Impressions - Team & Spirit Apparel - Fall 2014 - 20

* If you choose to purchase a predesigned online store package,
it's ideal to choose one that offers extras like marketing support,
including the ability to create ﬂiers, brochures and other
promotional material.

becoming known for the approach before it becomes a standard
offering. Teams, conferences and boosters communicate; not
getting onboard until an online store is offered is an expectation
that can make you vulnerable in the marketplace.
But beyond that, there is the relationship component. By its
very nature, an online store supports the development of an
ongoing relationship with clients. You're not just working with
them to get the store up and going, but also to ensure that as a
tool it continues to meet their institutional, promotional and
fund-raising needs. And that interaction can set the stage for
your company being the ﬁ rst one they think of when they need
1,000 shirts for ﬁeld day.

Getting Started
A variety of options are available for online store development, ranging from having a platform custom designed to
commercial software. If you choose a software solution, it
should be simple and come with good training materials and
support. It should be possible for someone with average computer skills and a reasonable amount of training to set up the
software and administer the site.
It's also critical to understand what the program is designed
to do so you're not trying to force it to address situations it wasn't
made to handle. Pay particular attention to how the program
manages accounting. When you're dealing with different websites and order data from a network of online stores, this quickly
20 * Fall 2014

can become a nightmare if order processing and management
are not streamlined and organized from one central location.
Variables like whether an individual store is housed on
your site or that of an outside Internet hosting company also
ﬁgure into your costs. One hosting site may offer features such
as marketing tools or clipart that would better promote your
customer, but also have a higher monthly fee.
This is one of those instances where cutting corners to save
money may end up costing you. The portal you use will reﬂect
on your brand and identity, and that of your customers; and if
it's not good, it will have a negative impact on both - and on
your partnership.
There also are various pricing models used by decorators
for this service. It's common to have a monthly fee and no setup charge. Pricing also can be tied to customers' sales. For
example, you might offer to waive your online store fee for
those months when the site generates more than a pre-agreed
dollar amount of orders.
Another option for minimizing the cost to your customers
and maximizing their return (and satisfaction with you) is to
encourage them to offer other businesses partnership opportunities in the form of online store cooperative advertising.
For instance, a local restaurant could use "booster ads" to
promote its Cougars lunch special for, say, $75 a month.
If the store platform allows for this, two or three ad partners
could pay the monthly online store fee and then some, while at
the same time promoting the site and bringing in customers
for their own businesses. Your customer might even offer banner or larger ad space at a higher rate. And all ads could link to
the cooperative advertiser's website. It's a win-win approach
for all involved.

Calling All Customers!
When you have your software up and ready to run, and have
explored your options in terms of payment systems, pricing,
hosting sites, etc., the next step is to introduce the idea to your
customer. In presenting the concept of an online store, focus on
the value it can bring to the team or organization. Answering
the customer's question of "what's in it for me?" is key.
Start by explaining that you are offering a dedicated online
store with a fund-raising component. Then describe the beneﬁts, No. 1 being the convenience it offers the team or school
- and their customers. An online store is open 24/7/365.
Customers can buy what they want when they want it, and pay
for it how and when they want to.
People are accustomed to interacting online and not having to ﬁ ll out paper order forms; so ordering online has the
perceived advantages of being faster and easier. An online
store also frees the school or organization from having to deal
with collection and accounting aspects, as you, the decorator,
will handle order processing and payment. Most educators or
coaches don't want students or team members spending time

Impressions - Team & Spirit Apparel - Fall 2014

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