2008, we made a conscious decision to grow our company faster than the economy would shrink,” she says. “Toward this end, we actively grew our business in a number of important areas. In addition to ramping up staffing for web design, content creation and inventory growth, we also found new and effective places to advertise, expanded our sales outlet and physical warehouse space to 10,000 square feet, and enhanced our mission-critical product pages and site search capabilities.”

Done right, expanding one’s online commerce offering is an excellent way to counter the economic downturn.

Tags: apparel, brick and mortar, recession
Posted in brick & mortar | 1 Comment »