Ecommerce Software Solutions Solve Your Store’s Biggest Challenges

Ecommerce began as a simple idaea of securing online transactions. Today, it's become a ~$4 trillion industry, making it one of the important business channels for companies worldwide. In fact, the global revenue from ecommerce is set to reach $7 trillion by 2029 according to Statista. 

If you’re looking to sell online, then there’s no time to lose. Whether you’re an entrepreneur looking to get your small business off the ground or a Fortune 500 company, the best time to start selling online is now.

First, you need to find intuitive ecommerce software that can help you set up a storefront and scale quickly and efficiently. Ecommerce software is any type of tool that can help your business start selling online.

We’ll get into what each kind of software excels at in a bit, but let’s dive in and take a look at the best ecommerce software for your specific business. 

• BigCommerce

• Salesforce Commerce Cloud

• Shopify

• Adobe Commerce Cloud

• commercetools

Best ecommerce software solutions

There are hundreds of ecommerce website providers in the market. Given time, resources, and coding know-how, you could even decide to build your own. 

When choosing a platform for your business, it’s imperative that you understand what your ecommerce business actually needs. After all, you wouldn’t buy a rocket ship just to take you on a trip to the grocery store, would you? 

But you also don’t want to show up under-prepared. You need an ecommerce website that will give you everything you need to succeed — and help you scale in the future.

Here is a list of some of the best ecommerce software solutions on the market today. 

BigCommerce

BigCommerce is an open SaaS solution that gives businesses the customisation and flexibility of open-source, with the management, simplicity, and security of software as a service (SaaS). Because of its flexibility, BigCommerce is a great choice for businesses of any size, from growing small businesses to large multi-million dollar global companies.

Pros

• Robust native functionality with more features in the app store

• More than 135 payment options (like Paypal or foreign currencies) and no additional transaction fees

• Over 1,200 agency partners and 600 tech partners to help create a site you need to succeed

• Sell direct-to-consumer (DTC) and business-to-business (B2B) on the same platform

• Expert, 24/7 customer service and professional services to help you succeed on the platform

Cons.

• Plans based on annual revenue, so more sales can mean more costs

• Limited selection of free templates and apps

• Can be challenging for beginners

Salesforce Commerce Cloud (Demandware)

Formerly known as Demandware, Salesforce Commerce Cloud is a scalable SaaS option that enables businesses to manage their sales in digital and physical channels with one unified solution.

It provides a suite of related services that can complement the ecommerce offering, though it may require previous programming and web development expertise. Using Salesforce Commerce Cloud also requires a pretty big budget, as it’s definitely one of the more expensive options on the market.

Pros.

• SaaS solution means hosting, security, and platform management is done for you

• Allows your business to scale seamlessly

• Users can manage multiple storefronts from the same back-end

• Syncs easily with Salesforce Customer Success Platform

Cons.

• Requires steep startup costs

• Pricing includes 1% of GMV each year

• Third-party integrations can be a challenge

• Customisation can be costly and time-consuming

Shopify

Shopify has a strong market presence in the ecommerce space, and in 2014, they launched Shopify Plus as their solution for enterprise clients.

As a SaaS solution, the Shopify platform offers the benefits of handling PCI compliance and security and solid uptime stats. The platform is easy to use, has mobile-friendly designs and a customisable checkout.

Pros.

• A leader in the market with significant experience, hosting over a million stores globally

• More than 4,100 integrated apps to help you add additional features and functionality to your online store.

• Over 70 available professional and responsive themes to design your website.

Cons.

• Built for smaller catalogues, with a 100 SKUs per product cap

• Lack of scalability, with a built-in three option limit per product

• Limited B2B functionality

• Additional transaction fees for not using Shopify Payments

Adobe Commerce (Magento)

Formerly known as Magento, Adobe Commerce offers real-time inventory control, SEO features, marketing automation tools and multi-store functionality.

To use Adobe Commerce, you will likely depend heavily on designers and developers as well as expensive maintenance and support, which can make it difficult to calculate your total cost of ownership.

Pros.

• Open source, so if you can dream it, you can build it

• Pre-built integrations with Adobe software

• Offers thousands of extensions in its marketplace, ranging from $0 to $15,000

• Progressive Web App (PWA) support

Cons.

• Open source, so any non-native functionality will have to come from developers

• Lacks automatic feature and version updates

• Has an extremely extensive setup, which can lead to high costs to complete builds

• The platform has a history of security breaches and vulnerabilities

commercetools

Headquartered in Germany, commercetools cloud-based, headless commerce platform with a 100% API-driven approach, which means most ecommerce functions need to be custom built and maintained. For this reason, implementation time can be extensive and often requires heavy dependency on web developers. Ultimately, this can result in a slow speed to market and inhibit control for non-technical users.

Pros.

• Offers services for B2B and DTC on the same platform

• Provides extensive developer tools to allow customisation

• Simplified maintenance, scaling and adding of features

Cons.

• Sellers are responsible for PCI compliance

• Limited usability for non-technical users, as everything needs to be programmed

• Sellers may spend more time on upgrades, integrations, and maintenance than actually selling their products

Ecommerce Software Platform Types

As you’ve seen, ecommerce solutions come in a variety of types and abilities. Some are flexible and easily scalable, while others may require a team of developers to help update. Which type of platform is right for your business? It all depends on your needs. Here are a few of the most common types of ecommerce software solutions and what your business can expect from each.

Open-source ecommerce software

An open-source solution provides all the materials needed to build your own platform, but you have to do the assembly. These platforms are highly customisable, usually with plugins or other add-ons, and can be bent to do anything reasonable, but they also require a certain level of skill and expertise to deploy and manage. Examples of an open-source ecommerce solution are WordPress’s WooCommerce or Adobe Commerce.

Choose an open-source solution if…

• You have developer resources at your disposal. 

• You need customisation options beyond the ecommerce functionality of other platforms.

Self-hosted software

Self-hosted software is purchased from a third party, but is hosted by the company on their own on-premise servers. This gives them full control of real-time data and security, but also comes with higher burdens for maintenance and costs.

Choose a self-hosted solution if…

• You want things done your way.

• You can maintain, host, and ensure security of the platform on your own. 

Software as a Service (SaaS)

SaaS is a cloud-hosted application in which the software is delivered over the internet. This is often found with ERPs, payment gateways, or PCI compliance. There’s little maintenance work on the client side and most SaaS work well within even complicated tech stacks. Examples of SaaS ecommerce software would be Wix, Squarespace, Ecwid, or Volusion.

Choose a SaaS solution if…

• You don’t have extensive developer experience. 

• You’re OK with sacrificing customisation for ease of use.

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

PaaS delivers cloud components to certain applications, providing a framework for developers to work off of. Instead of a specific software, PaaS provides the building blocks to streamline the development of multiple applications that can be run simultaneously.

Choose a PaaS solution if…

• You want someone to build a base foundation, but want to customise ecommerce functionality yourself.

Headless ecommerce software

In headless software, an ecommerce platform’s front-end and back-end are decoupled from one another, with each existing as its own system before being integrated with the other. This offers maximum flexibility to bring a bespoke approach to a store.

Choose a headless solution if…

• You want to customise every piece of your experience.

• You have extensive developer experience or a team of developers at your disposal.

Why Online Stores Need Ecommerce Software Solutions

For business owners, building a bespoke platform that is scalable and flexible can be challenging. Building a completely customised solution takes time, money, and a lot of skill — something that smaller organisations might not have access to. Instead, the vast majority of online retailers will rely on third-parties to build their platform; and for good reason. Pre-built solutions can save time, money, and offer unmatched functionality compared to in-house solutions.

Here are some of the benefits of a pre-built ecommerce software solution, and what you should be looking for when you go out in search of your own.

Pre-built solutions offer lower operational cost.

Building an ecommerce platform is very resource intensive. Large companies have the resources to build significant parts of their platform themselves, if they so choose.

However, these come with massive expenses, both in development and ongoing maintenance. Most startups or even established businesses can find it more cost-efficient to out-source some or all of their ecommerce operations.

You can provide a better customer experience.

Developing a fully optimised ecommerce platform can take years of refinement — years that other solutions have already taken on. A good ecommerce software solution is designed with the customer in mind and has undergone years of improvements to create the ideal customer experience, from browsing to the shopping cart.

For most companies, this is the better option for providing a user experience that encourages buyers to make a purchase now and and in the future.

Ecommerce features to help grow your business

Not every ecommerce software solution is right for every need. Some features may be absolutely necessary and some may be disposable. However, these are some key features that you’ll likely need to consider during your selection process.

Scalability

The purpose of any business is to grow, either in service or in sales. You want your ecommerce platform to be able to handle whatever growth comes your way. How well can your ecommerce platform react to increased sales? Can it handle sudden increases in traffic? What about a flurry of purchases? Can your logistics solution manage a significant increase? A good platform should be able to scale easily to future proof yourself against your own success.

Usability

Your platform should be easy to use for customers, developers, and system admins alike. Removing unnecessary complexity means your ecommerce site continues to move at the speed of business and you’re able to keep up with online shopping demands.

Painless checkout process

Conversions depend in part on a customer-focused checkout experience on par with in-person point of sale (POS) experiences. Your software should accept multiple payment methods, like credit cards, digital wallets, or one-click checkout options, and make for a high-quality customer experience that enables buyers to essentially drag-and-drop products.

On your end, it should also collect valuable data that can be used to re-engage customers and help turn them into return purchasers, such as implementing abandoned cart recovery.

Top-notch search engine optimisation (SEO) tools

SEO is vital to modern marketing. Interested customers should be able to easily find you and uninterested customers should be made aware of you. Search engines consider things like keywords and metadata of course, but the on-page experience matters as well. 

As of 2021, Google began taking Core Web Vitals into account when ranking web pages. A good platform will load pages quickly and efficiently, giving visitors a great shopping and browsing experience. Find one with the SEO tools you need to succeed.

Integrates with your current systems

Legacy systems have to always be considered when onboarding a new platform. It may not be reasonable or efficient to rip up your existing infrastructure, so it can be vitally important to understand how a new ecommerce solution fits into your tech stack, like your shopping cart software, inventory management or order management tool, CRM, email marketing tools, or other solutions.

There may also be additional optimisation work to keep your ecommerce store working as well as it can.

Mobile optimisation

Data from EMARKETER suggests that in 2024, 44.6% of all ecommerce sales in the US will come from a mobile device. 

Your solution must be able to work well with any mobile device and give customers a superior experience on par with a desktop version with a mobile site, mobile app, or PWA.

Hosting included

For many businesses, including web hosting as part of an ecommerce solution saves time and money. The simplicity of packing the solution and hosting services into one system makes standing up the store and maintaining far less burdensome. This is ideal for companies looking to get their store on the market as soon as possible.

Omnichannel/multichannel mindset

Most successful online businesses aren’t using a single sales channel. Social media, third parties, and search engines are all necessary for a well-rounded ecommerce strategy. A high-quality ecommerce solution will have integrations with the world’s most-used marketplaces, like Amazon, Alibaba, or eBay; social channels like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok; and search engines like Google and Bing. 

Outstanding customer support

Technology can be complicated. No matter how well-made a solution is, something will likely break. That’s why you need a vendor that will be there when you need them. Having a mature knowledge base and responsive customer support agents mean less downtime and more sales.

The final word

If you’re selling online, you’re going to need a high-quality ecommerce platform to do it — and the right ecommerce platform can make or break your online business. But which ecommerce platform is right for your business? 

While there are plenty to choose from, the answer depends on your specific needs. Whether you’re a Fortune 500 company looking to improve existing operations, or a small business looking for a place to start, you’ll want to take the time to consider all your available options when it comes to an ecommerce platform. After all, making the right choice could catapult your business to the stars. 

FAQs about ecommerce software