WEBSITE DESIGN : FEATURED SITE : PROMISE CHECKS

Learning what e-commerce is all about
Promise Checks, the largest Christian check company on the Internet, recently teamed up with Internet Chicago in hopes of increasing their already successful website's profitability. They were in search of not only an updated look for the site (www.promisechecks.com), but also wanted to create ease-of-use in their shopping experience. This includes not only making it easier to select products, such as personal checks, business checks and address labels, but also making the ordering process as user-friendly as possible.

First things first
The homepage design was, as it is for all sites, an important piece in the creation of the new site. The goal was to give many of the navigational options upfront, without making a page that would completely overwhelm the shopper. If you make someone have to click multiple times before they can even get to the product section, the site becomes useless. You will lose interest and people will quickly go elsewhere. So what was the design solution? Give the shoppers a one-click entry into the different product categories, as well as a sneak peek as to what they might find after they click. We also wanted to keep the images on the homepage to a minimum in order to increase download speed but still keeping the look of the site dynamic and attractive. The design solution for this was to use a balance of smaller images as well as colorful text and text boxes.

It all works out in the end
The other important aspect of the site is hidden in the backend of the site. To explain it simply, this is where the wheels are turning in order to make the site work flawlessly. How is this done? By creating not only ease-of-use for the shopper, but also giving them options such as the "Build-a-Check" feature which lets you preview what your check will look like before you order. Just consider it our version of, "trying it on" before you buy it, something which is normally lacking in the online shopping experience. The Build-a-Check feature is completely unique to Promise Checks as they are the only check company with this feature! There are also features in the order process which help the shopper to "double-check" their entries in order to ensure that they have entered their information correctly, an important feature when ordering both business and personal checks. Another handy tool found on the new site is the "Check Minder" function which gives customers the option of picking a date in the future to have an automatic e-mail reminder sent to notify them that it's time to reorder their checks.

Behind the scenes
When Promise Checks first approached Internet Chicago, we were presented with a working but inefficient site that did not allow the company to see the real rewards of the Internet. Promise Checks was manually checking and processing orders, dealing with site crashes and the data they received was less than reliable.

Internet Chicago created a completely new SQL database and administration area that allows processing of orders, automated downloading of orders to their vendors and significant reporting functions. The improved operational functionality and backend mean less overhead and allow for true automation and enhanced efficiencies. Due to these enhancements, Promise Checks has been able to handle more than double their previous volume with the same staff levels. Now that's Enhanced Profitability!

Now, about that enhanced profitability
In the short time that the newly redesigned site has been online, the site has done incredibly well. Not only have the profits increased, but the traffic to the site has been staying longer during their visits, i.e. they are exploring the site further than one or two clicks. And as anyone with a website knows... this is a good thing. Keeping the attention of your audience is either the life or death of a website.

Both Promise Checks and Internet Chicago are ecstatic as to the success of the site and will continue to enhance the site in the future.

Our sales and design departments look forward to giving you the web presence that you have been looking for. Whether it's your first time on the web, or if you are in need of an update to your current website, please call or e-mail us today! (630) 582-0204; e-mail: sales@internetchicago.com. We look forward to hearing from you!