Lightning-fast page loading speed is crucial for the conversion of a successful online store. The longer the customer waits for the page to load the higher are the chances that he’ll abandon your website.

Below are 10 steps that can help you speed up your Magento website:

Clean Database Log

Given that Magento saves logs for around 180 days, your database may grow unnecessarily large, which is why the first step in speeding up your Magento website must be cleaning your database log – it will take only 30 minutes, but the effects will be astonishing.

Latest Version

Make sure that you are running the latest version of Magento. It will include all enhancements in speed and performance, as well as bug fixes.

Content Delivery Network

Among the simplest, yet most effective ways of speeding up your Magento website is utilization of Content Delivery Network (CDN) that will allow your content to be delivered to customers from multiple locations.

Use Magento Compilation

Magento Compilation can boost the speed of your online store by up to 50%. In order to use this feature go to: “System” → “Tools” → “Compilation”

Merge CSS and JavaScript Files

Merging all CSS and JavaScript into one file will reduce HTTP requests and correspondingly will increase the page loading speed.

Enable Flat Catalog

Flat Catalog is particularly useful for extensive catalogues with over 1000 items. It merges products and their categories in one convenient table, boosting speed by answering MySQL requests much quicker.

Compress and Optimize Images

Compression of images via Adobe Photoshop and specification of their dimensions allows simultaneous loading of page and images, which leads to considerable increase in website’s loading speed.

Limit Extensions

The amount of HTTP requests increases with the amount of extensions, which is why it is recommended to use only vital extensions and disable unessential ones.

Use Caching

Caching also helps to speed up your Magento online store. To get excellent results try combining NGINX + APC + Memcache + Varnish caching.

Minimization of Redirects

Reduction of redirects allows your website to load with the lightning speed.

TemplateStudio created MegaStore2 theme, keeping the most successful fashion retail stores in mind. The main gem of this template is certainly its amazing functionality. Abundance of useful sections, clear division of merchandise and comprehensive design а each of them make navigation effortless. Impeccable usability guarantees that every customer will find what he is looking for in one of the sections. Internationalization of the website make it accessible to wider audiences, correspondingly increasing the conversion rate of your retail store.

Store Coordinates

MegaStore2 theme was added to the extensive collection of our exclusive theme collection.
For live demo click here and judge for yourself.

The Process

During our work on MegaStore2 template, we applied various techniques: icon design, graphic design, illustrations, as well as conducted thorough competitor analysis and market research. This allowed us to create a unique and modern template that will be excellent for a profitable e-commerce store. Great call-to-action button design, interactive elements and overall elegant outlook will help to retain potential customers and convert them. Social media buttons, located in the website’s footer will facilitate sharing and discussing the store, attracting more customers. This approach helps to increase reachability of your business across multiple platforms.

Key Features

An original design concept with white background in perfect combination with color palette like blue, grey, red etc.;
Once you enter homepage, a fascinating slideshow will produce various effects;
Megastore2 is built on a safe platform with advanced options like Ajax Suite, Ajax Filter, Full Screen Zoom;
It is easy to control and make changes on website through Templatestudio admin settings;
Megastore2 is a responsive magento theme with cross-browsers compatibility, in accordance with coding standards like W3C Validator which is why potential customers will have an option to browse it from various mobile devices;
In terms of speed, this theme is optimized for fast loading on Google Speed Tool, increasing your chances to obtain higher position in Google ranks;
Make your website and your products more visible to your search engine listings with Google Rich Snippets;

For full list of features and extensions of Megastore2 and other themes, follow this link.

If we try to sum all the things listed above, Megastore2 template, created by TempateStudio is a solid start for your online business.

Security of your Magento website is of outmost importance. Although Magento platform offers multitude of integrated security features, you can improve overall protection of your online store by following these tips.

How to keep your Website safe

Regularly Update Your Anti-Virus Software

It is highly recommended to use enterprise-class anti-virus software that provides daily updates. It will help you detect and prevent various hacker attacks.

Use Two-Factor Authentication

Two-factor authentication allows only trusted devices to access backend. Moreover, it requires you to enter randomly generated code that changes every 30 second and is sent to your phone by the app Magento Connect Marketplace

Use Secure FTP

It is important to use secure FTP passwords and SFTP as a Public Key Authentication.

Strong Password

Strong password must be no less than 15 characters long and must not contain any names or birthdays. You can use password generator to find an optimal strong password.

Backup your Magento store regularly

It is highly recommended to save your backup copies regularly, but not on the same server, your website is, because in such case hacker will get access both to your website and to the backup as well.

Install Latest Magento Security Patches

Magento regularly provides security patches that need to be installed to ensue robust protection of your online store. TemplateStudio can help you install latest Security Patch quickly and efficiently.

Use Secure FTP

Using Secured File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) you can boost the security of your website, as it utilizes a private key file for decryption and user authentication.

Get a Magento professional security review

Professional Magento security review, accomplished at least twice a year, can help you find and eliminate weak spots in your security.

Use Only Trusted Magento Extensions

Despite the extensive Magento community and multiple user reviews for every extension, it is highly advisable to use only trusted Magento extensions to protect your online store from hacking.

Utilize Firewall

Firewall usage allows getting additional layers of security by preventing users from accessing your web server.

Pizza template, created by TemplateStudio is a complex solution for e-commerce website design with amazing functionality and excellent usability. Interactive elements and amazing illustrations retain the attention of visitors long enough to convert them.

Store Coordinates

This amazing food theme was included in our exclusive theme collection.
For live demo click here and judge for yourself.

The very design of the template was created on the basis of the most successful online food stores. It instantly captures the attention and directs it where it is needed. Strategically placed call-to-action buttons, such as “order now” facilitate the purchase, increasing the overall conversion rate.

The Process

Before we start our work on every project, we make detailed market research and competitive analysis to outline the most popular trends and apply them in our work. We have created a food theme template that instantly grabs the attention of potential clients, making them stay on the page and order multiple items. Easy navigation, as well as colorful and enticing illustrations are bound to make visitors choose this food store over competitors. In our work on this template, we have created modern and stylish template, capable of boosting the conversion and profitability of the website in no time.

Key Features

An original design concept with white background in perfect combination with color palette like green, red, brown, orange;
Once you enter homepage, an irresistible slideshow will produce various effects;
Pizza Store is built on a safe platform with advanced options like Ajax Suite, Ajax Filter, Full Screen Zoom;
It is easy to control and make changes on website through Templatestudio admin settings;
Pizza Store is a responsive magento theme with cross-browsers compatibility, in accordance with coding standards like W3C Validator;
In terms of speed, this theme is optimized for fast loading on Google Speed Tool, increasing your chances to obtain higher position in Google ranks;
Make your website and your products more visible to your search engine listings with Google Rich Snippets;

For full list of features and extensions of Pizza Store and other themes, follow this link.

If we try to sum all the things listed above, Pizza template, created by TempateStudio is your first step to success.

Red Store, created by TemplateStudio captures the attention at first glance – strikingly beautiful design, vivid color palette and modern outlook make it an excellent choice for a popular and profitable online e-commerce store. Red Store theme possesses great usability, provides positive user experience and is a complex solution that incorporates all aspects, necessary for a successful online store.

Store Coordinates

This gorgeous red theme was added to our extensive theme collection.
For live demo click here here and judge for yourself.

Given the extensive functionality and eye-candy template design, it’s safe to say that Red Store will become a conversion magnet in no time, attracting new clients and converting them. Fresh and unconventional color palette catches the eye and invites to explore the online store, which boosts sales and correspondingly your profits.

The Process

Here at TemplateStudio we are certain that each template must be truly unique and inspiring, which is why we accomplish extensive e-commerce market research and competitive analysis before we start our work on a template. We strive to apply the most popular trends in our templates, which is why they become successful. During the creation of Red Store we worked on icon design, graphic design, illustration and branding.

Key Features

This theme is designed with white background in perfect combination with color palette like red, grey, black;
Once you enter homepage, a red dominant slideshow will produce various stunning effects;
Red Store is built on a safe platform with advanced options like Ajax Suite, Ajax Filter, Full Screen Zoom;
It is easy to control and make changes on website through Templatestudio admin settings;
Red Store is a responsive magento theme with cross-browsers compatibility and meet coding standards like W3C Validator;
In terms of speed, this theme is optimized for fast loading on Google Speed Tool, increasing your chances to obtain higher position in Google ranks;
Make your website and your products more visible to your search engine listings with Google Rich Snippets and consolidate you SEO campaign;

For full list of features and extensions of Red Store and other themes, follow this link.

As a result, we created modern, stylish and elegant red and white theme that will become a cornerstone of your e-commerce shop success.

The long-awaited Magento 2.0 is already here and it is truly impressive! Recently released Magento 2.0 upgrade includes advanced CMS features, as well as performance and scalability improvements that will help Magento website owners to create stunning designs and boost functionality of their online stores.

Why Magento 2 is the right choice for your online store

Customizable File Structure

Magento 2.0 removed all the issues that prevented development of custom themes. With the new Magento version, themes can be tailored for the specific needs of your business. Updated file structure does not have any default themes; they have been transferred to the module structure.

Enhanced User experience

Magento 2.0 offers enhanced user experience for customers and webmasters alike. Customers are now able to enjoy easy navigation, clean and pleasant structure of the pages with clearly seen call-to-action buttons. Webmasters, on the other hand are presented with many features for ROI improvement. For instance, the new drill-downs help to identify customer’s actions on the website, highlighting the areas that require improvement.

Excellent Performance

Due to the fact that Magento 2.0 is integrated Varnish Cache, website pages are loading much faster, which is extremely beneficial for Google speed optimization. New Magento 2.0 is easier to navigate, faster and boasts of improved security.

Improved Scalability

Full page caching translates into considerable boost in performance, as well as decreased server loading time. Apart from that, Magento 2.0 allows faultless and simultaneous management of products by multiple admins.

Impeccable Security

Given that Magento takes security seriously, it’s no wonder that new version was cleared of all potential security vulnerabilities and is a lot safer, especially with a new directory (- ‘pub’) that safeguards source code from various hacker attacks.

Limitless functionality, reliable security and impressive scalability make Magento a go-to E-commerce platform and CMS for successful online business.

Why Magento is the right choice for your online store

Open source

Open source nature of Magento is cost-effective, which is critical for small business or start-ups that are unable to afford spending lots of funds on maintenance and updates.

Extensive Community

Extensive Magento developer community gives you a chance to take advantage of many features and plugins for you website’s performance optimization, making it a conversion magnet.

Scalability

Due to its amazing scalability, Magento grows together with your business. You will be able to add new options and features seamlessly without shutting down your entire website.

SEO Friendly

Magento allows integration of all SEO features that are necessary for your business promotion: Meta tags, Meta descriptions, keywords, sitemaps, customs URLs, etc.

Mobile Friendly

Responsive design is now a default feature of Magento, which is why your customers will be able to access your website conveniently from various mobile devices, increasing its reachability across multiple platforms.

Limitless Functionality

Thanks to its remarkable functionality, Magento allows you to use tailored approach to creation of your online store, adding multiple free features and plugins if you feel that default ones are not enough.

High Performance

Magento is king of effective and easy optimization, which is why it is a perfect solution for any business, regardless of its size and nature.

Numerous Stores with a Single Installation

A single Magento installation will give you a chance to create multiple stores with one centralized admin panel to manage all sections.

Flexible Solutions

Magento is a highly customizable and flexible platform, which makes it suitable for any type of business.

Top-notch Security

Magento takes security very seriously and offers reliable security protection for your website, constantly providing security updates, like the latest Magento Security Patch that TemplateStudio can help you to install. ]]> Fri, 22 Jan 2016 01:37:45 +0000 nick

We proudly present Watch2, a new responsive magento theme that is no less spectacular than a diamond or a beautiful pearl shining brightly through the dark. This theme is a great match for Jewellery Store, Watches, Accessories, Fashion, Perfumes, Beauty Shop etc. and comes as the best solution for business owners who like this pattern.

It's a premium black theme which we added to our exclusive theme collection.

This theme makes a big difference by its user-friendly design: colors like white, yellow, grey, red, look great in contrast with a clean black background and leaves a deep impression on everyone who sees it for the first time. Your customers will love it only for the simple fact that is irresistible to stay too much apart and will find enormous pleasure while browsing.

The Process

Our team wanted to create something unique and everlasting. Dark web designs are popular and have an elegant and creative appeal when you handle it professionally.
To find the perfect balance between colors is not an easy job for a designer, especially when black is involved as main color and we consider that was the biggest challenge. We are glad that we succeeded!

Live Demo

Have a close look here and judge for yourself.

Key Features

This theme is designed with clean black in background in perfect combination with color palette;
Once the homepage appears, a fantastic slideshow will produce various stunning effects;
Watch 2 is built on a modern platform with advanced options like Ajax Suite, Ajax Filter, Full Screen Zoom … and is fully customizable;
It is easy to control and make changes on website through Templatestudio admin settings;
Watch2 is a responsive magento theme with cross-browsers compatibility and meet coding standards like W3C Validator;
In terms of speed, this theme is optimized for fast loading on Google Speed Tool, increasing your chances to obtain higher position in Google ranks;
Make your website and your products more visible to your search engine listings with Google Rich Snippets and consolidate you SEO campaign;

For full list of features and extensions of Watch2 and other themes, follow this link.

Overall, it is fair to say Watch2 is an excellent choice for a profitable e-commerce website if you want to distinguish yourself from the competition. It will reach new customers, boost your business sales, and promote worldwide with this impressive outlook.

Templatestudio has released its new generic responsive template, Grandshop. This theme is perfect for generic e-commerce websites like Supper Market, Shopping Mall or any specific store such as Smartphones & Mobile Accessories, Fashion Store, Beauty Shop, Home Appliances, Kitchen Tools and Gadgets, Furniture & Décor…

It's a new premium theme which we added to our exclusive theme collection.

Grandshop is a great choice for a magento multipurpose store if you have great expectations in terms of design, functionalities, promoting your products online and making your business – a successful one.

The Process

We don’t have enough words to describe our product, but to make it clean, modern and to attract public attention, we put great efforts to analyze the demands and trends in our marketplace. Before creating something special, we always question our work principles: quality, competitive vision, meaningful simplicity and our hunger for perfection. This theme is like a precious child that we raised with a professional care.

Live Demo

Have a close look here

There are many reasons if you are still unsure in making this theme yours; however, we want only to highlight here the most important features.

Key Features

This theme is designed with white in background, a versatile slider with twenty nine cinematic effects on home page, clean and easy customizable layout;

Grandshop is a responsive magento theme which was built with the help of the most popular framework- boostrap;

Grandshop is optimized for fast loading with performance over 80/100 on Google Speed Tool, has zero errors on W3C Validator and is bug-free;

It is fully optimized for SEO, including Google Rich Snippets, which make your products be on top on google search page results;

This theme is fully protected against undesired electronical spamming, by enabling admin captcha for user area;

Let your customers visualize the image’s product in the smallest details with Elevate Zoom Module and Full screen zoom option;

For full list of features and extensions of Grandshop and other themes, follow this link.

Theme Support

If you require quality support or theme customization, we are eager to answer any of your questions within 48 hours. Please leave a feedback here.
Let your passion in promoting your business on a bigger scale become reality with the help of our high expertise in magento and success will follow you everywhere: more customers, more sales, more reviews...

Template Studio, the Magento design company, has released its new futuristic responsive template. This theme is appropriate for auto related websites, such as online car stores, online car parts shops, car providers’ websites, etc...

Template Studio, the Magento design company, has released its new futuristic responsive template. This theme is appropriate for auto related websites, such as online car stores, online car parts shops, car providers’ websites, etc. With an admirable template creation background, Template Studio knows its customers and their desires better than anyone. As a result, we have developed a new car parts theme, which suits every one of your needs, has a state-of-the-art design and is user-friendly.

This template was created based on the thorough research of our firm. After analyzing the market and trying to understand the needs of a car company’s website or an online store, as well as the expectations of the visitors and costumers, Template Studio brought to its clients the perfect auto Magento theme. You don’t even have to customize anything further because it already contains everything you may need for your online shop or company’s site. The most important features here are the following:

• Search and Compare functions;

• Ajax easy cart;

• High functionality and customizable grid;

• Currency and Multilanguage, etc.

Along with these indispensable features for a functional product website, you also have dozens of cinematic slider effects, with their futuristic design, to impress each one of your visitors and customers. And this is not all! The most important feature, at the present moment in the online market, is the “matching client device” function. For the last couple of years, many people have started browsing using their mobile devices, such as tablets or smartphones. For this reason, while developing and designing a car Magento template, our company has put the adaptable feature on top of priorities.
Moreover, a functional and lucrative website should give your customers the possibility to purchase and order the products from any device there is. Therefore, Template Studio has implemented the mobile ordering function as well. As a result, your clients and visitors can browse through the car products grid and purchase the parts they need right on their smartphones, tablets, netbooks and so on.
Our Magento design company is eager to provide you with the most outstanding templates, which are optimized for both customers and search engines. Therefore, you can be sure you’ll get not only the theme you need, but also the responsive template your customers will love.

For purchase and demo click here

Responsive Web design (RWD) is a Web design approach aimed at crafting sites to provide an optimal viewing experience—easy reading and navigation with a minimum of resizing, panning, and scrolling—across a wide range of devices (from mobile phones to desktop computer monitors)......

Responsive Web design (RWD) is a Web design approach aimed at crafting sites to provide an optimal viewing experience—easy reading and navigation with a minimum of resizing, panning, and scrolling—across a wide range of devices (from mobile phones to desktop computer monitors).

Responsive Web design (RWD) is a Web design approach aimed at crafting sites to provide an optimal viewing experience—easy reading and navigation with a minimum of resizing, panning, and scrolling—across a wide range of devices (from mobile phones to desktop computer monitors).

Nowadays, there are a lot of different devices, and when it comes to complicated, heavy websites, it’s never “one size fits all”… Or is it? Basically, this is what Responsive Design is trying to achieve, and, quite frankly, is succeeding at its goals. A site designed with RWD adapts the layout to the viewing environment by using fluid, proportion-based grids, flexible images, etc. iPhones, BlackBerry, Kindle, iPad, Samsung, personal computers, laptops, they all have different resolutions and screen settings. Well mobile stores designed with responsive web can easily adapt to any of these devices, without troubling the user, or forcing him to scroll over and over again to find the information that he needs, or cutting his images in half…

According to SmashingMagazine.com, Responsive Web design is the approach that suggests that design and development should respond to the user’s behavior and environment based on screen size, platform and orientation. The practice consists of a mix of flexible grids and layouts, images and an intelligent use of CSS media queries. As the user switches from their laptop to iPad, the website should automatically switch to accommodate for resolution, image size and scripting abilities. In other words, the website should have the technology to automatically respond to the user’s preferences. This would eliminate the need for a different design and development phase for each new gadget on the market. Ethan Marcotte likes to call this “responsive architectural design”.

A few years ago, when flexible layouts were almost a “luxury” for websites, the only things that were flexible in a design were the layout columns (structural elements) and the text. Images could easily break layouts, and even flexible structural elements broke a layout’s form when pushed enough. Flexible designs weren’t really that flexible; they could give or take a few hundred pixels, but they often couldn’t adjust from a large computer screen to a netbook.

Halloween, America’s most beloved and fun autumn holiday, for both adults and children, but most importantly, for Halloween stores all over the country.....

Halloween is a Large Market. According to About.com, the size of the market is one reason that Halloween is a solid business opportunity. Halloween has become a true retail bonanza. In 2009, U.S. consumers spent approximately $5.8 billion on Halloween. In Canada, Halloween spending has also been increasing; $331 million was spent on candy alone in 2009 according to Statistics Canada. Here’s why you should invest with confidence.

The Halloween Market is Growing

The Halloween market is growing in two ways that make it very attractive for business opportunities. First, Halloween is becoming an increasingly universal celebration. According to a survey by the National Retail Federation, nearly two-thirds (63.8%) of American consumers were planning to celebrate Halloween in 2006, up from 52.5 percent in 2005. Canadians are even keener Halloween celebrants; 68% of Canadians planned to participate in at least one Halloween-related activity in 2007, according to a survey conducted for the Retail Council of Canada. Although children's trick or treating is still a Halloween mainstay, but it's adults who are spending the money on celebrating, embracing Halloween as a chance to let their inner child get out and party. Large parties with participants wearing elaborate costumes are becoming increasingly popular - excellent news for people looking for niche business opportunities.

Costumes make up the largest portion of Halloween spending. Of all the money consumers spend at Halloween, 36% of it is spent on costumes. The rest is spent on candy and, of course, decorations.

Some well-known online stores are http://www.buycostumes.com/ and http://www.halloweencostumedepot.com/. These stores rely on drop shipping. Drop shipping is a supply chain management technique in which the retailer does not keep goods in stock, but instead transfers customer orders and shipment details to either the manufacturer or a wholesaler, who then ships the goods directly to the customer. This way you won’t ever have to worry about storing your goods or finding places for new shipments.

Don’t wait any longer, start today! Here’s a simple guide about how to start your own online Halloween store. You can do it yourself, without having to hire programmers or technicians. Just follow the steps below:

1. Get a domain. Your site needs to have its own home address, just like you do. (Like godaddy.com)

2. Get a Hosting. Your site has to pay taxes for its home, just like you.

3. Choose and E-Commerce Platform. Magento Ecommerce is the perfect start. Reliable and trustworthy, it’s the most efficient ecommerce solution on the market.

4. Choose your own Custom Design or Halloween Magento Theme. No matter if you’re on a budget, or you’re investing generously, there you’ll find exactly what you need.

5. Apply for a BuySeasons account. This is the drop shipper we were talking about earlier.

6. Upload your desired products.

7. Get a Payment Gateway (Authorize.net, PayPal, etc.), so people can actually buy your stuff.

8. Start promoting your website and get ready for Halloween season!