Rush is upon us. You’re making sure inventory is accounted for, stocking shelves, scheduling employees for peak hours and putting out the best and brightest new items on prominent display. It’s usually hectic and stressful, but you have your method down to make things roll as smoothly as possible.
But what are you doing to prep your web store for the rush?
Though you might be tempted to open it and forget it, your eCommerce solution needs prep for the new term as well. Don’t worry — it isn’t hard. We’ve got a checklist to make it easy. With a little forethought, you can make sure your online store has just as successful start of the term as your brick-and-mortar storefront.
1. Review the content on your website
In the heat of rush, it can be easy to forget some of the little things that have changed since you last checked all the content and language on your site. Be sure to update dates, return policies, rental information and other relevant tidbits for the upcoming term. This can help avoid a lot of headaches for both your store and your students later on.
2. Review the content in your emails
For the same reason your website needs to be double checked, so do your automated emails sent to customers during the different phases of order fulfillment. Double check any dates and policies included to make sure students have the correct information they need to get the most out of their experience at your store.
3. Plan social media posts
Make sure students are reminded of important dates and deadlines for your online store. Create and schedule tweets and Facebook posts about textbook ordering.
Be sure to schedule several, but don't overdue it — an announcement prior to the first day of ordering or reservations, a post the day they open and a reminder or two throughout the reservation period will do.
To schedule a Facebook post, create a post on your page's timeline, but click "Schedule" next to "Publish" and select your time and date. Scheduling a Twitter post will require you to sign up through ads.twitter.com (but don't worry, you won't have to pay money to schedule tweets.) Free apps and services such as Hootsuite and Buffer also make it easy to schedule posts from one place, as well.
4. Process faculty adoptions quickly
By processing those adoptions it will update inSite showing the customers up-to-date course book requirements reducing calls into the store inquiring about textbooks.
5. Ensure you have adequate staffing to fulfill web orders
This is the easiest one, because you’re probably already bulking up your in-store staff for rush. Make sure that you have plenty of staff members on hand to fulfill orders in a timely manner.
6. Review your shipping methods
Take a fresh look at the shipping methods you're using for rush. Are they still what you need? Going back to items 1 and 2, are they still accurately represented on your site and in your emails? Make edits as needed.
7. Schedule training refreshers
Are you and your staff up to speed on your eCommerce tool? Are there recent additions, enhancements or new features you need to check out? If possible, schedule a time with your system provider to brush up on everything you need to know to make sure you're getting the optimum use out of your store.
For MBS Systems inSite users, there are plenty of opportunities available. Contact your inSite rep for any assistance needed.
8. Be ready to help your customers
With orders, shipping and wait times, there are going to be questions. Are you and your staff prepared to field questions from customers or handle order processing issues? And as always, inSite users can contact their rep for any assistance.
