Internet auction is an exciting activity that allows Internet users to interact with one another. We may never be able to compete against eBay, but we could still build a thriving online auction website if our products are unique. Online auction is also more successful when it deals with local buyers and sellers where they can meet directly for the actual transaction.
So if we want to create a local version of eBay or Sotheby’s, it is a good idea to consider using Joomla. The platform is versatile enough to handle various aspects of online auction. The most straightforward way is to install the Auction Factory. There are also many free templates that are ideal for online action activities. We should also make sure that the layout is adequate to show the product description. We may also need to write additional articles for buyers. Another alternative is to install a gallery component to showcase auctioned items and Zoom Media Gallery is one of the better ones.
If we have prepared all the elements, it should be very easy to put together an auction website using Joomla. Although it is often said that WordPress is easier to use, we could impressed by the easiness of Auction Factory and Joomla itself. Both should go smoothly in terms of installation and configuration. SEO is also easy with Joomla and we are able to set up meta tags easily and page titles can be changed dynamically. To get the best out of Joomla’s SEO potentials, we could install SEF extension to make sure that the URL is SEO friendly. OpenSef is also a good alternative for this purpose.
Well-optimized URLs are essential for the success of our online action website. Instead of using URL with page numbers, we should use page title as the URL. This will make sure that we will have higher ranking in Google search results. By using the right URL, our ranking will be higher pretty soon and as we gain more traffic, we may also get higher PageRank value. When running a Joomla-based auction website, we will need to apply some common sense. As an example, it is important to check all transactions and remove spammy ones. Auction Factory has an internal reporting feature to allow us to quickly detect dubious transactions.
Regardless of what we do, it is important to make sure that users are familiar with our auction website. We shouldn’t assume that rules that apply on other auction websites will also apply to ours. We may ensure a clear budding process and users will be brought to each step easily. This will save us disappointment and frustration later. Joomla comes with various safety features that make sure users are protected. We shouldn’t ask them personal information that could lower the amount of trust. We shouldn’t encourage them to disclose personal and financial information. Establishing trust is important in an online auction website.