Last week, a reporter asked me to name the five essentials that every gift basket website must have.

Here are my responses.

1. A home page that welcomes visitors and explains what they’ll find on the site.

2. Keywords added to each site page that relates to exactly what the visitor will find on each page.

3. A variety of videos created by the site owner explaining the gift baskets available on various pages.

4. A tested, user-friendly shopping cart that also includes upsell opportunities.

5. An easy way to contact the site owner that the visitor can access at the bottom of each page.

You’ll find more tips at www.WebSitesForRetailers.com.

What element of your website do you find to be most relevant for encouraging visitors to stay, order, return, and refer others?

Shirley George Frazier

Related articles:

1. How to Alert Clients About Your Customized Gift Baskets
2. Where Do You Share Comments from Happy Customers?

Standing out against thousands of gift basket Web sites isn’t an easy process, especially when big-named businesses rank higher than yours within search engines.

One question I hear often at my Web site seminars is:

“How can I get to be No. 1 when people search online for gift baskets?”

My response is this:

You may not be the first listing, but there is better potential to be No. 1 in other ways.

How can you increase your online prominence? Here are three steps.

1. Make sure your site includes keywords related to your location. There’s a lot of talk and writing about how keywords aren’t useful, but when I’m searching for resources in Chicago or Miami, companies that include these keywords in their descriptions rank high. That’s what your customers want, too.

2. Add something on the site that’s important to visitors. Whether it’s a gift checklist or holiday calendar, this bonus item is one that other sites don’t offer. That will increase your visibility and sway visitors to like and trust you enough to place orders.

3. Market with more than a business card. Sure, business cards are a basic promotional tool in offline settings, but online you must be a constant marketer through social media, your Email signature, and when responding to blog posts.

Consider scheduling a pre-holiday Web site review, an easy process which is described on the page Tune Up Your Web Site Today.

What’s one way that you increase your gift basket Web site visibility?

Shirley George Frazier

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What are some of the more-successful ways you get customers to visit your Web site?

Is it through postcard marketing, word-of-mouth promotions, your social media page, or contacting them by Email?

It’s important to establish at least two methods that you consistently deliver to your audience that convince them to see your Web site on a monthly basis.

There are many reasons to share with them on how your site delivers benefits, including:

• Finding a one-of-a-kind birthday gift
• Surprising a friend with a basket of cheer
• Thanking a neighbor for watching your property during a vacation

Chapter 7 of How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business is newly expanded with strategies that capture customers online.

What’s your secret for getting people to your site?

Shirley George Frazier

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When a new visitor arrives at your Web site, what do they see?

Your photographs and descriptive text explaining the contents of each gift basket exist, but what about comments from satisfied customers? Is that also in plain sight?

I’ve collected customer feedback and testimonial notes by mail ever since my business opened in the 1990s. A few years went by, and I began realizing that the notes were marketing gold.

I requested and received approval from my customers to share their words online and in my marketing literature, and that’s when sales increased more than 300 percent the first year.

The same sales increase can happen for you if customers’ comments are on your Web site. Add feedback to one or two pages to start, then add more each time you make site changes.

You’ll find more tips for your Web site in this special report at GiftBasketBusiness.com.

Shirley George Frazier

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Crystal clear pictures, sound structures, and promising keyword optimization tactics – that’s what I am finding on the numerous gift basket Web sites I’ve reviewed this month.

Designers who want to ensure that their online shops are positioned to capture sales have asked me to check their sites from a visitor’s viewpoint as well as check what’s under the hood, and I see wonderful detail in both areas.

What problems do your Web site present?

These are just three questions out of many to ask yourself as you build and update your Web site.

There’s more about Web sites in the March 4th GiftBasketBusiness.com newsletter. Review it to determine if your site is on track.

How do you measure your site’s success?

Shirley George Frazier

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Think of me as a potential customer who’s considering buying from you.

Looking at your Web site, I read your wonderful personalized welcome message, and I also see a beautiful sample of gift baskets arranged on multiple pages separated by theme.

These are a sample of questions that may be going through prospects‘ minds when visiting your Web site, and many of these questions can be answered by clients who write you notes and Emails thanking you for a job well done.

If these comments are tucked away in a drawer or file cabinet, take them out, ask each client who wrote it for permission to post it, and begin adding them on Web site pages.

There’s no doubt that client comments act as magnets, attracting more business from people who are deciding whether or not to buy.

Here’s the comments page at GiftBasketBusiness.com. Each one is unsolicited and posted exactly as written. I know, from my statistics, that this page is visited frequently by prospects who want to know what other people think about the site.

In your case, comments will make your phone ring more often with sales from unexpected places.

Where are your customer comments? Start adding them on your Web site, and get ready for a revenue boost.

Shirley George Frazier

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The Pride of NY program in New York State recently began soliciting farm owners who happen to make gift baskets so that a complete list of makers can be featured on a Web site promoting holiday baskets.

You can read the brief article here.

The program states that it’s looking for farmers, but they may also add your name to the list if you’re in New York.

For example, you make Welcome to New York, I Love New York, or Big Apple baskets made with products produced in the state. It makes sense for you to call or Email the contact person to learn if you qualify for a listing because these baskets feature New York products.

My point, for all of you no matter where you’re located, is to look beyond the limitations created by a few words (…looking to identify farmers, processors,…) and get yourself listed in as many places online and offline as possible.

You’ll reach prospects who are seemingly out of reach, turning them into loyal customers who refer their friends and family members.

I remember when Elaine Essary, owner of The Basket Bar, contacted me to see if she qualified for mention in The Gift Basket Design Book. I had certain stipulations for inclusion, and even though Elaine thought she may not qualify, she still contacted me.

Her story was so compelling that I decided to feature her. That’s what can happen when you’re passionate about succeeding no matter what barriers seem to be ahead.

Every U.S. state has a department of agriculture (even New Jersey, a state that tried to eliminate theirs). Visit your state’s department online to see if they will link to your site this holiday, especially if you create a gift basket with state-made products.

Is this an opportunity to sell more this season? Check for yourself.

Shirley George Frazier

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Creating new and interesting gift baskets and adding them to your Web site for visitors to see and order is what keeps people returning each month.

But after a while, the site begins to expand, and your navigation becomes more complicated.

Making a site map may be the answer.

The navigation system on your home page contains the site’s main structure, but it doesn’t always lead clients to designs needed for corporate events, conferences, and everyday celebrations.

A site map is a handy tool if visitors neglect to bookmark a page, and it helps validate that you did everything possible to alert customers to return policies and other service issues.

Months before the holidays arrive is a great time to make Web site adjustments. Perhaps a site map will be a welcomed upgrade.

Not sure how to create your site map? Click here to see the GiftBasketBusiness.com site map, or type “site map” into a search engine for more ideas.

Shirley George Frazier

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