Any online business is going to make most of their money through e-commerce, so it is important to consider the features that an e-commerce company has to offer. One of the most basic aspects to consider is going to be how easy it is to actually put together the site. HostGator has templates available that can easily help a business to design the type of site that they are going to need to make the most out of their business.
Another important feature that HostGator provides their clients is thorough customer support. Since e-commerce takes place twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, it is important that the available customer service representatives have the same schedule. Other customer service features that are included for customer service are chat and email support. This type of service should be a given since the actual transactions of the business are also taking place online.
E-commerce plans that are provided by HostGator also include various email features that are important to maintaining the online business. A couple of these features are auto responders and mailing lists. Auto responders can be important to let a customer know that their interest in a product is known, and valid. This can also keep their attention to the online business, instead of the customer clicking on to the next site. Mailing lists can increase the amount of business since it compiles lists from those who have already shown an interest in the service or product, and may just need a reminder of where to go for purchase.
Unfortunately, not every page is going to work perfectly when starting out. Even with a good prior understanding of the technology used, some features may need to be examined for optimum performance. This is where a couple of other E-commerce features from HostGator come in. If there are errors on the site, or with an order, HostGator provides custom error pages which will let the customer know what to do next. Any way the site can continue to engage the customer in order to make a sale, including customized error pages is important. Also, logs are made of any errors, so that the online business can work with their site to fine tune any problems in order to make it work the best it can.
Obviously the point of e-commerce is to make online sales transactions. In order for the customer to feel secure with putting their information out to an online business, they will need some sort of verification, or other proof of security. Two of the HostGator e-commerce security features include a choice between shared SSL, or private SSL. This choice can depend on just how much business the online company is actually doing as to how in depth they want to go. Also, HostGator offers popular shopping "carts", such as Agora, Cube, and ZenCart. They should also be able to help attach a merchant account.
HostGator Site Screenshot (http://www.hostgator.com)
