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| Frequently Asked Questions |
Why would I need a website?
A website can be one of the least expensive marketing tools you can have to reach your customers. A website can provide your customers vital information about your company, the services you offer and how to contact you.
How can my website pay off for me?
Most people view a website as a way to reach millions of people across the country and make sales quickly. They see sites like Amazon.com and EBay where millions of dollars are made everyday and think this is why they need a site themselves. In addition, they think a website is a giant billboard that can be seen by all and the instant it's up, they can cancel all their other advertising as it will drive everyone to them. While it's true that advancements in security and online technology now allow even the smallest site to provide e-commerce (electronic commerce) features, most sites (and business types) do not lend themselves to online purchasing. Furthermore, at last count, there were over 1 billion web pages out there making for quite a confusing place for your potential customer. Why have one then? Simple. A website adds value to all of your other marketing efforts increasing their effectiveness and stretching your advertising dollar. There is only so much space you can have for an ad in the local paper. But all it takes is one small web address in that advertisement and it becomes the gateway to a wealth of information on your company. The ad gets their attention, the website makes the presentation, and you close the sale.
Another feature of a good website is not just in increasing sales, but also in lowering costs and increasing efficiency. Because of the virtually unlimited space for your site, you are able to provide enormous amounts of information to the customer. Previously, a rep might have to spend hours on the phone describing the virtues of one product over another. Rather than forms being mailed, a customer can simply be referred to your site for information. Forms can be downloaded and all when it's convenient for them. This can free up your sales people and staff to concentrate on those customers who may be closer to a purchase.
If e-commerce is still in your plan, you should understand that to be successful, you will need a commitment to an aggressive online marketing campaign as well as a significant investment in time to make sure your catalog is up to date with current pricing, as well as all the other information necessary for your site to process unattended sales. Additionally, you may need to sign contracts with credit card processors that support online sales. Even then, It is a slow process to begin receiving online web traffic, however the potential for an e-commerce website is strong.
What are the benefits of having HME Providers build my website?
HME Providers offers a state of the art, custom designed website designed to meet the needs of the healthcare industry. Everything you need to get started is included in one low monthly fee. Your site can take advantage of today's best web technologies such as flash animation, video streaming, HME TV and an online catalog that can even be e-commerce capable (if desired). There are no additional charges for emails, tech support, bandwidth usage, additional website pages or links, web design changes, flash animation, industry alliances, product discounts and more! HME Providers also offers a lead retrieval program by offering a Live Help feature on your website monitored full time in order to provide your customer's information back to you.
How do I get started?
There are only a few steps that need to be completed for your website to become live to the world.
- Select a design for your website
- Send in all necessary information about your company, including your corporate logo, any literature that describes your services, your contact information, etc.
- Customize your catalog with the categories and manufacturers you would like displayed online.
- Select a domain (www.yourstorename.com)
- Choose the unlimited professional email accounts you would like to connect with your domain (info@yourstorename.com).
- Begin to market your domain, give current and potential clients your website address.
- If you would like to make online sales, decide how to market in the search engines and what budget that can be allocated towards this.
- If you would like to offer health related information and descriptions of your store and products, simply customize your online catalog and tell your customer service rep which links you would like added.
Do not feel rushed to make all decisions immediately, once your website is created, you can decide to invest money into advertising at any time. You can also make changes to the website design, purchase more than one domain, turn on or off manufacturers/categories and add/edit or delete email accounts at any time. Please contact customer service with any questions.
HME Providers, Inc.
321-267-7576
customerservice@Hmeproviders.com
www.hmeproviders.com
How many website design options do I have to choose from?
HME Providers' design staff has over 50 example sites to choose from which are added to as new designs are created. However, you are not limited to these website designs, if you have your own ideas, the designers can create individual layouts. Work with your customer service rep on your concepts.
What if I already have a website and like the current design?
As long as you own your previous website design, it can be mirrored exactly with your new HME Providers' website. Or you can maintain the website you currently have and simply attach our database link to it for an online catalog.
If I find a website example I like, what features can I change?
Just about any design change you want can be achieved. Any colors, backgrounds, logos, text sections, etc. can be changed as long as it does not compromise the layout selected. The more details you can provide, the more customization can be completed. We can even match the layout of your current advertising and literature.
What if I would like to add flash to my site?
You can add any flash you would like to your website, in the header, specials flashing on the front page, the menu bar, a company intro, etc. Work with your customer service rep with the ideas you have.
Can I add video streaming to my website?
Have a commercial you would like made available online? HME Providers has now developed a program in which you can add video to your website. Send in the video file you have and specify where you would like it linked on your website.
Can I customize the links?
Yes, you determine where you would like all hyperlinks on your website. HME Providers can suggest certain standard links like the Home button, Catalog, About Us and Contact Us, but any additional links can be added also. Some suggestions include linking to government or insurance websites, creating product education links, directions to your store, return policies, job application forms, etc. Please look at the attached form to determine which links you would like on your new website.
What is a domain?
A domain is your own, personal address on the internet to get to your website. It is registered through a domain registrar and needs to renew each year to maintain ownership. Ie: www.medicalsupplystore.com.
Why is it important?
A domain is important since it gives your clients a memorable way to get to your website. With a personalized domain you can have search engine recognition, a way to market your website address on company literature and set up professional email accounts.
What if I have a domain already with another company?
This does not affect your service with HME Providers. You will need to contact your domain registrar (Ie; Network Solutions, GoDaddy.com, Bulk Register) to have them point your nameservers to our information for your website to pull up under the domain you owned previously. It will be your responsibility to renew your domain with this third party registrar since HME Providers will have no way to know when it expires. Your registrar should contact you 30 days in advance.
What if I do not have a domain?
HME Providers works with a third party registrar called Bulk Register and can assign a domain and set up with your HME Providers website for $25 a year. When your domain expires, you will be contacted for renewal. If you have a domain you would like to transfer to your HME Providers website or a new domain you would like to purchase, please complete the attached form and either fax or mail back to us. If you have email addresses you would set up, please list them on the attached forms.
What if my domain expires?
It is imperative to contact your registrar immediately when you receive a renewal notice. If you do not renew before the expiration date, you may not be able to get your domain back. Some organizations will order domains as they expire and there is no limit to the charge they can offer to release it back to you. Upon expiration, your website and email accounts will go down.
Can I own more than one domain?
You can purchase as many domains as you would like and they can all point to one or multiple websites. Simply let your HME Providers rep know what domains you want to connect with your website.
How do I set up email with my domain?
HME Providers offers unlimited email accounts, so simply submit an email address and password and it will be live within 24 hours. If you are utilizing Microsoft Outlook to check your email, simply follow the online steps at: http://temp.hmeproviders.com/outlook/index.html. If you are out of town your mail is still available from any computer anywhere in the world at http://webmail.hmeproviders.com. Simply type in your email address as the account name and your email password to login.
Catalog
What manufacturers are already available through my online catalog?
Attached is a form of current product categories and manufacturers currently available on your HME Providers database. Simply select the ones you would like to have displayed in your catalog and send in the information for customization.
What if I want to add my own products?
The administration of your website (Ie: www.websiteaddress.com/admin) allows you to add any of your products with pricing, descriptions, images, etc. to your live website. On the front page of your administration, you will find an online demonstration of how to add products to your live site.
Once I add a product, how long does it take to be displayed on my live website?
Your products will be added immediately with a refresh of your web page. Sometimes there may be delay in refreshing your web page, and simply close the web page and open up in a new Internet browser window, and you will see the product displayed automatically.
What if the products I want added are too much for me to add myself?
You can submit a request for manufacturers' products to be added to your catalog by HME Providers. If the products have to be added manually, this could take a few weeks to complete and these are selected in order of the amount of requests we receive. If you contact a manufacturer and they can submit a database of their items for automatic integration into your catalog, this process could take just a few days to complete. As new manufacturer's products are added to the master database, you will have the opportunity to accept these items into your catalog also. You can make an urgent request for a certain amount of products to be added and an HME Providers rep will add these manually specifically for your website and charges will incur.
How do I edit pricing on my catalog?
In your administration, every product is available to be edited. A price can be manually input for your products or products can be put on special for the time line you specify. The standard pricing that comes with each catalog is MSRP provided by the manufacturer. Through your administration, you can edit each price or even specify a certain percentage by category or manufacturer name. An HME Providers' rep can also assist you with anything you require.
How do I put specials on my front page?
There is a feature next to each product called "Featured Item". By selecting this feature, your item will stay on special and automatically display on your front page as long as you specify. By clicking the icon again, your product will come off of the front page.
Contact an HME Providers' customer service rep at any time for assistance with each of these processes or if you have any questions. They will be more than happy to help you.
Search Engines
How do people find my website?
HME Providers offers website search engine submission to all major search engines by your store name and location. (Note: This requires a personalized domain to increase search engine recognition). The best way to bring your targeted market to your site is to include your website address on all business cards, brochures, and marketing advertisements.
What can I do to my website to increase chance of coming up in the search engines?
While search engines will list your site for free, there is no guarantee that your site will come up on the top of the list when people search. This is because all major search engines use the "Pay for Placement" method to generate revenue. If you would like to guarantee search engine position, you will need to set up accounts with each search engine and choose the level of position based on a bidding process. A customer service rep can provide additional details and assist you with this process. Your website also can be submitted under your desired metatags, please complete the attached documentation. By focusing on certain product categories rather than all categories will increase your probability of coming up. Also by having a lot of text and descriptions on your front page utilizing those metatags increases your search engine status.
Are there companies who specialize in search engine submission?
There are many companies who offer this service and prices can vary. Expect this to be a long term investment since it takes some time to see results. You will need to customize your website to be aggressively priced so once a customer gets to your front page, they can easily find the product and place an order. Focus on products that can easily be shipped nationwide when you are marketing online.
What if I want to sell products online?
If you are going to use your website to promote online orders, make sure your catalog is up to date. Thousands of products are available in your database, make sure to only display the items you would like to sell online and keep your pricing updated. The standard pricing on your website is MSRP provided from the manufacturer. You have an administration where you can customize pricing and products with a click of the button. A customer service rep can assist you with this process also.
Can I take credit card payments online?
Yes, the website has the capability to accept credit card information online. However, if you want a merchant account service to be added to the site for automatic deposit of the amount into your checking account, this can be set up through a third party. There are many companies who offer this service. Typically they have a monthly charge for usage, a percentage based on sales or both. Keep in mind that in order for a purchase to be completed online, all aspects of the sales must in the database. This includes: actual price for item, shipping weight, shipping size, sales tax to be charged etc. If any part of the order cannot be calculated, the order will not be correct and you may encounter "charge backs" and complaints.
We recommend that orders placed online are sent to you for final processing and verification. This gives you control over how the customer will be billed or whether there are any issues with certain products. Additionally, during the verification process, you also have the added advantage of being able to "upsell" (suggesting accompanying items or items of better quality) the customer before the order is finalized thereby increasing overall sales.
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