Choosing the Right Enterprise E-Commerce Platform

published Mar 25, 2019
1 min read

E-Commerce Platforms

Choosing the right e-commerce platform for your business is a critical decision that can make or break your online business. There is a wide variety of platforms to choose from and each of them has its own unique selling points. This can make choosing the right platform for your business a difficult choice. In this article, we will take a closer look at the important things that you should consider when choosing between the different enterprise e-commerce platforms.

Functionality and Purpose

It is important to understand what you need from your e-commerce platform. Make sure that your chosen platform has the features that you need, especially in terms of integration, scalability and ease of use. The right product should offer you access to all the important features that you may need while being able to integrate with your existing website easily. The first step to choosing the right e-commerce platform for you is understanding what your current and future needs are.

Simplicity

When it comes to e-commerce platforms, simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. You should choose a platform that can be managed easily and offers simple and easy to use setup procedures so that you can spend more time on building your business than figuring out how to use your e-commerce platform. While simplicity is important, you should also make sure that the platform you choose is powerful enough to process all the transactions that your website will be generating.

Expandability

One of the most important, and often overlooked, things about a good e-commerce platform is scalability. The platform that you choose should be able to grow with your business. Most e-commerce platforms are based on a modular system that allows users to add modules to the platform as and when they need them. This system works great because it has the advantage of lower costs in the earlier stages of your business, allowing you to dedicate capital to other areas that may need more immediate attention.

Price

As with all things in business, the pricing of your chosen e-commerce platform should be sensible. Most platforms use a sliding system for their pricing, these systems are often tied to either revenue or the number of inventory items that you will be loading onto the platform. Look for an option that strikes a healthy balance between price and features. It is worth taking a look at the cost of various plans for the same product to ensure that the cost per transaction will remain acceptable over time as your business grows.

Integration

Choose a platform that can integrate with your existing website and supports multiple payment gateways. Being able to process electronic payments easily and effectively is critical for online retailers. Many platforms offer simplified setup steps that allow you to use well-established payment gateways without the need for specialised coding. An all‐in‐one payment system, like Exactly.com, can help you automate most of the payment process and seamlessly offer a range of solutions to your customers.

The transition between your website and your chosen e-commerce platform should be a fast and smooth experience for the end user.