FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Information Contact: Amber Langston I.O. Metro (501) 920-2636 amber@iometro.com
I.O. Metro Launches New Website, E-Commerce New site offers 2,500+ products, shopping cart & shipping in 48 states LOWELL, Ark. (Oct. 20, 2011) – I.O. Metro, LLC soft-launched their newly designed, e-commerce website September 30, 2011 and will begin more aggressive promotion in the coming months. “Our customers have been asking for this for several years now. We had to oblige!” says Jay Howard, chief executive officer of I.O. Metro. “It was a natural and logical step for our brand. Now, we’re ready to officially welcome the online shopper to experience I.O. Metro and we’re expecting a big response.” The site offers more than 2,500 furniture items, art and accessories. The 1492 Collection, an ever-changing collection of one-of-a-kind pieces pulled from around the globe, and select Metro Custom products, from the company’s custom upholstery line, are available on the new website. Customers can also browse and buy items based on whether they are part of the Eco-Metro Collection, made in the U.S.A., made from 100% real wood and more. The site also features a section for items that are brand new or on sale. The new iometro.com is a “responsive” website. This special programming technique enables iometro.com to be easily used on all smart phones, tablets and any other mobile device. Customers will be able to shop on mobile devices without having to use a separate mobile version of the website. “Having a mobile-friendly website was very important to us,” Howard says. “Our customers are on the go, and we always want to adapt and meet their needs. Plus, a mobile-friendly site is a wonderful tool for our brick-and-mortar locations. Our sales associates don’t have to be tied to a sales counter to access our website and can easily pull more detailed information for a customer.” Social media has been deeply integrated into the new website. The home page provides a link to and prominently features Hello Metro, I.O. Metro’s house blog that will feature regular guest blogs by company spokesperson and TV’s design star, Vern Yip. Product pages now feature a “Share” button that allows sharing of specific products via Twitter, Facebook, email, blog platforms and much more. Flickr, YouTube and Issuu are used throughout the website as well. Live chat is also a new service iometro.com is offering to assist visitors with questions or general information. -more-
Vern Yip is especially pleased about the new website and its e-commerce capabilities. “I am excited that people all over the country now have access to the stylish and affordable products I.O. Metro offers,” Yip says. “I really feel that someone in California can buy a sofa on iometro.com, have it shipped to them and still come out ahead as opposed to buying a similar sofa at their local big-box retailer. Plus, they will have that unmistakable, unique vibe that only I.O. Metro can offer.” In less than one month, and with very little promotion, iometro.com has already seen a 147% increase in unique visits compared to six months ago. I.O. Metro is currently offering a free shipping promotion on all on-line orders and plans to roll out some exciting new promotions in the coming months. “We have had numerous online orders already and expect those numbers to increase dramatically as we start executing our marketing strategy,” says Amber Langston, Marketing Director. “Soon we will be rolling out the all-new I.O. Metro Holiday Collection, and a holiday gift guide. For the first time, we will be doing a major promotion starting on Black Friday where we will give away an item a day for 28 days! In addition, we have several PR opportunities we’re exploring.” Howard expects the new website to have a positive effect on brick-and-mortar locations as well. “We don’t think we’ll ever be able to replicate the store experience on our website, although we’ve tried!” Howard says. “We do believe our new site will support our stores, with more robust information, and it will also help with general brand awareness. Being able to sell online really allows us to promote I.O. Metro with no boundaries. From California to New York City, we’re truly excited about the next chapter in our company history.” About I.O. Metro Headquartered in Northwest Arkansas, I.O. Metro is a specialty lifestyle furniture retailer that sells modern, one-of-a-kind and eclectic furniture, art and accessories in 19 locations across the South and Midwest. Through its innovative in-house development team and network of sourcing options in 14 countries, I.O. Metro is able to differentiate itself from monotonous furniture choices so common in the furniture industry. Each I.O. Metro store offers a wide range of custom options with free design service. For more information, visit www.iometro.com.
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