Search engine optimization (SEO) efforts can bring new visitors to your business and turn them into converting customers. Unique content, a great user experience, and visuals of your products or services can enhance your customers’ digital shopping.
Sadly, the average rate for shopping cart abandonment is a whopping 68%. Research shows that 25% of consumers walk away from their carts specifically because navigating the checkout process is too complicated. Fortunately, Shopify offers a platform that is easy to navigate for small to midsize businesses and their customers.
Shopify was founded in 2004 when the majority of ecommerce software creators were targeting online shoppers. However, Shopify believed that digitally native companies would largely drive ecommerce sites in the coming years and saw catering to people who set up ecommerce gigs as a true economic opportunity.
In addition, Shopify decided to focus on small merchants versus bigger established businesses. According to the company, these smaller merchants—including social media platform influencers and people starting side hustles—had many of the same needs as more established companies.
Today, Shopify outshines its competitors in that it has built a platform that is simple to utilize and affordable for virtually all of today’s businesses/entrepreneurs. Still, other ecommerce software options, such as WooCommerce and BigCommerce, are also popular among businesses depending on their unique needs. Let’s take a look at the best ecommerce software in this comprehensive ecommerce software comparison.
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Why Choose Shopify?
Shopify is designed for novice ecommerce users and small businesses while also being equipped to serve large companies. As an all-in-one digital ecommerce ecosystem, it offers native payment and shipping functionality to eliminate the hassles of selling online. In the third quarter of 2020, Shopify’s revenue increased by 96% compared to their quarter three revenue in 2019.
Who Is Shopify Best Suited For?
As a general rule of thumb, Shopify is best suited for companies in industries where lower-complexity purchasing decisions are normally made. Likewise, if your sales cycles are content-driven, or if you’re a small ecommerce shop with relatively simple catalogs, then Shopify is likely the best and most profitable ecommerce software for you. Many top consumer packaged goods, beauty, and fashion brands have opted for Shopify compared with other platforms for these very reasons.
What especially makes Shopify so attractive is that it allows for easy integrations to Facebook and Instagram shopping experiences. In addition, it offers higher-level support in the areas of mobile wallets, video content, and subscription product models compared with other platform solutions. You also don’t have to worry about dealing with code as part of your ecommerce content management process. Simply put, Shopify is the best ecommerce software from a content management system perspective.
Shopify also features a marketing tool called Shopify Email, which allows merchants to easily acquire and engage customers. The software additionally offers shoppers multiple payment options, allows businesses to build their own custom storefronts, and even enables merchants to control their stores’ layouts and aesthetics.
Shopify handles banking integrations, transactions, and profit reporting for the convenience of its merchants. In light of this, it is not far-fetched to project that the company will offer a basic accounting solution in the future as well.
Shopify Limitations
Although Shopify is generally the best ecommerce software due to being easy to use and offering many features, you may find that the platform is less customizable. In other words, even though you have access to many convenient features, they may not do everything you’d like them to be able to do. That’s because the platform is really designed to work well across the board, rather than zeroing in on doing one thing exceptionally well. Fortunately, if you’re like most small ecommerce ventures or startup merchants, Shopify can still be an excellent fit because you likely don’t need highly specialized or complex features to run your online shop.
Also, note that Shopify handles the online commerce front-end experience well, as it has prioritized how your customers view your shopping platform. However, the back end has limitations, so you might find yourself relying on customizations or third-party apps to enhance your back end experience if needed. There are two problems with this: First, this can be a hassle, and second, adding a third-party app or script introduces added costs as well as reliability and security risks.
In this case, you may consider investing your energy and time in other platforms instead. This is particularly true if you’re a business-to-business or business-to-consumer multinational or international brand.
Shopify vs. WooCommerce: Best Ecommerce Software
WooCommerce Pros
- WooCommerce offers full customization capabilities
- Numerous themes and plugins are available
- WordPress has a large online community where users can share & troubleshoot
- The WordPress plugin is free
WooCommerce Cons
- Even with the online community, WordPress has a learning curve
- You need to manage your own hosting and security
- This may end up being more expensive due to hosting, themes, and plugins
- A subdomain is not included
- File storage depends on your web host
Features
- PayPal and Stripe are built-in, and other gateways are available for an additional cost
- Adjust shipping rates, taxes, and sell a variety of products including digital products, physical products, and affiliate marketing
- Utilize free Facebook ads and Facebook stores extensions
Additional Considerations
- Design: WooCommerce works with most WordPress themes on the market, but it may be helpful to use themes specifically designed for WooCommerce.
- Price: Although WooCommerce software is free, the total cost is similar to Shopify, if not more, because you need to factor in payment gateways, SEO, and additional extension costs.
Shopify vs. Magento: Best Ecommerce Software
Magento Pros
- Open-source platform and free to use
- Magento offers customization options
- Numerous themes and mobile-friendly
- An online community where users can share & troubleshoot
- No coding knowledge is necessary
Magento Cons
- Requires a lot of time to set up
- Numerous costs for setting up your store
- Difficult for beginners to use, has a learning curve
Additional Considerations
- Store Functionality: Magento has intermediate to advanced features built-in, no need for additional apps in most cases (like Shopify)
- Inventory Management: Unlimited number of products for each store
- Themes: Shopify offers more contemporary free themes. In terms of quantity, Magento offers more free themes
- Suited for companies that generate over $5 million in annual revenue
Shopify vs. BigCommerce: Best Ecommerce Software
BigCommerce Pros
- No transaction fees
- Built-in features for online selling
- SEO features to help your store rank online
- Omnichannel selling capabilities
BigCommerce Cons
- May need to pay additional fees if you exceed your plan’s annual sales threshold
- Beginners will have a learning curve
- Requires coding knowledge to get the most out of the platform
Additional Considerations
- Price: The Shopify Basic Plan and the BigCommerce Standard Plan are similar in price and features, aside from BigCommerce offering unlimited staff accounts, whereas Shopify only offers 2
- Themes: Catalog of customizable free and paid themes for users
- Extensions: BigCommerce has a library of free and paid extensions that are similar to Shopify, although Shopify has a larger selection
- Reports: Available with all plans unlike Shopify
- Product options: BigCommerce offers more product options and currency options
- 80% of ecommerce customers are willing to return to online shops if they receive customized shopping, like BigCommerce’s ecommerce customizations
Shopify vs. Volusion: Best Ecommerce Software
Volusion Pros
- User-friendly platform
- Mobile app
- Multiple payment gateways
- Reporting and analytics features
Volusion Cons
- Limited app options
- No blogging functionality
- Does not support digital products
Additional Considerations
- Price: Plans are relatively cheap compared to Shopify’s highest tier plans
- Design: Volusion themes can be edited with code (CSS)
- Payment Gateways: Volusion has around 34 payment gateways
- Reports: Discount codes available on all Volusion plans
- Customer Support: Only available between 7am and 10pm CST
Tap into the Power of Digital Marketing with the Help of Coalition Technologies
At Coalition Technologies, we’re proud to be a market leader in search engine optimization, pay-per-click advertising, and website design/development for businesses. If you’re ready to choose the best ecommerce software for your business, give us a call at (310) 905-8646 or click here to use our contact form.
