Gone are the days of brick and mortar businesses. Most of the businesses are turning online day-by-day. If you too own a business that needs selling of good, consider to have an online store as soon as possible. But, it is not as easy as it seems. The foremost step and the in opening an online store is the selection of the best platform. It can be a daunting task sometimes. However, a little research and guidance can easily help you to select the best platform for your business.
During 2015, we have seen a significant shift of users towards the desktop, mobile and tablets for buying different sorts of things. This trend will also continue in the upcoming years. So, plan for an online store that is simple, interactive and fast to overcome the highest level of customer’s expectation. Plan to have an online store that is fast, easy to navigate, trustworthy and most importantly, interactive.
Just keep an overview of your business, prospective customers and your selling strategy in your mind before choosing the right e-commerce platform for you. An easy navigation, clear product display, hassle-free checkout and easily updatable CMS (Content Management System) should be the topmost priority of an e-commerce website. Needless to say, additional features such as mobile and tablet compatibility should also be considered on top priority.
When thinking about what platform your site should be on, a smooth and hassle free checkout, clear display of products and an easy to update content management system (CMS) should be your starting point. The need to be responsive goes without saying and you may also need to consider additional modifications to mobile and tablet experiences.
Let us discuss in brief about the biggest CMS platforms for e-commerce solutions (Magento and WooCommerce) to help you in choosing the best e-commerce website development platform in Ireland for your online business.
WooCommerce
It is basically a plug-in that is compatible with WordPress websites. WooCommerce is simply configured to fit with any of your business themes.
Pros:
Easy to configure, user-friendly and compatible with new or current WordPress based website.
Availability of extensions and plug-ins (free and premium) for enhanced functionality such as analytics, social feeds, and SEO.
Simple hosting with all major hosting providers.
Additional e-commerce features like best sellers, sale, product ratings and widgets for featured products.
Cons:
In spite of advanced navigation, WooCommerce can be filtered by one attribute.
Limitation of integration with WordPress-based website only.
Overview:
Ideal for smaller businesses and beginners.
Not recommended if seeking to expand in the future.
Magento
Magento is a one-size-fits-all platform for e-commerce store as it is ideal for scalability with pre-available advanced features.
Pros:
Wide variety of e-commerce features – Discount coupons, loyalty schemes, up-sell, cross-sell and compare products.
Advanced filters to manage multiple stores along with easy-to-switch alternative layouts for different occasions.
Best for scaling larger and sophisticated stores to reduce complexity.
Cons:
Need of Magento specialist developer for initial setup of e-commerce website and extensions.
Need of a dedicated server that fulfills the demand of Magento website as well as technical assistance in setup.
Less user-friendly for beginners. May require additional training.
Overview
Ideal for larger businesses.
Greater assistance may be required but it is loaded with a lot of e-commerce features.
Excellent for businesses that have growth aspirations.
Still have questions in mind? Get in touch with our specialists…
Well, these pros and cons are just a simple way to assess your requirements but every business is unique in its way. The final decision will be based on the initial setup requirements and future objectives of the business. If you do have any question regarding your final decision for e-commerce website development Ireland, get in touch with our experts online @www.thedigitaldepartment.ie