Your business benefits when you add a link from your ‘official’ website to your Shop Local Store & Gift Registry.

Benefits to you:

• Help customers see all the products and services your Shop Local Store offers, resulting in more orders.
• Get more wedding registry sign-ups. (A wedding registry often gets you $32,000 in orders.)
• Save yourself time and money on website maintenance. Many brands update the content on your Shop Local Store. This saves your business from having to update data on your site.

Please find our Do's and Don'ts for adding a link, as well as examples, below.

BONUS: Need to add a link or update the current links on your official website?
If you have a subscription with Shop Local, we can do this on your behalf. The cost is free, and part of your subscription.
Please reach out to our Coaches by sending an email to coach@bridge.org or calling/texting us at 212-254-9655.
 

DO

• Add a link from your official website to your Shop Local Store.
  • For steps on how to add a link to your official website, please visit our Help Documents here: https://www.shoplocal.org/help-center.cfm?keywords=adding+a+link.
• Link directly to the intended page.
  • For example, let's imagine that you are going to add a link to your Shop Local Gift Registry. Have the link "Gift Registry" lead directly to your Shop Local Gift Registry page, rather than your main Shop Local Home Page.
• Have the link leading to your Shop Local Store open in the same window and browser tab.
  • Reason: Having the links open in the same browser window and browser tab simplifies navigation and removes extra clicks for your registrants and guests.

DON'T

• Avoid adding a link from your official website to your Shop Local Store.
  • Reason: Without a link leading to your Shop Local Store, it will be more difficult for registrants and gift givers to access your services and products.
• Hide links to your Shop Local Store exclusively in buttons or images without also including a link in the main navigation.
  • Reason: While some guests may click images or buttons on your official website home page or landing pages, most will most likely use the main navigation to view the intended pages.
• Add an explanatory page (aka splash or landing page) with links to your Shop Local Store.
  • Reason: Your store will want to save clicks for your registrants and guests. The more clicks you add (e.g., going to your main website, going to a landing page, clicking on a link, etc.), the higher the likelihood you will lose the guest. Fewer clicks = more sales and sign-ups.
  • Note: If there is information on the explanatory page that you'd like guests to see, you can add that information into the "About your registry service" area. (Hover over Registry --> click Settings --> Add the information in "About your registry service" --> Click Save Your Changes at the bottom of the page.)
• Open the links in a new window or browser tab.
  • For example, let's say your link right now is set to open in a new browser tab. If you open the link in a new browser tab, and the customer browses back to your site, and then back to your Shop Local Store, there will be too many tabs open. That can add frustration to the customer and increase the odds that they will not purchase from your store.
     

WEBSITE EXAMPLES

Friend & Company, based in New Orleans, has a Gift Registry link in its navigation that opens in the same window to their Shop Local Gift Registry Home page, as well as the Gift Registry image featured on its home page's carousel.
 

Table Matters, a store in Alabama, features a Shop link on their main navigation that leads to their Shop Local Home page in the same window. They also have a Bridal Registry link leading to their Gift Registry Home Page via Shop Local.
 

RELATED MATERIALS

For Merchants: Add a Link from Your Website to Your Shop Local Store: https://www.shoplocal.org/help-center.cfm/171/For-Merchants:-Add-a-Link-from-Your-Website-to-Your-Shop-Local-Store.

Have Shop Local Help Your Store Add a Link to Your Site: https://www.shoplocal.org/help-center.cfm/211/Have-Shop-Local-Help-Your-Store-Add-a-Link-to-Your-Site.