How to Choose the Best Ecommerce Platform for Your Business

Joining the eCommerce market is necessary for every business owner today. An eCommerce platform offers all-in-one solutions to scale businesses and has many advanced marketing features.

The comprehensive yet concise nature of eCommerce platforms allows businesses of all sizes to meet target buyers. With various pricing options, small enterprises can also join the trend of expanding their brands.

Whether you run a clothing industry, explainer video company, or other business, this article can be useful. Below, we’ve rounded up some tips on choosing the best eCommerce platform for your business. Before getting into the details, let us warm up first.

Shall we?

World’s Largest ECommerce Platforms

Online shopping has become preferable over the past few years. Never in the history of eCommerce sales have plummeted in the past seven years since 2014. The number grew from $1,336 billion to $4,280 billion in 2020.

Even with the pandemic strike, the eCommerce market is predicted to keep rising yearly. With the bright future ahead of us, it is a good idea for businesses to join the trend. Companies can consider partnering with an Amazon Marketing Agency that is proficient in launching effective advertising strategies and campaigns to maximize their online presence and reach a wider audience.

You may have heard of some popular eCommerce brands. To clarify, we’ve listed some of the biggest eCommerce platforms ranked by revenue to give you a glimpse of the best options available. Note that the bigger the platform, the more challenging the competition.

1. Amazon ($386 billion)

2. JD.com ($114 billion)

3. Alibaba ($71 billion)

4. Suning.com ($38 billion)

5. Meituan ($17 billion)

However, regarding monthly visits, eBay is ranked second after Amazon, with 1.7 billion and 5.2 billion monthly visits, respectively. Zalando, Meituan, and Suning.com follow the order. 

Furthermore, the most well-known websites in America that use eCommerce technologies are WooCommerce, Wix stores, Shopify, and Squarespace. 

How to Choose the Best ECommerce Platforms for Your Business

With today’s vast options, selecting the best e-commerce platform can be challenging. Your chosen platform must have fast, flexible, and responsive features to provide a seamless and delightful shopping experience.

Some basic factors you should consider when choosing an eCommerce platform are security, growth support, costs, customer engagement, and customer service. Deciding to hire a freelance e-commerce developer is also a big decision to ensure that your site runs smoothly.

You might also explore the benefits of eCommerce outsourcing for a more streamlined approach. This involves delegating certain aspects of your eCommerce operations to specialized external teams or service providers. When hiring someone to care for these operations, consider leveraging prehire assessment to ensure they fit. This can enhance efficiency, reduce workload, and allow you to focus on core business strategies.

You should not stop there; you still need to consider other elements. Let’s dive deeper into the main discussions below. Keep scrolling!

1. Identify Your Business Type and Target Customers

Above anything else, you should identify your business type, whether you’re a B2B, B2C, B2B2C, or another type. Some platforms are popular among B2B companies, while others are best for B2C. If you have a B2B company, do proper research on how to select a B2B eCommerce platform and choose one that aligns with your specific business needs and goals.

This applies equally to businesses in various sectors, such as e-commerce, software, real estate, and custom picture frames.

Furthermore, you should identify your target customers. Knowing their behaviors and habits increases your potential for success. You’ll know which platform they prefer, what payment methods they like, etc.

So, once you develop a list of eCommerce platform options, narrow them down by considering your target customer preference. So, it becomes easier for you to choose the best one.

2. Site Pricing and Payment Options

Before joining an eCommerce platform, check the plan pricing and payment options. Make sure the monthly or yearly pricing is within your budget allocation.

You need to compare one platform and another, just as you would use small business accounting for a startup. Choose one that resonates with your target audience and business size. Besides, compare the features you will get for similar pricing.

For instance, Shopify, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce are platforms suitable for small to medium businesses. Meanwhile, Magento and Amazon are recommended for larger enterprises.

Moreover, one of the most important things to consider when choosing an eCommerce platform is the payment options. Buyers want a quick, easy, and secure transaction. If you’re a small business just starting out, make sure to explore different payment methods for small businesses to first figure out which ones you need and then make your final decision based on that.

Choose an e-commerce platform that supports various payment methods. Integrating WooCommerce dynamic pricing and discounts enhances your platform’s appeal, enabling flexible pricing strategies for a broader customer base. Also, having an invoice generator plugin can make your e-commerce operations a lot faster, smoother, and more organized.

StudioSuits, a men’s clothing brand on Shopify, offers flexible payments via PayPal express checkout for quick, account-free transactions. Specializing in suits, jackets, and tailored pants for men, they prioritize customer convenience.

It would be great if your eCommerce store supported buy now pay later transactions. Along with the transaction methods, refund and shipping services should also be in your consideration to provide a delightful shopping experience.

3. Platform Integration Capabilities

Integration capabilities are essential to developing an excellent shopping site. This benefits customers and you as a business owner or marketer. 

Not all platforms offer comprehensive integrations. Generally, paid eCommerce platforms offer more plugins for various purposes, including WooCommerce integrations for seamless integration with WordPress websites. However, you’ll likely get fewer options for joining a free eCommerce site.

Some primary plugins you need to look for are accounting software, email marketing, payment and shipping, customer loyalty programs, and third-party marketing tools like CRMs and ERPs. Others can help you improve your brand, such as a marketing plugin or a charity donation app. The more you integrate, the easier it is to track store performance.

4. User Experience (UX) and Mobile Friendliness

User experience (UX) has become a leading factor that makes a business thrive. A site with excellent UX can expect an up to 200% increase in conversion rates. On the contrary, 90% of internet users will leave a website with bad design.

Build a good design that represents your brand. eCommerce platforms commonly provide free themes to choose from. However, you can look for more options on the paid options, such as the Sahara theme and best Shopify theme.

Not to mention, your website performance on mobile devices must be fantastic. Optimize your site for mobile use to look excellent on every size screen. You can improve load speed, build responsive navigation, and create intuitive navigation. You can also convert your website into a mobile app to increase customer trust and boost e-commerce sales

5. Platform Security

Business owners must have a secure shopping site. The eCommerce platform you choose for selling military surplus should provide top-tier security, including securing payment and customer data.

Every shopping site has protection built in, including SSL and secure data backups. But if you want extra protection, look for fraud and DDoS protection. Extra layers of security systems prevent identity theft, phishing, and account theft.

These security measures work alongside reliable data privacy software to create a comprehensive shield for your valuable information.

Moreover, Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance is also an important security system to consider. It provides a secure environment for credit card transactions, so there are no personal identity leaks.

6. SEO Capabilities

SEO is a crucial factor in defining your store’s success. First, test which platforms appear more often on search engines. Well-known eCommerce platforms will help you be more visible through organic search.

eCommerce platforms have different SEO built-ins depending on their system. A great site should allow you to customize metadata (tags and descriptions), titles, and image captions. 

While building a brand’s online presence takes time, you must level up your SEO strategy to outperform competitors. Some platforms even allow you to install SEO plugins to help you draw more accurate decisions.

7. Space for Omnichannel Marketing

Omnichannel marketing allows you to reach a broader audience in many ways. Choose the best headless ecommerce platforms you can integrate with other marketing channels like social media and email.

Omnichannel marketing also enables you to nurture potential buyers in many ways. For example, you can provide valuable blog posts, social media content, and newsletters. In return, you can boost customer engagement, retention, conversion rates, and revenue.

Takeaway

As the future of the eCommerce market continues to shine, your business should also stand out. The above points can help you choose the best eCommerce platform for your business.

Consider your business size and target audience while choosing the most suitable site. Lastly, selecting an eCommerce platform that supports business scalability is also paramount.

With the right eCommerce platforms, you can offer an excellent shopping experience for customers. You can invest in paid plans to build the best shopping environment and garner more benefits in the long run.

P.S. Read our SEO Question and Answer Blog here!