For audio passcode: Preparing for the Holidays: Making the most of this years critical shopping period Yahoo! Small Business presents

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Preparing for the Holidays Moderator Paul Boisvert, Lead Product Manager, Yahoo! Merchant Solutions Developer Partner Panelists Michael Vorel, CEO & Founder, Vastplanet Corporation Matt Sampson, CEO, Colorado Web Solutions Coby Erez, Co-Founder & CTO, 4PSite

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Agenda Starting Additional Niche Stores Niche store defined How to spot a niche in your current store Benefits of niche stores Points to consider Checklist for Getting Started Developer Discussion Merchant Q & A

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Niche storeswhat do we mean by niche? NicheMerriam Webster defines as a specialized market Specific to ecommerce: A specific product type with varieties and accessories (e.g. binoculars, bar stools, baseball bats) A thematic clustering of products by user groups (e.g. birdwatchers, bridesmaids gifts) A seasonal product line (e.g. Halloween costumes, Christmas Ornaments)

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Spotting a niche storedisparate buyer groups Incompatible product messaging / buyer groups Evaluate current product lines and buyer personas Re-evaluate quarterly / semi-annually depending on frequency of adding new product categories

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Spotting a niche storeinternal search Internal site searchzero search results Yahoo! Web Analytics offers report of terms with no results; Google Analytics can as well Report reveals customer interest in products you do not have for sale Can identify new products for current site or even entire niche Bonuscan identify misspellings you may wish to add to site

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Spotting a niche storeshopper feedback Shopper feedbackmonitor your: Customer s Phone support logs Live chat logs Social networking sites and blog comments Difficulty in navigating site (too many levels) Negative feedback in above support channels…but they may just as likely bounce Monitor your Search Phrases reports for high bounce rate terms; attracting traffic, but landing page not converting

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Spotting a niche storemarket evidence Google Trendsallows review of search terms to total volume as well as expanded terms and rising searches Trend research sites such as springwise.com trendwatching.com Manufacturersnew product launches Media and product evangelists in your vertical markets

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Benefits of niche stores vs. one-stop-shop Easier to write copy and produce creative due to focused user group Typically easier to rank in SERPs due to targeted domain, content, etc PPC costs may be lower due to lower volume long-tail keyphrases Higher conversion ratequalified traffic with targeted content Opportunity to try new things in safer environment (pricing, discounts, etc) Good to have multiple sites in case organic traffic crashes on main site

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Points to consider before starting Extra work involved especially if internal processes not proven Loss of focus/ opportunity cost of same time invested in main site Be careful to avoid duplicate content or face penalty

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Checklist for getting started 1.Start with competitive analysiswho is servicing this market already? 2.What is competition for key terms in organic search? Use Yahoo! SiteExplorer to check backlinks Use SEO tools to check keyword competitiveness Review competitor sites for SEO best practices 3.Review buyer interest at your own site(s)do you have built-in buyers you can , cross- promote? 4.Is there a good domain available for this niche?

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Checklist for getting startedcontinued 5.Are your operations well documented, repeatable? 6.Do you have expertise on products in this niche? If not can you hire experts? After Launch 1.Are you cross-promoting on-site, in s, and offline to leverage existing traffic at main site? 2.If seasonal in nature, do you need PPC to drive traffic until search ranking achieved? 3.Are you spending appropriate time according to potential and actual performance?

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Opening a new store for the holidays in 2 easy steps 1.Take advantage of our special offer – 3 months no subscription fees on Yahoo! Merchant Solutions Starter or Standard* A.See the coupon in your Store Manager B.If you dont see it, with your name, company name, address, and Store 2.Work with a developer partner to help make it as successful as possible. For a listing of developers offering 20% off: developernetwork.store.yahoo.com/holidaypromo.html * Offer available for new stores only and for existing customers only. Please see site for full details.

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Speakers Paul Boisvert, Lead Product Manager, Yahoo! Merchant Solutions Boisvert leads strategy and product development for Yahoo!'s e- commerce business. Before Yahoo!, Paul was an interaction designer at Homestead Technologies, developing innovative and usable interfaces for web and desktop applications. Michael Vorel, CEO & Founder, Vastplanet Vorels firm provides e-Commerce Web Development, Internet Marketing and Management Consulting. He has expertise in affiliate marketing, social media strategy, video, PPC, SEO, SEM, marketing and competitive analysis. Matt Sampson, CEO, Colorado Web Solutions Sampson has been building Yahoo! Stores since Based out of Arvada, Colorado, Matt and his team focus on high-end design work for Y! Stores as well as niche marketing and SEO optimization strategies. Coby Erez, Co-Founder, Chief Technology Officer, 4Psite Erez has extensive business and technology management experience with Fortune 500 companies as well as with small businesses. He holds a BSc in Aeronautic Engineering and an MBA from Tel-Aviv University. send questions to

12/31/2013 For audio passcode: Opening a new store for the holidays in 2 easy steps 1.Take advantage of our special offer – 3 months no subscription fees on Yahoo! Merchant Solutions Starter or Standard* A.See the coupon in your Store Manager B.If you dont see it, with your name, company name, address, and Store 2.Work with a developer partner to help make it as successful as possible. For a listing of developers offering 20% off: developernetwork.store.yahoo.com/holidaypromo.html * Offer available for new stores only and for existing customers only. Please see site for full details.

For audio passcode: Please join us next week for our Store Optimization series E-Commerce Best Practices SEO Tips and Tricks Live Site Reviews Add-on and Features Showcase Register at Thank you for attending