Open Source eCommerce: Weighing the Pros & Cons

Open Source eCommerce: Weighing the Pros & Cons

by | Feb 26, 2021 | eCommerce, Technology

When it comes to running an eCommerce business, there are two types of website software platforms you can choose to power your shop with: open source or software as a service (or SaaS). Their main differences have to do with capabilities and cost. Neither is objectively better; which platform works best for you will depend on your business needs and your budget. 

eCommerce retail sales topped 4.13 trillion USD in 2020, and they’re set to keep climbing, according to Statista. As online shopping continues to grow, more and more businesses are seeking information on these two platform types, specifically what benefits they each offer and what makes them different from one another. 

What Is Open Source?

Open source is a type of software platform that is powerful and deeply customizable because its source code can be overridden, or edited. You buy it (some instances are even free to use), install it, and host it on a server, either on the same premises as your business is located, or from a hosting company or leased in the cloud from a firm providing that service. Like anything, you get what you pay for: free versions are sometimes stripped down to the basics and don’t include all the features that you may need to run your business. 

The big differentiator with open source is that you manage everything yourself—or pay a third-party provider to. As they say, with great power comes great responsibility. So unless you have developers/programmers on staff, you’ll likely need support from a development agency with building and maintaining your open source eCommerce website.

What Open Source Platforms Are There?

Magento is one of the main open source platforms, and it’s available in three versions: Magento Open Source (formerly Magento Community Edition), which is free to download; Magento Commerce (formerly Magento Enterprise Edition), which requires you to pay licensing fees in exchange for advanced features and ticket-based support; and Magento Commerce Cloud, which is the paid version with cloud-hosting included in the license fee. Other open source platforms include WooCommerce, OpenCart, PrestaShop and Shopware.

The Pros of Open Source

Flexibility Through Complete Customization

Open source platforms are highly customizable, which means they offer a large degree of control regarding the shopping experience. This is because powerful features can be built by overriding source code, making them great for businesses with very specific, niche needs. For example, with many fashion eCommerce businesses wanting to provide advanced technologies like virtual fitting rooms, this makes open source platforms an enticing option. The only limit is your developers’ abilities, your imagination and, of course, your wallet.

Unlimited Selling Potential

There is virtually no limit to how much or what you can sell with an eCommerce site built on an open source platform. You can start at any size and keep growing. This is great for auto aftermarket websites in particular, as they tend to run their product numbers into the hundreds of thousands.

Community Support

Open source platforms are built and monitored collaboratively, by developer communities, with programmers sharing ideas freely online in blogs and forums. These supportive environments can be great for fostering creativity, solving problems and generally building amazing websites. However, the level of this collaborative access can be determined by whether or not you pay a licensing fee for your version of the platform.

The Cons of Open Source

Complexities Can Keep People Out

Generally, open source platforms are created for and by software developers and programmers, meaning that not only the initial setup and creation of the site, but also any ongoing maintenance and functional improvements requires a developer, in-house IT department, or outside agency. There is a lot of technical knowledge that’s required to begin with, and that must be kept up with, as platforms and best practices evolve. It can be difficult or at least time-consuming, and costly for a typical merchant to manage these capabilities by themselves

Higher Cost to Build and Maintain

The initial cost to build with open source also doesn’t include other software extensions and customizations you may need for the site to function exactly as you would like it to. The more overrides you make to the source code, the more complex and therefore often more expensive it can be to maintain. Plugins can often be incompatible with each other as they are built by different developers, and when they become outdated and unsupported they need to be replaced, which requires identifying, purchasing and installing new ones. This can mean you need to keep building new tools for promotions, merchandising and so on. Hosting provider fees can also fluctuate with usage and traffic spikes.

Security and Maintenance is in Your Hands

Open source platforms can be vulnerable to hackers. The software provider (ie. Magento) will probably provide patches. But the onus is on you the merchant (or any third party you hire) to install these patches, plus install any upgrades, fix bugs, and meet PCI Compliance (Payment Card Industry Data Security) standards, to be able to accept payments.

Interested in Learning More?

InteractOne has a team of highly skilled developers that are very experienced in building and maintaining open source platforms for a range of different types of online businesses. If you’re interested in learning more, reach out to us to discuss whether an open source platform could be right for your business.

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SaaS eCommerce: Weighing the Pros & Cons

SaaS eCommerce: Weighing the Pros & Cons

by | Feb 26, 2021 | eCommerce, Technology

When it comes to starting an eCommerce business, there are two types of platforms you can choose to power your shop with: software as a service (or SaaS) or open source. Their main differences have to do with ease of customization, capabilities and cost. Neither is objectively better; which platform works best for you will depend on your business needs and your budget. 

eCommerce retail sales topped 4.13 trillion USD in 2020, and they’re set to keep climbing, according to Statista. As online shopping continues to grow, more and more people are seeking information on these two platform types, specifically what benefits they offer and what makes them different from one another. 

To shed some light on this, we’ve put together two introductory guides to these different platform types. For information about open source, check out our guide to the pros and cons of open source. Now, onto the basics of SaaS.

What is SaaS?

Software as a service, or SaaS, is software that is licensed and delivered to you by a SaaS provider. This means that the provider takes care of all of the hosting, maintenance and security that you would otherwise have to manage yourself. 

You pay for the use of the software via a monthly fee, which generally includes much of what you need to run your online business, including the eCommerce platform software itself, plus hosting, software updates and security patches. This makes SaaS a great option for businesses of a variety of sizes who may have fewer resources, but it also means constraints customizing your site from the ground up.

What SaaS Platforms Are There?

There are numerous SaaS platforms available; one of the more well-known ones is BigCommerce, which offers a more flexible, customizable type of SaaS platform popular with mid-market and enterprise brands. There’s also Shopify and Shopify Plus, which has lots of themes to choose from but limits the number of products you can sell, which can be problematic for businesses with big catalogs. Other SaaS platforms include Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Volusion and Squarespace.

The Pros of SaaS

Quick to Set Up

You don’t have to download or install anything to start a website on a SaaS platform; simply create an account and start building your store using the provider’s interface. SaaS providers usually offer many pre-built themes with drag-and-drop page-building, so no coding is required. This makes it quick and easy—depending on which software you choose and the functionality it has built in. Of course, quick and easy is a relative term. Many merchants will engage with a development agency to build their SaaS site, to take advantage of their expertise and previous success with building and maintaining other stores. Generally, stores on SaaS platforms can launch quicker than those on open source platforms, even if you work with an agency, because they’re not being built from scratch and there is generally less need for customization.

Much of the Site Maintenance Is Done For You

Most of the technical details—software updates, hosting, site maintenance and security—are managed for you by the SaaS platform provider. This is good for businesses that don’t have a lot of technical knowledge nor the budget for extra professional help. It’s all managed through cloud-based delivery for a monthly fee. This makes it user-friendly and simple to maintain. It also means that the merchant can focus on running and growing the business, as opposed to focusing on the nuts and bolts of site maintenance.

More Stability and Reliability 

Open source platforms can have issues relating to extensions or plugins, as they are built by different developers and can be incompatible with each other. They also become outdated and unsupported and need to be replaced when new versions of the platform are released, which requires identifying and installing updated extensions. With SaaS platforms, there’s less risk of update-related breakages and security breaches. This provides merchants with peace of mind, as there’s less risk of lost revenue and reputation issues due to the site being down or security-related issues.

The Cons of SaaS

Lack of Customization

Without the ability to override source code, which you can do with open source platforms, there can be limitations to customizing a SaaS platform website. Platforms such as BigCommerce do provide some openness through APIs, though these customizations, like on open course sites, do require some programming investment. It’s likely that you will still require further apps and extensions not included in the software, to get the full functionality that you need and want. For example, BigCommerce partners with a number of providers for functionality such as payments, shipping, site search, etc. Shopify’s model provides these services themselves or via a proprietary software stack. If flexibility and providing an innovative customer experience is important to you, some SaaS platforms may not offer enough capabilities for your business or you may be forced into using a functionality provider not of your choosing.

Limited process and capacity

Some SaaS platforms have limited processing and SKU capacity. They can also decide what types of products a business will or will not sell using their platform, and they can change their minds whenever they like. This means that some stores start on a SaaS platform and then find they have to migrate to open source when they get too big, or when they want to sell something that’s not permitted by their SaaS platform. Some merchants have been given only a few weeks to move their sites to other platforms after their SaaS provider decides to no longer allow the sale of their type of product (for example firearms or cannabis products).

Less Choice of Features and Products

With many SaaS alternatives, you have to work within the confines of the platform. Some platforms don’t let you choose certain apps or features, meaning you’re locked into whatever they’ve selected. For example, Shopify has a proprietary payment provider. You can choose another payment provider but Shopify will charge a transaction fee of 2% of every sale that uses gateway. They also don’t allow access to certain features like multi-currency.

Extra Cost for More Functionality

As with most things in life, when it comes to eCommerce platforms, you get what you pay for. Some SaaS platforms bundle functionalities and services, making it easier to estimate costs and capabilities. However, often a SaaS platform will appear inexpensive, but that is because it provides very limited functionality (it’s how they afford to keep the price low). This means that you often end up having to pay for and install additional apps later on, to get the full functionality you require to run your store. The upside is you can start with a basic site and add functionality as you grow and based on need. The downside is that these costs can add up over time, sometimes unexpectedly.

Want to Find Out More

InteractOne has a team of highly skilled developers, site architects and solutions specialists who are very experienced in building and maintaining SaaS platform eCommerce sites for a range of different types of businesses. If you’re interested in learning more, reach out to us to discuss whether a SaaS platform could be right for your business.

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7 A/B Tests for Your Apparel & Accessories Site

7 A/B Tests for Your Apparel & Accessories Site

by | Feb 19, 2021 | Apparel

No matter how much time and resources you devote to building the most modern, most user-friendly apparel eCommerce website, there are always going to be features that can be improved upon. That’s where A/B testing comes in. 

 A/B testing comes down to making small adjustments to your website until you find the combination that resonates most with your audience. This means that there are few “ah-ha!” moments; with A/B testing it’s all about baby steps. But be patient, let the testing data inform you, and you will reap serious rewards. 

 Whether this is your first attempt at A/B testing or you’re already on a never-ending quest for ways to improve your eCommerce site and increase sales conversions, here are seven simple A/B tests to try for your apparel eCommerce site.

Show your product or show how it’s used?

Of course, you are going to feature your products with great, high-res images, but what’s the best way to display them? Do users want to see your clothes in action on a model, or simply against a solid background? There’s a good chance your shoppers will want to see your apparel in both types of images, as Patagonia demonstrates below, but A/B testing will tell you if one product image type resonates with your audience more strongly than the other.

Product Videos

Every single bit of research and data shows that video is the future. Even the most crisp, beautiful high-res images have limitations. Video is as close as apparel merchants can get to bring their product to life, short of having customers physically hold the clothing or footwear in their hands. If you haven’t yet fully committed to product videos, start with a few for some select products and see how they perform. If you already have product videos, test out an auto-play option and add captions to make it accessible and to catch the eye of customers surfing your site with their sound off.

List View vs Mosaic

It’s the job of your website to make it as easy as possible for customers to find the right product. But, what’s the best way to organize your products visually? For some products and industries a grid view is more successful. For others, a mosaic produces better results. Try A/B testing the visual layout of your product pages and compare the user engagement for a list view versus a mosaic view.

BIGGER calls to action

Customers should never have to search for what they’re looking for on your pages. It should always be fairly obvious where they should go for what they need. If they can’t find where to check out or add to cart then your site is failing. Those are the two most important elements of your store and when it comes to those CTAs, bigger is better. But what design, color scheme, and wording on your buttons work best? Test it out.

Feature Contact Information

It may seem like something small, but adding your contact information can have a big impact on your conversions. Relationships are built on trust, and customer/merchant relationships are no different. Customers want to know how to get in touch with you if something goes awry. Try prominently listing your email address, phone number and (if applicable) physical location across the top of your site and see if your conversions are boosted.

Static Image over Carousel

Carousels have fallen out of favor in recent years. Testing has shown they can often be distracting to customers, causing them to overlook details that merchants are often trying to get noticed, such as sales and new products. Apparel eCommerce shoppers also crave control, which auto-carousels remove. So if you’re using a carousel (banner slider) at the top of your pages, try swapping that out for a static hero image with a single, clear proposition, as Unif has done. You may find that one bold image and message resonates more than a flurry of images and options.

Highlight a Price Reduction

If you’ve recently reduced the price of an item, make sure your customers know about it by showing them visually. But what’s the most effective way to show them? That’s what you need to test. Perhaps it’s a ‘slashed’ price, different colored text like L.L. Bean uses on their website, or an icon on the product image. There’s only one way to find out which works best for your site: A/B test it.

What to Prioritize With A/B Testing

You can avoid costly mistakes with your A/B testing if you know what to prioritize. Here are some things to do and keep in mind as you begin.

Test Your Most Profitable Pages First 

Start where the money is. Begin testing on the pages that bring you the most traffic and the most money to build on that success.

 Assign A/B Testing to a Single Person 

Give one person on your team the responsibility of A/B testing management, implementation, monitoring, and reporting. The term “too many cooks in the kitchen” definitely applies to A/B testing. Keep things simple and empower a single person to handle these aspects.

Don’t Forget About Mobile 

Perform A/B tests on both mobile and desktop. Results for mobile can be 180 degrees from results you see on desktop. What works for one doesn’t necessarily work for the other.

Start Big 

Begin by testing the larger elements on your pages; hero images, purchase buttons, product descriptions. Don’t get bogged down with testing the smaller elements until you’ve tested the larger elements and improved those first.

Test a Single Element at a Time 

Select one element at a time to test, otherwise, your results are going to be skewed and you won’t be able to determine what elements that are being tested are affecting the page.

Our team has a lot of experience in A/B testing to determine the most profitable outcome for apparel eCommerce websites. If you’re ready to get the absolute most out of your apparel eCommerce website, contact us — we’ll be happy to assist you.

Get in Touch

Connect with one of our experts today to discuss your eCommerce needs!

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7 Simple A/B Tests to Improve Your Vitamins and Supplements eCommerce Site

7 Simple A/B Tests to Improve Your Vitamins and Supplements eCommerce Site

by | Feb 19, 2021 | Nutraceuticals/Supplements/Vitamins

No matter how much time and resources you devote to building the most modern, most user-friendly vitamins and supplements eCommerce website, there are always going to be features that can be improved upon. That’s where A/B testing comes in. 

A/B testing comes down to making small adjustments to your website until you find the combination that resonates most with your audience. This means that there are few “ah-ha!” moments; with A/B testing it’s all about baby steps. But be patient, let the testing data inform you, and you will reap serious rewards. 

Whether this is your first attempt at A/B testing or you’re already on a never-ending quest for ways to improve your eCommerce site and increase sales conversions, here are seven simple A/B tests to try for your vitamins and supplements eCommerce site.

Show Your Product Alone or In Context?

Of course, you are going to feature your products with great, high-res images, but what’s the best way to display them? Do users want to see your products posed with a model or in some other dynamic setting, or do they simply want to see the products against a solid background? There’s a good chance the answer is both, and you could include both image types as Ritual does, but A/B testing will tell you if one product image type resonates with your audience more strongly than the other.

Product Videos

Every single bit of research and data shows that video is the future. Even the most crisp, beautiful high-res images have limitations. Video is as close as merchants can get to bringing their product to life, short of having customers physically hold the products in their hands. If you haven’t yet fully committed to product videos, start with a few for some select products and see how they perform. If you already have product videos, test out an auto-play option and add captions to make it accessible and to catch the eye of customers surfing your site with their sound off.

List View vs Mosaic

It’s the job of your website to make it as easy as possible for customers to find the right product. But, what’s the best way to organize your products visually? For some, a grid view is more successful. For others, a mosaic produces better results. Try A/B testing the visual layout of your product pages and compare the user engagement for a list view versus a mosaic view. You could also ultimately provide both view options via small buttons above the product results, as iHerb does if you find that your shoppers respond well to having the choice.

BIGGER calls to action

Customers should never have to search for what they’re looking for on your page. It should always be fairly obvious where they should go for what they need. If they can’t find where to check out or add to cart then your site is failing. Those are the two most important elements of your store and when it comes to those CTAs, bigger is better. But what design, color scheme, and wording on your buttons work best? Test it out.

Feature Contact Information

It may seem like something small, but adding your contact information can have a big impact on your conversions. Relationships are built on trust, and customer/merchant relationships are no different. Customers want to know how to get in touch with you if something goes awry. Try prominently listing your email address, phone number, and (if applicable) physical location across the top of your site and see if your conversions are boosted. iHerb has a link to “24/7 Support” in the top right corner of their site to ensure customer service is only a click away for their shoppers. 

Static Image over Carousel

Carousels have fallen out of favor in recent years. Testing has shown they can often be distracting to customers, causing them to overlook details that merchants are often trying to get noticed, such as sales and new products. Vitamins and supplements eCommerce customers also crave control, which auto-carousels remove. So if you’re using a carousel (banner slider) at the top of your pages, try swapping that out for a static hero image with a single, clear proposition, as Now Foods has done. You may find that one bold image and message resonates more than a flurry of images and options.

Highlight a Price Reduction

If you’ve recently reduced the price of an item, make sure your customers know about it by showing them visually. But what’s the most effective way to show them? That’s what you need to test. Perhaps it’s a ‘slashed’ price, different colored text like Now Foods uses on their website, or an icon on the product image. There’s only one way to find out which works best for your site: A/B test it.

What to Prioritize With A/B Testing

You can avoid costly mistakes with your A/B testing if you know what to prioritize. Here are some things to do and keep in mind as you begin.

Test Your Most Profitable Pages First 

Start where the money is. Begin testing on the pages that bring you the most traffic and the most money to build on that success. 

Assign A/B Testing to a Single Person 

Give one person on your team the responsibility of A/B testing management, implementation, monitoring and reporting. The term “too many cooks in the kitchen” definitely applies to A/B testing. Keep things simple and empower a single person to handle these aspects.

Don’t Forget About Mobile 

Perform A/B tests on both mobile and desktop. Results for mobile can be 180 degrees from results you see on the desktop. What works for one doesn’t necessarily work for the other.

Start Big 

Begin by testing the larger elements on your pages; hero images, purchase buttons, product descriptions. Don’t get bogged down with testing the smaller elements until you’ve tested the larger elements and improved those first.

Test a Single Element at a Time 

Select one element at a time to test, otherwise, your results are going to be skewed and you won’t be able to determine what elements that are being tested are affecting the page.

Our team has a lot of experience in A/B testing to determine the most profitable outcome for vitamins and supplements eCommerce websites. If you’re ready to get the absolute most out of your website, contact us – and we’ll be happy to assist you.

Get in Touch

Connect with one of our experts today to discuss your eCommerce needs!

Contact Us
UPDATED: Unique eCommerce Challenges Facing the Supplements Industry

UPDATED: Unique eCommerce Challenges Facing the Supplements Industry

by | Feb 19, 2021 | eCommerce, Nutraceuticals/Supplements/Vitamins

No matter how you slice it, eCommerce is everywhere. Every day, more companies are moving their business online. This comes with some perks and some challenges. The pharmaceutical industry is no different, but the challenges for this industry are unique. Read on to discover the challenges you might face as you bring (or expand) your pharma business online — and how you can have the best chance to succeed.

Challenge 1: Heavy regulations aren’t so easy to implement online.

In doctors’ offices, hospitals and pharmacies, the world of supplements and medications is heavily regulated. But with the rise of eCommerce, many over-the-counter supplements and prescription medications can now be sold online by anyone. In fact, studies show that 66% of countries around the world have no laws in place that regulate the online sales of medicine. In the United States, authorities do have many laws and regulations in place and try to step in to make sure that the public is receiving legitimate medications from legitimate sources. Unfortunately, however, this doesn’t always happen. As a result, each month, these US regulations shut down around 1,500 websites that sell medications to consumers without appropriate safeguards.

As a retailer of supplements, vitamins or nutraceuticals, you have an obligation to stay-up-to-date with regulations and do your best to make sure your sales are legal and legitimate. If you don’t, regulatory authorities can then step in and produce a “buyers beware” message to help ensure that consumers are smart in their buying decisions. If your site runs counter to their message by selling any products with warnings attached to them you could lose credibility. 

Challenge 2: With online sales, there’s too little involvement by a healthcare professional.

Now that so many medications and supplements are available online, they’re easily accessed by anyone—whether or not there’s a doctor or pharmacist involved. This can lead to risky situations, with many people ordering supplements online without a diagnosis from a doctor or any idea of the right dosage from a pharmacist. This can easily cause supplements to be used in the wrong way or a patient taking too much of a certain supplement.

Supplements eCommerce retailers should always sell only legitimate products in recommended amounts. Failing to do so can easily land you in legal hot water. In August 2020, the FDA sent a warning letter to RX Easy Meds because they were “misbranding” their products. Before selling any supplements, vitamins or nutraceuticals online, it’s vital to check the FDA’s website so you don’t find yourself in legal hot water too.

Challenge 3: All pharma eCommerce companies must not violate HIPAA regulations.

As a supplements, vitamins or nutraceuticals retailer with an online business, you’re subject to Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations, so it’s important to be aware of how to comply with them. 

HIPAA regulations can be extensive and complex. They ask companies to implement rules to protect patients’ health information, limit all sharing of confidential personal data and train all employees about security and confidentiality. As a result, you have to choose the right HIPAA-savvy eCommerce development partners so that your customers’ personal information is always secure and never exposed online or elsewhere. If you aren’t careful enough, hackers can breach your customers’ healthcare records, which can quickly send you down a road of unending legal troubles. Plus, customers are quick to abandon any company that makes them feel that their private information is at risk.

Conclusion

As your pharma company grows its eCommerce presence, you’re sure to face challenges along the way. It’s a great idea for online merchants to continually check in with legal counsel to make sure that all of their activity is above reproach. Failing to do so can quickly lead to items slipping through the cracks and then exposing a company to devastating losses. However, by knowing what’s coming and tackling those challenges in a smart way, your online sales are sure to be a success.

To find out how InteractOne can help with your supplements, vitamins or nutraceuticals eCommerce business, contact us today.

Get in Touch

Connect with one of our experts today to discuss your eCommerce needs!

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