This is my first website - what do I need to get? top

So you are ready to take the plunge and open your own website - CONGRATULATIONS!  The first thing you will need is a domain name (your online website address/url).  You can purchase your domain name at Shabby Lane Shops Hosting.  The cost starts at only $11.55 and that pays for your registration to use that name for one year.  Each year before your anniversary date you will get a reminder email to log in and pay your yearly registration fee. 

You do not have to purchase your domain name through Shabby Lane Shops Hosting in order to host with us.  You can register your domain name on any site that offers that service.  It is a convenience to have it all "under one roof" but is not necessary - you can still host here no matter where your domain name is registered. 

Anyone can go to public record sites like WHOIS.net and look up a domain name and see the owner's name, address and phone number so if for whatever reason you prefer not to have that information published then be sure to opt to add the privacy protected status.  It is not necessary but some people prefer it. 

You will also need somewhere to host your site.  Think of your hosting as the place you rent space to put your website on the internet.  You pay a monthly rent to a hosting company to provide you with that space and for the software features they offer for you to use when maintaining your site.  Our hosting services include our fabulous cms software - if you can upload an image to the internet and type an email - you are already well on your way to being a pro at maintaining your website. 

Once you sign up for hosting we will set up your site with a basic template (unless you have purchased one of our Custom, One-of-a-Kind or Limited Edition Templates)  You will receive an email from us giving you the log in information to go to your admin panel to work on your site as well as other pertinent information.  You will then be ready to log in and start adding your text content, images and products to your site.   We provide you with some excellent Get Started Quick directions and our Knowledge Base has step by step instructions on how to work all the different features of your site.

Which Hosting Package is best for you? top

If you are starting out with just one website then our Basic Hosting
Package is all you need.  If you now have two websites or anticipate
opening two websites you'll appreciate the Value Package and three or
more websites will need our Pro Package.  If you are already an expert
at setting up and maintaining a website from scratch and do not need the
use of our Content Management Software then you can choose our Expert
Package.  This is for the most advanced users who are familiar in
html/css coding. 

Ok so is this really as easy as you say it is? Are you sure I don't need to know any html/css coding? top

Yes - if you can upload an image to your computer and write and send an email then you are going to be thrilled with how easy it is to open your own website with our hosting services.  Maintaining the site is so simple and you do not have to know any html/css coding.  With our WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) Editor you'll be setting up your pages and products in no time.  We have some Quick Start Directions to get you off and running and our Knowledge Base has step by step instructions on the other features of your site.  If you cannot find an answer to your question in our Knowledge Base then by all means submit a Support Ticket and our customer service rep will help you with anything you need.  To see just how easy it is take a look around our Demo Site. 

Username: admin

Password: demo

Do I have to register my Domain Name with you or do I have to transfer my current Domain Name to your site? top

It is not necessary to register your domain name with our site or to transfer one you already have to our site but you do have to register it somewhere.  It is convenient to have all of your accounts in one place but not mandatory.  You can register your domain name at any website that does domain registration and then after you sign up for hosting you can log into that domain site and point the name servers to your hosting here.  We can help you with that if you need it - just submit a support ticket giving us the name of the site where your domain name is registered and your log in information and we can point your servers for you.  When you sign up for hosting you will check the box that says "I will update my own name servers" and then proceed with ordering your hosting.  Then you can update your name servers or submit a support ticket for us to do it for you. 

Do I need any other software? top

The system works through your browser so you don't need anything else to have your website.  We recommend using the Firefox browser when working on your admin panel as AOL and GoogleChrome are not user friendly for our software.  If you are going to be offering products for sale on your website then you will need to have a digital camera to take pictures with and then a photo editing software program so you can upload your images to your computer and then put them in your photo editing program to crop, resize, focus, etc. before uploading them to your website.  It is imperitive that your product images are crisp and clear - people do not purchase things they cannot see clearly and you will want your site to look as professional as possible.  For an excellent and FREE photo editing software program try downloading Photoscape here.  Photoscape has plenty of bells and whistles for your photo editing needs and is fairly easy to learn your way around pretty quickly. 

Do I have to have a Web Designer? top

No you don't.  Your site will come with a basic web design already in
place.  You may want to purchase a One-of-a-Kind website design or even a
Limited Edition design so your site has some style and pizazz but it's
not necessary.  You can always add a new design later - adding a new
template does not disturb your text content or products in any way.  You
can have one template design or a dozen and you can change them out
anytime you like.  Members of Shabby Lane Shops online mall receive a
special discount for all of our web design services as well as our made
to match items. 

I have a Web Designer working on my design - do I have to wait for them to finish before I can work on my site? top

No - you don't have to wait for your Design to be loaded to start working on your site.  You can log in to your admin panel and start putting text and photographs on your pages as well as setting up categories and listing products.   When your template is ready your designer will pop it into your site and all of your content will remain undisturbed.  

What forms of payment can I take? top

Our sites are set up to work with the Mals-E shopping cart.  There are two different versions of this shopping cart - one is Free which works for the majority of our clients and one is a paid version ($8/month).  Using the free version you are able to accept: 

 

Paypal

Credit Cards thru Paypal - Buyer does not need to have a Paypal Account to use Paypal as a way to pay with their debit or credit card.

Money Orders

Paymate

E-Checks

Nochex

Postal Payments

Checks if you accept them.

Manually Process Credit Card Payments through your In Store Terminal or Online Merchant Gateway Site if you are accepting payment with debit or credit card without going thru Paypal.

Define Your Own Payment Methods

 

The Premium Mals-E ($8/Month) supports these additional methods:

Paypal Payments Pro

Verisign

Authorize.net

Trustcommerce

Linkpoint/Yourpay.com

Bank of America

Internetsecure

2CO-2Checkout.com

uSight

Skipjack

Firstpay

eProcessingNetwork

ePDQ

Secpay

Worldpay

Protx

Cardia

and many more - Check Mals-e.com for the full list.

I don't live in the United States - can I still use your hosting services? top

You sure can - we have many current clients who live in other countries. 

Can inventory be monitored so I can list one of a kind products and update my inventory as needed? top

Yes - you have the ability to set the quantity of your items to 1 or more and track quantities for all of some of your products.  You can list one product and then also set options (i.e., color choices) and set the quantity for each option that you have. 

What happens after I sign up? What do I do next? top

Once you sign up for hosting then we will set up your site for you and notify you by email when it's ready.  You will receive a confirmation letter from us that you have set up an account with us and it will confirm your email and the password that you set up to log into shabbylaneshopshosting.com to your client area.  Then if you have registered a domain name with us then you will also receive a confirmation of that registration in an email.  A little while later we will send you an email with the information you need to log into your admin panel.  The email will also contain the dns server names you will need to point your domain name to our servers if your domain name is registered at a different website.   There will be additional points of information in the email such as your log in information to your cpanel.  Please read this email carefully.  At that point you will be able to log into your admin panel and start working on your site.  It would be a good idea to check out our Quick Start Directions.  Be sure to check out our Knowledge Base for directions as well and submit a support ticket if you have additional questions.  

What is an SSL Certificate and do I need one? top

You do not need to purchase an SSL Certificate when using our shopping cart system.  An SSL certificate is used by secure websites and helps protect the information transmitted such as banking information.  Because our system works in conjunction with the Mals-E shopping cart - Mals-E provides the SSL connection when transferring private data like credit card information. 

Do you have telephone support? top

Yes we do but first we ask that you consult the Knowledge Base to look for the answer to your question and then if you still need help please submit a Support Ticket.  We find that this is the most efficient way to handle questions as you then have a text copy of any instructions you need and your support tickets stay in your Client Area for you to refer back to whenever you need to.  If a phone call is necessary you can submit a Support Ticket giving us your phone number and letting us know your question and we will call you to speak with you over the phone if necessary. 

Does Shabby Lane Shops Hosting charge any set up fees, listing, sales or transaction fees of any kind? top

No - we do not charge any additional fees.  We are not like Ebay or Etsy and some of the other sites out there that bring you targeted traffic and we do not charge any fees other then your hosting fees.  You are responsible for adding your own content and products to your site and for marketing your site to potential customers on your own.  We HIGHLY recommend you look into advertising your site with the Shabby Lane Shops online mall.  To see all the benefits of advertising with Shabby Lane Shops click here. 

I already host my website with someone else - can I still purchase one of your templates? top

Yes you can.  In fact if you host with a compatible hosting site we will even set up your design on your website for you for free.  Compatible hosting sites are Merchant Moms, Shoppe Pro, Bizzy Mama Hosting, Eco Chic Hosting, Mia Shops, Little Fish Hosting and Pappashop. 

If you do not host with us or one of these compatible hosting sites then you can either switch to our hosting site or we can email you the template images and code and then you or someone from your hosting company is responsible for adapting the design and code and putting it on your site for you. 

What if I want to switch to your hosting - how much does that cost and how do I do it? top

It's FREE to switch to Shabby Lane Shops Hosting.  All you have to do is sign up for hosting and you will be able to start building your site and point your domain name to our servers.   If you host with one of the hosting sites that uses similar software we can even do all the work for you.  Please click here to learn more. 

How does your 30 Day Money Back Guarantee work? top

If for any reason you need to cancel your hosting within the first 30 days of service we will refund your hosting fees.  Domain fees cannot be refunded as you are purchasing the domain name registration for one year and it cannot be returned.  Template fees are also non-refundable due to the digital nature.