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Experts seeing an increase in phoney e-commerce websites amidst the holiday season

Phoney websites
Phoney websites

You must be aware that the holiday season is coming everywhere around the world. It is especially true for the United States and other parts of the world where Christmas is one of the biggest festivals and everyone takes a break to enjoy. Over the years, we had seen that the shopping which was done ahead of the festival season was done from the local markets. For that reason, people would start to stock up in the stores ahead of the shopping season. However, that trend has long gone ever since the rise of e-commerce websites where the likes of Amazon, Walmart and others currently dominate.

However, that is not to say that the other e-commerce websites are not performing well at all. Well, we see that people have to go to other websites when they don’t find what they are looking for on the major sites. Also, it is seen that people can order from other websites if they find better deals as compared to the reputed brands in the e-commerce world. However, we know that scammers are everywhere and they are seen the most in the online world. For this reason, people hesitate to shop online for the fear of being hacked.

But there is also the other factor involved in shopping online which is a phoney website scam. Basically, this means that the website you are purchasing the items from in the bid of lucrative offers is a phoney one meaning that there is no real product for sale. Instead, they just want you to check out and pay for the order after which they will be gone. As per a report from NormShield’s Bob Maley, “We’ve discovered there are over 6,000 of these domains that have been registered before the holiday season even started,”

WhatsApp takes one step closer to e-commerce, launches product catalogues

WhatsApp Business product catalog
WhatsApp Business product catalog

WhatsApp is one of the cleanest companies in technology industry right now and we have to acknowledge the fact that it has remained as it is since launch. Now, we also know that one of the main USPs about WhatsApp was that its co-founders said they will never place ads inside the messaging platform. This is because ads are intrusive to user privacy and they value privacy of their users. However, WhatsApp has now been acquired by Facebook and it has been done for a long time now. But there were fears earlier about Facebook changing the way WhatsApp works by placing ads and changing its business model.

While that is not done yet, we do see that some monetization plans are being added to WhatsApp in the form of a new app called WhatsApp Business. This app is a messaging platform for businesses to communicate with their customers on WhatsApp itself. However, we are here to tell you about how WhatsApp has entered the e-commerce space with its latest feature addition named as “Product Catalogue”.

If you have a business and you want to sell on WhatsApp, it is now possible to list your products on the platform so that people can look at them and check your offerings and also contact you if needed for the same. This is similar to the way that e-commerce platforms work where you see the product, pay for the product and the product gets delivered to you. While there is no delivery or payment option inside WhatsApp, the first step of product discovery has been taken inside the platform and we feel that the future of WhatsApp is exciting. Having said that, we do hope WhatsApp does not become a commercial product otherwise its audience will slowly start going away from the platform.

Alibaba is reportedly looking for the launch of $15 billion IPO in Hong Kong

Alibaba Group
Alibaba Group

One of the biggest e-commerce platforms in the Chinese markets is Alibaba. We know that the company is utterly dominant and they have also been accused of doing monopolitary practices in the segment. But we still know that it is hard for anyone to beat Alibaba when it comes to potential growth and reach. Now, there are reports that Alibaba could launch an IPO in Hong Kong city. According to reports, Alibaba is setting eyes on the launch of a $15 billion IPO which will be the biggest in Hong Kong city’s recent past.

Now, it was revealed that Alibaba was looking to list on the Hong Kong stock exchange in the beginning of summer. However, protests in the city triggered by the extradition bill meant that the company had to delay its IPO. It now seems that Alibaba are ready to launch their IPO as reported by Bloomberg. It is also reported that Alibaba’s founder Jack Ma wants his company to list closer to China which will not only make Beijing happy but it will also have less damage due to trade war risks.

Talking about Alibaba, it roughly had $57 billion in cash and equivalents as of September this year. However, the slowing economy in China has meant that the growing e-commerce market in the country is stemmed due to country’s middle-class. Even after that, Alibaba posted 40% increase in revenue and it is also looking at the single biggest sale in China’s annual calendar as the Singles Day in China which falls on November 11 is coming. It is also said that Singles’ Day in China is equivalent to the US’ Black Friday sale. It is said that Alibaba is Asia’s largest company by market share and it will be interesting to see how the listing of Alibaba’s stock has an impact on the struggling Hong Kong Stock Exchange

Amazon CTO Werner Vogels says there is a risk to ‘go out of business’ if it stops innovating

Amazon CTO
Amazon CTO

One of the biggest e-commerce players, Amazon, is still worried that it could go out of business if it stops innovating. At this point, you would have thought Amazon is such a big player that it does not worry about such things. However, Amazon’s CTO says that he does worry about innovation in the market. At the Web Summit technology conference in Lisbon, Amazon CTO Werner Vogels revealed that they might ‘go out of business in the next 10-15 years’ if his company fails to innovate in the market.

Also interesting was the fact that Werner believes Amazon will not benefit from directly competing with its rivals such as eBay. In terms of innovation, Amazon CTO gave an example of his prime delivery service and added that “A number of years ago, we released Amazon Prime, which guaranteed two-day delivery for free, included in a package. We’re now shifting that to one day. That’s a massive change. But that’s really what customers are expecting”

He adds that he is a strong believer that if Amazon stops innovating then someone will be doing it better and it is the reason why they could go out of the business while someone else could rise at the top. He also added that the biggest win for any e-commerce company is gaining trust from its customers so that they can shop from the platforms with ease. He also talked about their competition with eBay and how the win is not in competing with each other. Amazon CTO believes that the real win is in bringing more people to shop online and helping customers to place their trust in an online experience. He also says that it is important to ensure that people enjoy shopping online which will make them come again and that is the biggest win

E-commerce platforms warned to stop monopolistic practices by Chinese regulator

Alibaba
Alibaba

There has been a lot that has been said about the different e-commerce platforms around the world. We have seen that people have mostly blamed the major platforms such as Walmart, Alibaba and Amazons of the world. Now, we also know that people are not against e-commerce platforms. However, those against the e-commerce platforms are the traders who are operating in offline capacity who feared and have seen that their business is hurting due to these platforms. One solution for the traders, however, is that they can also start selling their products online which means that they can also benefit from the growing online platform.

But we are now seeing that the governments are also warning different e-commerce platforms around the world. According to a report from Reuters, the Chinese regulators have warned the e-commerce platforms against indulging in monopolistic practices. The major e-commerce platforms warned by the Chinese regulators are JD.com and Alibaba from China. The regulators say that they should stop doing activities that might be seen as monopolistic. This warning is given ahead of China’s biggest sale is coming up which is 11.11 Singles Day shopping event.

In a meeting with Chinese e-commerce platforms, the Chinese regulators urged the platforms to stop indulging in practices such as ‘requiring merchants to sign exclusive cooperation agreements preventing them from selling products on rival platforms’. This has also been done in India where the Indian regulators told e-commerce platforms to stop ‘exclusivity’ of its products which means they should be made available everywhere and not on a single platform of their choice. Alibaba has been accused recently of doing such practices which are called as “choosing one from two” meaning that you either use this platform or that one. In one strange report, a seller on Alibaba was penalized for not stopping to sell on a rival platform.

Singapore-based Qoo10 acquires India’s e-commerce platform Shopclues

Qoo10
Qoo10

We have seen that there are acquisitions taking place every day around the world. Now, some of those acquisitions are big and some are small. One of the big acquisitions has just been completed where a Singapore-based company named Qoo10 has revealed something big. Qoo10 has revealed that they have acquired the Indian e-commerce platform ShopClues. Now, it is also revealed that the acquisition was an all-stock deal which means that no cash was involved. It is also known that ShopClues was looking for a buyer for a long time as the platform was really struggling to even run for a year more.

However, that is not to say that the platform was not big at one point in time. Well, ShopClues was definitely at its peak after launch in 2015 when it was even valued at $1.1 Billion after which it all started to go downhill thanks to Amazon and Flipkart dominating the e-commerce space in India since then. There was no official announcement regarding the valuation of ShopClues in this deal but ET Now reports that ShopClues might have been valued at $70-100 million by Qoo10.

Interestingly, ShopClues said that this deal is a “merger” between the two companies meaning that ShopClues might be able to keep its brand name while Qoo10 will work behind the scenes to fund the company. In an official announcement, ShopClues said that “This partnership presents new strategic opportunities for both companies, as it opens up cross-border opportunities for consumers and sellers across Asia,”

Momoe, the payments arm of ShopClues, is also reportedly acquired by Qoo10 in this deal and that is still pending so the acquisition is not complete yet. Now, the deal between Qoo10 and ShopClues is not out of the blue as Qoo10 CEO had already invested $1 Million from his personal capacity in the Indian e-commerce platform.

Grow your business beyond Shopify

Looking for an eCommerce platform that is the right fit for you is often a task. The issue with the popularity of a specific service is that businesses tend to follow the crowd with their eyes closed, and don’t take the time to evaluate what they really require. Thus, when it comes to selecting your eCommerce platform provider, this mentality can cost you!

There’s no doubt that the crowds are drawn to Shopify, and with good reason. While they are most definitely one of the leading eCommerce service providers out there, your eCommerce venture need not start and end with them. There are other platforms worthy of your attention, and possibly others with more suitable offerings for you and your business.

shopifyalternative
shopifyalternative1

Why is Shopify such a hit?

To begin with, let’s understand why Shopify is such a popular choice. First off, the nature in which it’s designed, makes it generate mass appeal. It’s easy to use and has a quick learning curve. It also boasts of 24×7 support, and being a SaaS platform, it requires next to no technical expertise. To add to it, they bring an assorted app selection to the table and have a wide range of templates to choose from. This is more than enough to attract first time eCommerce venturers.

So, why is it not the perfect choice?

Even though it boasts of a wide range of qualities, there are certain drawbacks and limitations that could be quite significant if you’re unaware of them. The downsides include the following:

  • A rigid URL structure which is unsuitable for SEO optimization
  • Additional transaction fees apply on every transaction unless you use their built-in payments app
  • Best-in-class features are available only within the premium plans
  • There are sale prohibitions on certain ranges of products
  • Poor International Support: They have a limited range of countries wherein you can expand your business
  • With limited product variant options, it’s impossible for brands with a larger variant catalog to list their products

While these limitations may not apply to a business that is just starting out, they will most certainly hamper long-term growth plans. Switching to another service provider while you’re in the growth stage of your business is an avoidable occurrence. It’s imperative to be aware of the services being provided, and those not being offered.

What are the other options?

Even though Shopify may suit your current needs, here are some other platforms that you should take into contention before coming to a decision. These are our top 4 picks of Shopify alternatives:

  • BigCommerce
    As one of the major competitors, BigCommerce is definitely a top contender. Like Shopify, it’s user-friendly, offers 24×7 technical support, handles the back-end technical aspects, and although not as extensive, it has a large variety of themes to choose from. In addition, it has impressive and free base-cart features, that would cost you big bucks on Shopify. BigCommerce comes with zero transaction fees, a 600 product variant capacity, multi-channel selling capabilities, and excellent SEO options.However, it has certain drawbacks. BigCommerce has a limited sales threshold and a comparatively steeper learning curve.
  • Magento
    Another contender in any list of eCommerce platforms is Magento – an open-source and highly flexible alternative. While Magento demands the prerequisites of vast technical expertise; for advanced businesses who are established and looking for a switch, this is your best bet. Being open-source Magento is customizable unlike any other platform and its downloadable version is free. However, it requires you to host your own website, and the premium version is highly expensive. Thus, if you’re a well-established business, equipped with the technical know-how, this is the platform for you.
  • WooCommerce
    WooCommerce is an eCommerce plug-in for WordPress – one of the largest Content Management Systems in the world. An open-source platform, it’s one of the most straightforward ways for a WordPress user to start an online store for the first time. Since most businesses employ the use of WordPress, the WooCommerce plug-in is convenient and highly suitable. However, as with any open-source platform, it requires technical knowledge to be able to get maximum use out of it. Another downside to it is its functional exclusivity with WordPress.
  • Volusion
    Another SaaS platform you should consider is Volusion. Volusion is user-friendly, comes with inbuilt marketing tools and zero transaction fees. They provide 24×7 customer support, and their onboarding is fairly seamless. However, with this platform, an increase in traffic on your website causes a simultaneous increase in prices. Volusion also does not provide an SSL certification, which you will be forced to purchase separately.

Each platform has upsides and downsides, and the key is in finding a platform that suits your current needs while being scalable to accommodate your future growth. While Shopify is definitely in the running, it’s worth looking at alternatives that could prove to be more than satisfactory.

6 things to remember when choosing eCommerce web hosting

If you are venturing into the world of eCommerce, you would have realized that there are a plethora of decisions that lie ahead. One such significant decision that you will arrive at is choosing the correct website hosting provider.

To begin with, let’s understand why picking the right host is so crucial. Being relevant in this fast-paced digital age of eCommerce is a major concern and one that is driven largely by efficiency. Having no brick-and-mortar structure to compensate for digital shortcomings, your eCommerce livelihood depends on the efficient service provided to you by your web host. Customer experiences are at the heart of success and providing them with seamless shopping experiences should be your number one priority.

webhosting
webhosting

With numerous daily transactions and interactions, eCommerce websites have an entirely different set of requirements. Ensuring that your website hosting provider is able to provide you with services such as shopping carts, payment gateways, etc., is a must. However, choosing from thousands of providers for the first time can be quite a task. To make things a tad bit simpler for you, here are 6 things to keep in mind when selecting an eCommerce website host that is right for you, and your business.

  • Scalability and infrastructure
    Every business starts with the aim of growing and becoming more profitable each day. One of the main things to ensure is that your web hosting plan is in sync with these inevitabilities. The service and infrastructure should be flexible, scalable, and ready to grow along with your business, as required.
  • Uptime
    When you’re in the eCommerce business, every second of downtime will directly affect your sales and reflect negatively on your credibility. Most hosting providers offer between 1 Nine (90%) to 5 Nines (99.999%) of uptime, which ranges from 36.5 days to 5.25 minutes of yearly downtime. Since every second of non-functionality will cost you, it’s imperative that you make an informed decision on what suits your current business objective. The question you should ask yourselves is whether the cost of extra assurance of server reliability is less than or worth your projected returns from sales.
  • Data and technical specifications
    Being an eCommerce business, your database performance levels should be optimal. Storage capacity, processing power, auto-backups, and auto-scaling are features that you should keep an eye out for. However, to ensure that you are not paying more than what you are consuming, you should opt for a plan with a host with whom you can downsize without any hassles.
  • Privacy and security
    Since your website will be processing numerous transactions daily, it’s a must to ensure that sensitive customer information is secure and protected. To do so, you should only consider website hosts who are equipped with an SSL certification (Secure Socket Layer) in their plans, at no extra cost.
  • Technical support
    Another major consideration is to confirm whether your potential host provides in-house or outsourced tech support. With in-house support, you have a guarantee of 24×7 reliability in the event of any server errors or malfunctions – which is an absolute must.
  • Cost
    Lastly, we come to the pricing of plans. The harsh reality is that in the world of website hosting, you get what you pay for. If you’re just starting out your business, you should take the time to assess features that you deem essential, and those that you can go without. As you gain traction, expand your eCommerce platform, and start operating profitably. You can always upgrade your plan to support this growth.

Since the success of your business lies entirely in your customers’ hands, it’s an absolute necessity to ensure that their experience on your eCommerce website is seamless, convenient, and without any glitches. Thus, the key is to pick an eCommerce web hosting plan that will grow and adapt to your changing business needs while providing you with the service assurance and reliability you require. Each business has unique needs, and your plan should be customized according to what you think is best for your current situation while having the ability to make desired adjustments in the future.

Top Open Source E-Commerce Platforms (2019)

Open source ecommerce platforms are gaining popularity in the business world. This is as a result of more and more ecommerce store owners switching to these platforms. Using free and open source platforms help you to save cost and also have increased control over online presence of your business. This is why most of the popular carts around are free and open source platforms. What is more? All you need to utilize these platforms are basic tech skills and ample time to ensure everything is in order. We have carefully compiled a list of the top open source ecommerce for 2019. Everything you need to know about them are discussed as well.

Open Source ecommerce software are not always free.  Many of these companies have something called “Commercial Open Source” software.  In these versions, you pay for the license but you also get the source code with it.  Once you get the source code, your programmers can suitably modify the system.  One word of caution, however,  once you make changes in the software, it will no longer be upgradeable to the latest version

List of Open Source eCommerce Platforms

Sorry, no listings were found.

Top Customer Data Platforms (CDP) in 2020

Customer Data platform is one of the latest category of software.  CDP softwares are focussing on giving a single dashboard of all customer data!  The term coined by Mr. David Raab is gaining popularity.  A number of CRM, marketing software have adopted the term CDP wihtout incorporating all the features of a CDP software.

eCommerce Next has compiled a list of pure play CDP software for your quick reference!

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Build An Intelligent B2B Ecommerce Experience

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Build An Intelligent B2B Ecommerce Experience

Anticipating the wants of customers based on user history is a sure-shot way of building brand loyalty. The second episode of Digital Icons brings to you Diane Burley’s (VP of Content at Lucidworks) in-depth view on the role of intelligent search in making each customer's retail experience intuitive and worthwhile.

Diane Burley

Head of Global CRM

About Diane Burley

Specialise in the development/management of Marketing, CRM & customer experience programmes, with expertise in delivering both hard commercial and soft customer engagement metrics. Help lead on the development of commercially sound customer centric propositions that deliver enhanced 'best in class' customer experiences. Having previously shaped customer relationships in the Telco, Utilities, Not for Profit and Fintech industries, now on a journey to build a stronger relationship between McArthurGlen's many global discount outlets and our diverse set of shoppers.

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The Ultimate BigCommerce Review (2020)

OVERVIEW

BigCommerce is one of the top ecommerce platforms, and it was founded in 2009 by Mitchell Harper and Eddie Machaalani. The two Australians had developed their idea from a meeting in an online chatroom in 2003, and on August 2009, BigCommerce was birthed as a relaunch of Interspire Shopping Cart with its first office being in the U.S.

The platform is SaaS, meaning it is a completely hosted, cloud-based software requiring only a computer and an internet connection to function seamlessly.

It was bootstrapped entirely until 31st July 2011, when General Catalyst Partner funded it up to $15 million in Series A.The platform has been seen to continuously grow from there and flourish, expanding to encompass all sorts of businesses and clients around the world.

The platform lets its clients create online stores, add products, connect with their customers and other platforms, and easily make money online.

It is an eCommerce builder meaning it was designed primarily and solely to help its clients sell online.

PRICING AND TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP

BigCommerce is an eCommerce platform that believes in continuous growth and expansion for everyone. The platform was designed to make it easy for its clients to grow and surpass their limits. It comes geared with zero server costs and a reduced technical debt, which allows clients to run a relatively cheap website.

It offers a free 15-day trial for all potential clients so they can use the platform for this period and acclimatize themselves with its features. This allows them to understand and explore thoroughly before subscribing to any package.

The platform offers four pricing plans on a monthly basis which are: the Standard Plan which is set at $29.95, the Plus Plan at $79.95, the Pro Plan at $249.95 and the Enterprise Plan where the pricing varies and is determined by the type and scale of the business involved.

The first three plans are for individuals and small-scale businesses, while the Enterprise plan is reserved for large-scale companies and corporations.

The Plus and Pro Plans come with a 10% discount if the clients pay for them annually.

All plans come with Apple Pay, no transaction fees, sales channels, a single page checkout, coupons, discounts, and even gift cards.

The table below shows the price list of BigCommerce’s plans.

MAIN FEATURES: SHOPIFYPLUS

The platform was designed to target growing businesses, and as such, it is equipped with features that are essential for expansion and productivity.

Some of its key features include:

⦁ A 15-day free trial
⦁ 38 integrated payment gateways
⦁ Unlimited storage
⦁ No transaction fees
⦁ Customizable themes
⦁ Product catalogs
⦁ Marketing tools
⦁ Images & Photos
⦁ Event and Delivery dates
⦁ Shopping Comparison Engines
⦁ Product and Shipping Options
⦁ Shopping Carts
⦁ Full-hosting with top security
⦁ SEO and Analytic tools

EASE OF USE

The platform was designed to be easy to use by anyone. Its interface is user-friendly, and it comes with ten free themes, and about 130 paid themes, with each theme having different variants so clients can easily customize and design their stores to look whichever way they choose.

As is seen in the image above, the platform’s interface is straightforward, although slightly similar in appearance and quality to Shopify's with its left-hand side vertical menu, which gives its clients access to all the essential features.

BigCommerce added Akamai Image Manager, an image optimization feature that allows clients to optimize their images automatically, which was noted to improve site-load-time extensively over time.

And in line with the platform’s ‘all-in-one’ policy, they added this feature to all their plans, unlike other eCommerce platforms that do not subscribe to this function or require their clients to install a paid-for app to attain such new features.

PROS

⦁ Use of Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP); a Google feature adopted by BigCommerce, which delivers site content to mobile users through the creation of streamlined pages by stripping out certain types of scripts and features at an incredible speed.
⦁ Unlimited file storage.
⦁ No transaction fees.
⦁ 24/7 support.
⦁ Provision of reports such as marketing reports, search data reports, finance reports, abandoned cart reports.
⦁ Easy customization and free themes with more variants than other platforms which allows clients to design their stores to their tastes.
⦁ Built-in product review functionality.
⦁ Amazing SEO tools.
⦁ Unlimited staff accounts.
⦁ Abandoned cart saver tool.
⦁ Built-in blog.
⦁ 15-day free trial feature.
⦁ Ability to easily create custom fields.
⦁ Reduced Go-To-Market time.
⦁ Powerful Theming Engine.

CONS

⦁ The themes although having many variants are sometimes much
similar to each other.
⦁ Compared to other eCommerce platforms, to use the ‘abandoned cart’ feature, BigCommerces’ clients seem to pay much more.
⦁ The platform’s VAT MOSS rates need much improvement.
⦁ The platform places limits on annual online sales, and for clients to exceed them, they have to upgrade to a more expensive monthly plan.
⦁ To locate drop-shipping apps in the store is quite a hassle.
⦁ The platform’s blog cannot facilitate RSS feeds.
⦁ The platform does not come with mobile apps to aid store management on the go.
⦁ The platform’s complex terminology poses an obstacle to beginners.

WHO DOES IT FIT?

BigCommerce is an eCommerce platform that is suited for fast-growing, large stores that need a springboard to bounce-off off into productivity and lucrative boom. These businesses need a platform that will provide them with all the features and the easy interface they need to manage their stores and reel in lots of sales.

The platform, which is aimed at clients who do not have much technical know-how in web designs, allows them to manage their stores still easily. It also lets tech-savvy clients tweak the CSS and HTML of their stores to suit their needs.

BigCommerce is a fully hosted software, allows clients to forgo the hassles of developing their stores and bothering with the backend codes and instead concentrate on their store management. Some of the clients BigCommerce carters to include Toyota, Gibson Guitars, Travelpro, Camelbak, Paul Mitchell, Spinning, tmbr, Ben & Jerry’s, Skullcandy, Dear Brightly, LARQ, and Payless.

These clients have testified over the years that BigCommerce has been a stepping stone to their progress and productivity; Mark Hopkins, Chief Information Officer, Skullcandy even said, “On BigCommerce, we are saving a significant amount of money on development and overall platform costs. More importantly, we now have an extremely agile environment that can change quickly to meet our business needs.”

This shows that the platform is designed for fast-growing businesses that need flexibility and scalability to operate efficiently on a small budget and to do so without having to worry about infrastructure, coding, and administration.

HARDWARE/SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

BigCommerce is SaaS(Software as a Service), meaning it is a cloud-based, fully-hosted software that needs only a computer, an internet connection, and a browser to work.

INTEGRATIONS

It is imperative that an ecommerce platform be integrated with other platforms for the smooth flow of business for its clients because it cannot certainly do everything so these other platforms would take care of these tasks. BigCommerce is integrated with Amazon, Facebook, eBay, nChannel and even fulfillment software like POS and ERP.

The platform has a powerful API with fewer customizations and unlimited API calls allowing clients to transfer data between the store and systems quickly. This allows for automatic, real-time data processing of your orders, items, customer, inventory and more without incident, like your system locking up due to overload.

BigCommerce is integrated with external applications and maintains an app-store featuring trusted third-party applications for clients’ stores.

The best part is that BigCommerce provides its clients with these apps using out-of-the-box functionality, which doesn’t require external applications to function, unlike other eCommerce platforms like Shopify.

BigCommerce is also integrated with Avalara, the tax software that automates tax calculations, tax filing processes, provides real-time tax rates from over 12,000 taxing jurisdictions, and helps thousands of customers accurately calculate sales.

CUSTOMER SUPPORT

Customer support is critical when it comes to the smooth running of any eCommerce platform.

BigCommerce provides its users with resources such as support emails and the likes when they subscribe to the 15-day free trial.

The reasonably intuitive interface of the platform guides its users through most of the tasks and management needed to run the software smoothly.

For clients who have subscribed to a plan, the platform provides a 24/7 live agent support to cater to all their problems and needs, although users are encouraged most times to attempt to resolve their issues by using the BigCommerce help pages first before seeking contact details.

This feature outstrips other platforms like Shopify that only lists numbers for a few countries with no option for other countries and Squarespace which lacks phone support completely.

There is the provision of the ‘skip this step’ option to allow clients bypass this option and proceed to connect directly to customer support which is supported in a wide range of countries, and for countries not listed there are other countries suggested that could be available to help.

The platform also has a community forum and a large range of text and video resources.

KEY DIFFERENCES FROM SHOPIFY

BigCommerce and Shopify are undoubtedly two of the biggest eCommerce platforms on the market, and there would inevitably be a comparison between the two.

Both platforms were designed to provide similar services but with different approaches and different features and, as such, prove superior in some areas and inferior in others.

Shopify is quite popular and is widely used but lacks in certain areas that give BigCommerce an edge over it such as:

⦁ It's transaction fees that BigCommerce does not impose on its clients.
⦁ Its inability to prevent its site from reformatting whenever it switches templates.
⦁ Its dependence on third-party apps for multi-currency support.
⦁ BigCommerce has proven that it does not require external apps to function and has been noted to have the most built-in features of any eCommerce platform worldwide.
⦁ It also offers better money value than Shopify because it has better pricing plans and fewer additional costs.
⦁ Shopify lacks order editing; clients cannot change the size of an item on order and would have to cancel the order and redo it to make changes while BigCommerce lets its clients make changes on the go.

KEY DIFFERENCES FROM MAGENTO

BigCommerce is closer to Shopify because they are both SaaS, have a similar interface and use both similar features and integrations but it is quite different from Magento in a lot of ways.

⦁ The app integrations of the two platforms are different because Magento’s is more complex as its coding is open source. The clients are allowed to edit any field within the platform and this causes the process to be lengthier and most times, produces unpredictable results. Most times the client has to work closely with the platform and some agencies to achieve his desired outcome, but with BigCommerce, the app’s interface is much easier to use, and the client needn’t worry about so much coding and editing.

⦁ MAINTENANCE:  Magento gives its clients leave on the platform for all the infrastructure and administration. This makes them responsible for fixing bugs, upgrading software, control and customization of the platform, and invariably any crash or problems that may arise. Most merchants are not prepared for that level of responsibility, and that is where BigCommerce comes in with its fully-hosted feature which completely takes care of the client’s hassles. The platform’s team will fix any issues any user runs into.

⦁ SECURITY:  BigCommerce uses PCI compliant to secure their clients’ data. This is one of the highest forms of protection worldwide, and the clients enjoy it for free, unlike Magento that has its clients catering to their security problems and carrying the burden of always making sure their security meets PCI compliant standards.

⦁ LAUNCH TIME:  This is one of the most significant advantages BigCommerce has over Magento. Being a hosted, cloud-based platform, it uses built-in themes and out-of-the-box functionality, which allows its clients to launch easily and quickly. But with Magento, clients waste much time on hosting, website design, security,and other technicalities before they can begin.

Women entrepreneurs: outcomes over optics

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Women entrepreneurs: outcomes over optics

Data suggests that women are receiving lesser and lesser venture capital compared to previous years. In this video, Nathalie Molina Niño, President of O³, discusses her book Leapfrog – The New Revolution for Women Entrepreneurs. She also talks about how women are the single most entrepreneurial community in the US and an intricate part of the business ecosystem.

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZTG7a0JiBA&width=800&height=450[/embedyt]

Molina Niño

President

About Molina Niño

Nathalie Molina Niño is an investor with O3, targeting high-growth businesses that economically benefit women and the planet. A confessed but recovering serial entrepreneur, Molina Niño launched her first tech startup at the age of twenty, and got hooked. She's the cofounder of Entrepreneurs@Athena at the Athena Center for Leadership Studies of Barnard College at Columbia University, where the idea for LEAPFROG was first born. Before that, she spent over a decade sharing her no-BS, opinionated flavor of business advice and growth strategy with folks like Disney, Microsoft, MTV, Mattel, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Prior to launching O3, Molina Niño led the launch of Nely Galán’s New York Times bestselling book and online education venture, Self-Made, and stepped in as CRO of PowerToFly, the fastest growing hiring platform for women in tech and beyond.

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Advertising may win quarters, innovation wins decades!

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Advertising may win quarters, innovation wins decades!

On ecomm Adtech 2019 marketing innovation keynote speaker gave us his foresight and future vision on marketing innovation, martech and ecommerce. Based on his notorious Mad Men vs. Math Men theory and trend-framework, he explains how big brands can survive and grow in the era of Industry4.0

Igor Beuker

Speaker & Publicist

About Igor Beuker

Igor Beuker is a professional public speaker and publicist known for his foresight on trends and technologies that impact business, economy, and society. With his radical vision and independent voice, he inspires audiences around the world. At conferences and on social media, Igor is frequently a trending topic as “Math Man in a world of Mad Men” and described by audiences as “Burning Man meets TED.” After 2,000+ talks for leading brands and events, Igor jumped from the podium to the television screen. He still speaks 150 times per year. Behind the scenes, a serial entrepreneur with 5 exits (3 to WPP) and 24 angel investments, an award-winning marketing strategist for brands like Amazon, L’Oréal, Nike and Unilever, and a new breed trendwatcher for Fortune 500s.  For more information please visit, https://igorbeuker.com

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Paving the way for omnichannel solutions in Denmark

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Paving the way for omnichannel solutions in Denmark

Carl Ras is a 90-year-old Danish company that sells power tools, bolts, and nuts to professional contactors. In this video Morten Jørgensen, the Digital Tech Lead at Carl Ras, discusses how the company has been adopting new omnichannel solutions and digital tools to help personalize the digital retail experience for their customers.

Morten Jørgensen

Digital Tech Lead

About Morten Jørgensen

Passionate about UX, Design and Business, Morten works in the intersection between business and development and works to build creative solutions that help brands improve their business. Recently, he joined the Company Carl Ras A/S as Digital Tech Lead, where he is responsible for all aspects of the digital transformation, driving digital innovation and e-commerce to position the brand for sustainable long-term growth. Prior to joining Carl-Ras, Morten held a similar job as Episerver Tech Lead at one of Denmark’s biggest banks. He also has a past working in the Insurance, television and telecommunication industry and has created web and E-learning solutions for brands like Carlsberg, Kronenbourg and Novo Nordisk.

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Customer Data Platforms can unify data silos in e-commerce businesses

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Customer Data Platforms can unify data silos in e-commerce businesses

A Customer Data Platform (CDP) can help marketing, sales, and customer experience teams with limited technical skill-sets to work across data systems. In this video, Eric Archer, the Marketing Director at Arm Treasure Data, discusses how a CDP differs from a Customer Relationship Management (CRM), its scope and use in retail and e-commerce sectors.

Erik Archer Smith

Marketing Director

About Archer Smith

Erik is a data-driven marketing and sales professional at Arm Treasure Data with 10+ years experience helping companies scale during phases of hyper-growth. Erik got involved with tech early and built the first social media site in Japan using open source technology in the early 2000s.

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Opening up the African Market to US and UK Retailers

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Opening up the African Market to US and UK Retailers

MallforAfrica is an e-commerce platform that helps US and UK retailers sell in Africa at no risk. In this video, Chris Folayan, the Founder & CEO of MallforAfrica, discusses how his company takes care of everything - payments, last-mile delivery, shipping, and even customs, to ensure a seamless business environment for their retailers.

Chris Folayan

Founder & CEO

About Chris Folayan

Chris is well established successful serial entrepreneur, board advisor, mentor, and speaker with over 25 years of C level role experience in marketing, technology, startups, and corporate acquisitions. Born and raised in Nigeria, Chris founded his first venture at age 7 recycled tires with a group of friends which he ran for 2.5 years. He migrated to the U.S to attend college in the heart of the Silicon Valley. Coming from Nigeria right into the technology boom era amazed by all he saw around him and the growth of the internet. Chris decided to teach himself various programming, design and software languages which he used as a foundation to catapult himself into various high level advisory roles in fortune 500 companies by age 19 he was working on his first patent, while pursuing a BA degree in marketing. After graduating from San Jose State University, he founded and sold several companies globally, while establishing new companies in Africa, USA, Middle East and Asia. Before Chris founded his current venture, the award-winning Mall for Africa and Mall for the World platforms, Chris was the Founder and CEO of OCFX Inc a multi-million dollar globally recognized silicon valley based, award winning software agency serving and consulting clients such as SONY, LSI, Cisco, HP, EPSON, TYCO, Accenture, CapitalOne, EMC, USA Government and many others in over 60 countries. Chris has a learn as you grow, out of the box thinking philosophy that drives strategy and business growth.

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Screw your big world-saving purpose, who can you help people become?

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Screw your big world-saving purpose, who can you help people become?

This episode of Digital Icons explores the purpose and how every brand these days are embracing sustainability. Thomas Kolster, Mr. Goodvertising, author, speaker, and director of the Goodvertising Agency shares why he's taking a hatchet to his earlier beliefs and warns brands and leaders to stop putting themselves first when it comes to purpose. ‘Who can you help me become?’ is the one essential question you need to be asking and acting on to chart a new course for your brand, unlocking change at scale and sustainable growth that benefits all.

Thomas Kolster

Marketing Director

About Thomas Kolster

Thomas Kolster is a marketing activist on a mission to make business put people and planet first. As the Director of the Goodvertising Agency and as a seasoned branding and sustainability professional of more than 18 years’ standing, he’s advised Fortune 500 companies, small start-ups, governments, agencies, and non-profits. He’s the founder of the global Goodvertising movement that’s inspired a shift for the better in advertising. Goodvertising is also the name of his book (Thames & Hudson, 2012). He’s an internationally recognised keynote speaker who’s appeared in more than 70 countries at events like TEDx, SXSW, D&AD & Sustainable Brands; and is a columnist for the Guardian, Adweek, The Drum and several other publications, as well as regularly judging at international award shows such as Cannes Lions and D&AD. As a passionate entrepreneur and change agent he’s launched several impact platforms like Cph:Change and Wheregoodgrows. Thomas’ belief is simple: Change begins with you!

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How to future-proof your E-commerce Business

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

How to future-proof your E-commerce Business

Launched in 2001, Cox & Cox has thrived due to its business agility, and by staying ahead of innovative new technologies and trends. In this interview, Aynsley Peet, Head of eCommerce at Cox & Cox discusses the eCommerce features that have helped the UK-based homeware company remain on the cutting edge. Aynsley also shares challenges faced along the journey and the key learnings that driven continued success and revenue growth.

Aynsley Peet

Head of E-Commerce

About Aynsley Peet

An expert in eCommerce and project management, Aynsley has successfully coordinated the integration of multiple website builds onto new E-commerce platforms (Hybris, Salesforce Commerce Cloud and Magento), his most recent being the migration of the Cox & Cox website from Magento to Magento 2. Always with business KPIs front of mind, this latest project involved the integration of a new ERP, Warehouse Management System, Online Payment Systems, Email Marketing Programs, Site Search and Third Party Review Collection to create a fantastic user experience, resulting in increased online sales.

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Ensure Your Brand is Out-performing Your Rivals in the Feedback Economy

Digital Icons – A vlog series

Tricks of the trade to grow and nurture your business

Ensure Your Brand is Out-performing Your Rivals in the Feedback Economy

In this video, Gary Banks from Reputation.com discusses the ever-increasing need for enterprise-scale businesses to be found, get chosen and improve CX online. In today’s digital-first world, your potential customers are doing their research before they spend their money. Over 90% of consumers will perform at least one search online when looking to make a purchase, and 50% of these searches are what we call ‘no click’ searches, where the user finds what they’re looking for without even visiting your site. All of these external sources of information need to be managed to thrive in the ‘Feedback Economy’.

Gary Banks

Enterprise Sales Manager

About Gary Banks

Gary is one of Reputation.com's Online Reputation Management experts. Gary has over 10 years' experience working within the SaaS industry, having begun back in 2005. Now at Reputation.com, Gary helps some of the UK's leading brand names to manage and improve their online reputation through Reputation.com's industry-leading cloud platform and thrive in the Feedback Economy.

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ABOUT US

At eCommerce Next, we stand true to our name – informing you what’s next in the game. As the e-commerce domain continues to expand, this dynamic industry moves leaps-and-bounds in all directions. It can get disorienting to keep a track of the gazillion things that happen in the online market every day. This is where we step in. From the latest happenings to the upcoming trends, our eyes and ears stay fixated on the global e-commerce market. Our goal is not just limited to reporting the news, but also informing and educating our audience.

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