In our contemporary world of business largely influenced by information communication technology, the internet has continually been playing vital roles in driving our market place. Many of the successful online stores you see today are actively utilizing the limitless opportunities that ecommerce platform has to offer. The importance of ecommerce platform cannot be overestimated. You may be asking yourself, what is the mechanism behind it? For you to effectively improve your business and geometrically expand your customers’ base, either as an online store or as a service provider, you need an efficient and cost effective ecommerce platform.
Ecommerce platform is a software application provided by some organizations that give online businesses the opportunity to manage their websites, sales and operations. These services can be best enjoyed by utilizing effective ecommerce themes to boost your operational efficiency and provide your clients with the best customer experience. If you have been on the task of facilitating your online business, you would have heard of ecommerce platforms like; Magento, BigCommerce, Demandware, Volusion, WooCommerce and so on. The choice of what ecommerce platform to deploy and the most suitable ecommerce themes to adopt can be confusing. But you have nothing to worry about because you are about to discover the exact ecommerce platform that suites you needs.
Firstly, let us take a brief look at the functional mechanism behind the various ecommerce platform options available. This will guide your decision on the one that has the best framework and functionality that will help you achieve your goals. There are 3 major ways we can classify the types of ecommerce platforms:
- Open Source: In this case, you are solely responsible for the management of so many important factors like the hosting environment, modification of codes, security issues and so on. This type is usually cumbersome and much capital intensive. It is therefore not profitable for small businesses.
- Software as a Service (SaaS): In this case, a lot of complexity has been eliminated for you as an online business owner. You simply leave the task of managing the software in the hands of the ecommerce platform which you rent. This is a cheaper option compared to open source.
- Commerce as a Service (CaaS): This is a newer approach towards building a broader micro service architecture and technology stack build. It alleviates complexity.
By now, you have a clearer picture of how ecommerce platform works, why you need one and a few things that lead to the various ecommerce platforms and the ecommerce themes you have been hearing about. Let us now take a look at the factors you must consider before finally settling for any ecommerce platform to help enhance your online business.
Cost and Pricing
Since the primary motive of every business is to make profit, you should be able to know the amount of money it will cost you before choosing an ecommerce platform. You should be able to investigate how much you will be paying and compare it with your estimated income. Most of the ecommerce platforms have monthly fees depending on the services being rendered. Do not for go relevant feature all in the name of cutting down cost, always prioritize your customer’s convenience. Make sure the payment options supported by the ecommerce platform are what will suite your clients.
Mobile compatibility
With recent advances made in smart phones, more people now prefer doing their transactions on mobile phones. In fact, about 60% of searches are done on mobile phones. Therefore, in order to boost you sales, there is the need for you to consider using an ecommerce platform and best WordPress eCommerce themes that will offer your clients easy access and smooth experience on your website.
SEO Compliance
It will be to your advantage if your online business ranks high in search results. Not everyone knows exactly where they can find what they need, a lot of people rely on search engines using keywords. Therefore an ecommerce platform that will enhance SEO friendliness is an important consideration in your choice.
Security
Security is a very crucial factor, you should carry out thorough investigation to make sure the ecommerce platform you are selecting supports HTTPS/SSL in order to ensure secure checkout for your clients. You should also make sure the platform is PCI (Payment Card Industry) compliant. Security is important for you to gain the trust of your customers.
Efficient Customer Service
An efficient and fast customer service on you ecommerce platform will help you to ensure there is always someone to help you resolve issues relating to server downtime and software outage. Resolving such issues as fast as possible is a strong link that strengthens the confidence your clients have in your business.
Conclusion
In conclusion, we have seen that in our modern day business world, the internet is playing more crucial roles in enhancing our transactions. The diversity in the market of ecommerce platforms is as a result of the various ways in which they help to facilitate the smooth running of online businesses. There is therefore the need for business owners to know the right set of factors that will boost their businesses before making a choice on the ecommerce platform to be utilized.