If we haven't answered your question below, please contact us. Thanks for visiting GSS.






SHOPPER FAQ'S

Q.  What is Girl Shop Spot?

A.  Girl Shop Spot is designed for women who don’t have time or energy to search in circles for the products and services they need or want. This is where they can find sources for everything from novel home décor including original art, crafts, clothes and accessories, to linens and furniture, baby care and clothing items. The site is where they can locate fitness coaches, cosmetic dentists and surgeons, nutritionists and other services…all of which may be as close as their local neighborhood. It is where home parties can be promoted or booked. GirlShopSpot.com provides the information about and access to these businesses along with the platform for sales and marketing, while the transactions take place directly with the vendors or service providers.

About GirlShopSpot.com
Girl Shop Spot is an online shopping resource for today’s modern woman created by a woman who, like many others, is a businessperson, wife, and mother. The site is designed to be an online one-stop resource for one-of-a-kind finds, boutiques and specialty stores, and fun local shops and services that are normally hard to find. Most importantly, the site promotes the growth of small businesses by providing a well-designed, easy-to-use, technically sound, and affordable online marketing platform. GSS is a member of the Better Business Bureau.

Q.  What is a "Shop Spot?"

A.  "Shop Spot" is part of the name given to this site to describe what this site is all about. Shop Spots were created for you to discover. You can share your fab life with others by creating your own Shop Spot to help support small business success and to help other women discover what they've been missing! If there's a product, person, service, or place that you want everyone to hear about, spread the word and create a Shop Spot. Shop Spots are created for the convenience and enjoyment of discovering and introducing the best of the best to all women shoppers!

Q.  What will I gain from using this site?

A.   Discover one-of-a-kind finds, original designs, unique products and services, meet sellers, view other shoppers discoveries, comment, and create your own reviews. You can search by category and location to easily find what you're looking for. Another great feature is finding loads of information, photos, and must haves, so you don't have to guess what it's like before you buy, order, or visit.

The sellers on this site don't have to pay much to advertise with us like many internet companies charge in advertising fees. Likewise, owners can charge much less and create a unique shopping experience with loads of images and sales opportunities just for you. You can simply have fun discovering versus getting frustrated and bored searching through countless pages on the Internet. With loads of unique finds, savings, and fun, you can gain a great shopping experience.

Q.  What is Commerce by Community™ and what does it mean for me?

A.   We are reinforcing small business support through discovery by:

1) Allowing women and sellers to share their fab life and fab finds to help support small business success and to help other women discover what they've been missing!

2) Allowing business owners to connect with their shoppers, shoppers to connect with other shoppers, and shoppers to connect with business owners. That's a mouth full. Girl Shop Spot provides many opportunities for everyone to connect.

Q.  Do I have to register to use this site?

A.  Registration is not required. We encourage shoppers to register to do the following:

1) Discover and share your fab life.

2) Comment, ask, and reply.

3) Get updates on what shops hot.

4) Shop unique finds.

5) Support small business success.

6) Get advice from the experts.

6) Have fun discovering cool places.

6) Shop great sales and specials.

To begin shopping simply click on the desired category or location you would like to search or type the keyword/local you are searching for.

To share your fab life, after registration you may click "Begin Shop Spot Creation." You will also be immediately e-mailed a password to sign-in anytime.

fyi:  To use the Shop Talk function on each Shop Spot page you will be asked to register. If you wish not to become a member of Girl Shop Spot by registering simply click post anonymously to create a post. At any rate, we can assure you that your privacy is very important to us.

Q.  Does it cost to use this site?

A.  No. It does not cost you, the shopper, anything to use this site. The product owners and businesses can pay to advertise on this site.

Q.  How do I go about buying a product or scheduling a service?

A.  You can contact the seller/business directly by phone, visit, or if the seller included their e-mail, website, or must have links. Pricing, hours, location, and specials for each Shop Spot may also be offered by the seller.

Q.  How do I know the products and/or services advertised on this site are legit?

A.  Unfortunately we cannot screen all of the small businesses, products, and services found on this site. You can ask the people and businesses of this site for recommendations and references if you would like reassurance of a business, service, or product. Recommendations and references may be given through this site and found on any Shop Spot page. We do not guarantee any information given through this site. The information given is operated by the content owners and members of this site.

Q.  What is Shop Talk?

A.  Shop Talk is where you can ask questions and get answers directly from Shop Spot sellers and/or other shoppers.

If you create a Shop Spot, you can manage your own Shop Talk. Create new topics, blog about your finds or business, share exciting ideas; be creative with how you use it. Stay connected by adding topics, asking and answering questions. Join in on other Shop Talks.

Anyone who contributes to a specific thread of your Shop Talk topic will receive instant messaging that a new post has been made from that thread, so Shop Talk gives you a hand-free way to keep conversations rolling. You can also manage your Shop Talk's discussion threads by deciding which topic threads you want to showcase on your Shop Spot page under Shop Talk Manager.


ADVERTISER FAQ'S

Q.  Why should I advertise on a user friendly, content specific web site, like women's shopping?

A.  Most women like to research and make buying decisions online. The Internet is also in dire need of more content specific, niche sites. People, products, and companies tend to get lost within the large search engines. If you advertise on a site that combines both a local and category search mechanism within a niche specific site, you will receive more qualified and relevant leads.

Shopping is second nature for many women, and Girl Shop Spot was created to make online shopping a more natural and enjoyable experience. It's a user friendly site that was developed with the customer in mind. Many women like to shop and find what they are looking for on the web before making buying decisions, scheduling services, or visiting the nearest shop. Here you can advertise your products, services, and businesses on a user friendly, content specific site. A much better solution for customers, than the generalized ads that sell for so much today. What better way to be in the spotlight and reach millions of customers at a fraction of the cost that it would take to advertise to the same number of customers by other forms of marketing and advertising.

Q.  What will I gain from using this site?

A.  Our team of experts has built a web site that meets shoppers' needs while making it easy for you to generate leads through our Shop Spot administration pages. We ensure you an easy list process, clean presentation, wonderful customer service, and a great online marketing presence that once you join, you’ll never want to leave! We are extremely cost effective for anyone who wants to reach thousands of women shopping at an affordable price. This means big savings to you and a chance to grow your business to a level you've dreamed of!

This site is not only for the small business to gain exposure and sales momentum; it's for the entrepreneur, the stay at home mom, the artist, and crafter. It's for the business person who needs the chance to be seen, heard, and proven with all the rest.

Q.  As an advertiser, how can I benfit from Commerce by Community™?

A.  The community supports their local businesses through Girl Shop Spot and all the other businesses within GSS. Most importantly, our Commerce by Community reinforces smoother and better communications directly between buyer and seller. An important feature that is lacking in the typical e-commerce world. More and more consumers are leaving traditional e-commerce sites for superior one-on-one communications and customer service that GSS's Commerce by Community™ can bring.

Girl Shop Spot provides many opportunities for the buyer to connect with the seller and vice versa. While interacting directly, sellers have the opportunity to provide the superior service we are all seeking today. Unlike retail or wholesale selling or even other online selling, sellers can also receive valuable feedback to their products and services. In fact this data becomes invaluable for product/service development, planning/logistics for shipping, competitive and marketplace analysis, as well as relationship building and referrals. It's "virtually" close-loop business analysis in real time. GSS's Commerce by Community™ is offering a wealth of opportunities and information that makes both seller and consumer more intelligent...all the while, and just as importantly, making the entire experience enjoyable.

For many small businesses it's very costly to add a user control for chatting and connecting with their buyers. Even with contact information, many consumers do not have the time to find the “contact us” page to ask questions. The personalization simply is not available to reinforce a conversation between buyer and seller. Girl Shop Spot reinforces the owners to connect with their customers. We provide many opportunities for the buyer to connect with the seller and vice versa. Girl Shop Spot provides a robust online marketing for e-commerce and brick-and-mortar businesses seeking a direct connection with their customers through many options and opportunities the site provides, at highly affordable rates. Visit our Commerce by Community page to learn more.

Q.  How do I get started to advertise my product, services, or business?

A.  Simply click on the "Member's Registration" link also found on the very top right corner of this site to begin registering as a new advertiser. After registration you may click "Begin Shop Spot Creation." You will also be immediately e-mailed a password to sign-in anytime. You can learn more about your Shop Spot on the Why GSS page.

Q.  Can I get started with the Shop Spot page set-up and finish another time?

A.  Yes. We built this site for both our sellers and shoppers. That's why it's site is so convenient for you. Simply register yourself or company and follow four quick steps that include uploading your business name and description, image manager to upload photos, contact information, and you're ready to click the "Publish Shop Spot" button. Your Shop Spot page will be live and instantly shown to thousands on the web who are shopping to find you. If you decide to finish at another time just be sure to click "save" for the pages you worked on. Sign-in anytime to complete your page set-up. There are many other tools to set-up once your page is published.

Q.  My business is a listed Shop Spot by another user and I wish to further advertise, own, and measure an account. How do I go about doing this?

A.  All that is needed is for you to contact us and we will transfer the account over to your name after you register to create an account. From there you will be able to create your ad further, manage, and measure your account. The person who uploaded your account will receive a friendly thank you from us. You will also at this time have a chance to thank the person who has fallen in love with your business and spread the word about their fab find.

Q.  What are the Sales/Specials features?

A.  The GSS Sales and Specials Coupon features are additional ads created by you that are found on your Shop Spot page and under the "Sales" pages of this site. By creating sales and specials promotions, you create hype and extra exposure for your business. If you know when you plan to run your sales ads, just set them up under the heading "Advanced Settings." These ads will run automatically for the dates and period of time you selected.

Q.  What is Pay-Per-InteractionTM?

A.  It's a new measurement tool and pay model all in one that allows you to measure specific ad activity, where you only pay for the performance of that ad, which means it's guaranteed to be free until shoppers show real interest. You only pay when we perform! You can't find this kind of measurement or pay model in any other form of advertising. Check out the hottest details on our Advertise page.

Q.  How do I pay to advertise and how much does it cost?

A.  We only get paid when we perform by getting you qualified leads. After you set-up the basics of your listing, you will be asked for your credit card information in order to begin set-up for some of the important measurement tools. Your credit card is charged ONLY when a specific interaction has been made. The statistics of these interactions and their totals will be found under the link "Interaction Report" under your administration pages. At the end of each month your total will be reflected and charged to your credit card account. A monthly interteraction summary report and totals will be e-mailed to you.

Not all interactions cost, but all can be measured. Pricing starts for as little as $0.02. A detailed breakdown can be found on the advertise or pricing page.

Each paid interaction can be set at a maximum amount that you choose. We have no minimums you have to set. When all your paid interactions have exceeded your budgeted amount for each month, your Shop Spot will become a basic listing until a new month has been started. If your budget has run out for any of your interactions for that month, you may increase them at any time.

Q.  What types of things will be displayed on my Shop Spot web page?

A.  Everything a person would need to discover about you and your business will be displayed. Your name or company name, brief description of what you do or a text advertisement that works well for your business. You will be able to upload photos of what you are selling, whether it's a person, product, service or place. We find customers love pictures that help them gain a great shopping experience online. Make the photos tell the story of what they will expect shopping with you, visiting you, dining with you, ordering from you. If you're selling products you can display photos of your best selling products or current sale items and run a sales/specials ad. If you're selling a service they need, show pictures of what they can expect and gain from using your services. You will be able to provide a link to your web site, phone number, e-mail, address, directions, business hours, and pricing. They can also e-mail their friends their fab finds. You can also manage you own micro blog under Shop Talk to discuss new topics and share news about your business.

Shoppers will be able to visit or contact you directly. You will have your own Girl Shop Spot URL to use on other forms of advertising as well. Video marketing is also available for your Shop Spot. Learn more on how to use video marketing to benefit your business.

Your Shop Spot page will not only represent your business as a whole, but can also represent individual products or services you sell. Under the "Must Haves" section, you can display up to 18 individual items that you would like to sell to shoppers. This is your push marketing tactic. You may reach shoppers by any catagories you select for your Shop Spot and by individual products or services that are also subcategorized in the search that will bring them to your Shop Spot page. Which is your pull marketing tactic, where you bring them to your Shop Spot and they find what they are looking for. (The "Must Haves" link directly to buy or contact you and alternate on the home page with other sellers.)

Q.  What is a featured advertisement?

A.  If you decide to be a Girl Shop Spot Featured Advertiser, you will have the opportunity to impress all those shoppers that don't like to shop around and are prepared to make impulse decisions. You'll get a chance to make that first impression sooner than other Shop Spots. Your business may also have the opportunity to be featured on Girl Shop Spot's Blog and Newsletter.

A Featured Advertisement currently costs $100.00 for 6 months or $175.00 for 1 year and will alternate with other featured advertisements on the home page and on search results relevant to each search.

Q.  How do I become a featured advertiser?

A.  During your registration process under "Shop Spot Management" the last step is "Feature/Publish Shop Spot." On this page simply select whether you choose to be a Featured Advertisement. You may choose to become a Featured Advertiser anytime. Please Contact Us for further questions concerning Featured Advertising and other GSS advertising opportunities.


REGISTERED ADVERTISER FAQ'S

Q.  How do I upload photos?

A.  The Image Manager will let you browse your files. After selecting your image, click "Upload New Image." To delete an image, click "Delete."

Q.  How many images can I upload and what are the "Must Haves" images?

A.  There are two sections on your Shop Spot page where you can upload photos. The first section is the introduction of your service, products, or business. This is where you advertise and display photos of what you do, best selling items and products, etc. Here you may display up to 27 images. The second section is where you can display your "Must Haves" photos. This is where you advertise your "Must Haves," best sellers or heavy stocked items. You may display up to 18 "Must Haves" images that will be individually represented in the search results by your subcategories (Must Haves) listed. These Must Haves are your pull marketing tactic to get shoppers to your Shop Spot page. This feature makes GirlShopSpot.com a great shopping resource for customers because the search is very robust for finding the products and services you sell. Please Contact us if you have any questions concerning your page set-up and images. Our customer service is a friendly bunch ready to assist you.

Q.  What types of photos should I display?

A.  Good quality photos that show customers what you're all about. We find customers love pictures that help them gain a great shopping experience online. Make the photos tell the story of what they will expect shopping with you, visiting you, dining with you, ordering from you. If you're selling products you can display photos of your best selling products or current sale items and run a sales/specials ad. If you're selling a service they need, show pictures of what they can expect and gain from using you. If you're taking photos for the first time, stage your products or business before taking them and make sure everything is well lit. Take pictures of your business in operation too. If you're selling products stage them properly on display.

Q.  Why should I upload photos if I am in a service category?

A.  The first impression is a key factor in selling your services. A potential customer will make their decision within seconds of viewing your photos whether or not they are interested in finding out more, visiting, or contacting you. Show customers they need what you have and will experience the lifestyle, treatment, and luxury they are looking for and deserve.

Q.  How can I make changes to my "Shop Spot" web page?

A.  Adding more detail to your Shop Spot" or making changes to an existing "Shop Spot" is quick and easy. First, sign-in to access your Ad Management Pages. Next, just use the "Back" and "Save" buttons or navigate with the menu links to the right of the Shop Spot Management Pages. Your changes will be reflected immediately. If you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Q.  How can I change a photo?

A.  Under "Shop Spot Home," click on the menu link "Image Manager" to the right of the page. Simply select the photo you would like to change and click "Change" to browse and upload a new image.

Q.  Why can't I sign-in?

A.  Passwords are case sensitive. If you forgot your password, enter your user name and zip/postal code used to create your account here and we'll e-mail it to you. If you forgot your user name, enter your e-mail address used to create your GirlShopSpot.com here and we'll e-mail it directly to you.

Q.  While trying to register, I received a message telling me I need cookies. What does this mean?

A.  To sign in to your account, your browser has to be enabled to accept cookies. GirlShopSpot.com uses a temporary cookie to store your username and some other non-sensitive information while you are signed in. When you log out or close you browser, the cookie is deleted from your machine. This is common for most sites that you log into.

Q.  How can I use Shop Talk for my Business?

Shop Talk is not your typical comments section. You won't find it on other social communities and shopping sites. With Shop Talk you own and manage it. Use it as a forum or micro-blog on your Shop Spot page (see definition of micro-blog below). Create new topics, blog about your business, share exciting news and ideas; be creative with how you use it. Stay connected by adding topics, asking and answering questions. Join in on other Shop Talks.

Anyone who contributes to a specific thread of your micro-blog or forum topic will receive instant messaging that a new post has been made from that thread, so Shop Talk gives you a hand-free way to keep conversations rolling. And the best is yet to come. Soon you will also be able to manage your Shop Talk's discussion threads. You’ll get to decide which topic threads you want to showcase on your Shop Spot page under Shop Talk.

To bring Shop Talk full circle, shoppers are also be able to initiate or choose topics, ask questions, and reply within the community.

So share, listen, learn, and prosper through GSS Shop Talk.

Micro-Blog Definition -

"Micro-blogging is a form of blogging that allows users to write brief text updates (usually less than 200 characters) and publish them, either to be viewed by anyone or by a restricted group which can be chosen by the user. These messages can be submitted by a variety of means, including text messaging, instant messaging, email, MP3 or the web. The popular social networking websites Facebook and MySpace also have a micro-blogging feature, called Status Update." From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Q.  How do I enable cookies on my browser?

A.  To enable your browser to accept cookies, determine what browser and version you are using and follow the guide below.

  Mozilla Firefox (1.0 final release and earlier)

  • Go to the "Tools" menu.
  • Select "Options".
  • Select the "Privacy" icon in the left panel.
  • Check the box corresponding to "Allow sites to set cookies".
  • Click "OK" to save changes.
  Netscape 7.1/Mozilla 5.0
  • Select "Preferences" from the Edit menu.
  • Click on the arrow next to "Privacy & Security" in the scrolling window to expand.
  • Under "Privacy & Security", select "Cookies."
  • Select "Enable all cookies".
  • Click "OK".
  Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0+
  • Select "Internet Options" from the Tools menu.
  • Click on the "Privacy" tab.
  • Click the "Default" button (or manually slide the bar down to "Medium") under "Settings".
  • Click "OK".
  Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.x
  • Select "Internet Options" from the Tools menu.
  • Click on the "Security" tab.
  • Click the "Custom Level" button.
  • Scroll down to the "Cookies" section.
  • To enable:
    • Set "Allow cookies that are stored on your computer" to "Enable".
    • Set "Allow per-session cookies" to "Enable".
  • Click "OK".
  Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.x
  • Select "Internet Options" from the View menu.
  • Click on the "Advanced" tab.
  • Scroll down to find "Cookies" within the "Security" section.
  • To enable:
    • Select "Always accept cookies".
  • Click "OK".
  Netscape Communicator 4.x
  • Select "Preferences" from the Edit menu.
  • Find the "Cookies" section in the "Advanced" category.
  • To enable:
    • Select "Accept all cookies" (or "Enable all cookies").
  • Click "OK".

 
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