What Is The Best Ecommerce Platform?

Choose the Best Ecommerce Platform for Your Business

Most website developers only use a single platform - they are Wordpress developers or Wix developers or Shopify developers etc.  That makes it very difficult to get an unbiased answer to the question "What is the best ecommerce platform?", because obviously a developer will always answer with the platform they use.

The reality is that every business has different needs and the best ecommerce platform depends on the needs of the business.  At Websites With Purpose we have developed sites using many ecommerce platforms and the three we choose to work with the most are Shopify, Hikashop and Woocommerce.  Each has strengths and meet different needs and Shopify and Hikashop have each won the "Best Ecommerce Platform" in CMS Critics Awards" in one of the last two years.  We have also developed sites using:

• Wix
• Ecwid
• Squarespace
• Magento
• Opencart
• Virtuemart
• eShop

and a number of smaller Joomla plugins.  

It is critical that you do a needs analysis on your business before choosing an ecommerce platform.  I have seen too many ecommerce website projects fail when the developer finds that there is a business need the chosen platform could not fulfil.  This should never happen, because the needs should have been documented and agreed upon before development started.

When is Shopify the Best Ecommerce Platform?

Shopify is designed specifically to be an Ecommerce platform without any dependence on other platforms.  Where WooCommerce expands the functionality of Wordpress and Hikashop expands the functionality of Joomla, Shopify is a complete Ecommerce platform in its own right.  Recent changes to Shopify Theme structures have greatly improved the ease of customised design and there are many third party plugins that enhance functionality to meet most business needs.

Shopify integrates with many other platforms allowing you to sell on multiple platforms such as Amazon, Ebay, Google etc and manage those sales from one Shopify dashboard.  For me, this is Shopify's greatest advantage.  On the downside, it is the most expensive platform of the three, with monthly fees for both the platform and most plugins which can quickly build up.  Also, as Shopify is primarily an Ecommerce platform, other online functionality you may want, may not be handled as well as it would be on Wordpress or Joomla. 

When is Hikashop the Best Ecommerce Platform?

Hikashop is to the Joomla CMS what Woocommerce is to Wordpress.  The difference being that Hikashop comes complete with virtually all the functionality you are ever likely to need, so additional plugins are rarely required and Joomla is a more secure platform than Wordpress.  This means lower site maintenance costs, a cleaner user interface and lower overheads on the hosting server (ie. faster site loading).   Hikashop makes full use of the Joomla access controls so creating different pricing and purchasing rules for different user groups is a simple task.  You may want for example, different pricing for each of wholesale customers, club members and the public along with minimum and/or maximum purchase quantities for your wholesale users.  Easy.  An affiliate commission system is built in, as are discount and voucher codes.

Hikashop comes with a powerful developer api, meaning that building integrations with third party software is relatively easy.  For example, we have integrated Hikashop stores with corporate ERP systems like SAP and Oracle Netsuite for stock control and sales fulfilment needs.  Hikashop also has an enhanced interface for file overrides, which means that every element layout on the site page is easily customised to create the look and feel you want for your store without breaking on updates.

As Hikashop is a Joomla extension, you can still have all of the functionality offered by other Joomla extensions on your site whether that be a membership system, online booking system, document library etc etc.

In summary, (and there are always exceptions), Woocommerce is best when you want to expand your Wordpress site or if your company has a "Wordpress only" policy, Shopify is best when you want multi outlet capability and ease of use while Hikashop is best when you want lower development cost, ease of use, non-ecommerce functionality and greater potential for customisation.

Before making any decision on which is the best ecommerce platform for your business, download our free website planner to help you do a needs analysis.