What is Novamerx?
Novamerx is a new business model introducing an innovative approach for the enhancement of commerce based on content, information, knowledge sharing and quality. Novamerx is a platform binding philosophy (ours*), technology (the latest) and content (yours). The name Novamerx comes from Latin, Nova (new) Merx (merchandise).
Context:
Today most of the online shops and commercial websites use aggressive means to reach their clients: pop-ups, flashing banners and junk mail, just to list a few. Shopping malls, markets, and shouting salesmen in the real world apply the same strategies. It is an attitude tailored to their clientele and the goods they sell. Still, opting for this invasive approach decreases the value of the goods, focusing attention mainly on the price. The market strategy is quite simple: to sell on a larger scale to a slightly lower price than the competitors. In order to capture the clients attention within the multitude of different sources offering the same product, the choice falls on manipulative and very invasive tactics.
Let us look for example at the Lidl supermarket chain or Amazon both are very direct in defining their offer - the client enters their points of sale knowing that he wants a specific kind of merchandise.
Giants like these have a massive buying force and their brand is strongly linked to the products they sell (Amazon - books, Lidl - food) which allows them to place specific wares at a low price on a very large scale.
Take, on the other hand, a shop or small business that concentrates on unique goods or quality services: you will find that much work has been invested in architecture and interior design to create a space wherein the encounter between client and vendor can take place on the multidimensional levels of cultural exchange, acquisition of knowledge, sharing of passion and curiosity on the grounds of genuine dedication and willingness to meet and to communicate (you will find that much work has been invested in creating a certain atmosphere through interior design and architectural choices, wherein the act of selling becomes an art that involves in-depth knowledge of the merchandise, communication skills and passion).
Placing the items in a certain context and offering content in addition to quality contributes to increasing the value and meaning of the purchase. The customer is willing to invest more as he becomes aware of the preciousness of the offer. Part of the value consists in the knowledge and passion the manufacturer (or vendor) adds to it.
When choosing the Novamerx model you are suggested to provide two elements:
Goods or services that are unique in the sense that only you can provide, manufacture or have access to them, and, in addition, information, knowledge and narrative around the object or service offered.
People who arrive will find interest in and buy your goods basing their choice on the knowledge you pass on to them. You, in return, will be met with trust and respect on the side of the client, establishing your brand by content, and content only!
The act of selling and purchasing is not in the foreground and will be a subsequent decision of the client after having received the quality information and satisfying content you provided out of a shared passion or interest.
Even if the client does not decide to purchase the item, you will have established yourself in his mind as a qualified source of knowledge in a field that awakened his interest and as bearer of a brand able to guarantee the high quality of its products.
Using today’s state of the art technology (see technology chapter) Novamerx provides a simple to use system that will tag EVERY piece of information to a single word, and index it under Goggle and other popular search engines - the door to your shop.
Only after establishing a trust and interest in the user he will remember and return by your brand tag (search by your company name or website address).
Since the rate of visitors / buyers in the Internet today is pretty low, your gain will be brand building by subject of interest in the www community for every visitor your web-front will accept and for any word your content holds.
As more as other websites links to your content as pure knowledge or reading material - your web front will establish a higher ranking.
As you add content you are expanding your area of cliental, ranking and trust.
Technology
A unique piece of code written by Yaniv Steiner and Riccardo Strobbia bridge between two major platforms, Wordpress and Oscommerce. Those platform (each in his own field) are extremely popular and new features are added every day produced entirely by a worldwide group of volunteers who share a commitment to the development and dissemination of free software.
Since all the building blocks of Novamerx are open source and free to use, the cost of the system is 0$, the only thing you will need is an old (or new) PC based computer and internet connection.
Novamerx encourage the use of old computers, since Novamerx and its related software require a very simple hardware configuration, most home pcs today are overkill for this platform.
Wordpress:
Wordpress is a state-of-the-art semantic personal publishing platform with a focus on aesthetics, web standards, and usability.
Wordpress is web-publishing system (a.k.a. content management system) and it is used to manage frequently updated Web content, especially Weblogs
Oscommerce:
Oscommerce is a powerful e-commerce and full-featured online store-management software program. Websites created with Oscommerce can be easily maintained and administered by a non-technical person using the Administrative interface and a web browser.
Server side:
PHP language and mySQL database - both open source and free to use.
Linux Debian - a free operating system.
A Linux distribution, which is made up of a kernel, basic tools and applications software. Debian is distinctive because it is produced entirely by volunteers who share a commitment to the development and dissemination of free software.
The core source code is made available for use or modification as users or other developers see fit, every “shop” in Novamerx can be totally different in terms of visualization and information architecture.
Article by Prof. Y.Steiner.