Getting a store online is one thing. Running it when orders increase, prices change and staff need answers from several systems is another.
That is usually when the Shopify-versus-custom-development question comes up.
There is no universal winner. The useful starting point is how orders actually move through the business, from the first product enquiry to dispatch and accounting.
When Shopify Works Best
Shopify already covers much of what a conventional online shop needs: a catalogue, checkout, payments and tools for managing orders. That can save a business from building routine features itself.
For a fairly standard retail operation, that is often enough.
As an example, a clothing business with a catalog of less than 1,000 standard items and standard prices, shipping and checkout may benefit from Shopify.
Shopify gives businesses the opportunity to outsource the development of their ecommerce site, and instead concentrate on marketing and selling their products.
When to Opt for Custom Ecommerce Development
Some businesses take longer than others to make a purchase decision.
Businesses with longer buyer’s journeys, subscription models, unique pricing, or order processes may need to consider if Shopify can adequately support their requirements or if additional development work would be required.
A typical business-to-business supplier may have unique pricing for each customer based on order quantity and customer terms. They may have some customers on credit terms, while other customers may need management approval before they can process a purchase order.
The question becomes, what needs to change for this supplier to be able to run and grow on a selected ecommerce platform?
If staff rely on significant automation workarounds, like using a spreadsheet to perform a task that should be done by a system, that may indicate that custom development would be valuable.
Shopify and Custom Development Can Work Together
It doesn’t have to be a choice between a straight out-of-the-box Shopify store and a completely separate platform.
Shopify works with third-party developers to create customized storefronts. Shopify users can keep their ecommerce back end with Shopify and create a custom and unique storefront.
Decimal Technologies might evaluate an ecommerce situation where Shopify provides the ecommerce engine and integration or custom development helps to automate or streamline business processes.
Integration Can Be More Important Than the Platform
Related service: Web Development for ecommerce builds, custom storefronts and integrations.
An ecommerce business will utilize a number of different systems to manage their inventory, orders, customers, accounting and fulfilment. These systems must work in conjunction with each other. If they don’t, the employees will need to manually enter information in the different systems, increasing the workload and introducing errors.
For example, a typical ecommerce order may move through several systems: Customer Order → Ecommerce Store → Payment → ERP → Inventory Update → Delivery Update → Customer Notification.
If these systems don’t connect properly, employees would have to manually update order information, inventory and customer records at various stages in the process.
In these cases, system integration may be more crucial than replacing the ecommerce platform. Decimal Technologies can analyze how the ecommerce store, ERP and CRM systems integrate and work together to remove manual tasks and processes and improve efficiency across the business.
If your ecommerce store needs deeper business-system integration, see Decimal’s Custom Software Development capabilities.
Consider the Customer Journey
The process of checking orders should be customer-journey-focused, not feature-focused. What does a customer do before making a payment, and after making a payment?
The ecommerce customer journey is typically broken down into a few steps: Product → Cart → Checkout → Payment → Delivery
Of course, not all businesses will have this simple customer journey. Many will need an ecommerce solution that supports their unique requirements.
Shopify’s software supports consumer purchase journeys and fulfils customer requirements through extensions and development options. Shopify also gives users the ability to create a custom storefront.
There are many scenarios where custom Shopify development makes sense. If important business processes can’t be supported within Shopify, then the business may have to consider additional custom development or other ecommerce approaches.
Understanding the Total Cost of Ownership
The Shopify platform has fairly consistent costs, but the true cost of having a Shopify-based commerce operation can include themes, applications, development work, integrations and several other costs depending on the overall scope of the setup.
With a custom ecommerce platform, the expense profile is more front-loaded and includes costs for development in addition to costs for ongoing hosting, maintenance, security and updates.
Which option will cost less to run?
A monthly Shopify fee and a custom development quote are not comparable figures on their own.
A better question would be what will it cost to operate, maintain and improve the ecommerce platform over the next several years?
Either approach can become expensive if not planned for. Shopify costs can increase with the addition of applications and integrations, as well as with custom development, and a custom platform requires ongoing maintenance, hosting and further development.
Shopify or Custom Ecommerce? Ask These Questions
Before deciding between Shopify and a custom ecommerce solution, consider the following:
- Is the ecommerce platform intended for B2C, B2B or both?
- How many different product and pricing combinations will it need to support?
- What integrations with other business systems, such as ERP or CRM, will be required?
- How complex is the checkout process?
- How much control does the business need over the customer experience?
- Will different customers require different products, pricing or purchasing terms?
- How quickly does the business need to launch?
- What could the ecommerce operation look like in the next three to five years?
- What are the expected ongoing platform, development and maintenance costs?
The answers usually reveal whether the problem is the storefront, the systems behind it or the way staff have to work around both.
How Decimal Technologies Approaches Ecommerce Development
At Decimal Technologies, the first conversation is about the business process. A platform recommendation comes after that.
Shopify may work as an all-in-one solution for one client, while another client may need Shopify as part of a larger project that includes custom integrations. A client with very particular ecommerce requirements may need a fully customized web or software solution.
Ultimately, the goal is to create an ecommerce environment that works for both the customer and the team managing the business behind it.
This means considering the entire ecommerce environment: the storefront, integrations, business processes, scalability and the support required after launch.
Planning a new ecommerce store or wondering whether your current platform can support future growth? Talk to Decimal Technologies about Shopify, custom development or a combination of both.