The Social (Media) Way to Holiday Shopping

Did you brave the crowds on Black Friday? Did you get that deal you were seeking? We all accept Black Friday as the biggest shopping day of the year, but Coremetrics highlighted that Cyber Monday is growing and exeeded the dollars spent on Black Friday by 24% in it's report: Cyber Monday Report (.pdf).

Cyber Monday is a testament to the increase of online shopping, and the testament to the growing opportunity for companies to use an eCommerce site to maximize their sales. This shopping season can be a joy for both shoppers and sellers!

If you already have a website, think about the ways that you can tap into the shopper frenzy - especially at this time of year. Even if your website is well designed, search engine optimization (SEO) is one big bear you'll want to tackle sooner than later. Making sure you have rich content on your web page, that it is updated often and is current, attracts visitors, has backlinks pointing to it, and is referenced in other pages can help you earn a higher Google ranking, and beget more visitors.

There are many free tools to use to help with SEO...and the recent explosion of social media tools makes it even easier. FACEBOOK, TWITTER, BLOGGER, and LINKEDIN provide great ways to keep your website fresh, without having to redesign it every day. If you'd like additional help in getting started with social media tools, be sure to check out ECM 220 because eCommerce is now LIVE @ JCC!

The Amish Have the Recipe for Sustainability

Last weekend a fellow parent of my son's soccer team offered me a

batch of Amish friendship bread. Being chosen as a 'friend' in real-life (vs social media land) still holds a special feeling to it and I was all too excited to take my zipper bag of 'starter dough' home and take care of it to produce bread.

As the week wore on, we each (my two youngest sons and I) took turns 'mashing' the dough on the specified day, and enjoyed adding the milk, flour, and sugar on the day specified. We shared in amazement that the recipe specifically says to NOT REFRIGERATE the dough, even though we had just added milk that we expected would curdle. Sure enough the next day, the bag showed signs of clumps, but we diligently followed the instruction to release the air from that bag that was caused by fermentation, and mashed the dough once again. Finally, the tenth day arrived and we were excited to bake our bread.

Dutifully, I followed the instructions by putting the dough a plastic bowl and added ingredients. The next step stopped me in my tracks...

measure out one cup each and place in four separate ziplock bags.

Three of the bags are to be passed on to "friends" while the fourth bag is to be retained and used again as a starter for the process to begin again.

In our day of technology, we speak many words to talk about sustainability... growth... innovation... In that moment, when measuring out one cup for each of my "friendship" bags, I realized that the Amish have perfected what we are just now trying to implement...In this simple recipe, they:

• foster sustainability: thinking of others' bread, before they prepare their own;
• establish a solution for a future problem as a 'way of doing business'; and
• nurture a 'network' of friendships.

As we ate our sweet, dense, moist coffee-cake-like bread, made from the dough remaining in the bowl after separating the portion, I considered the Amish and the lesson I learned from their Amish bread. And then I remembered one line in the recipe..."pass on the recipe to share it because only the Amish know how to make the starter dough." This reminded me that no matter how serene I imagined their simple life, they still found a way to ensure job security and their way of life.

My realization of this cleverness made the bread even sweeter:) I can't wait to pass on my friendship bread starters!

eCommerce - First Day on the Road to Success

On the first day of class, I typically challenge students to think of an industry that does not use the web for assistance in conducting business. It's always fun to hear what they come up with; things like fast food, Amish country, and farmer markets always are mentioned right away. Then I offer the same challenge back ...see if they can come with ways that these same industries COULD use eCommerce strategies. A few students offer some examples, but largely the classroom comes up short with ideas for ways these industries and operations participate in eCommerce activities.

Fast forward a few months and students are finding ways for several revenue models to support their own business ideas. Small businesses in automotive repairs, raw food lifestyles, tattoo designs, and sporting goods are finding ways to not only create a web presence, but also increase their income. Additional eCommerce activities are helping expand operations for non-profit charities, retail of religious items, and geneology projects.


It is most rewarding to see the growth of students, who on the first day drew blanks and silence in trying to come up with ways for eCommerce to impact their ideas...and now I see them implement some of these ideas in so many areas. The orginal challenge is now child's play for the students who are excited and passionate about their ideas - and using eCommerce in way they never imagined on that first day.

Degree...or No Degree, That is the Question

As I was researching the feasibility of launching a new eCommerce program at Jackson Community College, one root question continued to pose itself. If the "target" student is interested in getting a product completed - a real, live (virtually, of course), working web page with eCommerce capabilities, are they also interested in credit and/or degrees?

On one side, of course! After all, they will be attending a college. They will be using a textbook, and following the guidance of a professor. They will be completing exercises to accomplish a learning objective. They will learn how to design web pages and integrate business practices in the process. And perhaps, the student will decide to earn more credits and eventually a degree indicating a certain level of knowledge has been obtained in the eCommerce field.

On the other side, they will be using the processes set up by the college, professor and textbook in order to accomplish a product - their eCommerce web site, with detailed, related and linked pages, and an eCommerce revenue model. They will be using this site to generate sales, either product sales or ad-click sales, and will be earning a living. And they will desire these results sooner than a traditional college semester.

So, degree or no degree? The fact still remains that if the student has completed the work as designed by the college, they deserve the credit - even if the student is not interested in the credit at the time they earn it. Many of us get wiser as time passes, and so the credits and potential degree may become more valuable.

For this reason, JCC is offering its eCommerce program in two formats. In the traditional semester, classes are offered 2-6 on Thursday afternoons. In Fall, students launch an eCommerce site using free software, and in Winter, they better manage the site through SEO and mobile technologies. Each semester, students will generate a product - one for THEM, and in the process will be working toward a degree.

If the traditional semester format doesn't work, the same courses will be offered in the summer in workshop formats. Two Thursday/Friday combos in June will launch the eCommerce site, and two Thursday/Friday combos in July will improve SEO and mobile technologies.

Check out the innovative schedule and start creating your eCommerce site, and earning your degree (or not), right away

Grow Globally with eCommerce

In Michigan, it's no secret that our economy is struggling, our neighbors/family and some of us are unemployed, and our young talent is moving away to find better opportunities - leaving no hope that good employers will move here because of our talented workforce.

One way we may consider 'growing' out of this mess, is to 'grow' ourselves globally. WE must take action to proactively take control of the market in order to turn it around...take ourselves out of the unemployment line - and maybe a neighbor or family member with us. Grow through eCommerce - doing BUSINESS over the WEB. Opening this portal can potentially increase revenue coming to Michigan, and improve our economic forecast, or at the very least help us pay our monthly bills.

The most popular eCommerce sites include online shopping - which is a phenomenom that has overtaken the retail world. And you know what they say, right? If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

Likely eCommerce site owners include:

1. anyone wishing to sell their product online (hobbyists, artists, manufacturers, information),
2. anyone who already has a business (small or large), and maybe even a website, but doesn’t yet take advantage of the global market or building revenue from their site through ads or sales,
3. anyone who is starting a business (bricks/mortar or surf/click) and needs a web presence
4. anyone who wishes to develop/design websites for others who need an eCommerce site
5. anyone who decides they want to hire a consultant to build their site, and they want to be wise about what they ask for and how much they pay the consultant
6. anyone who wishes to learn more about mobile technologies and web efficiencies

JCC is now offering an eCommerce program, classes start Fall 2009. Get growing!