The global eCommerce industry is anticipated to expand at an annual rate of 14.7% over the next several years, with much of this expansion driven by strong demand from countries like India and China. The growth in online shopping is due to its many advantages, including greater accessibility for customers all around the world who want convenience or cost savings when buying online.
For eCommerce businesses, this growth is translating into an increased demand for platforms that can handle large volumes of transactions and provide flexibility for customization. One such architecture that is attracting a lot of attention in the eCommerce industry is headless eCommerce.
What is Headless eCommerce?
Headless eCommerce is an architecture where the front-end and backend are decoupled, meaning they are not linked together. In a headless eCommerce setup, the backend manages products, inventory, and checkouts while the front-end displays these products on whatever platform the business desires – whether it be a website, mobile app, or even voice assistant like Alexa. This is advantageous in a number of ways:
- Using one central location for all your eCommerce dealings makes it easier for finance teams to report and analyze things like revenue, expenses and profit margins.
- It allows businesses to quickly adapt their online presence to stay ahead of the competition, as consumer preferences are always changing.
- It can handle large amounts of volume. This is important for businesses that are seeing a lot of growth in online sales and need a platform that can handle the load.
The Benefits of Headless eCommerce
One of the more appealing benefits of headless eCommerce is its adaptability. Because companies may use any front-end platform they choose, they are not restricted to those recommended by their eCommerce provider. This gives them more control over the consumer journey and adds a degree of differentiation from rivals. Furthermore, as consumer behavior changes, businesses will be able to swiftly change components on the platform without having to worry about jeopardizing the front-end or backend functionality.
Another benefit of headless eCommerce is that it may reduce the amount of paperwork required for underwriting and authorizing transactions. Traditionally, merchants must submit numerous underwriting reviews for each checkout system since eCommerce systems require several separate approvals. Before accepting an account, underwriters must evaluate a merchant and its owners for possible risk. Chargebacks are a pain, so it’s critical to ensure that the merchant and its owners offer a solid prospect. Headless eCommerce allows for a single underwriting review of the whole transaction. This may help both the merchant and the underwriter by cutting down on time and money. Merchants will appreciate a faster approval timetable as well as a simplified purchasing process, which can result in reduced mean time-to-value and a simpler shopping experience for customers.
How to Get Started with Headless eCommerce
If you’re ready to start taking advantage of the benefits headless eCommerce has to offer, there are a few action items you need to do first:
- Evaluate your needs and decide which front-end platform you want to use. This could be anything from a custom website or mobile app built using PHP, HTML, and CSS to an existing platform like Shopify or Wordpress.
- Choose an eCommerce provider that can support a headless setup. Not all providers offer this flexibility, so make sure to do your research.
- Get familiar with the backend processes involved in managing products and checkouts. This will require some training on your part (or on the part of your team who handles the integration).
- Decide on which headless eCommerce platform to commit to. There are a few different options out there, but each has its own benefits and drawbacks.
Once you’ve completed these steps, you’ll be ready to take advantage of all that headless eCommerce has to offer!
The Future of Headless eCommerce
Increasing use of headless eCommerce is forcing businesses to adapt. More and more companies are moving to headless eCommerce. As the number of headless eCommerce installations grows, providers are offering additional features and options to make the shift simpler. Some providers, for example, now offer pre-built integrations with popular front-end technologies so that enterprises may get up and running faster.
If you’re looking for a nimble eCommerce platform that can keep up with your company’s ever-changing needs, headless eCommerce is well worth exploring. Get started now by speaking with your provider about whether they provide a headless solution.
The Take Away
Headless eCommerce…
- platform gives you greater freedom when selecting a front-end framework, resulting in personalized experiences for customers.
- allows businesses to react faster to market changes and speed up product upgrades.
- offers a single underwriting review of the whole transaction which may help both merchant service provider & underwriter.
- simplifies the purchasing process for customers, making it easier for them to return.
- is here to stay with more and more providers adapting their services to include it.