ShopSite Quickstart Guide: Introduction

An Introduction to the ShopSite Manager Software

Welcome to the ShopSite Quickstart guide. Whether you have recently purchased ShopSite Manager or are considering the purchase, this guide will take you through the steps of setting up a store. Please read this document carefully--it will help you save precious time in setting up and maintaining your web site.

Rather than printing out this document, please try to read it online. It contains graphics and hypertext links, allowing you to look up more information about specific terms and concepts discussed in this document by clicking on the highlighted word.

Need more info on installing ShopSite Manager?

Setting up a new ShopSite store is easy and fast. Once you have the software installed on your own server or virtual server, you can set up an online store easily using only a web browser (like Netscape). We've tried to make the ShopSite interface very intuitive, so it is theoretically possible to plunge right in and start building, but we've developed this resource to walk you through the hard parts and eliminate the trial and error process. It will take you through the creation of a hypothetical store.

In our online Help Resources, you will find a searchable help archive, an index of help topics, and links to resources on HTML, graphics, and marketing. There are also answers to some common questions regarding the setup of a ShopSite store. Please refer to these resources before emailing for technical support.

Tina Tortellini is the owner of Tina's Toys, a small toy shop. After listening to the success stories from her brother, Bruno (of Bruno's Bakery), she's ready to move into a global marketplace. She has run a successful mail order business for several years, but the cost and effort of maintaining a mailing list and printing a catalog eats into her profits. She already knows what marketing strategies have worked and thinks it will benefit her in the long run to use the same techniques to sell her wares online. She is also ready to experiment with new strategies that will take advantage of the internet's strengths: the ability to make frequent changes to her store's appearance and content, the power of online advertising, and maintaining regular contact with her customers via email.