The IndieCommunication e-newsletter for February 22 offers a reminder about securing your website, details about a shipping rate increase, and a tip of the week.

Why Doesn’t Google Chrome Like Your Website?

As noted in the last IndieCommunication e-newsletter [4], the Google Chrome web browser is going to start penalizing websites that are not serving secure content. Other web browsers will probably follow. If your site is not secure by July 2018, your customers are going to get a nasty warning on their sceen. This is an extremely bad experience for people who shop online. If the web addresses (URLs) for ALL of the pages on your website are not displaying “https,” the IndieCommerce team can help you convert your site to “https everywhere.” To get started, e-mail [email protected] [5] and put “https everywhere” in the subject line. Don’t wait until the last minute — e-mail today.

Ingram Shipping Rate Increase for UPS Ground and Media Mail

These shipping rate increases became effective February 22, 2018, and reflect new pricing for orders sent to Ingram from your IndieCommerce or IndieLite websites using Consumer Direct Fulfillment (CDF). Only “Media Mail” and “UPS Ground” are showing a slight increase.

Do You Use a Freelance Designer or Developer for Your Website?

If your store uses freelancers to do custom design or development work on your IndieCommerce website and you are willing to share your experience with the IndieCommerce team, e-mail IndieCommerce Director Phil Davies [6] with your contact info, the name of the company or individuals you’ve worked with, why you hired a freelancer, and a brief outline of your experience. 
 
Tip of the Week

Believe it or not, spring will come! People are going to abandon their laptops and desktops and roam free in the outside world with their cell phones. Is your website ready? Make sure your IndieCommerce site is using a mobile-friendly, responsive theme. Not sure if your site is responsive? Check it out on your cell phone or drop the IndieCommerce team an e-mail at [email protected] [5].

Booksellers are encouraged to send their thoughts, questions, or suggestions via e-mail to IndieCommerce staff [7] at any time.

Past editions of IndieCommunication are available on the IndieCommerce Updates page on BookWeb.org [8].