Security of credit cards numbers being used on the internet has always been an issue for both merchants and customers with e-commerce websites. So ensuring that you take the necessary steps with security to prevent fraudulent transactions is essential. One such method is applying a simple check (using the Luhn Formula also known as Modulus 10 or Mod 10 algorithm) on credit cards before parsing the details to the merchant gateway. It’s these kind of strategies which help prevent fraudulent activity.

Planning your site with you

The first thing we do is sit with our client and write down all their needs and requirements into a design brief. We will ask many questions, which challenges them to face their business as objectively as possible.

Our goal is to gather as much relevant information as possible to help us in building the web site. This information will form the foundation for our proposal and estimate. It will include such things as:

• What products do they sell?
• How would they like to present these products?
• What kind of fulfilment process do they have?

 

Good information architecture to guide visitors

Once we have a clear idea of your business and how it functions, we will then be able to model the sales process on the web site. Part of this involves creating categories and organising the information to be contained on the web site in a logical order. This is called information architecture.

Visitors to the web site should not need to think or guess how to proceed. It should always be clear where they need to click in order to get to where they want to go. The web site should be intuitive and easy to navigate. It should be a smooth flowing process through the site from information to product to sale.

This is even more important if a database is to be used as the foundation of the site as this adds additional complexity. Databases also add more power and versatility which is why they are so popular. Sound information architecture is essential and we spend a lot of time with our clients perfecting this at an early stage. Once everyone is happy with the information architecture we proceed to the next step.

 

We write a project plan and proposal

Once we have collected enough information to able clearly to define and scope the boundaries of the project, we are able to write a detailed proposal which includes time and cost estimates for the client.

We guarantee that the cost of the project will not change providing the scope does not change. We pride ourselves on this and up until now have never gone over budget!

 

We focus on details too

The problem is often in the details. In the case of e-commerce web sites these details can be such things as:

• Payment methods
• Handling freight and shipping costs
• International order handling
• Managing opening hours (eg: do you trade on public holidays?)
• Colour choices for menu items, font and image sizes and more

We take care of most of these things using our experience. In the event that we need to involve our client in the decision making process we first fully brief them on the pros and cons associated with each choice allowing them to make an informed decision.

 

Conclusion

Doing things once can be an expensive intial outlay, so doing things twice is unthinkable and a waste of everyone’s time. When constructing sophisticated e-commerce systems it is our unwritten rule to never do things twice. It is our aim to get things done right the first time around and this is why we follow the above methodologies.