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Imagine you are opening an online store. You have done research and come to know that shopping cart solutions play an important role. Just like in any physical shops, the shopping cart accompanies a visitor to your website the moment he enters till he checks out. And it does much more than the physical shopping carts. The software makes the really good ecommerce shopping cart do additional jobs. That is why choosing the cart is crucial.

Aware of these factors, you have prepared a checklist of features you want for your shopping cart. But go over the checklist again from the viewpoint of customer service. Your business can grow if you get not only new customers but also repeat business from existing customers. To have your customers keep buying from you, can your shopping cart software help? Yes, it can, by providing additional services to them.

When an existing customer enters your online store, do you provide an option for him to see his previous purchases? If the shopping cart displays his buying history, it certainly makes shopping easier for the customer in selecting his purchases and more importantly, reminding of some items he would like to buy but has forgotten now.

A list of simple features attached to the shopping cart on your online retail site can greatly increase the probability that your customers will come back to buy from you again. Among these are a wish list of items a customer can't buy right now, but would consider purchasing in the future; a list of items that he has looked at but decided not to get on previous visits; and a simple "Thank You" when he completes his transaction.

We all love bargains. It is in the human nature to get more for less. If you happen to have a discount sales on products the customer had bought before, he would certainly like to know about your special offers and your sales will also increase. For these additional services, you just have to visualize yourself as the seller in a 'brick-and-mortar' store, attending to a regular client. Would you not point out to him about discounts or new models available now of products he usually buyed?

You should also keep in touch with your customers outside of your website and a good shopping cart software does precisely that. A confirmatory email of his transaction details should be sent for information and for customer's record purposes. Additionally, you may wish to send e-newsletters announcing new products, festival or clearance sale, special or combo offers.

Another aspect to consider, especially if you sell niche products, is to join hands with other businesses that are complimentary to your line of trade. For example, if you are selling paper flowers online, you can contact vendors of flower vases, ornamental tables or even origami sites and arrange to mutually display each other's carts on the websites. While deciding on the shopping cart software, therefore, it is advisable to look at customer service also.

While setting up an online store, it is very important to consider various shopping cart solutions available in the market, as it plays an important role in building your business. This software makes the really good ecommerce shopping cart do additional jobs, so that your customer's online shopping experience is smooth and he will be motivated to come back for more shopping. The list of features it should provide are personalized shopping history, wish list, details of special offers, mechanism to communicate with customers and easy checkout mechanism etc,. Therefore, it is advisable to consider the customer service as well while deciding on the shopping cart software.