Here is an interesting snippet from a recent Kiplinger Letter, that talks about e-commerce and growing Internet sales. These figures do not surprise us, as we have seen many of our client’s website sales grow significantly over the past several years. However the statistics actually pan out, one thing is for sure, there is a very bright future for online retailers and e-commerce!

“Online retail sales will soar 16% in 2008 to about $200 billion. Then growth will slow, leveling off at 10% per year by 2012. The number of shoppers will rise only 2% a year, but they’ll buy more… some, much more. Half of online shoppers account for two-thirds of sales.

Big gainers in the next few years: Luxury goods, such as jewelry. Competition will get tougher as retailers dress up Web sites to improve presentation and create a distinctive shopping experience. More will feature demonstration videos and three-dimensional photos.

One way to boost your online sales: Focus on abandoned carts. It’s a big issue for retailers that do a good job of luring customers and getting them to fill their carts but then fail to complete the sale.

Fewer than 3% of online shoppers actually buy when they visit. The majority put products into their carts but then leave them there…”

August Ash (AAI) is honored by the recent recognition from Minnov8 for its recent launches of Magento powered e-commerce websites. An article was posted last week on the Minnov8 website, as well as the MinnPost website, commending AAI for its innovation and early adoption of this innovative new software.

Magento is an open-source e-commerce solution that offers unprecedented flexibility and control for web development companies. The AAI team has been following Magento’s development since early beta and is the first known company in Minnesota to launch websites using this new e-commerce tool. Two such websites that have been recently launched are for LDF Silk out of Dallas, TX, and freshvac, a St. Louis Park company. AAI has a number of additional projects currently in development using Magento, and is also in the process of developing several custom Magento extensions.

This month marks August Ash’s tenth year in business. During these ten years, August Ash has grown from a one employee company to a thirteen employee company consisting of positions in sales, marketing, management, customer relations, and of course, web design and web development. With 240 active client relationships today, we look forward to continuing to serve customers in the Minneapolis area and beyond with consistent, thoughtful service; quality, custom web designs; and innovative web solutions.

We’re currently looking to add to our professional, talented team of designers and developers. See our employment page for current opportunities with August Ash.

Whether you’re looking to work for us or with us - we’d love to hear from you!

Are the new features some search engines are announcing enough to win over loyal searchers from trusted engines?

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Many of us today can’t imagine our lives without the Internet – for better or for worse. Some of us - present company included - literally make a living through the Internet, whether that be through web design and marketing or online sales. Sometimes, though, we’d do anything just to have a day with no email, online news, or instant messaging.

Seeing so many people chained to their laptops and blackberries, it can seem hard to imagine a society more addicted to the Internet than our own – but clearly, South Korea is in the lead.

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August Ash enters its 9th year of business.