Shopify is a cloud-based hosted e-Commerce platform that allows you to create an online store on Shopify’s server.
Shopify can be a good choice if one is trying to set-up an e-store quickly, but it may not be for every client as it has multiple monthly costs associated with it including monthly fee, platform transaction fees, credit card fees as well as add on fees.
If one is looking for a cheaper option than s/he should consider WooCommerce. It also offers many design options as opposed to a limited number of free templates on Shopify.
With so many choices out there, selecting an e-Commerce platform that is right for one’s business is quite challenging specially for small – medium enterprises. Selection of an e-Commerce platform should always be based on business requirements as opposed to on emotions. We often see WooCommerce fit well for small – medium enterprise; however, all three that are mentioned above have some advantages over others.
Shopify is catching up, but at present Shopify does not have as big of a market share as WooCommerce and Magento.
Shopify, Magento as well as WooCommerce are fairly optimized for SEO, and they are all up there in their SEO ranking.
Shopify is a proprietary software and hence it costs more to set-up a Shopify e-Commerce shop. In addition to platform cost, one also needs to pay for platform transaction fees, credit card fees as well as for all add-ons.
Shopify can be a choice for a large e-store; however, Magento offers much more flexibility and robustness for very large and complex websites.
Shopify has a very limited number of free templates. One needs to invest in a custom template if s/he decides to use Shopify and does not like the free template.
Shopify and WooCommerce are both quite user friendly compare to Magento, and both WooCommerce are Shopify are good options from sustainment and self-maintenance perspective.
As we recognize, an online store can be fired off using Shopify, WooCommerce or Magento; however, finding a right e-Commerce platform (open source vs. proprietary) is critical for our client’s success. A specific e-commerce platform selection not only adds complexity and cost to the project upfront, but it also drives up maintenance cost over-time.
Connect with GlobeSign to determine what’s the best CMS for your specific needs. Not necessarily Proprietary Software is better than Open Source since many Open Source Content Management Systems have a very large development community behind them and they compare well against Proprietary Software.
