When your eCommerce business starts to grow, it is important to have access to the right resources to ensure that you can scale seamlessly. You don’t want your life to get consumed by the tireless process of managing new orders. The digital platform you choose will make a major difference in helping you deal with the process. This article will provide you with an overview of two leading eCommerce platforms and how they can help you scale your business.
Evaluating the Options
When it comes to scalable eCommerce management, the most popular options are WooCommerce and Shopify. Even though there are other platforms available, deviating away from the best options is a bit like having Ironman and Captain America and still trying to find Falcon.
WooCommerce is the most commonly chosen eCommerce plugin, thanks to its integrated commerce features. The plugin is the most common choice for developers because of the liberty it offers in the development process. WooCommerce is compatible with thousands of streamlined plugins and takes a ton of hassle away from e-store management.
Shopify is the most common alternative to WooCommerce. The platform provides a simple eCommerce setup for business owners that are looking to avoid the technical hassle and skip straight to the selling process. The platform provides integrated payment processing and templates for a monthly fee.
With both options having their pros and cons, we’ll delve deeper into the benefits and limitations of Shopify and WooCommerce to help you have a broader context before making your decision.
Importance of Scalability for Businesses
As your business starts to grow, you’ll need to implement efficient measures to ensure that your company is ready to take on new challenges. You don’t want to be drowning in orders without having the right tools to help you process those orders in time. You also don’t want to waste your valuable ad budget on a mismanaged eCommerce store.
Your chosen eCommerce platform is going to be a huge factor in the scalable growth of your business. The right platform can provide you with all the right tools and supporting resources to help you cater to challenges.
Exploring the key benefits of WooCommerce will allow you to have a better understanding of your options so that you can make an informed decision.
Scalable eCommerce Management With WooCommerce
Being open-source, WooCommerce provides you with the ability to customize your store based on your business requirements. Unlike other popular choices where you’re stuck with pre-existing templates, WooCommerce allows you to take control of your e-store and embody your brand image through every step of the development. The plugin helps you scale your digital ecosystem as your business grows.
Here’s how WooCommerce helps you scale seamlessly.
- Payment Scalability – Payment scalability is a major concern for most businesses. When businesses start out, they often have limited payment options available for customers. WooCommerce allows you to expand your payment gateways to provide more choices to customers and save on transaction costs.
- Product Variations – It is natural for businesses to start out with limited product renditions before expanding. You don’t want to be stuck with your products in a dozen different colors without knowing the public reaction first. WooCommerce allows you to seamlessly embed product variations to accommodate different new attributes in your product catalog.
- Inventory Management – When businesses start out, they just want to generate a profit. However, with growth, you need to efficiently manage orders, stock, and shipments to have a streamlined business operation. WooCommerce allows you to take control of your inventory with an integrated inventory management module.
If you’re planning on using WooCommerce for a large enterprise, read more on that here: WooCommerce for large-scale enterprises.
Limitations
- WooCommerce has a difficult learning curve. You cannot expect to watch a YouTube tutorial video and get started with your digital store. The platform has thousands of extensions that can be overwhelming to figure out if you don’t know what you’re doing.
- Even though WooCommerce saves you more money in the long run, the initial development cost might be higher than conventional options.
- WooCommerce development can be a lot more complicated than simple drag-and-drop builders. You might need to hire professional support for ongoing WooCommerce maintenance.
Shopify and Business Scalability
Shopify helps businesses by providing them with a non-technical way to manage their e-stores. The platform is designed to simplify eCommerce management with integrated payment gateways and pre-designed templates. Shopify is a viable choice for individuals and businesses that are starting out with their eCommerce operations and looking to avoid the hassle of going to developers for a customized experience.
Here are some of the core features of Shopify.
- Compact Plans – Shopify plans are designed to provide you with three layers of features. For different price points, businesses can choose the required option based on their business volumes.
- Integrated POS – Shopify POS solutions allow businesses to integrate conventional retail into their operations.
- Facebook Ads – The platform simplifies Facebook advertisement management for your products on the company’s social media platforms, including Instagram and Whatsapp.
- Quick Deployment – Shopify is a great option for businesses that are looking to get started quickly with their operations. The platform has a seamless interface that allows you to launch your store within hours.
- Simplified Management – Shopify provides businesses with eCommerce support by streamlining the technical management of stores and providing them with a managed environment. The platform manages the server capabilities of the store through upgrade-able plans that allow businesses to expand their capabilities depending on their store performance and requirements.
Limitations
- Shopify does not provide users with the ability to properly customize the site themes. This limits the unique outlook you can create on Shopify with your brand.
- Shopify does not provide integrated email hosting plans to update customers with order updates and subsequent marketing campaigns.
- Shopify can be a costly option if you’re a business experiencing an increase in sales. The percentage-based transaction fees can become a major financial cost as your business grows.
- Even though Shopify plans are a convenient way to start business capabilities and cater to digital sales, the approach towards resource management is limited because the platform takes control away from user decision-making in the technical parts of the decision-making process.
Downsides of Shopify
Choosing Shopify to create your store can be a lot like taking out a student loan. Even though it might seem like a wonderful free-of-cost way to get started with your dream degree, the reality of the decision emerges when you have to bear the interest. While Shopify’s basic packages are a great way to start with eCommerce, the platform charges a significant percentage fee on every transaction. For businesses that are running on thin margins, the transaction fee can be a major negative factor.
As your brand grows, it is important to slowly develop a personalized user experience to engage with your customers. No one wants to hop onto an e-store that looks like a copy-pasted template. This downside is a major flaw in Shopify as it offers limited customization options to business owners. Due to the lack of technical access, developers can only work with options within the Shopify framework. This severely limits your ability to customize the platform based on your vision for your brand. Working within that structure can feel a bit like trying to design your house based on someone else’s architecture.
Read more about the great debate between WooCommerce vs Shopify.
Conclusion
When you’re going through the growth phase, making the right calls is essential to help you sustain scalable growth. Going with WooCommerce can provide you with the liberty to update your digital ecosystem based on your needs. The platform’s pretty much the best option from a customization standpoint. From behavioral analysis to visual design, you can optimize every little aspect based on your needs.
If you’re thinking about implementing a WooCommerce solution for your e-store, it can be a great idea to work with a professional WooCommerce development agency. These companies provide you with comprehensive development support and ensure that your store is customized according to your needs. When deciding on a WooCommerce agency, make sure that you vet out their reputation before making the final decision.
