A Recommendation Engine for Your Next eCommerce Project

Internet giant Amazon.com popularized the product recommendation engine more than a decade ago, by creating a system that suggests items to customers based on what they, and others like them, had previously purchased or viewed. That deep level of personalization is a major factor in the company’s success today.

In 2009, Netflix awarded a $1 million USD contest prize to researchers who could significantly improve their proprietary recommendation engine. In theory, the more Netflix DVDs that customers add to their watch list, the longer that subscriber will remain with the service, since new movies will just keep coming. The prize may seem hefty, but Netflix was so impressed with the results that they granted the prize and immediately announce that there would be a sequel to the recommendation competition.

So how can a freelance web developer implement an enterprise-quality recommendation engine for your smaller e-retail clients? You may think that you’d have a tough time competing with Amazon or Netflix on functionality. However, low-priced service providers are now focused on enabling that process of discovery for small-site shoppers. These engines have low monthly costs, can be easily implemented in an afternoon, and work on the idea that you need to incorporate behavioral targeting in addition to monitoring a customer’s previous purchases.

Strands Recommender provides one of the low-cost recommendation engine options. Their engine suggests products of interest based on a specific customer’s purchases, visits, searches, wish lists, and other behavior. The system is quite flexible as well, with back-end capability to configure your recommendation display widgets. The retailer can also create rules and product filters for each widget, where results can be previewed prior to being applied to the site.

Click for more detailed information on Strands’ eCommerce solutions. They can help make your eCommerce clients successful, and strengthen your site proposals by creating additional ROI.

Seven Ways to Impress Your Clients – And Win Repeat Business

Ali Hale is a freelance writer and blogger. You can find her all over the net, but especially at her home blog, Aliventures.

When I started out freelancing, the thought of having clients was quite scary … though the thought of having no clients at all was even scarier! Something about the word clients implied that they’d be demanding, ultra-professional, and intimidating.

Of course, it was nothing like I’d feared: my clients have all been very human, warm and friendly! However, I have found that there are seven easy ways to really impress clients, and to guarantee that they’ll want to work with you or refer you in the future:

1. Dress Professionally

I’m most comfortable in jeans and a t-shirt – but when meeting clients, I make the effort to smarten up. Business people can sometimes have slightly negative stereotypes of “freelancers”, and looking like a professional is a great way to make a great first impression and dispel their fears.

Think about it this way: if you had the choice between an assistant who turned up wearing cut-off jeans, scuffed sneakers and a slogan t-shirt and an assistant who wore smart trousers, a nice shirt, and clean shoes – who would you be more inclined to hire?
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10 Places To Sell Your Work Online…

Whether you are a Web Designer, Developer, Graphic Designer, Logo Designer, or even a Freelance Writer, there are many places out there that you can sell your work directly online. And the best part about it all? You don’t have to deal with any clients!

If you’ve just dumped 5 mock ups on a client and they rejected every single one of them, all is not lost! You may be able to resell each one of those mock ups online and many times you can end up making more than you might have with that client. Be aware that if you signed a contract to make sure you still have the right to sell that work!

Either way this is a good way to make some extra income when times are slow. Or better yet, a perfect way for those up-coming designers or writers to get the ball rolling and find out if they’re talented enough to go out on their own!
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Q&A: How do I promote myself in an increasingly crowded market?

Q: How do I promote myself in an increasingly crowded market? – Michael Peer

A: Good question Michael! It can be tough to stand out in a crowd in any market or profession. While there is no one fail proof path to recognition, there are some steps you can take to assure you are doing everything you can! Read more