Friday, August 19, 2016

FreeWebStore!


Signing up to FreeWebStore.com was amazingly easy. The first thing I was asked
to do was pick out a look for my store. Yes, your selections are somewhat limited,
but I found one that had a simple black and gray classic design, because I thought
it would help showcase my home decor collectibles, and some of those products
are white.

Then I was asked to fill out my name, address, and input a password. I confirmed
to activate my account by email, and was brought to a page that proudly proclaimed
I’ve joined 350,000 other store owners from around the world. So, if you have a
PayPal account, have the products, and can ship your products to your customers,
you can have a store.

Now I have to answer a couple of quick questions.

The first question produced a map that let them know where I was based within
world. No secret there, I’m based in central Iowa, so I said okay. The next page
said the following:

New Designs added all the time

Optimized for Mobiles and Tablets

Full CSS Control

Customize as little or as much as you like


The next question asked me where did my store want to live, the web address and
domain name choices through them, including an option to list my own domain. I
chose their domain.

To produce a store on my own, using Weebly as an example (and I will use
Weebly when I’m able to), with my own domain and full cart service connected to
PayPal . . . that costs about $360 USD per year. I have yet to spend a dime for this
store.

I had to confirm if my store was family friendly, so my nudie drinking glasses
from thirty years ago might need a black bar or two in all the right places, but now
I know to save those products for my proposed Weebly store, being careful to
properly word the listing (not use the word nudie), so I don’t upset PayPal’s moral whatever.

The next page took me to this, concerning Search Engine Optimizations:

For Beginners

Automated SEO

Let the experts handle your store optimization

No action required

For Advanced Users

Full control over all aspects of SEO

Custom URLs, Page Titles, Meta Keywords and Descriptions


I’ll read it, and probably let them do their thing. Hey, no action required is a good
thing. Next page.

Payment options were then flashed before my eyes, but I’ll go with PayPal. It’s
trusted and secure, people like it, I never had a problem myself, but you don’t want
to bank money with PayPal, or use their debit card option.

You have a specific PayPal account with your bank, and once money is transferred
from PayPal into that account, you then transfer that money into another account
that PayPal can’t possibly freeze (because it has nothing to do with them at all) to
safeguard your own ass, and your hard-won assets.

I’m allowed 20 products at a time, with one photo each, so the old blog will
feature all the photos I have to give buyers a good look at each product from all
sides, with descriptions.

Advertising and new opportunities in social networking will lead customers to
my old blog, and then to my free store.

That post on social networking IS coming.

I was then told my store was ready, and they had a support staff to help me every
step of the way. Okay!

Now I’m at my control panel, and will have to make that a whole ’nother post.
Lots to read, with some experimentation, mistakes to make and correct.

I don’t mind getting messy. I’m stacked, packed, and loaded for bear. I can walk
the walk, and talk the talk. So. I imagine I’ll need all the help I can get.

The good thing is they have a nice help section, with videos. In fact,
their YouTube channel  has about 70 videos that can help me understand
my new store and my dashboard interface.

Now that’s what I call sweet. I'll see you again Monday, because I want this weekend off.

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