In the traditional method of learning how consumers reach a business, salespeople used to ask "How did you find us?" question. This is a rudimentary way of finding out the source of a phone call, and the collection of each calls to generate a detailed report is hard to come by if there are a large number of sales reps receiving calls.

Development of heat maps dated back to the 19th century to provide a graphical representation of complex data so that it is easier for humans to analyze at-a-glance. Back then, a gray-scale shading was used to depict data patterns and the darker color was used to indicated dense values while lighter color was used to depict lesser values. A few applications of heat maps include depicting weather reports, real estate market data, and financial market analysis. The beauty of using heat maps is that you don't have to read a table of data in rows and columns to understand complex data, but rather view a simple colored map to grasp the big picture of data representation.

Converting a new visitor to your website is extremely difficult. The average conversion rate of a typical online store is less than 2%, which translates that 98% of people visiting your site will leave without a purchase. The first-time visitor to your site will fall far below the 2% conversion rate, and this is where retargeting comes in.

Google Click ID (also known as GCLID) is a parameter assigned to the Google Ad and is passed in the URL to track clicks and conversions. The GCLID is only used in Google Ads and is enabled by turning on auto-tagging in the settings. It is used to tie your Google Ads with your Google Analytics account so that the clicks and the conversions can be tracked.

The average eCommerce conversion rates fall around 1% to 2%, and it measures the checkout rates which don't include newsletter signup or abandoned carts with customer emails. If you have a brand new website, the conversion rate may fall far below 1% despite advertising on Facebook, Google Ads, and other comparison shopping engines. Learn how to improve your conversion rate.

One of the biggest challenges with online stores is detecting and preventing fraudulent orders. Fraudsters attempt to use stolen credit cards to purchase goods online, and sometimes such transactions do go through without detection. Learn how to detect fraudulent orders by examining the IP address.

When you're in-market to purchase a product and find a very attractive price but the website doesn't look very professional. Would you take the risk and purchase the product at the site where it offers the best price, or will you research the product and determine if the company is legitimate before purchasing a product?

In today's world, more and more people use the internet to shop online. Being able to purchase online and have goods delivered to your door at your fingertips makes our daily lives easier. However, there are without a doubt some risks involved when purchasing goods and services online. There will always be criminals and nefarious actors out there who intend to take advantage of tools to get your money or your information and sell it; especially with websites such as Amazon and eBay becoming more and more popular. To that end, we'll be taking a look at a few tips you can pick up to protect you while shopping online.