The world of shopping is changing before our eyes. By 2026, for example, 9% of us will buy directly from our mobile phones.
It’s now possible to pay for products using your thumbprint and to purchase something by scrolling Instagram. And all this is happening at breathtaking speed.
That’s why you must use cutting-edge technology to advance in this arena. There are powerful tools out there with some exciting offerings. You must understand the solutions around you and find the best fit for you.
To help you do that, we’ve compiled this list of e-commerce’s latest online software solutions. Use this to get ahead with your online store ambitions in 2023.
Shopify
Shopify is undoubtedly a leader in e-commerce and has since launched in 2006 as the first significant solution for online stores.
Shopify suits a single entrepreneur looking for a side project or a large, established shop looking to create an online presence. The platform is extensive.
They offer 1000s of third-party add-ons as part of their app marketplace so you can add features to your store.
The seamless nature of Shopify means you can do anything in this app. You can create products, manage inventory, design a homepage, and set international prices.
You can even carry out various marketing tasks like emailing your customers with promotions.
Shopify users love the simplicity, power, and flexibility of the tool. That’s why it remains a popular choice in 2023.
BigCommerce
As the name suggests, BigCommerce is a prominent competitor in e-commerce. They offer a platform that’s suitable for small startups and vast enterprises.
BigCommerce has some valuable tools that make it popular with e-commerce website owners. That includes a sophisticated SEO solution, making it ideal for those who want to rank on Google.
It also has a range of payment gateways to easily connect with your online store.
The BigCommerce design offers enough flexibility that it’s possible to build any bespoke store. It’s also an international brand, which means you can sell products in many currencies and languages.
Like other market leaders, BigCommerce prides itself on having a supportive and responsible customer support team.
Wix
Wix may be more well-known as a website builder, but it’s also surprisingly efficient as an emerging e-commerce solution. It means you can easily add an e-commerce feature to an existing website.
That’s perfect if you want to expand an established blog, for example, without redo the design from scratch.
Wix has built features to help it compete with the best, such as product listings, inventory management, and payment processing.
It offers users a range of templates to help build a shopfront without needing advanced technical skills.
Wix also delves into marketing features to help you promote your e-commerce store, like Wix Ascend. This e-commerce app enables you to communicate with your customers.
It also offers a social post creator to help you quickly turn an e-commerce page into a social media post to help generate more traffic.
WooCommerce
If you have a website powered by WordPress, WooCommerce will probably appear on your shortlist of e-commerce solutions. It’s a comprehensive WordPress plugin that will turn any blog into an e-commerce store.
The advantage of WooCommerce is that it’s highly customizable. You can use the many extensions or your design skills to make your shop unique.
That also makes it a highly scalable solution, so if you choose WooCommerce, you won’t have to upgrade to a different platform later.
Like other major platforms, WooCommerce offers payment gateway integrations. It also provides logistical solutions like shipping notifications to customers.
Many fans of WooCommerce like its close online community to reach out to when you have an issue or question. It means any problem is quickly resolved by connecting with other WooCommerce experts.
Salesforce
Enterprise customers needing an e-commerce platform may already have an established CRM. Salesforce bridges this gap by providing the two as part of the Salesforce Commerce Cloud offering.
It helps businesses get a different insight into their customers via a CRM by showcasing their shopping behaviors and preferences. Plus, it’s a platform that’s as powerful for B2B commerce as it is for traditional B2C.
The platform will also help you manage your e-commerce solution across multiple sources, like mobile and in-store.
This solution, from a tech giant, is highly scalable and robust. It’s ideal for those who want an all-in-one solution supporting their business.
Magento
Magento has a background as an open-source solution for e-commerce. That makes it a highly flexible way to build a store that offers a unique shopping experience for customers.
It was so popular that Adobe acquired it in 2018. The platform is excellent for large enterprises needing a robust solution, but it’s also popular with SMEs. Since Adobe bought this platform, it’s had extra digital tools added.
That’s helped it become a more holistic, integrated solution for businesses. Magento has excellent community support as well as a vast customer service team from Adobe.
With the ambitions of this company and the backing of Adobe, it’s likely to continue to grow in popularity.
Squarespace
Squarespace is popular with those seeking beautiful, artistic website designs. But though this is a popular web-building tool, it also has a growing e-commerce capability.
It means you can build an online store that looks as stylish as a portfolio-style website.
Squarespace integrates its e-commerce offering so you can create everything in one place, from product listings to homepage designs and order management.
It also offers an easy way to optimize your storefront for mobile, something that’s increasingly important as people spend more of their shopping time on handheld devices.
Squarespace also has a solution for brick-and-mortar stores with a point-of-sale integration. So, it’s useful for those who want to move their offerings online.
Ecwid
This e-commerce software is different from what we’ve covered so far. Most e-commerce solutions are a package of tools to build a store online. However, Ecwid offers e-commerce from another angle.
It’s a widget providing a shopping cart you can plug into anywhere you want to sell a product online.
You can use this tool for any existing online store, or you can even use it on your social media profile. So, it means users with an established e-commerce presence can expand and diversify their sales channels.
It’s well-optimized for mobile and easy to set up. Plus, it has a range of payment integrations.
It’s a valuable tool if you are getting started with e-commerce and aren’t ready to set up an entire shop website yet.
PrestaShop
Our next e-commerce solution comes from France. It’s grown rapidly and expanded worldwide because it offers businesses an open-source e-commerce solution.
One advantage of PrestaShop is its multilingual capability, making it highly valuable to those selling overseas. It. can also manage different shipping, currencies, and tax rules across international borders.
With thousands of templates, you also have a massive choice of designs when using this platform. It means you’ll always have a shop front that looks unique.
Like other open-source platforms, an active online community provides helpful support and advice. It’s also a platform that’s well-respected as providing user-friendly designs that perform well for SEO.
3DCart (Shift4Shop)
3Dcart recently went through a rebrand; you’ll now see this called Shift4Shop. It’s an e-commerce platform with features for large and small online shops. It offers tools for every aspect of online selling.
Product listings include SEO optimization to help your products appear high on the search results pages.
It also has lots of payment integrations. Unlike other platforms, many tools are built into Shift4Shop, so you won’t have to add plugins or pay for extra tools. It’s all there under one roof.
The marketing tools are also exciting as they contain valuable additions like affiliate tracking. That’s ideal if you want to run an affiliate program without using a third party.
It also offers email marketing capabilities, making this platform a true one-stop shop for any ambitious e-commerce store.
Shopware
One attractive emerging solution for e-commerce is Shopware. This platform pitches itself as a tool for the more emotional and immersive side of buying online.
In other words, they go beyond transactional functionality like buy buttons.
They provide marketing tools that help vendors create visual stories around their products, like presentations and videos. It allows store owners to make something more individual.
With the right content, it can help convert visitors to buyers. It also offers features like customizable templates, helping create a look and feel unique to that store.
In a world where online buying feels increasingly impersonal, Shopware stands out as an alternative future, where shopping can return to the fun and engaging experience it was when we used to browse products at shopping malls.
Smart Online Software Solutions for e-commerce
The best online software solutions can have a transformational effect on any online store. At the click of a button, you could add sophisticated marketing offers, international shipping, or an extra payment button.
The list is endless, and the power to grow your online business will depend on how you embrace this technology.
If you need more guidance over what software solutions you need, our team is ready to help. You can book a free consultation with us by completing this form.
