BARRIE, Ontario, Sept. 18, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- 1ShoppingCart, the online shopping cart and marketing application services provider, today releases the next generation of its eCommerce platform. 1ShoppingCart's team of developers spent 16 months rebuilding from scratch the company's already-successful platform, using the most advanced technologies available and drawing upon extensive customer feedback.
"Since we launched the company in 1999 the Internet has come a long way," said Rob Bell, CEO & President of 1ShoppingCart. "With the Internet's evolution our clients' needs were changing. We wanted to respond to those needs."
1ShoppingCart's eCommerce platform includes everything a company needs to do business online including a shopping cart complete with an order-taking system, credit card acceptance, eBook delivery system, integrated autoresponders (automatic email response systems), an affiliate sales program, ad-tracking software and other inclusive Internet marketing tools. Four different packages are available to meet customers' needs, ranging from a basic "autoresponder package" to the company's full-featured "professional package."
"We really had an opportunity to leap-frog our competition with this release by listening to our customers, implementing their feedback and rewriting the entire core application from the ground up using the most sophisticated security technologies," Bell said.
Because technology changes so fast, software developers must continually update their technology. These updates, however, are often made to their existing -- and increasingly "old" -- systems. In contrast, 1ShoppingCart's eCommerce platform is entirely new, created with the most advanced, efficient and fastest technology.
The new platform features the highest level of security available today, including extremely secure hardware and multiple security layers for online transactions. The platform hardware is certified for the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard, created by Visa and MasterCard and endorsed by every major credit card provider operating in the U.S. It is also compliant with Visa's Cardholder Information Security Program (CISP).
Transaction security features include image verification, which presents a picture to users to verify (for example, of wavy text), preventing an automated computer program from testing stolen credit card numbers. In addition, the new platform enables "Hacker Safe" by ScanAlert, "Verified by Visa," and "MasterCard SecureCode," functionality. These capabilities prevent unauthorized use of online shoppers' credit cards.
"Online merchants are faced with significant costs due to fraud," Bell said. "Our new platform aims to prevent these costs and build a high-level of confidence in our merchants' shopping cart systems."
In addition to its security features, 1ShoppingCart's new eCommerce platform boasts:
* A greater than 20% reported reduction in shopping cart abandonment rates * Modern, usability-proven shopping cart design, which minimizes "abandonment" by users * Custom analytics and business reporting * Enhanced coupon functionality * Comprehensive up-sell features * Enhanced merchandising functionality * Advanced PayPal integration * Improved shipping control * Seamless payment process
Bart Smith of TheMarketingMan.com, a 1ShoppingCart customer, participated in a "beta" trial of the new eCommerce platform. "The new system works great," Smith said. "We're very impressed with the new features, especially the new coupon module."
Peter Heming, Vice President of 1ShoppingCart, said the company has already successfully migrated up to 10% of its merchant base and new customers have been signing up on the new platform since July; the remainder of its 15,000 customers will be moved to the new platform by the end of the year. "Every effort has been made to make the transition completely seamless, with no disruptions to our customers' daily business," Heming said. "The only noticeable difference for customers will be added features, more robust capabilities and faster, more secure technology."
For more information about 1ShoppingCart, visit www.1ShoppingCart.com or call 1-888-255-6230.
About 1ShoppingCart
1ShoppingCart is one of the world's leading providers of Internet marketing, eCommerce/eBusiness and shopping cart software solutions. As an application service provider, 1ShoppingCart enables small, medium and enterprise organizations to "Promote, Sell and Grow" their businesses online. Founded in 1999 to bring advanced business capabilities to web-based merchants, 1ShoppingCart is based in Barrie, Ontario and is a Website Pros brand.
About Website Pros, Inc.
Website Pros, Inc. (Nasdaq:WSPI) is a leading provider of Do-It-For-Me website building tools, Internet marketing, lead generation and technology solutions that enable businesses to maintain an effective Internet presence. The company offers a full range of Web services, including website design and publishing, Internet marketing and advertising, search engine optimization, lead generation, home contractor specific leads and shopping cart solutions, meeting the needs of a business anywhere along its lifecycle -- from those just establishing a Web presence to more sophisticated online eCommerce sites. For more information on the company, please visit http://www.websitepros.com or call 1-800-GETSITE.
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