Type the word "economy" in Google News and most of the headlines that pop up have negative descriptors in them, from "sluggish" and "troubled" to "cooling" and "slowing." Do the same for "retail" and you get a mixed bag of gloom, cautious optimism and mildly good news.

Despite "sluggish" retail sales due to the "slowing" economy, though, a substantial surge is expected for online sales. According to a new report by research firm Forrester, online spending is expected to grow 17 percent this year to $204 billion. That may not be hockey-stick growth. But it's pretty substantial, especially given the health of the overall economy.

In particular, small online businesses are expected to fare well. Websites operated by smaller businesses, Forrester says, are where one-fourth of all online sales occur. And that's expected to increase, as online retail is attractive to many entrepreneurs because start-up costs are usually low.

So, if the economy is at best sluggish, why would people be spending more money online?

There are several reasons. One is that consumers are increasingly getting comfortable using the Internet to buy things. But the price of gasoline is another reason. Gas prices are hitting record highs across the country and not only don't show signs of decreasing but look as if they will continue to rise. In Arizona -- which enjoys some of the lowest gas prices in the country -- the cost for a gallon right now is $3.61, AAA says. That's a record high. And it's still 19 cents below the national average.

Consumers are simply traveling less to save money on gas. So that means even if retail spending is flat, consumers are spending more on the Internet. According to e-commerce software maker iCongo, 33 percent of respondents in a recent survey said they were "more likely" to shop online than in-person because of high gas prices. That's almost hockey-stick growth.

If you think a sluggish, slowing or cooling -- whatever it may be -- economy is a time to scale back on marketing expenses, think again. I believe it's a great time to consider scaling up spending aimed at optimizing e-commerce Websites, especially given the stats above.

According to a new survey by Opinion Research Corp., 14 percent of shoppers are "frustrated" by malfunctioning Websites. Don't let your customers be in that 14 percent. In addition to ironing out basic kinks, you can do the following five things to take advantage of this uptick in online spending:

1. Let shoppers know where they are in the checkout process.
2. Fine-tune your navigation, as intuitive page flow definitely increases the likelihood of a sale.
3. Make all images clickable, with a call to action.
4. Add a search box, as you will get insight into what shoppers want and help them find stuff faster -- on your site as opposed to your competitor's.
5. Fine-tune your search engine optimization (for another post).

'Til next time,

Joan
The eSecurityDiva