sharplab Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Hi All! Well I am just here to say YES hard work does pay off! We have had an OSC cart for about three years now and WE LOVE OSC! We never really spent much time on it as it was our backup store. In the last 6 months we have totally revamped the whole site and store to make it our main store. We added all the SEO contribs but kept the other "server loading" contribs to a minimum. We have just finished our Froogle auto feed contrib and also our sitemap for google. Not to mention the 1000 products we had to add to our cart and revise this has been a very demanding task at all times. We are just about to enable SSL this week when BAAMMM, THE GOOGLE GODS STRUCK! Google has had our site indexed for three years and never cached more than 10 pages. WELL NOW GOOGLE HAS CACHED ALMOST EVERY PAGE IN OUR SITE! I mean over 100 pages BANG!! I think it is safe to say that little Googlebot has recognizd that our site is now looking a little customer friendly with fast loading pages, good content, redirects for any duplicate pages (IMPORTANT), good sitemap navigation and so forth. Our site now contains about 100 or so html pages, a Yabb discussion forum, and the whole OSC ultimate SEO friendly URL's. I AM HERE TO TELL ALL YOU WHO ARE GOING THROUGH THE SAME THING TO JUST KEEP PLUGGIN' AWAY AND WORK HARD BECAUSE IT DOES PAY OFF! The contribs we use: ULTIMATE SEO URLS HEADER TAGS PAGE CACHE CENTER STORE CONTRIB PRICE MATCH CONTRIB ADD PAGE NAVIGATION TO TOP CONTRIB ALL PRODUCTS CONTRIB FROOGLE AUTO FEED CONTRIB PRODUCT DESCRIPTION APPEARS BEFORE CATEGORIES CONTRIB SCROLLING NAV BAR "IN CART" INFO CONTRIB Sincerely, Steve Current Contributions: Page Cache, Center Store, Ultimate URL's, Header Tags, Product Description , Image Add To Cart - , Store Cache Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharplab Posted August 10, 2006 Author Share Posted August 10, 2006 Yeah and forgot to mention that G bot also has cached ALL of our dynamic categories and many of our actual product SEO urls' which are a few levels deep. We have also recently gotten some nice inbound links to our root. I guess it all helps! GOOD LUCK ALL! Current Contributions: Page Cache, Center Store, Ultimate URL's, Header Tags, Product Description , Image Add To Cart - , Store Cache Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas2003 Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 How important do you think, is the "ULTIMATE SEO URLS" contribution ?? Regards Andreas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharplab Posted August 10, 2006 Author Share Posted August 10, 2006 IMHO I would say that HEADER TAGS and ULTIMATE SEO URL'S are the two most important contributions for your store. The header tags simply fill your Title and Description tags with either your manual inputs or you can set up header tags to AUTO FILL the META DESCRIPTION AND TITLE tags. The ULTIMATE SEO URL's is also very important because it makes all of your store SEO friendly with .HTM url's which is a huge plus for the spiders when they visit. I HIGHLY recommend you add the ALL PRODUCTS acontribution also as the seach engine spiders love this and use it as an EZ means of spidereing your whole site. OTHER THAN that make sure your images are all optimized. I use images no more than 5-10k for my whole store except for my header logo. LOAD TIME is ultra important not only for your customers but for the spiders also. The PAGE CACHE contribution is a GREAT add on as it increases load times and decrases server loads for better overall performance. THAT SHOULD GIVE ANYONE SERIOUS ABOUT MAKING THEIR STORE SUCCESSFUL A GOOD PLACE TO START! :-) Steve Current Contributions: Page Cache, Center Store, Ultimate URL's, Header Tags, Product Description , Image Add To Cart - , Store Cache Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Predd0 Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 steve - thanks for making this thread. there's some good info here and i've already identified a few improvements i can make to my site. I think the header tags and page cache are two very important items - both of which I have overlooked. Jay TNT Road Express based on post code contribution Orders in Holding 3.1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharplab Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 The PAGE CACHE contribution is a GREAT add on as it increases load times and decrases server loads for better overall performance. CORRECTION: The PAGE CACHE contribution is a GREAT add on as it DECREASES load times and decrases server loads for better overall performance. I am sure everyone knew what I meant! :-" Current Contributions: Page Cache, Center Store, Ultimate URL's, Header Tags, Product Description , Image Add To Cart - , Store Cache Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharplab Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 We picked up another 10 orders today which was fantastic! We just finsished debugging all that PayPal "RETURN TO SITE" problem that we all have in the beginning of PayPal payments through our store. See we have our own merchant account and process credit cards manually but wanted to add the convenience of PayPal for those who love it. Well its fixed now as we changed some code as outlined in a thread here and set the PayPal "Website Preferences" AUTORETURN to ON with the url pointing to "checkout_success.php". I'll keep all advised! Steve Current Contributions: Page Cache, Center Store, Ultimate URL's, Header Tags, Product Description , Image Add To Cart - , Store Cache Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharplab Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 Ohhh and Predd0 you are welcome! I aim to help all on the same quest as I, build a virtual EMPIRE! hehe Current Contributions: Page Cache, Center Store, Ultimate URL's, Header Tags, Product Description , Image Add To Cart - , Store Cache Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Branden Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 Thing is, the goal of a store is not get spidered, but to sell products. I too have worked hard at my store, but I find search engines don't drive nearly the traffic other well placed advertising on enthusiast specific sites will. Also, by advertising on those more popular sites, Google finds your store much quicker. Another great spot is Ebay becaue it is almost like advertising (if your auctions are set up right within their guidlines;), but you are selling stuff at the same time...a very good investment if you ask me. I have built my store to the point it is selling hundreds of thousands a year by focusing on finding the customer...not making the search engines find me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharplab Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 Great point but this is also very dependant on the type of merchandise you are selling. I could spend 3 MIL annually to advertise my paper towels and 300 page notebooks but I will probably go broke. I am willing to bet you sell a "Nitche" item and also have room for sizable profits. In my case we compete to sell within a largely competitive industry "The Nutrition Industry" and unless you have had your feet wet then you dont understand my post. Our company manufactures their own products but only about 20 as of right now. The rest of the inventory is a big price war game between the big guys and the smaller guys. See we really dont have the $$ to float around spending on ad after ad. Dont get me wrong we spend 1000's per month on advertsing buy WHY continue to PAY for advertsing when a bit of HARD WORK can get you to the top for FREE or at least in the top 30? We will continue our hard work and your post was well taken! :-) Steve Current Contributions: Page Cache, Center Store, Ultimate URL's, Header Tags, Product Description , Image Add To Cart - , Store Cache Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Branden Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 Actually, I sell high performance autoparts, which is one of the highest competition/lower margin segments on the net. I am saying that maybe you should find some nutrition forums and sites to advertise on. I have found it is the quickest way to reach out to the customer. Plus if one person buys from you on the site, and is happy, they will tell everyone else:) Last month my advertising budget was less than .5% of my gross sales. You don't have to spend a lot...just spend it in the right places. Great point but this is also very dependant on the type of merchandise you are selling. I could spend 3 MIL annually to advertise my paper towels and 300 page notebooks but I will probably go broke. I am willing to bet you sell a "Nitche" item and also have room for sizable profits. In my case we compete to sell within a largely competitive industry "The Nutrition Industry" and unless you have had your feet wet then you dont understand my post. Our company manufactures their own products but only about 20 as of right now. The rest of the inventory is a big price war game between the big guys and the smaller guys. See we really dont have the $$ to float around spending on ad after ad. Dont get me wrong we spend 1000's per month on advertsing buy WHY continue to PAY for advertsing when a bit of HARD WORK can get you to the top for FREE or at least in the top 30? We will continue our hard work and your post was well taken! :-) Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chongordon Posted September 5, 2006 Share Posted September 5, 2006 hi, actually .. what is CENTER STORE CONTRIB ? i couldnt find from the website ... Puppy Clothes by WoofWoofLand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H4eafy Posted September 5, 2006 Share Posted September 5, 2006 hi, actually .. what is CENTER STORE CONTRIB ? i couldnt find from the website ... This thread has very good info in it. Is there any chance you could give me an idea about the value that each of these provide a osc site? I am on a very tight budget and my tech guy charges ?55 an hour. Since I dont do the work myself I will get them done one at a time. The "ULTIMATE SEO URLS" looks like the one I should start with or "FROOGLE AUTO FEED CONTRIB". mikestackleshop - Loads of Fishing Gear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deathgod Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 Sounds to me like you should backup and have a go at installing these contribs yourself(all have clear detailed instructions) before you get your tech guy to do what you could yourself. Put the effort in, its worth it. Menou and unome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 Sounds to me like you should backup and have a go at installing these contribs yourself(all have clear detailed instructions) before you get your tech guy to do what you could yourself. Put the effort in, its worth it. I agree about being able to do the osC yourself. I had no php and very little html experience, but was able to figure everything out, and have successfully added several contributions to my store (still in development), and plan on adding several more. As long as you have a good eye for detail and a lot of patience (both very important when you can't find that stupid little 'how did I miss that' mistake!), and the time to work with it, you should have no problem doing this. I enjoy the challenge of being able to figure things like this out, so for me osC is great! Lefty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♥peterpil19 Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 The skills you learn by creating and trying out an osCommerce store is amazing. Learing basic html / php web design is only collateral to the pure business experience gained! If you've got the time, definitely worth the effort... Peter CE PHOENIX SUPPORTER Support the Project, go PRO and get access to certified add ons Full-time I am a C-suite executive of a large retail company in Australia. In my spare time, I enjoying learning about web-design. Download the latest version of CE Phoenix from gitHub here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csjwoodward Posted September 9, 2006 Share Posted September 9, 2006 Just a note to say that as a newbie to oscommerce I have found this post invaluable. I have had a webstore for about three years, and am now on my third bit of software- the other two were bought - and I have achieved more in a week than in my previous three years. So bravo to the oscommerce team in general, and to you for showing me how I can optimise my store. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H4eafy Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Whats you websites address? I would like to see some of the in the works. Any chance of you PMing it to me? Thanks, mikestackleshop - Loads of Fishing Gear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H4eafy Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 Whats you websites address? I would like to see some of the in the works. Any chance of you PMing it to me? Thanks, What does the all products contrib actually do? Is it worth it if I have to pay ?100 for someone to do it? mikestackleshop - Loads of Fishing Gear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♥toyicebear Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 What does the all products contrib actually do? Is it worth it if I have to pay ?100 for someone to do it? it gives you a new page with links to all your products so that search engine bots can find all your pages.. and no its not worth 100 USD since its at most a 15 minutes job to install it on any oscommerce website... ;-) Basics for osC 2.2 Design - Basics for Design V2.3+ - Seo & Sef Url's - Meta Tags for Your osC Shop - Steps to prevent Fraud... - MS3 and Team News... - SEO, Meta Tags, SEF Urls and osCommerce - Commercial Support Inquiries - OSC 2.3+ How To To see what more i can do for you check out my profile [click here] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H4eafy Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 it gives you a new page with links to all your products so that search engine bots can find all your pages.. and no its not worth 100 USD since its at most a 15 minutes job to install it on any oscommerce website... ;-) I cant find any instructions on how to do it myself. I dont know if I have full access to do all this stuff either. And its ?110 (?55 an hour) before VAT (17.5%). so its about $200. mikestackleshop - Loads of Fishing Gear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♥toyicebear Posted September 21, 2006 Share Posted September 21, 2006 I cant find any instructions on how to do it myself. I dont know if I have full access to do all this stuff either. And its ?110 (?55 an hour) before VAT (17.5%). so its about $200. 1. download the contribution 2. upload these 2 files via ftp all_products.php and includes/languages/english/all_products.php 3. add: define('FILENAME_ALL_PRODUCTS', 'all_products.php'); To includes/filenames.php 4. add a link to the new page from your headre, footer or categories box... 5. Thats it..you are finished.... Att..this is a generic description on adding a new page, check the contributions readme or installation file for correct names/descriptions... Basics for osC 2.2 Design - Basics for Design V2.3+ - Seo & Sef Url's - Meta Tags for Your osC Shop - Steps to prevent Fraud... - MS3 and Team News... - SEO, Meta Tags, SEF Urls and osCommerce - Commercial Support Inquiries - OSC 2.3+ How To To see what more i can do for you check out my profile [click here] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zhexiang Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 The contribs we use: ULTIMATE SEO URLS HEADER TAGS PAGE CACHE CENTER STORE CONTRIB PRICE MATCH CONTRIB ADD PAGE NAVIGATION TO TOP CONTRIB ALL PRODUCTS CONTRIB FROOGLE AUTO FEED CONTRIB PRODUCT DESCRIPTION APPEARS BEFORE CATEGORIES CONTRIB SCROLLING NAV BAR "IN CART" INFO CONTRIB It's much appreciated if the links to those contributions files mentioned above are provided. For example, i tried to find contribution for page cache, but none provide the exact description as sharplab said.... Please help...!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UncleSteve Posted October 8, 2006 Share Posted October 8, 2006 The contribs we use: ULTIMATE SEO URLS HEADER TAGS PAGE CACHE CENTER STORE CONTRIB PRICE MATCH CONTRIB ADD PAGE NAVIGATION TO TOP CONTRIB ALL PRODUCTS CONTRIB FROOGLE AUTO FEED CONTRIB PRODUCT DESCRIPTION APPEARS BEFORE CATEGORIES CONTRIB SCROLLING NAV BAR "IN CART" INFO CONTRIB Sincerely, Steve Hi Steve lots of good tips, thank you. I've searched for the contribs to match your list above, as I'm interested in the ones coloured red. ULTIMATE SEO URLS seems to be this HEADER TAGS - not sure on this one, but have found this am I correct? PAGE CACHE I think this one is this CENTER STORE CONTRIB I've already run with this to help match OsC to my previous html site ADD PAGE NAVIGATION TO TOP CONTRIB - I couldn't find any info on this :( ALL PRODUCTS CONTRIB I'm allready running with this as it also helps replicate a feature on my previous html site. FROOGLE AUTO FEED CONTRIB Not sure on this, as I found several contribs as shown here If you (Steve) or anyone else could help identify the appropriate contribs to run with, I and probably many others would be grateful :D Thanks in advance Uncle Steve ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zhexiang Posted October 9, 2006 Share Posted October 9, 2006 "Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_DNUMBER " What does it ..??? It shows this error to appear on application_top.php But i copied the same code from the installation for page_cache... Anyone knows why..??? One more thing... Both Ultimate SEO URLs and page cache contribution are done by chemo... I've installed Ultimate SEO URLs, and replaced the code for tep_href_link(): in includes/functions/html_output.php with Ultimate SEO URLs code in includes/functions/html_output.php Then when it comes to installing page cache, again tep_href_link(), but the previous code has been replaced completely... how the heck can you install both contribution??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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