Magento Blog

Gorilla Commerce: A Solution Partner’s Perspective on Magento Developer Certification

2012-02-09T16:05:00-08:00

Magento Solution Partners often play a pivotal role in helping merchants deploy great Magento sites. These companies pride themselves in being the go-to experts on Magento implementations. So it’s no surprise that some of our most forward-thinking Solution Partners have rushed to have their developers take the Magento Developer Certification exam.

Among the partners who are leading the way in terms of having their developers certified is Gorilla Commerce, a Chicago-based agency that already has 4 Magento Certified Developers on staff (including 2 developers certified at the “Developer Plus” level). We sat down with Justin Finnegan, COO of Gorilla, to talk about their business and the importance of Magento Developer Certification.

Magento: Justin, tell us a little about your company and why you get involved with Magento.

Gorilla: Gorilla is an award-winning full-service eCommerce solution provider, offering website design, development, digital strategy and post-launch support to web-only merchants, brand manufacturers and multi-channel retailers. We embraced Magento when it first came to market, because we saw it as an accessible enterprise-class eCommerce solution that is relevant to businesses across a range of sizes and industries.

Magento: What do you see as the keys to your success with Magento?

Gorilla: Once we became a Magento Solution Partner, we put resources in place to fully support that commitment. We created a dedicated Magento Practice that’s aligned along functional areas to oversee every phase of a Magento site build and deployment, including Project Management, Website Design, Frontend and Backend Development, QA, and, more recently, post-launch website support services.

Another factor behind our success is the fact that all of our Magento deployments are handled in-house by full-time Gorilla staff. By not sub-contracting, outsourcing or offshoring our client’s work, we are better able to manage and mitigate project risk and respond rapidly to changing project demands.

Magento: Why did you decide to have your developers take the Magento Developer Certification exam?

Gorilla: When the Magento Developer Certification was launched, we knew immediately that Gorilla would be an active participant in the program. We’ve amassed a wealth of Magento-specific knowledge in our years of working with the platform, and the Magento Developer Certification program is a great way for our developers to establish their Magento expertise in a manner that is both qualitative and quantitative.

Magento: How many Magento Certified Developers do you currently have onboard? How will having these certified developers help your business?

Gorilla: As of today, we have 4 Magento Certified Developers on staff; our goal is to have every Magento developer on staff become certified, so this number will grow in the weeks and months ahead. We feel this will help our business in a number of ways, including:

Demonstrating to clients and prospects our unquestioned expertise in working with Magento
Underscoring our long-term commitment to the Magento platform, and
Attracting additional talented Magento developers to the Gorilla team

Magento: What else would you like our readers to know about Gorilla?

Gorilla: Partnering with Magento has allowed us to work with a variety of great clients and has gone a long way to establishing our expertise in specific areas of ecommerce, including apparel, B2B, luxury and outdoor brand manufacturers. This includes working with great brands like Behr, Movado, Outdoor Research, Frette, Bonobos, Medline Industries, J.C. Penney, Newell Rubbermaid and PrAna, to name a few.

Finally, we’re looking forward to serving as a sponsor of the Imagine Conference this April in Las Vegas.

For more information about Gorilla, visit their page on our Solution Partner portal. For information on how to become a Magento Certified Developer, visit our certification page.

Lax World Scores with Magento: Sales Up 15%, First-Time Order Value Up 20%

2012-02-09T00:32:00-08:00

Lax World is a company that sells gear and goods to lacrosse devotees nationwide. Originally a successful chain of brick-and-mortar stores, Lax World expanded into eCommerce a few years ago, with strong initial results.

In fact, it became clear to Lax World that their existing platform couldn’t keep up with their growth. That’s when their Solution Partner, Groove Commerce, recommended Magento Enterprise as the perfect platform for building a new online store that would reach the entire range of lacrosse enthusiasts.

Lax World was committed to delivering a unique shopping experience to each major customer segment. Groove Commerce embraced this challenge: taking advantage of Magento Enterprise’s flexibility, they built a site that presents different product options, recommendations, and branding based on player position, gender, and even purchasing power.

Now Lax World has a site that makes it easy for every lacrosse fan, athlete, or supporter to find (and buy) just what they’re looking for: since launching the new site, Lax World has experienced a 15% increase in sales and a 20% lift in average order value for first time users. That’s a winning game plan in any sport!

Have a Magento success story you’d like to share? Contact success@magento.com.

SumAll partners with Magento to become a new Gold Industry Partner

2012-02-08T19:16:00-08:00

SumAll offers a new data analytics tool for Magento store owners to use their sales and revenue data to make better decisions and more money.

Stores easily sync up with SumAll's online tool, and within a matter of minutes, real-time information about company revenue history, customer groups, sales patterns, and trajectory can be accessed.

You can answer questions such as:

Are new customers worth more than returning customers?
Which day of the week is the best choice for running a promotional campaign?
How would offering free shipping affect your bottom line?

You will never miss a major shift in your numbers again!

Best of all, SumAll presents all of your information in live, easy-to-read charts, which means no more messy Excel spreadsheets or reports.

Some of their key features include:

Actionable insights: Use your data as a roadmap for making better decisions about what to do next. Predict your future earnings, based on data patterns of your past.

Identify Patterns: Use filters to drill down deep into your sales data to uncover trends and patterns.

Note Campaigns and Effects: Directly associate marketing, advertising, press, or other relevant events to your metrics to help track what caused your revenue numbers to move up or down.

Revenue Comparisons: Use chart sliders to compare and contrast sales data from two periods of time.

Alerts: Stay on top of all important metrics with revenue alerts that keep you on top of key metrics, wherever you are.

SumAll is free for all Magento customers, and can be downloaded here.

Magento Go: What You Should Know about SEO

2012-02-06T21:20:00-08:00

February 22, 2012 I 10:30AM PST

Webinar: Learn The Fundamentals of SEO

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is both an art and science. In today's market, it's also an essential part of any digital marketing mix. Digital Operative, a digital marketing agency, is here to take you through the ever-changing landscape of SEO as it pertains to your eCommerce website.You'll learn the basics from setting up your Magento Go store to onpage optimization to offpage SEO factors. Here are the details:

Date: February 22, 2012 10:30AM PST

Presenters: BJ Cook, CEO and Cofounder, Digital Operative, Inc., Adam Lundquist, Director of Marketing, Digital Operative, Inc. and Alyssa Gothelf, Online Marketing Manager, Magento

In this webinar, attendees will learn:

What is search engine optimization (SEO) and why is it important?
The difference between onpage and offpage optimization
What your SEO checklist should be for your Magento Go store
Practical SEO techniques you can get started on today

Meet Matt Kammersell: Magento Certified Developer

2012-02-06T16:28:00-08:00

With all the buzz in the market (and on these pages) about Magento Developer Certification, you may be wondering: “Who are these Magento Certified Developers? What are they like? And how can I get a hold of one to help me?"

We decided to address those questions by profiling some certified developers in our blog. Today’s profile features one of the first developers to earn Magento Developer Certification: Matt Kammersell.

Matt put the code aside for a few moments to answer some of our questions:

Magento: When did you start working with Magento, and what attracted you to the platform?

Matt: I began working with Magento when the first beta was released. I was intrigued at the prospect of an eCommerce platform written in Zend Framework, because I had built a few enterprise applications on it.

Magento: What do you enjoy most about being a Magento developer?

Matt: I absolutely love how extensible this platform is. With the right knowledge there are literally very few limits of where you can take Magento or what you can do with it. I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to work on some large scale projects for some of the biggest partners in the Magento “universe” and I look forward to a bright future at the helm of my own company.

Magento: How does it feel to be one of the first Magento Certified Developers?

Matt: I am elated! I believe I can go anywhere in the space now that I have this certification.

Magento: What else would you like our readers to know about you?

Matt: The types of projects I’m most interested in are the ones that are considered to be expressly difficult or challenging. The less people feel it can be done, the more I want to do it! As I said earlier, I’ve worked on some of the largest, most prominent Magento merchant sites. I’ve also built integrations for fulfillment, returns & exchanges, recurring billing, analytics, Facebook and more.

Magento: Thanks Matt. How can a partner or merchant contact you about a project?

Matt: Visit my site, www.intellectlabs.com, or email me at

Developers: Want to be like Matt? Visit our certification page and learn how you can become a Magento Certified Developer.

Let a Magento Solution Partner Guide You to eCommerce Success

2012-02-06T14:00:00-08:00

A great online store holds the promise of strengthening your brand, building your customer base, and increasing your overall revenue. Whether you are launching your first online store or updating an existing site, you may need advice on how best to approach a project of this size and scope:

What strategic direction do you want to take your brand, and what role will eCommerce play?
What features of an online store are essential vs. nice to have?
Do you require extensive integration with existing business systems?
Will you do your own photography and create your own product descriptions?

Implementing an amazing site involves many considerations. It takes creativity, eCommerce knowledge, and development expertise.

Magento Solution Partners are here to help you achieve excellence in eCommerce. These companies are design and eCommerce implementation experts, but just as important, they are Magento specialists.

We have hundreds of partners all over the world with a range of vertical industry and technical expertise. Find one that’s the perfect fit for your company.

Social Commerce: Attract, Engage, Convert!

2012-02-03T18:21:00-08:00

A Webinar Presented by Classy Llama and Magento

Social Commerce: Attract, Engage, Convert!

What is social commerce? Can social commerce help my online store? How can I get the most out of it? If you own an online store, you have probably asked yourself these questions. We will answer these questions and show you some great 3rd party services and extensions that integrate with your Magento store and help you to attract new visitors, engage your customers, and convert them!

Date/Time: Wednesday, February 8, 2011 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM PDT

Magento Community: 4 Million Downloads and Still Growing Strong

2012-02-01T20:46:00-08:00

Today marks another milestone in Magento’s brief but rich history: the 4 millionth download of our free, open-source, game-changing Magento Community software.

Our Community project is where the Magento story began. Starting with our beta release in late 2007, developers and merchants have embraced Magento Community, which set a new standard for what an eCommerce platform could be. We’ve continued to enhance the Community edition, making it an even richer tool for exploring the possibilities of eCommerce with Magento.

Our business has experienced phenomenal growth since that first beta release. We’ve introduced commercial solutions such as Magento Enterprise and Magento Go… we’ve nurtured a community of over 600,000 registered members…we’ve built an extension marketplace where 3rd party developers offer more than 5,000 extensions for our software…and we’ve become part of eBay, Inc.

But our roots are still firmly planted in the incredibly rich soil of open-source eCommerce. The Community edition is what fuels the passion of our growing ecosystem; this passion is what makes the Magento community so unique in the world of eCommerce.

To all the merchants, developers, users and fans who have embraced the Magento Community edition, we thank you for your ongoing passion and support. You have our commitment that we will continue investing in making the world’s best eCommerce software even better.

2/1/2012: Celebrating Success and Looking Forward

2012-02-01T18:23:00-08:00

2011: New Records, New Opportunities

Just a month ago, we celebrated the end of our greatest year yet, a year in which we celebrated countless milestones, highlights of which include:

Our first global conference, Imagine eCommerce, which sold out and earned 100% favorability ratings from attendees
The launch of Magento Go, our hosted solution for small and micro merchants
The 3 millionth download of the free, groundbreaking Magento Community software
The hiring of our 300th employee
Our acquisition by eBay, Inc. and the creation of X.commerce
The launch of Magento U and Magento Developer Certification
The introduction of Magento Enterprise v1.11, our most powerful and sophisticated offering to date
The growth of our Solution Partner Network to 330 partners
Surpassing the 5,000 extension milestone on Magento Connect
The launch of the New Magento Connect, including extensions for Magento Go

2012: Momentum and Acceleration

In true Magento style, we’re planning for even greater growth in 2012. And the year is already off to an incredible start:

This week, our 400th employee joined the organization, another remarkable milestone in Magento’s growth
The momentum behind Magento Enterprise continues to accelerate, as thousands more world-class merchants discover the unique benefits of our platform and ecosystem
Tickets and sponsorships for the 2nd Imagine conference (Las Vegas, April 23rd – 25th) are selling at a breakneck pace (in fact, we expect to be sold out very soon, well ahead of the event)
And we’re seeing tremendous demand for our recently-introduced Magento Enterprise Premium offering, which combines multi-year, multi-server licenses with a package of premium services to create the optimal solution for large-scale implementations

Product Line-Up: Focusing on Growth

Magento has always been focused on growth – specifically, the growth of our customers’ businesses and the growth of the ecosystem that supports their success. By focusing on what’s most important to our customers, we’ve helped transform the eCommerce landscape in just a few short years.

We are committed to continuous evaluation and innovation of our product portfolio to ensure our customers remain competitive and win in their markets. Following an extensive review of our current solutions and projected customer needs, we are making an important change: we are phasing out the Magento Professional Edition.

While Magento Professional was embraced by a significant number of merchants, we have seen much greater demand for our Enterprise. and new Enterprise Premium offerings. This tells us that more of our mid-large size customers want the benefits offered by these comprehensive solutions.

Phasing out Magento Professional will allow us to focus our efforts and investments on enhancing our Magento Enterprise and Enterprise Premium solutions, as well as on our Community project and our hosted solution, Magento Go.

There will be no immediate impact to current customers on Magento Professional. We will be working with our Professional customers individually to provide various options for continuing their eCommerce success with Magento.

What’s Next?

The Magento milestones keep coming, and the next several months will be filled with exciting news and announcements from our company and our ecosystem.

Many of these announcements will be made at the Imagine Conference. But plenty of additional news will be announced both before and after Imagine. Highlights include:

The launch of our Magento Certified Developer online directory, the easiest way to locate the world’s most qualified Magento developers
New releases across our product line
Integrations with exciting products from the X.commerce ecosystem
More growth, more customer success, more partnerships

We’re looking forward to working with our customers and partners on making 2012 a truly memorable year. Our thanks to the entire Magento community for your ongoing enthusiasm and support.

Imagine Conference – Early Bird Ends Friday

2012-02-01T17:20:00-08:00

Save $400 - EARLY BIRD PRICE CLOSES FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3rd

We have been blown away by the excitement and enthusiasm for the 2012 Imagine eCommerce Conference, and it has proved that this event is already bigger and better than last year.

The Early Bird tickets are already over-sold by 2 times the budgeted rate, but thanks to our sponsor, PayPal, we were able to keep the Early Bird pricing available until this FRIDAY. But don’t be mistaken, Early Bird Registration will come to an end on February 3rd at midnight (PST)! This is your last chance to purchase your ticket to 2012 Imagine eCommerce Conference for $795, a $400 saving off of the standard price of $1,195. Register Now!

Tickets to Imagine eCommerce Conference will sell out far in advance like they did last year! Don’t miss your chance to attend and register today!

Need to get excited about Imagine? Check out this video: http://www.imagineecommerce.com/imagine-trailer-details-revealed/. Also, for updates on Imagine 2012, follow us on Twitter @MagentoImagine.

Imagine Challenge is Back—Enter Now to Win a Trip to Imagine 2012!

The Imagine Challenge is back and we are accepting entries now! Submit a photo or 60 second video showing your passion OR showing your Magento success for your chance to win a free trip and registration to the 2012 Imagine eCommerce Conference

Be sure to check out this year’s entries, and remember to show your favorite video or photo some love and vote for it! Voting begins on February 14th.

If you are planning on attending the 2012 Imagine eCommerce Conference, win or lose, register today!—tickets are going fast! If you are a winner, you will be refunded for the cost of your ticket.

For more information and to enter the 2012 Imagine Challenge, check out http://challenge2012.imagineecommerce.com/

Also check out some of last year’s fantastic entries! GO GO MAGENTO!

Magento’s Holiday Rock & Roll Costume Sports Karaoke New Year’s Blast

2012-01-31T18:51:01-08:00

Nobody can accuse us of not having enough themes at last week’s employee party!

About 150 of Magento’s LA employees and their guests took over Busby’s East in Santa Monica to kick off 2012 in true Magento style. Rock & Roll-themed costumes gave us a great excuse to party to excess and sing our hearts out in the highly non-competitive Karaoke competition. And yes, co-founders Roy Rubin and Yoav Kutner (photo, upper left) led the Karaoke charge! (Trust us: The Beastie Boys have never sounded this “Beastie...”)

Celebrity (costume) sightings included Axl Rose, Flava Flav, and Diana Ross (or was that Wierd Al?) Other highlights included a dozen of our X.commerce colleagues from San Jose swooping in for the festivities, dazzling the LA crowd with their elaborate costumes, and totally dominating the foosball table.

Wondering when the next big Magento party will be? It’s in April at Imagine in Las Vegas – we hope to see you there!

Meet Magento Germany Returns – Keep the Momentum Going!

2012-01-28T02:39:00-08:00

Meet Magento Germany is returning to Leipzig, on May 21st and 22nd for an exciting 2 days of local (European) topics on Magento! After you spend time at Magento’s Worldwide Imagine eCommerce Conference in Las Vegas in April keep the momentum going and join the Magento ecosystem at Meet Magento for a very focused European event on Magento and its German ecosystem.

The event, which will be held at The Westin Leipzig, will feature various industry guest keynotes, lectures and networking opportunities. Over 500 solution partners, developers, community members, and Magento enthusiasts will be attending so it should not be missed!

Registration discount for Imagine eCommerce Conference Attendees

Tickets to Meet Magento Germany are selling fast—don’t miss your chance to attend this in-demand event, and register today. Netresearch is offering € 10 off on two day tickets for anyone who is also registered for the 2012 Imagine eCommerce Conference (must supply valid Imagine registration onsite at Meet Magento). Use coupon code MM612IMA5 during registration to lock-in your discount.

Event Details

Meet Magento Germany
May21-22, 2012
Location – The Westin, Leipzig

For more information on the event, registration and hotel options, please visit http://www.meet-magento.de

Meet Magento Germany 2012 is brought to you by Netresearch.

The Imagine Challenge is Back, and it’s Bigger and Better!

2012-01-25T20:00:01-08:00

Last year’s “Show Your Magento Passion” Challenge was fantastic and featured incredible demonstrations of passion from the Magento Community in the form of photos, music videos, movie trailers and ingenious babies! Winners were rewarded with everything from exclusive Magento schwag to a fully paid trip to the Imagine eCommerce Conference.

The 2012 Imagine eCommerce Conference – April 23-25 at the M Resort in Las Vegas – will be bigger and better than last year, and so will our Imagine Challenge. We know you’ve got a lot of love for Magento and we want to see it!

Show Us Your Passion OR Show us Your Success!

We loved last years “Passion” submissions so much that we kept that as a theme but also added “Show Us Your Success” to give you, our very creative worldwide ecosystem, a fresh topic to choose from.

What do we mean by “Show Us Your Passion”? It’s all up to you, but look over last year’s photo and video entries. Passion comes in so many fun forms. Last year, we had singers, yak riders in the mountains, tattoos, and babies. Lets see what you can come up with this year!

What do we mean by “Show Us Your Success”? We have heard many stories from you on how your business or your customers business’ have dramatically improved and grown since working with Magento. More talent, more customers, more revenue, more profits, faster cars, adventures, travels, take overs, personal or company. We are looking for your creative interpretations of this by video or photo.

Upload Your Photo or Video

To enter the contest, upload a photo or video that demonstrates your love and passion for Magento OR tell the story of your success since meeting Magento. You can submit as many photos or videos as you would like, and feel free to submit entries to one category or both! Also, don’t forget to share your entry to increase your chances to win!

Vote for Your Favorite Starting February 14th!

Whether you submit an entry or not, be sure to show your favorite photo or video some love and vote for it! The photo or video with the most votes by March 23rd wins the Grand Prize - a full trip to Imagine! Take a look at the contest timeline for more information.

What Do You Get?

Fame! Your photo or video will be featured on the Magento site, and the winning entries will be featured at Imagine on the main stage! You also have a chance to win a full trip to Imagine 2012! For prize details, take a look at http://challenge2012.imagineecommece.com/prizes.

For the complete entry rules and guidelines, and to submit your entry, visit http://challenge2012.imagineecommerce.com.

Note: Don’t delay your registration for Imagine eCommerce Conference. Last year it sold out with a 250 person waiting list. If you win the contest, we will reimburse you for your pass.

Need Inspiration?

Check out some the winning videos and our favorites from last year:

• 2011 Winner: “Even a Kid Thinks Magento is Great!”

• 2011 Runner Up: “Are You Going to Imagine?”

• “We Have Arrived” Music Video and Imagine performance

Check out last year’s photo and video entries for ideas!

Don’t Wait to Register!

Are you planning on attending Imagine eCommerce Conference, win or lose? Don’t wait to register! Tickets will go fast, and you don’t want to miss your chance to attend Imagine eCommerce Conference 2012! If you are chosen as a winner, we will reimburse you for cost of your registration.

Good luck and we look forward to seeing your passion and success!

Magento Developer Certification: How do I know if I’m ready?

2012-01-25T01:00:00-08:00

You’re a Magento developer…you’ve heard about our certification program…and you’re wondering if the time is right for you to take the exam.

Answering these 3 questions will help you determine if the time is right for you to buy your voucher and put your skills to the test.

Magento Developer Certification exam readiness quiz:

Have you have taken the Fundamentals of Magento Development course (either On-Demand or in a classroom)?

Do you have in-depth experience working with Magento at the code level during an implementation?

Can you answer most of the questions presented throughout the study guide?

If you can answer “yes” to at least 2 of these 3 questions, chances are you’re ready to give the exam a shot! Purchase your voucher and register for your exam now!

If you couldn’t answer “yes” to at least 2 of these 3 questions, click on the links below to take the next step on your journey to becoming a Magento Certified Developer.

Fundamentals of Magento Development

Magento Certified Developer Study Guide

Magento Certified Developer Plus Study Guide

Magento Go: Last Chance to Sign Up for Tomorrow’s Webinar on the Power of eBay

2012-01-24T19:20:00-08:00

January 25, 2012 I 10AM PST

Webinar: The Power of eBay!

Would you like to expand your Magento Go store to reach millions of eBay buyers? With M2E, a Magento Go extension, you can seamlessly connect your store with eBay's platform. It allows you to quickly and easily create and manage listings, synchronize stock levels and import eBay transactions and orders into your Go admin panel. The extension interacts with all 23 major eBay marketplaces and it is also possible to use the extension with multiple Go stores and eBay accounts. Get to know more about M2E with our next webinar. Here are the details:

Date: January 25, 2012 10:00 AM PST

Presenters: Paul Pidoprygora, CEO, ESS-UA, Alex Podopryhora, Director of Marketing & Business Development, ESS-UA and Mosses Akizian, Product Marketing Manager, Magento

In this webinar, attendees will learn about:

Why businesses need the M2E extension
Who this extension is for
What the extension offers
Demonstration of M2E

The Power of Integrating Web-Based Data For Results

2012-01-19T21:43:00-08:00

A Webinar Presented by Crown Partners and Magento

The Power of Integrating Web-Based Data For Results

Understanding you customer is vital to staying competitive in today’s marketplace. With all of the data available from web-based channels such as website, email, social, and mobile platforms, you have the valuable information available to make a strong connection with your customers and build long-lasting relationships.

Join us and learn how some of North America's top CEO's, CMO's, and CFO's are using this type of data to gain actionable insights into their customer database and drive results.

Crown Partners, a Magento Gold Solution Partner, will demonstrate how they have integrated Tableau and Magento into a powerful solution that provides the ability to quickly and easily analyze customer data and provide valuable customer insight. Let us show you how you can use your customer data to achieve the same type of powerful results!

Date/Time: Wednesday, January 25, 2011 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM PDT

Registration for Imagine eCommerce 2012 is LIVE!

2012-01-18T20:45:00-08:00

Registration for the 2012 Imagine eCommerce Conference is Officially OPEN!

Join the digital stampede to register and book your hotel room now because space is LIMITED and we don’t want you to miss out on what’s been called “the Super Bowl of eCommerce.”

We’re offering Early Bird tickets at the same low price as last year – $795. That’s $400 off our retail ticket price, and we expect them to go fast.

Last year, over 650 tickets to our inaugural conference sold out. Demand was so high that someone auctioned a ticket on eBay for hundreds over face value. Crazy, right? On top of that, we had 250 people on a waiting list that didn’t get in.

We’re expecting even more demand this year, which is why we’re going to Vegas! That’s right. April 23rd - 25th, just off the Las Vegas strip at the luxurious M Resort, you’ll hear industry thought-leaders talk technology and business. Plus, you’ll be among the first to learn what’s coming down Magento’s powerful product pipeline.

Imagine’s Exciting Content Will Feature:

• Firsthand Magento updates from Roy Rubin, Yoav Kutner and Bob Schwartz

• Meet and hear about our new family members and leadership from X.commerce/eBay

• World renowned guest speakers on technology, retail, entrepreneurial spirit and building success

• Sessions on Magento and eCommerce technologies, merchant case studies, building your business and X.commerce

• See the latest apps and extensions to drive conversation, traffic and lifetime customer value

• Learn best practices from leading Magento solution partners with vast experience with leading brands, retailers and eCommerce sites

Of course, all work and no play makes for a boring conference. So we’re throwing some parties where you can network with hundreds of merchants, solution and industry partners, developers and eCommerce professionals from around the world so you can build worldwide relationships and partnerships.

We’re betting you won’t be disappointed. In fact, ask anyone who attended last year’s event. We did, and 100% of attendees surveyed agreed that the Imagine eCommerce Conference was worth their time and investment. And yes, we surveyed more than just our family members and friends.

Early Bird Pricing is Only Offered Through February 3

These tickets could SELL OUT sooner. So what are you waiting for? Register now to save on Imagine 2012 tickets and make your hotel reservation before they sell out.

For all the updates on Imagine 2012, follow us on Twitter @MagentoImagine and tweet with hastag #MagentoImagine.

See ya in Vegas!

Silver Industry Partner Announcement: BoostMyShop

2012-01-18T18:30:00-08:00

Magento is pleased to add BoostMyShop, a market leading vendor of extensions and services for the Magento platform, as a Silver Industry Partner.

BoostMyShop uses their unique expertise in Magento to offer clients in-depth consultations to help them build eCommerce sites that accomplish their business goals.

Initially a Magento merchant, BoostMyShop is now one of the most well-known Magento extension developers. Their first extension, Embedded ERP, a state-of-the-art extension to manage inventory, purchasing, and logistics, has been a huge success. They now offer more than 15 Magento extensions including tools for customer quotes, enhanced point of sale, return merchandise authorization, product catalog synchronization and much, much more.

We invite you to visit Magento Connect to view the many BoostMyShop extensions.

One Platform. Two Partners. Ten Thousand Villages.

2012-01-18T16:15:00-08:00

Ten Thousand Villages is one of the world’s largest Fair Trade organizations. With more than 70 retail outlets throughout the United States, this merchant provides a marketplace for artisans from all over the world.

When Ten Thousand Villages decided to relaunch its site for the 2011 holiday shopping season, they selected Magento Enterprise as the platform and turned to Magento Solution Partner CorraTech to implement the new store.

As part of the move to a new platform, Ten Thousand Villages wanted to preserve and improve the successful email-marketing solutions that they had developed with Listrak, a Magento Industry Partner. By working together closely, the combined CorraTech and Listrak teams were able to integrate Listrak’s services – including Customer Purchase Metrics and Shopping Cart Abandonment – into the new site without a hitch.

CorraTech made numerous customizations to Magento including expanding the native gift registry functionality. CorraTech also took advantage of Magento’s native multi-store capability to provide over 80 separate sites for Ten Thousand Village’s individual stores, all running on the same instance of the application. This enabled shoppers to see product availability by physical store location.

Visit tenthousandvillages.com to see experience the great result of working with the right partners and platform. While you’re there, buy something and support this great fair trade retailer!

Magento Go Merchant Spotlight: A Cup of Sugar, a Pinch of Technology and a Whole Lot of Success…

2012-01-17T20:35:00-08:00

Over the past two weeks we’ve introduced you to some of our successful Magento Go merchants: David Bandrowski of The Deering Banjo Company and Kirshan Murphy of Inked Magazine are prime examples of merchants who have used Go to build better online businesses.

This week’s story may be the sweetest one yet. Arline Conigliaro of Imperial Cookies discusses her experience of working with a professional web designer to create a beautiful site that reflected her brand's image. Even without advanced technological skills, Arline finds it easy to print reports, fulfill orders, ship her cookies and run a successful online bakeshop.