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Top eCommerce System Requirements And Checklist Template

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Today’s online shoppers expect lightning-fast experiences like Google’s 1.65-second load time for their search results. To meet this demand, your eCommerce solution must fit your operations like a glove and deliver top-notch website uptime and performance.

But with so many options available, how do you determine the right match? You’re in the right place — we’ll guide you in compiling your eCommerce system requirements to find the perfect software for your business. Let’s dive in!

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Create marketing campaigns to promote your products across multiple sales channels. The platform helps optimize your storefront’s metadata, sitemap and domain authority to improve visibility on search engines and drive organic traffic.
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Expand your reach by selling products across multiple channels, such as websites, marketplaces and social media platforms. It helps develop a consistent brand experience across channels to maintain customer recognition and loyalty.
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Use pre-built templates, drag-and-drop tools, WYSIWYG editors and HTML coding toolboxes to design custom storefronts, product pages and checkout funnels. Enhance your site with multimedia elements like picture carousels, product tours, demo videos and how-to guides.
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You can accurately manage product data, including descriptions, images, pricing and inventory levels, to provide customers with complete and up-to-date information.
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Use intuitive tools to automate tasks, track orders and communicate with customers throughout the fulfillment process.
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Beyond the primary requirements, an eCommerce platform should provide essential features like mobile app compatibility, custom field options, and multi-currency/language support. These minute details allow you to manage your business efficiently, cater to a global audience, and personalize your online store.
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It helps you efficiently track and manage inventory from anywhere. You can implement inventory tracking systems, set reorder points and optimize your supply chain to maintain stock levels and minimize overstocking costs.
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The platform simplifies the checkout process to minimize cart abandonment and increase conversions. It offers guest checkouts, saved shipping addresses, one-click checkout, and transparent shipping and tax information.
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Protect your customers’ sensitive information by implementing security measures and complying with industry standards like PCI DSS, GDPR and CCPA. You can offer various payment options like credit cards, digital wallets and payment gateways.
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You can connect the platform with multiple carriers and offer real-time shipping rates while considering shipping costs, delivery times and tracking capabilities.
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Gain valuable insights into your business performance by tracking key metrics, analyzing customer behavior and identifying areas for improvement. The platform helps measure website traffic, customer conversion rates, sales performance and other relevant metrics.
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This post will:

  • Help you understand the primary eCommerce requirements you should look for.
  • Arm you with questions to ask as a starting point for CRM evaluation.
  • Provide tips that will make your eCommerce software evaluation and implementation go smoothly.

Functional Requirements

We’ve onboarded over 100,000 users into our software selection platform. This has given us a wealth of insights into their usage patterns based on industry, company size and user persona. By leveraging this data, we’ve identified key requirements you should consider to minimize the risk of selecting the wrong software.

Our goal is to empower you to benefit from the collective experience of your peers who’ve embarked on the same journey before you.

Although we recommend checking for the following requirements as a baseline, every company’s needs will be different. Use this checklist as a starting point and adapt as necessary to accurately capture what you need from a new system.

1. Marketing and SEO

The internet is vast. Getting your business in front of the right audience is crucial and challenging. Ecommerce software can help you design branded URLs and clean sitemaps, making it easy to get Google to crawl and list your website.

You can also create email marketing campaigns, design newsletters and offer discounts. Enterprise platforms offer A/B testing to compare two versions of a webpage, feature or ad copy against each other to determine what works best. Some solutions help you with customer segmentation for personalized marketing campaigns, discounts and price lists.

Test variations and track engagement. Source

  • Branded URLs
  • Email marketing campaigns
  • Google sitemap
  • Google ads
  • Product SEO tags
  • URL redirects
  • A/B testing

Get our eCommerce Platforms Requirements Template

2. Sales Channel

Have you heard about the marketing rule of seven? It states that a business must reach a consumer seven times to persuade them to make a purchase or become a customer. This makes multichannel selling crucial for maximizing your business’s visibility to the right people.

Ecommerce solutions can help you publish catalogs and manage sales from multiple sales channels, including social media, online marketplaces, Google Merchant Center, affiliate blogs and personal websites. Most solutions offer a channel manager to sync your catalog and pricing information and deliver a consistent brand experience across channels.

  • Selling and distribution
  • Channel manager
  • B2B selling
  • Product feed
  • Automatic catalog sync
  • Channel-specific discounts

3. Storefront

The foremost thing required to compete in the eCommerce market is a unique and authentic online storefront. Ecommerce software can help you design storefronts with drag-and-drop tools, template libraries, WYSIWYG editors and HTML toolboxes.

The storefront should have multiple CTAs, shopping cart connections, clearly visible terms and policies, and easily accessible “Contact Us” pages. Also, it should allow customers to navigate the storefront using search bars and filtering options easily.

Advanced solutions offer a built-in CMS module for creating and managing digital media like videos, blogs and podcasts. They let you generate storefronts in various languages and handle more than one storefront for multi-branded businesses.

Design visually engaging online storefronts. Source

  • Page builder
  • Customizable templates
  • Local store information
  • Footer navigation
  • Store policies
  • Closing or pausing online storefront
  • Cookie consent
  • Shopping cart
  • Multiple storefronts
  • Coupon codes
  • Blogging

4. Catalog and Product Management

The main function of eCommerce software is managing the entire product data repository and designing attractive product pages.

You can assign multiple attributes to products (size, color, accessories, spare parts etc.) and define rules for automatic category posting based on product labels. Display multimedia content, customer reviews, intelligent recommendations and channel-specific pricing. Businesses selling services can also set up subscriptions and use watermarks.

Advanced solutions come equipped with AI to offer personalized product recommendations based on buyers’ history and browsing behavior. You can also define rules to trigger cross-selling and upselling calls to action. Some solutions also display stock availability on product pages and allow customers to create their own wishlists.

Create rich product pages and taxonomies. Source

  • Product templates
  • Product attributes
  • Images and videos
  • Labels
  • Size variations
  • Pricing tiers
  • Product recommendations
  • Categorization and Grouping
  • Stock availability
  • Image carousels
  • Watermarking
  • Color swatches
  • Predictive search
  • Subscriptions

Get our eCommerce Platforms Requirements Template

5. Order Management

A well-designed frontend and a robust backend are key ingredients for a successful business. An eCommerce system helps streamline both. It provides a centralized view of orders coming through every sales channel and offers workflow designing tools for smooth transitions.

Customers can request returns or refunds, and the system delegates the issue to concerned teams for quick resolutions. You can specify rules to streamline B2B customer experiences like quick orders, order splitting and duplicate orders.

Get a centralized view of orders coming through multiple sales channels. Source

  • Backorders
  • Carrier tracking links
  • Emailing invoices
  • Order history
  • Order notes
  • Order splitting
  • Order status
  • Duplicate orders
  • Return and exchange
  • Curbside pickups
  • Dropshipping

6. Inventory Management

Thanks to eCommerce systems, you can track your inventory across multiple warehouses and fulfillment centers from a single screen. The system helps you avoid out-of-stock situations with real-time notifications whenever stocks are low. You can specify rules for automated purchase orders or other procurement options.

The platform should support every barcode your business uses. Most solutions support QR, UPC and EAN, but you’ll need third-party software if you’re using industry-specific barcodes like Code 128 or Datamatrix.

Keep track of inventory and avoid stock-outs. Source

  • Barcode scanner
  • Barcode generator
  • Real-time notifications
  • Multi-location inventory
  • Procurement
  • Warehousing
  • Inventory replenishment notification
  • Inventory transfers

7. Checkouts

The checkout page is vital for ensuring conversions and reducing cart abandonment rates. Make sure your checkout page smoothly transitions to the payment gateway without potential snags and long loading times.

Customers value an intelligent checkout process that includes automated tax and shipping rate calculators, ETAs, and auto-populated carts based on navigation history (for B2B customers). You can use guest checkouts to convert new visitors into customers or use express checkouts for existing customers to auto-populate billing and shipping details from past purchases.

It can also track abandoned carts and help create email campaigns for recovery, reducing lost sales and bounce rates. Some solutions display a checkout progress bar that indicates the stages of the process, such as shipping, billing and confirmation, making it more intuitive for new customers.

Allow customers to quickly checkout with an intuitive interface. Source

  • Branded checkout pages
  • Customer account creation
  • Guest checkout
  • Express checkout
  • Tax calculation
  • Customer accounts
  • Auto-populated carts
  • Abandoned cart recovery
  • Minimum order amount
  • Tips collection
  • Order summary
  • Progress indication bar

8. Payment

To ensure secure and seamless online transactions, an eCommerce platform must prioritize payment security. This involves implementing robust measures to protect sensitive customer data and prevent fraudulent activities.

Essential features include PCI compliance, which guarantees adherence to industry standards for handling payment card information. The platform should also support a variety of payment methods, such as bank payments, cryptocurrency and buy now, pay later options.

To enhance flexibility and accommodate specific business needs, look out for features like split payments, partial payments and custom payment types. Additionally, effective tax exemption management and the ability to handle zero-value orders are crucial for optimizing the checkout process.

  • PCI compliance
  • Bank payments
  • Checks
  • Cryptocurrency payments
  • Buy now, pay later
  • Pay in-store
  • Pay on delivery
  • Charge credit cards
  • Split payments
  • Partial payments
  • Custom payment types
  • Tax exemption management
  • Zero-value orders
  • Gift cards
  • Store credits

9. Shipping

The right eCommerce platform will help streamline your shipping workflow with features that cater to both customer convenience and business needs. The platform should offer options for selecting preferred delivery dates and times for a smooth customer experience. Additionally, defining shipping zones allows you to control delivery areas and display clear error messages for out-of-zone addresses.

The solution should also provide the flexibility to set up various shipping rules based on location or product type. This enables you to tailor shipping options for specific scenarios. From a business perspective, the platform must support free shipping promotions and dropshipping functionalities, allowing you to offer competitive shipping options.

Finally, efficient printing of packing slips and shipping labels, along with the ability to configure various shipping rates (flat rate, weight-based, etc.), streamlines order fulfillment and ensures clear communication with both customers and carriers.

  • Preferred delivery date
  • Shipping zone
  • Multiple shipping rules
  • Free shipping
  • Dropshipping
  • Print packing slips
  • Print shipping labels
  • Set up shipping rates
  • Carrier-calculated shipping rates

10. Reporting and Dashboard

The platform must offer a range of reports, including sales reports for revenue analysis, site traffic reports for understanding customer behavior and performance reports to gauge marketing campaign effectiveness. Customer reports provide insights into buying patterns and average order value, while inventory reports ensure optimal stock management.

To delve deeper, the solution should allow for report customization with filters and various display formats. Additionally, scheduling reports and exporting them in Excel or PDF format facilitates further analysis and data sharing.

For a real-time view of key metrics, custom dashboards are essential. These allow you to build personalized dashboards with widgets displaying critical data on sales, orders, payments and customers. With the ability to configure access levels, you can ensure team members have the information they need.

Keep track of every important KPI from a unified dashboard. Source

  • Sales reports
  • Site traffic reports
  • Performance reports
  • Customer reports
  • Inventory reports
  • Slow-moving inventory reports
  • Average order value reports
  • Custom reports
  • Schedule reports
  • Export reports
  • Custom dashboards
  • Payments dashboards
  • Order dashboards
  • Customer dashboards

11. Platform Capabilities

This section includes all the minute functions and capabilities that improve your quality of life as an eCommerce entrepreneur. Most businesses overlook this when selecting software, but these features can significantly enhance your day-to-day operations and customer experience.

For starters, it’s crucial to have a mobile app to manage your website’s backend. This allows you to process orders, view customer details, access real-time data on your dashboard and stay in control even on the go. Enterprise platforms also offer PWA studios to design branded experiences across IoT devices, AR/VR tools, mobile websites and apps.

The ability to add custom fields allows you to tailor the platform to your specific business needs. You can add custom fields for product details, customer information, or internal data points, giving you greater control over the information captured.

For a global audience, multi-currency and multi-language functionalities are essential. These options let you display product prices in different currencies and cater to customers who prefer browsing and purchasing in their native language.

  • Native mobile app
  • Responsive design
  • Faceted search and navigation
  • Custom field
  • Multi-currency
  • Multi-language
  • Media repository
  • Drag-and-drop builder

Get our eCommerce Platforms Requirements Template

Non-Functional Requirements

Functional requirements define the task at hand, whereas non-functional requirements specify constraints and restrictions on how the system must perform these tasks.

Here are some major non-functional requirements you should consider in your eCommerce requirements documentation:

1. Performance

Performance is a critical aspect of any eCommerce website, directly impacting user experience and driving sales. A slow-loading website can lead to high bounce rates and lost customers. Therefore, it’s essential to prioritize performance from the early stages of development.

Key considerations:

  • Set clear performance targets: Define specific metrics such as page load times, response times and concurrent user capacity.
  • Optimize code: Write efficient and well-structured code to minimize performance bottlenecks.
  • Use performance testing tools: Employ tools like Dynatrace to identify and address performance issues.
  • Consider scalability: Ensure your system can handle increased traffic during peak periods like sales or promotions.

2. Security

Security is crucial for protecting customer data and maintaining trust. A compromised eCommerce website can lead to financial losses, reputational damage and legal consequences. As an online entrepreneur, here are some of the major threats you should be aware of:

Beyond the usual PCI-DSS compliance and GDPR guidelines, here are a few essential security measures you should consider, according to Shashank Kota, Principal Research Analyst at SelectHub:

  • Site-wide passwords: This feature restricts access to specific web pages through password protection, ensuring only authorized visitors can view the content. When users attempt to access the protected page, the system prompts them to enter a password.
  • Multi-factor authentication: Multi-factor or two-factor authentication (MFA/2FA) is a security process that requires users to verify their identity using multiple means, such as entering a username and password on a webpage and confirming through an app on a mobile device.
  • Single sign-on: This authentication method lets users in an organization sign in to their account using their organizational profile login details. The solution supports SSO for both employees and clients.
  • SSL certificate: SSL ensures customer data remains private and secure by encrypting communication between the website and external sources. This is achieved through a TLS (Transport Layer Security) certificate, commonly called an SSL certificate. It uses HTTPS instead of HTTP to protect sensitive information during transactions.
  • Role-based access: The solution offers varying user access levels through roles that define permissions and behaviors. Alongside default roles like Admin, users can create custom roles to meet their organization’s unique needs while restricting access for others.
  • Data encryption: Ecommerce software helps protect user data both in transit and at rest using various encryption technologies.

3. Usability

Usability is all about how easy it is for users to navigate and interact with your website. A user-friendly interface can enhance the shopping experience and increase conversions.

Key considerations:

  • Design for clarity: Use clear and concise language, intuitive navigation and consistent design elements.
  • Optimize for mobile devices: Ensure your website is responsive and functions well on smartphones and tablets.
  • Provide helpful search functionality: Enable customers to easily find products or information.
  • Test with real users: Conduct usability testing to gather feedback and identify areas for improvement.

4. Scalability

Scalability is the ability of your system to handle increasing loads and demands. As your business grows, you’ll need to ensure your website can accommodate more traffic and data without compromising performance.

Kota explained some key scaling-friendly features to look for in eCommerce software:

  • Reliable performance for high order volumes: A scalable system should maintain functionality under increased workload. Reliability must accompany scalability, which requires the system to continue operating efficiently as demand grows.
  • Peak traffic handling: The software should be able to scale vertically by adding more hardware or horizontally by adding extra servers to manage high traffic during peak times.
  • Load balancing: The platform should support load balancing to distribute traffic evenly across servers, ensuring optimal performance and a smooth user experience.
  • Lazy loading: This technique improves performance by delaying loading images and other content until necessary, reducing page load times for users.
  • Uptime: A dependable hosting system must support the platform to ensure maximum uptime and availability.
  • Support for multiple stores and brands: A scalable platform should allow businesses to manage various stores or brands within a single system.
  • Cloud deployment: Most eCommerce platforms offer cloud deployment or SaaS options. This method enables flexible scalability by adjusting IT resources based on changing needs. Businesses can increase or decrease resources as necessary, which is a key advantage of cloud systems and a major reason for their widespread adoption.

5. Interoperability

Interoperability is the ability of your eCommerce system to integrate with other systems and services. This can include payment gateways, shipping providers, CRM software, marketing solutions and more.

According to Kota, these are some of the most crucial integrations required for a successful eCommerce business:

  • Email marketing software: This integration enhances a store’s marketing automation by enabling targeted, personalized emails and SMS campaigns.
  • ERP software: It syncs financial, pricing and inventory data in real time, improving resource management and supporting informed decision-making.
  • CRM: This allows the eCommerce platform to sync customer interactions, sales data and support tickets, helping businesses improve service and personalize marketing efforts.
  • Payment software: It enables an online store to accept multiple payment methods, including credit cards, mobile wallets and cryptocurrency, while securing transaction data through encryption and ensuring compliance with security standards like SSL and PCI DSS.
  • Inventory management: This integration updates SKU quantities across all sales channels and warehousing systems in real time, ensuring accurate inventory tracking with every transaction.
  • Accounting software: It automates the recording of sales, expenses and taxes, providing real-time financial insights and simplifying transaction reconciliation.
  • Chatbot software: Chatbot and customer service tool integration centralizes customer inquiries and syncs data across channels, offering a complete view of customer interactions and order histories.

Key considerations:

  • Use standardized APIs: Adhere to industry-standard APIs like RESTful APIs for seamless integration.
  • Consider integration platforms: Use integration platforms like Zapier and Commercient SYNC to simplify the process of connecting different systems.
  • Test integrations thoroughly: Ensure that integrations work as expected and don’t introduce vulnerabilities.
  • Plan for future integrations: Consider potential future integrations and design your system accordingly.

Get our eCommerce Platforms Requirements Template

Purchasing Considerations

You should be clear about why you’re implementing an eCommerce platform. Otherwise, you might end up with a solution that is rarely helpful for you or your team members. It can not only halt your progress but push you back a few steps.

Gathering your eCommerce requirements not only involves selecting the best features and tools but also thinking about your ultimate goals and where you see your business in the future.

Ask these questions internally to outline your requirements checklist:

What Goals Are We Targeting?

Before selecting the platform, make a business case outlining your goals, expected ROI, and long-term and short-term targets. For example, you should decide beforehand whether you’re shifting to eCommerce software to reduce sales costs per transaction or expand your audience base into new countries. It helps you choose the right software based on your unique needs.

Where Do We Deploy?

Many small businesses look for SaaS eCommerce solutions because storage and computing are cloud-based and cheaper than on-premise deployment. But this deployment option is susceptible to data leaks, and the operational stability of your business depends on the vendor’s uninterrupted service.

On the other hand, on-premise deployment is expensive and requires more resources but provides you with total control over your data with room for unlimited customizations and security measures.

Discuss with your team and choose a deployment option based on your company’s IT infrastructure, expertise and budget.

Who Will Use the System?

Identify and list all your team members who need access to the eCommerce platform. Not all systems support unlimited members, and some vendors charge extra for onboarding your team.

Economical eCommerce systems usually support a finite number of team members and offer order routing tools. Enterprise solutions provide complete team member onboarding, collaboration tools, dropshipping, curbside pickups and other unique fulfillment options.

Identify your critical supply chain touchpoints and choose software that can handle and streamline them.

Do We Need a New Website or Add-Ons?

There are different types of eCommerce systems available depending on the use case. If your business already has a branded website, you should opt for eCommerce tools available as extensions and add-ons like WooCommerce, BigCommerce and Ecwid. These extensions can add online store functionalities to any WordPress site, like a shopping cart, payment gateway and order tracking.

To design branded websites from scratch, you can go for headless eCommerce systems like Adobe Commerce and Kibo. They provide drag-and-drop tools, WYSIWYG editors, multi-branding features and PWA studios for designing customer experiences across all web-browsing devices.

What’s Our Budget?

Budgetary constraints can make or break a buying decision. Ecommerce software ranges from a few dollars to more than $3000 monthly.

Products are priced based on features, deployment modes and technical support options. Look for solutions that meet all your requirements without exceeding your budget.

What Are Our Plans for the Future?

A common mistake people make while selecting software is accounting for their current goals without giving much heed to the future.

For example, today, you might be selling artisan products to a niche market, but you may want to expand your business into new geographies two years down the line. You start looking for CRM solutions to deal with the extra traffic, only to find out that your eCommerce platform doesn’t support integrations.

That’s a disaster. Try avoiding such situations by having a tentative plan for the near future. Create a list of potential software and sales and marketing channels your business might venture into within five years.

Get our eCommerce Platforms Requirements Template

How To Evaluate Ecommerce Software

Choosing the right eCommerce software is a pivotal decision for any business. It’s not just about selecting a platform but about aligning your technology with your business goals to drive growth and ensure smooth performance. To make an informed choice, take a systematic approach by analyzing your internal requirements and using that checklist to evaluate potential solutions.

Kota explained:

Conducting an internal analysis allows businesses to pinpoint areas of excellence, satisfactory performance and deficits. This analysis reveals an organization’s strengths and weaknesses regarding internal factors like competencies, resources and competitive advantage. It also aids management in formulating strategies to address threats and compensate for identified weaknesses.

Shashank KotaPrincipal Analyst, SelectHub

Now that you have a fair idea of what to look for in eCommerce software, it’s time to shortlist vendors. To help you on your quest, SelectHub has outlined nine simple steps, which we call Lean Selection methodology:

By understanding your specific needs and priorities, you can effectively assess different software options and select the one that best fits your business. To help you on your quest, SelectHub has outlined nine simple steps, which we call Lean Selection methodology:

  • Establish: Determine why you want eCommerce software and prepare a budget.
  • Collaborate: Make a selection committee, including stakeholders, department heads, partners and other authority figures in your business.
  • Define: Put together a detailed requirements list that addresses everyone’s needs.
  • Distribute: Compare vendors and potential software against your requirements checklist. We advise having a fair scoring system while comparing vendors.
  • Justify: Analyze results from the last step to determine if you want to get brand new eCommerce software or add supplemental features to existing software.
  • Prove: Request proof of features and success stories from the highest-scoring vendors. Also, request a demo, read proofs-of-concept and research reviews.
  • Rank: Based on requirements and demo scores, rank every vendor that catches your eye. You should have at least two to three potential vendors at this stage.
  • Negotiate: Review the best-ranking vendor’s contract and contact a lawyer for a second opinion. If everything is satisfactory, you can move on to the next step. Otherwise, repeat this step with other high-ranking vendors until you find the ideal contract.
  • Sign: Sign the contract and devise a detailed implementation strategy with your vendor.

To make the selection process easier, you can use our free eCommerce comparison platform to review features, rank products, and identify top solutions for your business-specific needs.

Needs Analysis

You can ask these questions while contacting vendors to understand their products and business model:

  • Do they provide onboarding and implementation support? What are the training programs? Having service-level agreements (SLA) to ensure a quick response from the support team is a bonus.
  • Is the software PCI compliant? Where do they store their data? Vendors that use established data warehouses like AWS or Azure can offer better consistency and security.
  • What is the pricing structure? Collect detailed information about added features and support options. Be sure to ask how many team members you can onboard.
  • How flexible is the software? Can you scale with it? Look for software that aligns with your growth plans.

Get our eCommerce Platforms Requirements Template

Real-World Examples

Now that we’ve explored the essential requirements for an eCommerce system, let’s look at examples of businesses using the right software to achieve desirable results. These case studies show how strategic software selection can drive business growth and boost customer satisfaction.

Whole Food Earth

Whole Food Earth had launched a new line of organic snacks and faced challenges in reaching the target audience and generating buzz around the launch. Their marketing team had great ideas but struggled to implement them effectively across their sales channels.

An online store for organic foods with environmentally conscious and sustainable packaging and shipping methods.

Tiago Pita, Brand and eCommerce Director at Whole Food Earth, shared how they overcame this challenge using the right software:

By leveraging the features of our eCommerce software, we were able to create a dedicated landing page for the new product line. The platform’s integration with social media allowed us to run targeted ads. Additionally, we utilized email marketing tools to inform our existing customers about the launch. The result was a 25% increase in sales within the first month and a 40% rise in our email engagement rates. The eCommerce platform made it easy to manage these campaigns, providing the analytics we needed to refine our approach in real time.

Tiago PitaBrand and eCommerce Director, Whole Food Earth

Nora Sudduth Consulting

During a conversation with SelectHub, Nora Sudduth, founder of Nora Sudduth Consulting Agency, shared an experience with a client who struggled to increase revenue after reaching a plateau with their brick-and-mortar store. The agency helped the client implement eCommerce software, but it wasn’t all smooth sailing.

Sudduth said:

The key challenge was educating the client on how to use the platform to its full potential, but once they saw the results, it transformed their approach to sales.

Nora SudduthFounder, Nora Sudduth Consulting

A consultancy for online entrepreneurs to build effective sales funnels.

She added:

We integrated an eCommerce platform that had automated upsell and cross-sell functionalities. This simple change helped drive an 18% increase in their average order value within three months. The client also leveraged advanced reporting tools to pinpoint customer buying behaviors, allowing us to create targeted bundles that matched their most popular products. By aligning the platform’s capabilities with their business goals, we were able to convert more website visitors into paying customers.

WeThrift

An eCommerce platform’s interoperability with external solutions is a key factor behind its successful implementation. Nick Drewe, Founder and CEO of WeThrift, shared that they faced a significant challenge early on as website visitors found it hard to find the exact discount codes they sought.

Drewe explained how they tackled the situation:

The implementation of an exhaustive search integration within our chosen eCommerce software was a game-changer. It allowed visitors to search using various parameters, allowing them to land on the deals that best suited their shopping agenda. This precise search functionality, complemented by our platform’s simplified interface, were key features in driving our success.

Nick DreweFounder and CEO, WeThrift

An online platform that helps you find discounts and coupon codes for various eCommerce stores.

Yijin Hardware

Sometimes, the right eCommerce software can blow up your business boundaries and introduce it to a global audience.

Gavin Yi, Founder and CEO of Yijin Hardware, told us:

Before moving to our current platform, we faced challenges selling to international clients because of currency conversion and language barriers. By using an eCommerce platform that supports localized shopping experiences, we saw a 25% increase in our overseas orders within the first year.

Gavin YiFounder and CEO, Yijin Hardware

Yijin Hardware manufactures custom industrial parts for clients worldwide.

Yi Continued:

The platform’s ability to scale with our business has been invaluable, especially when expanding to new markets. We also rely heavily on the inventory management and custom quoting tools the platform offers. Given the complexity of manufacturing custom parts, having these integrated into one platform helped us eliminate manual processes and reduce errors, resulting in smoother transactions and better customer satisfaction.

PetSprint

Investing in the most expensive eCommerce platform with flashy marketing techniques is not a sure-shot road to success. Sometimes, starting with free or budget-friendly software before investing in a sophisticated solution can make a world of difference.

Angelo Sorbello, Founder and CEO of PetSprint, shared how an economical eCommerce solution helped his business break even:

Although I had sufficient experience as an entrepreneur, PetSprint was a new venture. So, investing considerable sums in expensive development was not advisable. WooCommerce fit my requirements beautifully because it has a convenient, coding-free interface. I could hire a data entry operator for $10 an hour for data entry rather than spending $100 an hour for a coder. It helped me reduce operational costs and invest more in Google Ads and SEO. Therefore, PetSprint broke even quickly and became a profitable website sooner than expected.

Angelo SorbelloFounder and CEO, PetSprint

An online store for pet accessories and supplements.

Get our eCommerce Platforms Requirements Template

Next Steps

Ultimately, selecting the right eCommerce system is like choosing a magic wand from Diagon Alley — a perfect match is essential. Not every wand is compatible with every wizard, but you can be Harry Potter with the right match!

Understanding your unique eCommerce system requirements is crucial in the selection process. Our free requirements template can help you identify the tools and features your business needs. So don’t wait, make the right choice and take your eCommerce journey to new heights today!

Did we equip you with all the tools and knowledge required to make the right choice? What challenges have you encountered when selecting software? Are you considering any specific eCommerce trends or technologies to enhance your online store? Drop a comment, and let’s start a conversation below.

SME Contributors

Angelo Sorbello is the Founder of PetSprint, a one-stop online marketplace for pet supplements. His company leads in the creation of premium natural dog supplements. Besides establishing PetSprint, he’s the Managing Director of Astro Group, a DTC eCommerce company specializing in longevity and health products. He has also launched two startups in the tech industry and achieved success in AI and software.

Nick Drewe is a seasoned entrepreneur and the Founder of Wethrift.com. The platform helps online shoppers find real and working coupon codes, contributing significantly to the eCommerce landscape since November 2017. He has vast experience with eCommerce platforms to power his website and garner organic traffic.

Gavin Yi Gavin Yi is a CNC machining expert with over 10 years of experience. He has a deep understanding of mechanical machining processes, materials and project management. As the CEO of Shenzhen Yijin Hardware Co., Ltd., he has successfully led his team to win numerous projects. He has used eCommerce platforms extensively to overcome geographical barriers and implement an international growth strategy.

Nora Sudduth is a marketing strategist with over 20 years of experience. She has a proven track record of helping businesses generate revenue through the design and sale of high-impact programs. Nora’s expertise in eCommerce tools, market positioning, messaging and sales strategies has made her a sought-after consultant for startups and Fortune 500 companies alike.

Tiago Pita is a digital commerce leader with a proven track record of driving growth and innovation. With over 15 years of experience, Tiago has led the digital transformation of multiple businesses, including The Vegan Kind, where they significantly boosted sales through strategic eCommerce tools and initiatives. His expertise spans product development, branding, marketing and user experience.

After graduating with a Master’s in Finance from Trinity College Dublin, Shashank’s research and detail-oriented skills led him to SelectHub. He has diverse knowledge across various software categories like accounting, financial planning and analysis, eCommerce, risk management, PLM, insurance and more.

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