When going to register a domain name, you probably look for something with a .com TLD or decide to settle on .net if your first choice is not available. This is very understandable being that both of them add more professionalism and credibility to your web presence. While neither of these extensions make a bad choice, there are several reasons why you may want to consider registering a country-specific domain instead.

SEO Benefits

There are many cases when the major search engines will provide higher search engine rankings for web pages that have country-specific TLDs. For example, if an internet user from Canada is searching for software consulting services in that specific country, the site at mysoftware.ca may rank higher than another website with a .com extension selling the same product. This type of domain can also help increase your visibility through directories commonly referenced by local web surfers. Directories make a great way to enhance search engine rankings and build qualities links that lead to more traffic to your website.

Boost Customer Confidence

Having a country-specific domain can help increase confidence in customers as many of them feel more comfortable purchasing from local merchants. For them, it makes it much easier to track their sales and follow up with any questions or concerns regarding the product. Even though business is conducted across international borders everyday, some customers would just like to know that they are dealing with someone residing in the same country rather than one operating in a foreign locality.

Better Identify Your Audience

Another benefit to country-specific domain names is that you are better to identify where your customers are actually located. This makes things more convenient for both you and the customer. You can easily display products and services targeted at shoppers in that particular region and customers do not have to worry about choosing the geographic area they are located in. Again, this gives your site that local feel and instills the confidence the customer needs to feel safer doing business with you.

Maximize Your Potential

When factoring in their distinct advantages, you may want to consider registering both a country-specific TLD and a traditional extension such as .com or .net. This is a simple but strategic move that makes your business appealing to both international and national audiences. You should never overlook the potential sales and business that can be reaped from a domain name and all it takes is another small investment for an additional name that could result in huge benefits.

Conclusion

There are many domain name extensions available and the ICANN seems to be adding new ones on a regular basis. The country-specific variation represents a very broad category and as you can see, offers a wealth of benefits. While you have a vast selection to choose from, you should always keep yourself open to such an excellent opportunity that could help you attract other markets and extend your reach online.

The latest feature rolled out by Twitter is lists.  This new offering by Twitter allows users to create lists of specific Twitter users.  Believe it or not, Twitter lists can be helpful to the business web site owner.  After all, social media has been proven to be a boon to the online business owner.

How Twitter works for business

As social media outlets go, Twitter is quickly becoming one of the more popular micro-blogging sites around.  The list of businesses currently using Twitter in one fashion or another is constantly growing.  Comcast, JetBlue, and Dell are just a few companies that realized early on that Twitter has great potential to help them get in contact with and support their customers.  Comcast is a perfect example of how a business can use a micro-blogging service to give fast and courteous service to their existing customers as well as garner new business by word of mouth from happy and support customers.

How Twitter lists work for business

Once a business has set up their Twitter account, it is very easy to start racking up the number of users being followed.  At last count, the official support Twitter account for Comcast has over 32,000 users it’s following.  Trying to keep track of that many conversations at once is completely impossible.  So, what is the solution?

Simple – Twitter lists.  Creating a list is a very quick and easy process.  Log into Twitter and click on the “New list” link found on the right-hand side of the web site.  A new window will open up where a name can be typed in as well as the type of list it should be (private or public).  Once the list is created, it’s then a simple matter of going through the “following” list of the account and adding members to the newly created list.

One great example for a business use for a Twitter list is a company that has offices and customers across the states.  If this business wished to group its customers by area, lists such as “northwest_customers” or “Oregon_clients” could be created.  Then, support teams could have direct access to specific customers based on geographic location.

Taking it one step further

Twitter has made it convenient to include user lists within web sites.  By going to the Goodies – Widgets area, one can find the easy to customize Twitter list widget.  Once customized, the code then can be grabbed and integrated easily within a business web site.  This widget provides a quick way to keep tabs on customers and makes it very simple for new customers to join in on the conversation.  The list widget can be placed on a front page of a web site or even within a support section.  Either way, including this bit of coding is a perfect way to generate more business.

Conclusion

Including Twitter within a social media campaign is a smart move.  Twitter is continuously adding new features to make the experience of micro-blogging easier.  The latest addition of Twitter lists is a splendid way to monitor topics and people who matter most and a great way to keep in contact with and give support to customers and clients.

With so many entrepreneurs and businesses profiting from the internet, it should come as no surprise that more hopeful people are investing in e-commerce solutions.  However, you should know that there are many online businesses out there and very few of them obtain the success they were looking for.  This serves as proof that simply having an online storefront does not mean you will be successful.  Luckily, there are some proven approaches that can be employed to help ensure that your e-commerce site is just as fruitful as the next.

1.) Create a Professional Design

Several beginners make their first critical mistake at the design stage.  Being that HTML programming is fairly easy to master, some develop the gumption to go at it alone and decide to build their own website from the ground up.  Even though web technology has made it much more feasible to create a site with little to no experience, there are many reasons why you may want to leave this task in the hands of someone else.  Building a fully functioning website from scratch can be a hassle and very costly when considering that you will have to invest countless hours on time that could have been spent focusing on something else.  By outsourcing this part of the project to a professional design or development expert, you can devote your time and energy to developing a sound business strategy.

2.) Make Easy Navigation and Usability a Priority

Creating an e-commerce site that offers simple navigation and usability is a must.  You can get a better understanding by viewing your website as the aisle of a retail store.  In an ideal environment, all items are organized accordingly and easy to find.  Customers should have no trouble finding what ever it is they want to purchase.  The same holds true for an online storefront.  Even it is a measly checkout button, it is should be made visible and easy to find on your site.

3.) Don’t Forget Your Inventory

There are some online store owners that get so caught up in running their business, they forget about other key areas such as inventory.  You can avoid this by cataloging all the items you have for sale.  Be sure to update your inventory on a regular basis to avoid scenarios where a customer tries to purchase something that is out of stock.  This can help you salvage a sale and elude embarrassment as well.

4.) Incorporate Customer Friendly Features

One surefire way to succeed with an e-commerce venture is to incorporate and make effective use of desirable features that will benefit your customers.  These features could range from essentials such as an easy to use shopping cart and SSL certificate to novelties like a site map and talking avatars.  You may also want to consider rich media features such as animation and video or something simple and effective like auto-responders to deliver immediate responses.  By pampering your customers, you can increase the probability of a pleasurable shopping experience that keeps them coming back for more.