My Time At MonsterCommerce

My First Week At MonsterCommerce
Originally uploaded by ArcoJedi

I was looking through old pics and found this picture of me from what I assume to be my first week at what was then called MonsterCommerce. This was likely early in 2003. I've had one other job briefly, but for the past 6 years I'd been sitting at a very similar desk helping e-commerce clients and growing with and nurturing the technical support department.

At the time of this picture, I'm not yet 27-years-old and the company has about 20 employees that on average were younger than me --at least by a small margin. Our department of new technical support reps was a group of 4 or 5 guys in a small set of cubicles in a basement office. We had utilitarian carpeting on the walls and mismatched dividers.

So much has changed since then that I'd need at least ten pages to tell the whole story. This has been the best job I've had so far in my life. In summary, the company was acquired by Network Solutions in 2006 and became the Belleville office for the leading domain registrar. This purchase was a huge boon to everyone involved; NetSol got the e-commerce, web design and marketing teams that they needed, and MC's leadership got an influx of cash, tools and resources to greatly expand what they did so well and to hire tons more people.

As of September of 2009, I am no longer employed with Network Solutions. This is much to my regret considering the knowledge I've gained and the memorable times spent with numerous coworkers and what I hope will be lifelong friends. Though the separation and new personal direction will be to my benefit in the long run, I will miss the team. I could go into more detail about the separation and the reasons for it, but it would be impolite and unnecessary to hash it out here.

The question remains about what to do with this blog. Clearly the trademarked name of MonsterCommerce is owned by Network Solutions so the URL of monstercommerce.blogspot.com might need to be relinquished. But I see no real reason to do so. Regardless, the blog content is for the most part all mine, so perhaps my own "rebrand" is in order. I could reorganize this into my "Web Developer / E-commerce" blog. Or, incomplete as it is, I could just lock and freeze it as a testament and history of my time and leave it alone for all time.

Just in case someone at NetSol sees this and does want the URL, feel free to let me know but keep one thing in mind. According to my stats I've received an average of less than one (1) lonely visitor per day for the better part of the last year. And since none of the links to the NetSol owned pages that you see have been (or will be) modified, it's not like anyone is getting lost or confused. I'd still honestly recommend Network Solutions E-commerce to anyone who asked.

I'll probably write more about this at my personal blog at some point, but I wanted to update this blog page before the year ended. Thanks for visiting and please check back once a new direction (for me and this blog) has been chosen!

Final Feature Comparison [.pdf]

We've recently updated a chart for comparing version 4 with version 7. This form was very beneficial for the last migration process in 2008, but almost all of the version 7 features have been brought up to parity with version 4 in time for the software upgrade this year. Be sure to Download the Ecommerce Feature Comparison [pdf] to become more familiar.

You can also go inside a live Version 7 store using username: guest and password: Netsol1. Thanks and have a good weekend!

MonsterMarketplace - Decorating for Thanksgiving

It turns out that our MonsterMarketplace has some awesome ideas for Decorating for Thanksgiving and Your Thanksgiving Feast.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

Ten Popular Features of Version Seven

Here's something I put together for a coworker. In no particular order...

• Customizable Keyword URLs - Beneficial for both users and search engines...
• SEO Fields - Meta / title tags independent of product/category names...
• Customizable 301 Redirects - delete / move pages with confidence
• Advanced Reporting - sales, tax, searches - includes Google Analytics Integration
• Design Sandbox - Manage multiple designs that can be managed and previewed
• Integrated Customizable Forms - Feedback / Contact / Reply
• Shareable Shopping Lists
• Included Import / Export Utility
• Quickbooks Integration
• Customizable Shipping - including regional management and real-time integration
• Extensive Personalization and Variation options

Technically this is 11. But just like Spinal Tap, sometimes you have to have that little something extra. Read more details at Network Solutions E-commerce.

Five Years

I expected it to go by with little fanfare, but a long-time senior staff member here sent me an email congratulating me on my FIVE YEAR anniversary. Yes, it has been five years since I first began at . It should be pointed out that I left the company amicably and temporarily for about 6 months to pursue a job as web developer for my local school district, but it has been 5 years since my original start date. And what a long strange trip it's been.

For those few who were around at that time --especially in technical support-- the following should make you laugh, but not for the reference to Donald Trump.

moar funny pictures

Here's to the next five years! Drink up me' hearties, yo ho!

Technical Support Supervisor

The e-commerce technical support team here in Belleville is awaiting an announcement concerning an opening for a new Technical Support Supervisor. Personally, I've applied for the position and am interested in this new job role. The interviews were completed in the last two weeks so we should hear something this week. I'm not a betting man and I don't have a good view on who might be the best candidate. Humbly enough, it might not be me and I'll have no problems with the decision if I'm not chosen.

A good philosophy is that all job interviews should be approached as a learning experience, as well as practice for the NEXT job interview.

More information will be posted as it becomes available.

Update (2008/03/14): Congratulations to Dave L. who received the promotion from Senior Technical Support Representative to Technical Support Supervisor. I haven't had a chance to post an update about the announcement until tonight, but I wanted to. He's earned it. In addition to Dave, they have also hired one external new hire to fill a third supervisor position. Growth continues.

Interesting Statistic: DataPort

An interesting statistic regarding DataPort v5.x came into my inbox today. Since it's initial release, it has had more than 22 million API calls. Thankfully, the technical support team has not had even half as many phone calls about it.

Webinar: Ecommerce 101: How to Build an Online Store

This was announced recently. It's a webinar, which means it will be available from an internet connection.

Have you always wanted to be your own boss? Learn how to get an online business up and running. Experts at Network Solutions® and QuickBooks® will teach you how to build a successful e-commerce store and manage credit card transactions with QuickBooks® Merchant Services.

Sign up for Ecommerce 101: How to Build an Online Store.

I'm in the Top 11 Posters

An interesting fact I discovered today on our forums is that I am in the top 20 posters. In fact, I'm 11^th in total number of posts. Also interesting is the fact that besides one client, I'm the only member of this top group that has been active in the last month. See the Member List for more details.

E-Commerce Pro v7.0 Press Release

I can deliver a press release on my blog right?

Premier Online Solutions Provider Network Solutions® Releases E-Commerce Pro v7.0 Web Site Creator Package

Network Solutions makes conducting online business easier with the release of its latest E-Commerce Pro Website Creator package. A number of advancements have been integrated into the new version of the award-winning e-commerce solution to simplify the task of maintaining an online store.

(PRWEB) – Nearly 10,000 online stores are already powered by Network Solutions e-commerce products, which helped sell over $650 million in products and services during 2006. In order to help even more small businesses set up and run an online store, Network Solutions has just released a new version of its award-winning E-Commerce Pro Web Site Creator package. The new E-Commerce Pro v7.0 Web Site solution is an easy-to-use, one-stop tool that allows users to construct a customized online store, accept and process orders, drive traffic, and increase sales. New features and benefits in v7.0 give online entrepreneurs the power and flexibility to quickly meet their online business needs in a more straightforward and organized way via powerful yet easy to use tools right at their fingertips.

New features that are incorporated into the new E-Commerce Pro v7.0 product include a new set-up checklist that facilitates the process of a store set-up by guiding the user from start to finish. The redesigned control panel user interface makes everything easier to find and use, with a new look and feel to allow for faster, simplified design and launch time. The new point-and-click Web site design editor is easier and more flexible, incorporating click-and-drag options and potential customization of all pages. The Web site design editor gives users the ability to manage and make changes to the site design at any time. Newly integrated Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tools can help the site get higher rankings on the major search engines, thanks to a built-in sitemap and search engine friendly URLs for product and category pages.

The release of the Network Solutions® E-Commerce Pro v7.0 software is designed to help small businesses succeed online, says Jeff Zimmerman, Vice President of Product Management at Network Solutions. New features added to our already award-winning E-Commerce Web Site package make it as easy as possible for our customers to set up their online business and manage it from day one with ease.

This award-winning e-commerce solution is designed for small business owners who want a fully customizable site design, as well as the ability to boost sales with incentives such as promotions, coupons and discounts. Network Solutions new Pro E-Commerce Web Site package is available at $99.95 a month with a $99 one-time set-up fee. To speak to a customer service representative for more information, please call 1-888-252-3266.

About Network Solutions:

Network Solutions® is a leading provider of e-commerce Web site hosting with an all-encompassing suite of products for small businesses, including domain, e-commerce, free hosting, name registration, Web promotion and other Internet solutions and strategies. With 28 years in the Web services industry, Network Solutions is committed to providing businesses simple and cost-effective web-based solutions. For more information on business to consumer and business to business e-commerce solutions, visit NetworkSolutions.com.

Technical Support III: Job Title

I was just informed earlier today that I am the only member of the company that is a Technical Support III. Job titles aren't really all that important to me. In my past years at this company I went through the ranks of technical support at about the same time they were actually adding ranks.

I was pretty sure that I was the only tech support team member at level III that worked here in Belleville. But as it turns out, I'm a bit of an odd ball in that I'm the only level III in all of Network Solutions. That seems a bit weird. The reason that this happens is largely that there is a career path that most follow from Tech Support I to Tech Support II and then from there jump off to either a leadership position or to another department like Design, QA or Development.

Even though I started in this department the very first week there was in-house technical support department formed, I don't feel like I should get any sort of special treatment. And I am certainly very happy doing what I'm doing in my current role. It's just weird.

Job titles are weird. End of story.

Milestone: 250,000 Tickets

Today was a milestone for the technical support department. We have been using one system for ticket support since about 2004 or so. The front end area that our clients see is located at MyMonsterCommerce. We reached the two-hundred and fifty-thousandth ticket today. This is a neat figure from my perspective as I was there for ticket number one in this system. In fact, I recall the system we used before that though it's name escapes me. Back then, we just called it "molasses" because that's how fast it went.

Our current system has served us well for many years, but what's most important about this milestone is that it is one quarter of a million phone calls and customer service problems solved by the best e-commerce support team in the industry.

Shopping Cart Software by MonsterCommerce - Ecommerce Solutions

Several great things have happened in the last 24 hours or so that I feel like celebrating.

• First, a new version of our pro e-commerce software has been released, sometimes called version 7.0 Pro. As discussed on the forums, current clients on v4.6 will not be updated to the new version until after the holidays and we are sure that we have a stable and fully tested upgrade/migration script.
• Second, a big update of our standard e-commerce software has been applied, bringing this version more in line with our pro version, albeit still with only the standard features. This version was considered v5.0, but the new version will be called v7.0 Standard.
• Thirdly, to keep pace with the new look and feel of these new programs, our home page has been updated graphically and with more information relating to the new software.

Haven't seen our home page in a while? Stop by at MonsterCommerce.com. You can see screen shots as well as a graphical demo.

W3C Markup Validator

One quick notable thing I like about the new version of our software coming out soon (THIS WEEKEND!) is that it is much more W3C compliant. Just now, I did a form upload of my test site's home page HTML output and it only generated 3 errors! Visit the W3C Markup Validator.

There are a lot of other great things too, but this is something that appeals to the perfectionist in me.

Remote Scripting Examples

These remote scripting demonstrations can be viewed in more detail on this MonsterCommerce QuickGuide: Using Remote Scripting

Simple Link Method

This link opens in a new window (using target="_blank"):
Add a Mini RC Police Car from Mini-RC-Cars.net.

This link opens in the same window:
Add a Mini RC Police Car from Mini-RC-Cars.net.

MonsterCommerce Softball Game

DCP_0397 - MonsterCommerce Softball Game
Originally uploaded by ArcoJedi

The gang at the office here are some sports nuts, and a lot of them play more sports than you can shake a trophy at. There are even times when they organize a decent team. Here is one of several pictures I took at a softball game in summer of 2003.

See more photos that I've tagged 'MonsterCommerce'.

MonsterCommerce Helps "Neighbors for Renewal"

The following was featured in an internal company wide announcement.

Several employees of the Network Solutions Belleville office have been donating their Saturday mornings to help Neighbors for Renewal in Belleville, a not-for-profit corporation that acquires homes that are in severe disrepair, rehabilitates them using (primarily) volunteer labor, and then makes those homes available for sale at a reduced price to low income qualified families.

The Belleville team of volunteers is currently working every Saturday morning from 9am to 11am rehabbing a home that was built in the early 1800's. The house, when complete, will be used as a community-wide food pantry for the Belleville community. Once this project is complete, the team of volunteers will begin work on another house which will be used by Belleville High School District 201 as a transition house to teach housekeeping skills to autistic and learning impaired students so that they may live independently.

Collectibles and Toys - Star Wars

In case I didn't mention it, I'm a big Star Wars fan. Today, I got a chance to combine my love of Star Wars with my day-to-day job. A team member in the Signature Support department was trying to help a client that was expanding into a line of Star Wars products in an interesting way. The client is listing products for a supplier of Star Wars merchandise, but is not selling them directly. The intent was for the products to be listed normal in a new category on the site, but each would actually link from the product detail page to the affiliate site.

The result would be products listed in this category and that would load in searches but after viewing the details, the only choice to purchase the product would be to click a link to the other site. The outgoing link would have a referral ID that would be tracked with visitors or orders and our client would get the bonus.

Our software is not exactly set up for this specifically, but we came up with a good workaround by using the Call for Price feature. This allows for the ADD TO CART image to be hidden along with the price and replaced by the message in the product editor. Well, as it turns out this message field is not just a text-input box, but can accept limited HTML. We set up each of the products with Call for Price enabled and the message had an HTML link to the product page at the affiliate site with the proper referral ID. The result was simple and could be accomplished quickly.

To check it out, go to TVLegacy.com - Collectibles and Toys - Star Wars.

Update (2008-05-07): It appears that this client's domain name no longer points at the site. Oh well, that's the way the internet cookie crumbles.

MonsterCommerce | eCartReviews

Here is an independent blog and forum site with reviews and information about e-commerce software like ours. I've linked to the blog category referencing MonsterCommerce | eCartReviews.

RSS Feed Trends » MonsterCommerce

A news blog named RSS Feed Trends has a category of posts about creating RSS feeds for your e-commerce storefront, including .

The idea of the company that has created this blog is for users who can't publish or host an RSS feed on their own e-commerce site, or don't want to publish it manually. You pay them a small monthly fee to host and maintain your feed. You set up a sub-domain to point to their servers which will load your feed. You are in control of what goes into the feed, of course.

I personally think a better (free) option might be FeedBurner. You can create an account and get great statistics and tools related to any and all of the feeds you publish. You can combine feeds from more than one source and it will all be part of your new feed. FeedBurner does not offer sub-domains for free, but they do have a paid service which will allow you the same functionality.

Update: FeedBurner now allows you to use a sub-domain on your feed for free! They were also purchased by Google, so if that's not an endorsement...