The reading level for this article is Moderate
Internet malls were once the rage on the web. Lots of folks I knew opened a store at one of these Internet malls hoping and expecting to make a fortune. Unfortunately, for my friends that went this route, the dollars never arrived in their mailbox.
First, consider the offline world. You go to the mall and you, more than likely, browse the whole mall. It’s an experience and you probably went in several stores at least to window shop. Perhaps, these stores had nothing in common except being housed under the same roof. This cross traffic concept doesn’t exist in the Internet world. Internet shoppers are very specific about what they want. So, don’t expect any cross traffic to your Internet mall site when a visitor arrives looking for something you don’t sell.
Secondly, Internet mall traffic is very, very non-specific, non-targeted traffic. What ever you are paying for your storefront and all the extra bells and whistles you purchased because the mall owner insisted you needed them is too much. You are being hosed.
Internet malls are just a way for the mall owners to make money by attracting to them people that do not understand how the Internet works.
If you have made a fortune as a store owner in an Internet mall, you must write your entire story as a review at this site, because that story would be a refreshing change of pace.
