Cool mornings and early sunsets say it loud and clear: fall is here.
For the internet retailer, October is the time to plan how to “drive” the thoughts of consumers from traffic jams, packed malls and out-of-stock merchandise to the quiet, stress-free comforts of their personal computers, at home and surrounded by the sounds of Christmas music near a crackling fireplace with the scent of cinnamon in the air.
By the way, the official countdown is on… 56 working days until Christmas. And only 34 days until November 23, the Friday after Thanksgiving…the day when offline and online wallets open…and stay that way until December 24. 
It‚Äôs tempting to consider a site rebuild, but how practical is that idea—especially if you expect to be done before November 23?¬†
However, focusing on improving a few key areas can make a major difference to your online presence. Taking just a few hours with your site now can mean a major difference to your conversion rates in November and December. 
So, spend an hour on your site with this list before your potential customers run through it with theirs. Let’s go S*H*O*P*P*I*N*G*!
- Survey-ask, then listen. Have you talked to your customers lately? Do you know what they want? Do you carry it?  Where else have they gone and why did they choose you?  How did they find you?
- Home-where it all starts–literally.¬† Does your home page say who you are?¬† Does it have an area that draws your eye?¬† Is it easy to know where to go to find products?¬† Is everything up to date?¬†
- Orders- the bottom line.  Is your order fulfillment ready for the rush?  Is the add-to-cart process clear?  Do your customers trust your site enough to push the “checkout” button?  Do they know shipping rates, taxes and final cost before they enter their payment method?
- Product- what pays the bills. Do you have enough product in inventory?  Have you planned any sales or specials?  Are they tagged properly for search engines?  Can you easily manage your product in data sheets?
- Presentation- consistency, consistency, consistency.  How well does your site flow from section page to detail page?  Are your product displays creative, innovative, fresh? Can you find what you’re looking for? Can you find it fast? Is finding products fun? Does your shopping cart feel like your site?
- Inspection- verified confidence.  Do all your links work?  Do any non-secure warnings pop-up?  Can you find a product, place it in your cart and checkout without being misdirected or confused?
- Numbers- the story behind the pictures. Are you really clear about what your analytic package tells you? Do you have an analytics package to help you make sense of this holiday’s data in January? Quick—what’s your most viewed page, average order size, and average number of pages viewed. 
- GYM- not just for humans anymore.  What’s your site’s rank on Google, Yahoo! and MSN searches?  What’s your plan for improving or maintaining that ranking?
Make an improvements list and rank by order of importance—focusing first on what’s directly in the shopper’s way—your home page, your products, and the order process.  Next we suggest surveys and going to the GYM.
Still not sure where to start? Want to know how fast and quick a site ‚Äúpick-me-up‚Äù could be? Contact FastPivot for information about our holiday site upgrade services–available until Nov. 1 (Note: Offer available to existing Yahoo! Stores only.)
