Cokesbury (the retail arm of UMPH) has unveiled additional improvements to its online store Cokesbury.com. The enhancements, which went live on April 9, are “an integral part of a broader digital strategy to improve our customers’ shopping experience,” said Neil Alexander, president and publisher. “Creating a simpler and smoother customer interface and keeping pace with technology are part of our long-range plan to serve our customers in the most efficient and effective ways possible. These improvements represent the first stage of a planned multiphase upgrade of Cokesbury.com.”The improvements were guided by extensive research with both frequent and infrequent shoppers. The site enhancements include:
• New look and feel with improved product presentations
• Enhanced browsing and streamlined search results
• Express ordering and guest checkout
• Ability to review side-by-side product comparisons
• Ability to view account information, including individual invoices
• Ability to pay for Cokesbury accounts online
“The improved website is easier to browse and search. A simple website layout, with a clean, uncluttered design, makes it easy and fast to find what you’re looking for. You can save time when you browse the categories by rolling your cursor over a category on the left-hand menu to pop up a submenu. You can browse all the categories to see the subcategories without having to leave the homepage,” said Alexander.
Recommended products and books are easy to read and arrows allow the customer to scroll left and right to see more resources. When the customer rolls over a featured product, a dialog box pops up with title, publisher, author, ISBN, price, and an add-to-cart button. For more detailed information he or she can click on the item to go to its full-description page.
Bestsellers are displayed prominently. Customer service, find a store, and help links are easy to find at the top of the screen. Links for services, account information, and other quick links are located all in one place at the bottom of the screen. The product pages display products recently viewed, resources other customers have purchased who also purchased this product, and other related resources of interest.
Guest checkout is available for customers who don’t want to sign up for an online account and use a password. For those who have a Cokesbury account, not only can they pay online, but they can view their complete account information, including statement history and individual invoices as well.
Visitors to Cokesbury.com will also have access to online book trailers and digital promotions, links to relevant product site and free downloads.
“These website improvements complement a key initiative of Cokesbury to leverage its considerable inventory of resources to support the Christian journey for everyone,” said COO Audrey Kidd. Cokesbury has established alliances with several other denominational publishers and provides resources from those publishers to Cokesbury’s customers. In addition to Abingdon Press, the publishing imprint for UMPH, key denominational publisher partnerships include Presbyterian (U.S.A.), Episcopal, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and United Church of Christ. Cokesbury also offers an expanded variety of Sunday school and small-group curriculum choices from other Christian publishers, including Group Publishing; Standard Publishing; David C. Cook; Urban Ministries, Inc.; The Kerygma Program; Church Publishing; and Upper Room Books.
Additionally, Cokesbury features and sells Bibles and Christian books from a broad range of Christian publishers to meet all seekers where ever they may be on their Christian journey.
About Cokesbury
Cokesbury is the retail division of The United Methodist Publishing House. The United Methodist Publishing House, founded in 1789, is a completely self-funded publisher and distributor to The United Methodist Church and the greater Christian community. The United Methodist Publishing House serves millions of church members worldwide with books, Bibles, curriculum, worship resources, and church supplies. Cokesbury also serves as lead retail outlet for several major denominations, including the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and the Episcopal Church in U.S.A.
In addition to www.Cokesbury.com, which offers more than 300,000 products to congregations, Cokesbury Christian stores are found in 64 retail locations throughout the United States. At Cokesbury, our mission is to provide quality resources and services that help people know God through Jesus Christ, love God, and choose to serve God and neighbor.
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