The ‘Want’ verb.

We are very excited to introduce the ‘Want’ verb into the VendorShop application. You may have noticed that we have been testing this for the past couple of weeks and have had a huge number of people clicking on it. This will allow customers to express an interest in a product they would like, but may not be able to buy right away. This product will then appear on their Timeline for all of their friends to see.

The ‘Want’ verb will appear just above the price on your product detail page. Once they have clicked that they ‘want’ a product. A small tick will appear to let them know they have successfully ‘wanted’ it.

‘Wanted’ products will then appear on the users timeline, for all of their friends to see. If a friend clicks on the product, they will be brought directly to that product, in your store.

When the user returns to the same product, the verb will have updated to show that they have already ‘wanted’ it.

Changes to the Competition tool.

We have made a couple of changes to the competition tool functionality.  We have changed the entry process; you can now choose to enter via Facebook or via email.

If you decide to enter via Facebook, we do not need any more information. If you decide to enter via email, you will be asked to provide your name and email address. This allows people to very quickly enter the competition – hassle free!

We have also introduced the ability to make the competition available to Fan’s Only. This means that before they enter the competition, they must have become a fan of your page. In order to activate this you must select ‘Yes’ in the ‘Fan Only’ dropdown.

Activating and Deactivating you store.

When you sign up to VendorShop your store will automatically be set in Offline mode. To put your store Online or in Sandbox mode, simply hover over the button and select the required option. Putting your store ‘Online’ will create a shop tab on your ‘Fan Page’.  Having your store in Sandbox mode will allow you to view and edit your store, but your customers will view a ‘Coming Soon’ page.

You will also have the ability to ‘Remove’ your store. This will remove the shop tab from your ‘Fan Page’. If this is chosen, your customers will not be able to see that you have a store. Removing your store can be useful if you use your store as a pop-up shop. However, we would recommend that you place your store in Sandbox mode when editing it so as not to confuse your customers into thinking you no longer have a store.

Step 1:

Click on the ‘Tax’ tab and select the option, Store Tax.

Step 2:

Click on the Edit pencil and set the rate as applicable.

Step 3:

If you ship internationally, indicate the country your store is based in. You can then indicate whether a tax free threshold applies, over which your tax band will be applied.

Step 4:

If you are using restricted shipping, you will have to select the destinations that are exempt from tax charges.

Step 1:

Click on the ‘Tax’ tab and select the option, Product Tax.

Step 2:

Go to your product list and edit each existing product you wish to apply the Tax.

Step 3:

Set the applicable Tax rate as indicated. You will then be prompted to add Tax when setting up additional products.

Step 4:

If you ship internationally, indicate the country your store is based in. You can then indicate whether a tax free threshold applies, over which your tax band will be applied.

Step 5:

If you are using restricted shipping, you will have to select the destinations that are exempt from tax charges.

Step 1:

From the ‘Deals’ tab, Click on the ‘New Special Offer’ button and choose the product that you wish to apply it to. You will also be able to update the price that is applied and add a time period for the expiry date to be activated.

Step 2:

The product expiry details will appear alongside the top of the product image in the storefront and the count-down timer will appear on the product detail page.

Step 3:

You can now promote your product to your wall, via Twitter or email using the promote button.

Step 4:

If you would like to make your product visible again, simply remove the ‘Special Offer’ for the ‘Deals’ tab or, click on ‘Edit’ and extend the offer.

Step 1:

Activate the ‘Competition’ tool and click on the ‘New Competition’ button. Fill in the required details, which will include information about the prize, the competition rules and the prize images.

Step 2:

Add a customised confirmation email by clicking the drop-down arrow at the bottom of the competition details page. By utilising this tool, you can provide entrants with additional information such as, a link to a video or an additional coupon code.

Step 3:

Promote the Competition to wall, via Twitter or email using the Promote tool.

Step 4:

When the competition is complete you will be able to use the automated ‘draw’ tool to choose a winner.

Step 1:

Click on the ‘Tax’ tab and select the option, US State Tax.

Step 2:

Set the applicable tax rates as indicated.

Step 3:

If you ship internationally, indicate the country your store is based in. You can then indicate whether a tax free threshold applies, over which your tax band will be applied.

Step 4:

If you are using restricted shipping, you will have to select the destinations that are exempt from tax charges.

We have found that;

76% of successful businesses launched a new product to their Facebook store first or ran promotion’s exclusive to Facebook.

62% of successful businesses had some sort of special pricing or value added offers exclusively for Facebook fans.

67% of successful businesses promoted a product directly to their wall or via twitter at least once per day.

88% of successful businesses had less than 50 products for sale at one time during a one month period.

If a business is able to create a unique experience for their fans, by creating a buzz around a new product by launching a pop-up store, or rewarding fans with exclusive offers or special deals, they are much more likely to succeed.

While Facebook commerce is new, there are a growing number of successful examples. Recognising the difference between e-commerce and f-commerce is key to the success of your Facebook store.

Check out this video we made right here in our VendorShop office!!

Want to know how your shop will change with the new TIMELINE? We have a few new SUPRISES…But you will have to wait till MONDAY to see them in action. Here is a quick overview of how to use them!

Featured Products

You must select at least one product to be featured on your homepage. There will be a limit of 8 featured products so choose wisely. Take a look below to see how the switch will make your store look bigger by featuring 4 products horizontally.

Coupons(Now changed to ‘Deals’)

Merchants can now promote deals to their walls and the deals can now be product specific. So, if you want to do a deal for one specific product with a special promotion code then follow these steps.

1)      You must purchase this tool as part of a subscription package.

2)      Once you have done so, you click the activate box.

3)      Click on the ‘deal’ tab.

4)      Choose ‘new deal’ and fill in the required details.

Competitions

1)      You must purchase this tool as part of a subscription package.

2)      Once you have done so, you click the activate box.

3)      Click on ‘New Competition’.

4)      Fill in the required details.

Day you were born

The day you were born is a tool that can help grow your fan base. The day you were born is an app that gives people all relevant information associated with the day you were born. It has been extremely popular and in fact some of you may have heard about it, or used it already. We are giving you the opportunity to take advantage of it to increase your fan base, which in turn will increase sales – More Fans=More Sales

1)      You must purchase this tool as part of a subscription package.

2)      Once you activate a pop up will appear.

3)      Click on the prompted ‘click here’

4)      You will be brought to the ‘Day you were born’ app where you will click on the green tab that said ‘Click here for details’

5)      Scroll to the bottom of the page and Click on the link to attach to your Facebook page.

Not so sure how to make your timeline look good….Click here

Keep in mind that we will be running a competition on our Facebook page in April. The person with the best looking fan page and shop will win something great so get reading!

Profile Photo:

You may have noticed that your profile photo is no longer rectangle, it is now square. To some this will make no difference but make sure that your picture is positioned so that the image is centred.

Cover Photo:

The new cover photo provides you with a huge opportunity to highlight your brand and to better express what you stand for. It is the first thing that customers will see, so let’s make a lasting impression.

The maximum size that you have to use is 851 x 315px. Take a look at one of our merchants that have switched over already – Wine Market Australia. Their cover photo stands out and showcases what they sell brilliantly.

Be Careful – According to Facebook’s guidelines the cover photo should not be text based or infringe on anyone else’s copyright. It is forbidden to use references to user interface elements, such as Like or Share, or any other Facebook site features. Call to action phrases such as ‘Get it now’ are also not allowed. 

App Icons:

One of the more pressing questions is – where is the shop tab going to be displayed. We are happy to see that apps will now appear just underneath the cover photo. Make sure to move your shop tab to one of the first 4 tabs or it will not be shown. You can do this by clicking the drop down arrow on the right, click the edit pen on the tab that you wish to reposition and then click which one you would like to swap it with.

You now have a huge 111 x 74pxls of space to use to optimize your shop tab. Take a look at Wine Market’s above. They did a great job at designing their logo to fit the size spec and to highlight their SHOP!

You can also insert a picture and rename the tab by clicking the dropdown arrow on the right – click the edit pen on the tab you would like to rename – choose edit settings -click change – save and press OK.

Landing Tab:

To those of you who have your default landing tab set to land on the Shop – Unfortunately this is no longer possible. Facebook users coming to your page for the first time will land on your homepage now, as opposed to landing on your shop. This will require a little more work from you, posting regularly with the aim of directing people to your Shop.

Pinning a Status:

There is a new cool feature called the pin. You can now pin important content/statuses to your wall so that it will stay at the top of your timeline. This gives you the opportunity to promote your shop constantly to fans. It can also be used to showcase any competitions that you are running.

Shop Layout:

Once you click into your shop tab you will be brought to a completely separate page where your shop sits on its own with a white background. We find this new layout works extremely well as there are fewer distractions surrounding the shop for customers to wander away from buying a product!

Private Messages:

Fans can now send you (page admins) a private message. However, this does now allow you to send them a message primarily, they must PM you in which you will then be able to reply. You can use this as a way to manage queries from customers. Eg – Post to your wall asking fans to send you a private message if they have any questions regarding products.

Try it out now before the changeover on March 30^th –

We suggest that you start getting your images in order to change over to the new pages before Facebook do it for you on March 30^th. You can preview all the changes you make without having to publish it. If you are finished editing it and you think it looks its best, then go for the plunge and publish it – Good Luck!

Facebook Guidelines for New Pages: Click Here

You will be able to export orders in the ‘Orders’ section of your admin area.

Choose from the options above which way you would like to export your orders and customers details.