To help you get an idea of some of the possibilities for your site, I would like to share with you the links to three MyAIMStore demos (one for each theme) that can help give you a clearer picture of the finished product.

• Theme One
• Theme Two
• Theme Three

By using the Theme Options panel for each theme and by adding content to the Widgets section of the sidebar, these themes transform into some pretty beautiful sites. A lot of the information for making changes to these themes can be found on the MyAIMStore Resources page, and as always, you can email MyAIMStore Support with further questions.

Have fun creating your MyAIMStore site, and be inspired by the possibilities of these theme demos.

Updates:

• Added links to the three MyAIMStore theme demos on the Resources page.
• Fixed the issue with Hotmail accounts not receiving emails.

I am sure that most of you know this is how the MyAIMStore websites work. But do you know how to track these sales and sign ups?

AIM has created a tool that does the tracking for you. All you have to do is log in to your MyAIMStore website, and right from the dashboard, you can click on the large, rectangular green chart graphic that says “Sales and Sign ups.” The image will link you back to the AIM corporate website where you can enter your AIM Member ID and PIN number and check out how your site has been doing.

Note: Make sure you check the display range of the report. By default, the report will only show the current month, so if you happen to check on March 11, you may not see as much data as you would expect.

The new MyAIMStore websites have an extra layer of tracking, too. You can get full reports on web visits to your site by adding free tracking software to your MyAIMStore (I would recommend Google Analytics or SiteMeter). Simply sign up for a free account at the analytics site of your choice, copy the tracking code they provide, and paste the code into the Tracking Code section of your Theme Options page (in the “General Settings” section).

As you get more adept at working with your MyAIMStore site, you can begin to analyze these numbers to find out what content works best on your site and how to maximize the number of visitors who click through to the product store.

Happy tracking, everyone. And if you have any questions, be sure to send us an email.

- Kevan

Resource of the week

Wordpress Codex

MyAIMStore benefits from being built on one of the web’s most popular website platforms. Wordpress has made quite the footprint on the web, and you can find a treasure trove of information by searching on Google for Wordpress tips and tricks.

I would like to point you to the Wordpress Codex, the official help section of Wordpress. In essence, it is like having a built-in manual for the MyAIMStore websites. Anything you want to learn about Wordpress, you can find it at the Codex.

Spend some time looking around and see what you can learn. The MyAIMStore sites are open and able to host a wide range of customizations. I’m excited to see what you find.

There are two different ways to change your home page content, and you will need to know which theme you are using in order to know which route to take. To see which theme your store is using, log in to your MyAIMStore website, and go to Appearance > Theme in the left-side menu bar. This will display the name of your current theme. Also, you can look in the left-side menu bar under the link that says “Comments,” and that will display your theme’s name as well.

If you have Theme One or Theme Two, the homepage content is displayed using a post. You can edit this section by choosing Posts > Edit in the left-side menu bar and clicking on the name of the post that appears at the next screen.

Note: You may need to update your Theme Options to make the full text of your homepage visible. To do this, click on your theme name in the left-side menu bar, choose “Display Content or The Excerpt,” and check the box for Homepage Posts.

If you have Theme Three, the homepage content is displayed using your Theme Options. You can edit these options by choosing Three > Theme Options from the left-side menu bar. The page that appears has options for Personal Information, Homepage Settings, and General Settings. All of these options can help you change the look of your homepage.

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to email MyAIMStore Support at myaimstore@aimintl.com.

– Kevan

Resource of the Week

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) is a document containing insight into the most common queries of MyAIMStore Members. A wide range of topics is covered in this document, and if you do not see the question that you wanted, feel free to send in an email and we can add it.

The FAQ can be downloaded and viewed at the MyAIMStore Resources page.

Updates for week of 3/4

• MyAIMStore registration is now open for all AIM Members.
• Updated Glossary.

I would like to thank the hundreds of AIM Members who currently have MyAIMStore websites for their help in ironing out the wrinkles of this revamped service over the past 30 days. Your feedback has been invaluable. And keep it coming! The MyAIMStore sites exist to serve you and your business. If there are ways that we can improve the sites, let us know by emailing myaimstore@aimintl.com.

Thanks again for choosing MyAIMStore for your AIM business. See you around the web!

- Kevan

Question of the week:

How can I check when someone contacts me through my MyAIMStore contact form?

The MyAIMStore contact form uses a comment field to receive contact submissions. When you log in to your MyAIMStore, you will be at the dashboard for your store. On this dashboard is a widget titled “Comments.” If someone has contacted you through your site, their message and information will appear here.

Here’s a tip: If you would like to receive your store contact in your email, go to Settings > Discussion in the left menu bar, and at the Discussion Settings screen, make sure that the box is checked to “Email me whenever anyone posts a comment.”

Updates for week of 2/25:

• Updated the MyAIMStore Welcome Guide
• Fixed a bug with the Contact form. You can now submit feedback by going to the MyAIMStore support page.

To add a profile picture, you first need to upload a photo of yourself to your MyAIMStore. Log-in to your store’s dashboard, and select Media > Add New from the menu bar at left.

Click “Select Files” and browse for the file on your computer. Once you have selected the file, you may click “OK,” and MyAIMStore will upload the file.

Note: Take note of the “Image url” as this will be used to insert your picture into your web store.

Now head to your store’s Widget section by selecting Appearance > Widgets from the menu bar at left. Drag-and-drop the “Text” widget from the Available Widgets section to the Sidebar section.

In the text area, type the following, and place your image URL inside of the quotation marks:

<img src="image url">

Click Save. View your MyAIMStore to see if the image you inserted fits your theme. If not, you may need to resize your image using image-editing software or HTML code.

Note: For additional help with images, view MyAIMStore’s Frequently Asked Questions file.

Activate the All-in-one SEO Pack plugin from the MyAIMStore plugin menu by going to Plugins > Installed from the menu bar at the left of your MyAIMStore dashboard. Find the All-in-one SEO Pack plugin on the plugin menu, and click “Activate.”

A notification bar may appear at the top of the page, asking you to set the SEO options. You may click on the link in the bar to access the options, or you can go to Settings > All-in-one SEO Pack from the menu bar at left.

Customize the SEO options by editing the text in the appropriate fields. When you are finished, be sure to click the radio button to “Enable” the plugin and choose “Update Options” at the bottom of the page.

Note: For SEO tips and recommendations, visit SEO Moz.

Log in to your Google account and visit docs.google.com. Click on “Create New” in the upper left-hand corner of the screen. Select “Form” from the drop-down menu.

Create a form using the options on the Google Docs page. When you are finished with the form, click “Save.” Then click “More Actions” and choose “Embed” from the drop-down list. Copy the embed code.

Back at your MyAIMStore dashboard, select Pages > Add New from the menu bar at the left side. Give your new page a title (e.g., “Contact”). If you are typing in the Visual editor, switch to the HTML editor. Paste the embed code from Google Docs into the body of the HTML editor. Click Publish.

Whenever someone uses your Google Docs contact form, their information is stored in a Google spreadsheet for easy access. For more information on all the options that Google Docs offers, visit the Google Docs support page.