ChutingStar on Magento Commerce

We love solving problems and helping our clients grow their businesses.

ChutingStar moved their eCommerce business to Magento Commerce after eight years of success with Magento OpenSource. With the enhanced features of Magento Commerce, Chuting Star created a new template that captured the quality and excitement of their family business. As they neared the site launch, however, there were a few hurdles they needed to jump before they could go live, which included dropping the page loads from 10 seconds to 2 seconds, implementing the latest Magento patches, and configuring SSL throughout the page to work with Full Page Caching (FPC).

With the holidays soon approaching, Variux quickly worked through the hurdles to ensure ChutingStar was able to launch their site in time. We migrated their data to our development server, taking 2 seconds off the page loads, and we reviewed the error_log, which revealed missing resources that were stalling the server response time, cutting another 4 seconds on page loads. We updated to the latest Magento release to solve known security vulnerabilities and fix the issue with SSL and FPC, and we implemented FPC, giving us the performance boost needed to go live.

The new site launch was an exciting milestone and marked the beginning of a successful shopping season for ChutingStar. We were able to help them save over $100,00 a year, which was able to be reinvested into their business for continued growth.

Protect Your eCommerce Business with Trademarks

Do you have a registered trademark for brands sold in your ecommerce business? If the answer is no, what actions are you taking to protect your brand? Without a trademark, the unique aspects of your brand, business, products, and packaging are at risk of being copied. Ecommerce businesses are especially susceptible to this form of theft and plagiarism. It’s easier to share and connect within a vast network. The internet allows people to shop businesses across the world and provides users with access to more information and ideas than ever before. This is exciting, but if the necessary precautions aren’t set up, anyone can turn your ideas into theirs without consequences. In other words, trademarking is essential to the protection of an ecommerce business.

What is trademarking?

A trademark is a form of intellectual property that identifies and distinguishes the source of a product. Trademarks can be a word, phrase, logo, symbol, trade dress, package design. See below for a list:

• Store, brand, and product names

• Logos (symbol)

• Slogans (phrase)

• Color and color combinations

• Designs

• Shapes

• Textures

• Graphics

• Trade dress (packaging design, shape, size, color or color combinations, texture, graphics)

• Unique words

• Product descriptions

Common examples include the Nike swoosh (logo), McDonald’s Happy Meal bag (package design), and UPS brown (color). Verbs are not included in the list because they cannot be trademarked.

Registered vs. Unregistered

Trademarks can be registered or unregistered. The ™ symbol indicates an unregistered trademark or a trademark that has been registered, but not at the federal level. This type of trademark does not provide enough protection for an ecommerce business. The unregistered trademark symbol is often used to discourage others from using the associated mark, but doesn’t hold legal significance. The ® symbol implies a registered trademark. A registered trademark must be obtained through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). This is a legal and federal process.

Why is trademarking necessary in ecommerce?

Benefits of Trademarking vs. Risks of Not Trademarking

Trademarks can help operational aspects of ecommerce business. Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and Walmart offer benefits to businesses with a registered trademark. For Amazon’s Brand Registry, sellers with registered trademarks can join and receive counterfeit protection and access to unique analytics.

The primary value of a trademark is the protection and security that it provides. Trademarking offers protection for your business, brand, products, and product packaging. You should control the narrative for how your brand is represented online. Protecting your brand image and identity with trademarks is one way to ensure sustainability and establish dominance in the marketplace.

With ecommerce allowing more options and greater comparison abilities, differentiation has become essential to the success of online businesses. If customers are unable to distinguish between you and your competitors, your brand will be forgotten and lost in the consideration stage. It could be worse if your unique features are copied and stolen by others and the copy-cats generate more business than you. Hijacking has become an unfortunate and prevalent concern among the ecommerce industry. As scammers take advantage of un-trademarked ideas, building a line of defense has become a necessary strategy for brand survival.

What are the steps for getting a registered trademark?

Trademark Registration Process:

1. Determine if your design or unique piece of intellectual property can be trademarked.

   • Refer to the list above for assistance.

2. Find out if your idea is already trademarked.

   • The USPTO’s Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) is a public search database. Use this to search for logos, names, phrases, designs that might be similar.

   • Related marks will appear in the search results, if they have already been filed.

3. File for application.

   • The application is the same for all registered trademarks.

   • The initial filing fee ranges between $225 and $400 and may include additional fees.

If the filing process seems expensive and time-consuming, think of the profits you’ll lose if a competitor steals and copies the features that make your brand unique. While this process requires time, energy, and dedication to complete, the steps are easy to follow. Another option is to hire an intellectual property attorney to make this process more manageable.

What happens after you receive your registered trademark?

Use it! A trademark never expires, as long as you continue to use it and pay your maintenance fees. Protect your brand by filing a Statement of Use. If your business is selling internationally or looking to expand its customer base, consider trademarking in other countries. If infringement occurs, hire an attorney to defend your registered trademark. Protect your brand by trademarking as many unique aspects of your products as possible.

The Best Way to Design Product Detail Pages

The design of a product detail page on an eCommerce site can directly impact a buyer’s purchasing decision. In fact, 88% of online shoppers are less likely to return to a site after a bad user experience. Your product detail page is the last stop before your visitors make a purchasing decision, and if they can’t find the information fast, they may go to your competition.

If you’re finding buyers are leaving your site after visiting the product detail pages, it may be time to look at the current design to ensure the experience is optimized for converting visitors into buyers. Let’s take a look at what a product detail page should do well:

Detailed product description
A great product description provides the most important information in an easy-to-read format, using common terms and quickly answering the buyers’ most frequently asked questions. It should be descriptive without being too wordy, and should focus on the benefits of the product. Within the description, make sure to include some of the most common missed details, including dimensions, weight, availability, benefits, and key features.

Along with a well-written description should be a detailed product name, and the more descriptive, the better the results. This will ensure users can find exactly what they want when searching specific keywords and will provide quick information on the product’s most important features.

Clear and detailed product images
Because eCommerce shoppers cannot physically touch or test products, they rely on clear and detailed images to get the information they need. The product images need to be compelling high-quality photos that mirror the product description, giving the buyer all the information they would otherwise get if shopping in-person. If needed, use multiple photos of the product at different angles to provide buyers a detailed view of exactly what they will receive.

Clear call-to-action (CTA)
Once you clearly state the product’s key features and provide high-quality photos, you need to provide a clear call-to-action (CTA). The CTA should be prominent on the page in an obvious location, and should lead the visitor to a BUY NOW button and into a smooth checkout process.

Product comparisons
According to a survey conducted by BigCommerce, 46% of online shoppers reported they want more product comparisons from eCommerce sites. Offering a quick look at similar products helps buyers make educated decisions quickly and easily, and can allow the buyer to add more products to their cart or even upgrade to a better product.

Load time
Fast load times are essential for any website and are especially critical when it comes to the product detail page. Nearly 40% of people will abandon a website that takes more than 3 seconds to load, leading to high bounce rates and lost sales. Many different factors can contribute to slow load times, including amount and weight of content, type of browser used, and bandwidth of the site.

Reviews
Over 90% of all customers use online reviews as part of their research, and 68% of those are more likely to engage with businesses that have positive reviews. Product reviews increase trust and loyalty, and can also increase your business’ visibility on search engines.

Option to save for later
Great product detail pages provide an option for users to save the product for later. Some users may not be able to purchase the product right now, so giving them the option to save for later provides the opportunity for buyers to visit the website again when they are ready. It’s also a great personalization tool and makes for a quicker checkout process.

What does a well-designed product detail page look like?
Our team at id8 began working with European-based Dresdner Essenz in 2019 after they made the decision to expand to North America. We partnered with Variux to develop a new eCommerce website and introduce some of their most popular products to the American market.

Alongside ensuring their product descriptions were translated correctly from German to English, Variux verified each product detail page included a clear, high-quality image, descriptive product name and description, a clear CTA, reviews, easy-to-find key product information, and a section for related products.

Review your product detail pages
So, what can you do now to ensure your product detail page is optimized for converting your visitor to a buyer? One of the best ways to analyze the customer experience is to conduct an audit of the product detail page. Here are 4 things you should look for:

1. Layout — Is the page easy to navigate with the most important information listed first? Is it cluttered or is it easy to read? Does it load quickly and look correct across desktop, tablet, and mobile?

2. User experience — Do the product images and descriptions accurately convey uses and features? Is it difficult to find the CTA? Can you save an item for later? Can you easily see user reviews and comparable products? Is the checkout process quick and easy?

3. Size of product shots — Are the images high-quality detailed photos of the right product with the right packaging? Do you offer multiple photos or is the image interactive?

4. Amount of information — Is there adequate information about the product, including color, dimensions, uses, and any additional specifications? Does the description answer the buyer’s most pressing questions? Does the description match the image used?
In the end, a well-designed product detail page will increase your site’s conversion rates and improve your overall customer experience, which will benefit your brand.

Build List for a Virtual Meeting Studio

A budget list of tweaks you can make to your setup to sound and look better on virtual meetings.

Stop reading now if:

• The underside of your chin is your most attractive feature

• You LOVE the feeling in your neck after starting at your laptop all day

• Your ideal acoustic tone is titled "Garbled trash can"

If none of those are true, I'm going to share a few tips to make your Virtual Meeting Life a lot better with a minimal investment to your desk setup. 

Here is a video of the setup I use at home currently (this is during the 2020 COVID-19 CCP Virus Quarantine -- crazy times).

Now one thing to consider: Audio trumps everything! How you look in a virtual meeting is far less important than how you sound. You want people to remember what you say, not that you were the "person who sounded like they were stuck in a well."

General Considerations

• If you are using a laptop, you are probably going to need more USB ports. Be sure you know if you have Do you have USB ports or do you need a port replicator

  • USB C - 4 ports

  • USB 3.0 to USB 3.0 - 4 ports

• Desk space - all of these options are going to be hard to implement if you are running your virtual meetings from your sofa

• Existing lighting - Make sure your back isn't facing a window or a bright lamp

• Audio - Silence your phone, put the dogs outside, and turn off the TV in the next room

Mac

There is one huge advantage to having a Mac Book: the built-in audio is very good! So, let's focus on what you need to make the Mac setup optimal. If you have a great place to setup your workstation with some desk space, and $100 extra isn't going to break your budget, still consider getting the microphone. But if the budget is tight focus on the stand and the lighting. 

• Stand

  • Adjustable Laptop Stand

• Lighting

  • Ring light with mobile mount and tripod

  • Clip on Light with Adjustable Brightness

• Wireless Keyboard/Mouse

  • Wireless Keyboard

    • Logitech Wireless Combo MK360 – Compact Package

    • Logitech MK320 Wireless Desktop Keyboard and Mouse Combo

  • Bluetooth combo

    • Jelly Comb - Amazon

• Optional

  • Microphone - CADU37 Microphone

    • CAD U37 USB Studio Microphone - Amazon

    • CAD U37 USB Studio Microphone - B&H

  • Headphones - Use your Apple headphones if you have them. They sound good.

  • WebCam-EVERYTHING

    • Microsoft LifeCam Cinema

    • Logitech C920s HD Pro Webcam

PC / Windows

The best thing about a PC is that you typically have the options to add-on additional stuff pretty easily. 

• Microphone - CADU37 Microphone

  • CAD U37 USB Studio Microphone - Amazon

  • CAD U37 USB Studio Microphone - B&H

• Lighting

  • Ring light with mobile mount and tripod

  • Clip on Light with Adjustable Brightness

• Stand

  • Adjustable Laptop Stand

• Wireless Keyboard

  • Logitech Wireless Combo MK360 – Compact Package

  • Logitech MK320 Wireless Desktop Keyboard and Mouse Combo

• Optional

  • Headphones - Any will do, but they will cut down on echo

  • WebCam

    • Microsoft LifeCam Cinema

    • Logitech C920s HD Pro Webcam

Mobile

I'm going the extra lean route on this topic. I don't like the idea of doing Virtual Meetings. But, I know some people love it. 

• Lighting: Ring light with mobile mount and tripod

• Stand: Gooseneck Flexible Smartphone Holder

• Headphones: Get some wired headphones with a microphone. Makes a world of difference!

Conclusion

I know that it is a brief tutorial, but hopefully it gives you some guidance on how to set your workspace to be more effective.

Magento 2.3.2 cannot import image from url

I realize this post is closed, but I wanted to add an update related to Magento ver. 2.3.2. I was running into this same error when uploading a csv that pulling a single image from an external url with no special characters or url related issues.

image.png(error)

Magento 2 cannot import or download image from external resource

Imported resource (image) could not be downloaded from external resource due to timeout or access permissions

A quick check of the exception.log and I saw this:
[2019-11-20 23:59:35] main.CRITICAL: File directory 'pub/media/import' is not readable.

In my scenario, it was due to the pub/media/import directory missing completely. So, even if you are downloading a file from an external url, Magento uses the import directory to stage the file. Good to know.

There is far more detail at https://github.com/magento/magento2/issues/2666 if you are interested in seeing the life of this ticket.

Increase memory limit for php via .htaccess in Magento 2 with cPanel

If you don’t have access to your php.ini file you can also make the change in your .htaccess file. 

If you are using cPanel at your hosing provider, you can go to your cPanel login > File Manager

Navigate to your public_html folder. This is where Magento 2 is typically installed by default.

There, you will probably not see the .htaccess file because files that start with a dot are hidden in cPanel by default. Go to the top right and click Settings then check Show Hidden Files (dotfiles).

Click on .htaccess and edit

Then you can adjust the memory limits and the timeout instructions:

############################################
## adjust memory limit

    php_value memory_limit 2048M
    php_value max_execution_time 18000

If you need a developer in your corner, be sure to contact us here at Variux as we offer ongoing support plans to keep Magento 2 running, updated, and secure so that you can focus on selling instead of server configuration.

Magento 2 Invalid Form Key when Saving Products in Admin

When running a Magento 2 storefront, it can be quiet frustrating to spend 10 minutes updating a product description, only to be met with an error when you try to save.

Magento 2 invalid form key when saving products

Thankfully, this is rarely a major issue. Most likely, it is a local browser caching issue. Here are 4 ways to check if it is a simple problem:

1. Use Ctrl + F5 to hard refresh the page (PC).

   • For MAC on OS X try:

   • Hold down Shift and click the Reload button.

   • Or Hold down Command, Shift and click the ‘R’ key.

2. Log out and back in (do a hard refresh again while you are logged out)

3. Use a different browser in Private mode and test the process to save a product.

4. Use one of these methods to clear your browsers cache for a single site (no one wants to clear their whole cache, especially with all the TFA cookies you have to recreate).

   • Chrome: Right click and inspect somewhere on the page (or F12) on the keyboard

     • Click Application > Clear storage > Clear site data

Chrome clear site data for one site and save your cache for others

• Firefox: Click the padlock beside the url

  • Click Clear Cookies and Site Data (more info on Mozillas site: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/clear-cookies-and-site-data-firefox )

Firefox clear data and cache for single site

If you want to know for Safari or Edge – just contact me and I’ll update this post.

If the above doesn’t solve your issue, get one of our developers to work on the issue.

Magento 2 Reset Admin Users Password

This is a basic tutorial on how to use the Magento 2 Permissions System to reset an administrator’s password. This can be useful if you have changed Magento service providers or have had and employee leave your company.

Login to Admin and navigate to System > Permissions > All Users

Next, simply click on the user you want to update.

On the User Edit page, be sure to create a strong unique password and input it in both password fields. You will also be required to enter your current password to perform the update. Click Save and inform your user of the change.

Magento 2 Caching Technology

As Magento websites become bigger, bolder, and more complex, they’re known to take longer to load in web browsers. With that in mind, the proper application of caching technologies is important. Paired with great hosting and following web-development best practices, caching helps your site to load quickly and efficiently. The correct combination may even help you to cut down on your hosting infrastructure costs.

However, with so many caching technologies available, choosing the right mix can be a challenge. With that in mind, we’ve put together some helpful notes on some of our favorites:

Full Page Caching (FPC)

Leveraging an FPC solution allows you to save fully-generated web pages such as Product, Category, and CMS pages. In essence, this means that a copy of the page is ready to view; instead of having to retrieve individual blocks of code and database information every time a page is visited.

You do have some choice though. This includes Page Caching: 

• Default Magento Caching: This is available off-the-shelf with Magento, and is great for beginners that are dabbling with Magento.

• Varnish: This is our highest recommendation. It’s also the recommendation of Magento’s engineers:

At JetRails, we’ve gone as far as building a Magento 2 Varnish Extension for our clients. With this extension, admins and developers can utilize Varnish more easily. It is also fine-tuned to the highly-optimized JetRails Magento hosting stack.

You can (and should) also leverage supplemental Session Caching. We recommend Redis. Redis stores data and objects locally in RAM, cutting down on the frequency that external sources like APIs and databases need to be read.

Then, there are additional accelerators. We recommend Zend OpCache which leads to speedier PHP execution through opcode caching and optimization. By storing precompiled script bytecode, it improves PHP performance. 

Browser Based Caching
Progressive Web Apps (PWA): Starting with Magento 2.3.x, which debuted in November of 2018, Magento debuted their PWA studio. This technology is expected to be central to the creation of new Magento frontend themes:

https://magento.com/products/magento-commerce/pwa?wvideo=2mfgv0he8z

Edge-Based

Content Delivery Network (CDN): Leveraging a CDN like Cloudflare for Magento can allow you to cache webpage elements, like images, on a separate edge network. Edge networks are often vast, with servers all over the world, leading to a better distribution of your server load, and fewer hops for browsers to access necessary webpage files.  

Cloudflare can also be configured to automatically compress images, minify HTML and CSS, bundle JavaScript files, and take other steps to enhance the loading speed of your website.

At JetRails, we’ve even created a Magento 1 and Magento 2 Cloudflare Extensions, to help make managing Cloudflare faster and easier from your Magento admin. 

Image CDN: Some CDNs focus solely on Images and offer better results for rich media specifically. These include platforms like Cloudinary and ImageEngine. These can be configured to work in conjunction with a primary file caching CDN like Cloudflare.

Deployment Caching

Composer Satis: This technology assists with build time during deployments and is used to ensure that your builds don’t fail due to a composer repository being down. It’s, in essence, a lightweight static composer repository generator.

https://getcomposer.org/doc/articles/handling-private-packages-with-satis.md

https://github.com/composer/satis

When in doubt, call in experts for a Magento Hosting Consult. There are Magento hosting engineers who leverage these technologies day in and day out to improve loading speeds, security, and scalability of Magento sites.

Magento Keeping Stock of Inventory

A quick overview of Each Stock Status element in Magento

Unlimited Stock

In the concept of unlimited stock, a store is selling an item that is stocked all the time or easily restocked if on-hand supplies get low. Alternatively, this method could be used for drop shipping as well.

Out of Stock

For items that are seasonal, limited run, custom, or otherwise hard to maintain a consistent inventory, the Out Of Stock method allows you to display information about the product but removes the ability for the shopper to purchase. There is an advanced feature that allows you to do “in-stock notifications”

Back-order

Commonly, when an item is sold out, it is ideal to allow the customer to still add the item to their cart and to checkout. This creates a back order.

Quantity on Hand

There are certain projects that require a shopper to pick an available product based on the quantity available. In this case, it is important to maintain real-time inventory status.

Multiple Warehouses

Extending upon the real-time inventory status, the geographical location of the available items could affect the shoppers behavior. This could lead them to purchase other items that are closer to their location. At the least, it will create an expectation of delivery times.

Special Order

This is a way to expand your online catalog without having to increase your inventory. There are many ways spin this:

Special Order
Manufacturer Direct
Specialty Item