4 Reasons Why You Should Choose Bespoke eCommerce Solutions For Your Online Business
10 min.

Are you tired of trying to fit your unique business needs into an off-the-shelf eCommerce solution? Fear not, bespoke eCommerce solutions are here to save the day! Unlike those boring, one-size-fits-all options, bespoke solutions offer the customization and flexibility you need to achieve your business goals. 

But the benefits of bespoke e-Commerce solutions don’t end there. In addition to customization, bespoke solutions offer superior performance and security compared to off-the-shelf options. With a bespoke solution, you won’t have to worry about your website crashing or customer data being compromised. 

bespoke ecommerce solutions

Drawing from our extensive experience in the eCommerce industry, ProCoders understand the challenges and obstacles you might face while trying to make your business stand out. In this article, we delve into the common pains experienced by business owners like you and offer valuable insights, using our expertise to guide you in creating a custom-made eCommerce solution tailored to your unique needs. By tackling these challenges head-on, you can confidently propel your business forward and capture the attention of your target audience. Keep reading to discover practical advice and proven strategies, backed by our experience, that will help you overcome obstacles and drive success in the ever-changing eCommerce landscape.

What Is a Bespoke eCommerce Platform?

You might be wondering what is bespoke ecommerce? Well, A bespoke eCommerce platform is a fully customized online shopping platform, which is built from scratch to cater to the specific needs of a business. Unlike off-the-shelf solutions or pre-built templates, a bespoke eCommerce platform is designed according to the unique requirements and preferences of the business. 

With a high degree of customization, businesses can create a truly unique shopping experience for their customers. Although it may require a larger upfront investment, bespoke eCommerce platforms provide several benefits, including greater flexibility, scalability, enhanced security, and advanced personalization capabilities.

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4 Reasons to Choose a Bespoke eCommerce Solutions for Your Online Business in 2023 and Beyond

When it comes to choosing an eCommerce platform for your online business, there are many options available. While off-the-shelf solutions like Shopify and WooCommerce are popular choices, they may not always be the best fit for every business. And at ProCoders we know exactly when you might need a more complex, yet tailored solution. Let’s take a closer look at them:

You Have Unique or Complex Business Requirements:

In this case, it may not be possible to fully meet your requirements with an off-the-shelf eCommerce platform. For example, if you sell custom-made products or services, you may need a more customized ordering process that integrates with your existing workflow. Or, if you have a subscription-based business model, you may require more flexible billing and payment options that aren’t available on a standard eCommerce platform. 

For example, our client Deine Baustoffe, a German retail eCommerce company, needed a platform that allowed them to sell building materials by piece, square meter, or litre. We used the PHP Spryker framework to create a bespoke eCommerce software that met their requirements, offering them a unique shopping experience and helping them stand out in the competitive market.

You Need Deep Integration with Other Business Systems or Third-Party Applications:

A bespoke e Commerce platform can provide a deeper level of integration with other systems and applications that you rely on to manage your business operations, which is not always possible with an off-the-shelf solution. For instance, if you use an inventory management system, a bespoke eCommerce solution can integrate with it to provide you with real-time inventory updates and automated order processing. 

Similarly, if you work with a third-party shipping provider, a bespoke solution can integrate with their API to streamline shipping and order tracking, making the process more efficient and user-friendly. In our case study involving an online delivery service, we developed a custom solution that allowed the client to add their own stores and products to the platform. Our solution integrated separate applications for customers, delivery personnel, and stores, while implementing a superadmin role to resolve conflicts.

You Prefer a More Secure and Robust Solution:

If your online store handles a large volume of transactions and sensitive customer data, a bespoke Commerce solution can offer greater security and reliability than an off-the-shelf platform. For example, a bespoke solution can be built to meet the specific security requirements of your business, such as using secure payment gateways and implementing regular security audits.

We make sure that the solutions we developed are secure, scalable, and robust, allowing our clients to focus on growing their businesses with confidence.

More Secure and Robust Solution of bespoke ecommerce

Need for Scalability:

An off-the-shelf platform may not be as scalable as a custom eCommerce solution if you have a long-term business plan and expect considerable growth. For instance, a custom solution can be developed to manage higher traffic, transaction, and data volumes and can be planned to be more easily scalable as your company expands.

For instance, our solutions for Deine Baustoffe and the online delivery service were designed to manage higher traffic, transaction, and data volumes, and to scale easily as their businesses expanded.

In conclusion, choosing a bespoke eCommerce solution for your online business can provide numerous benefits, including meeting unique requirements, offering deep integration with other systems, ensuring security, and providing scalability for future growth. To fully capitalize on these advantages, it’s crucial to hire an eCommerce developer or hire remote developers with the right expertise and experience, like the team at ProCoders. By partnering with seasoned professionals, you can build a custom eCommerce platform that sets your business apart and drives success in 2023 and beyond.

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Disadvantages of Bespoke eCommerce Websites and How to Mitigate Them

While a bespoke e-Commerce solution can offer many advantages over an off-the-shelf platform, there are also some potential pitfalls to consider. In this part of the article, we’ll explore some common weak spots of a bespoke eCommerce website and provide some strategies for mitigating these risks. By understanding these challenges and planning ahead, you can ensure a successful project and a custom-built online shopping experience that meets the unique needs of your business.

Higher cost

Building a bespoke eCommerce website requires you to hire web developers with rich experience, as well as designers and project managers, which can result in higher development costs compared to using an off-the-shelf platform.

Mitigation: ProCoders can help you build a bespoke eCommerce website at an affordable rate by outsourcing development to a team of experienced developers in Central Europe. Our developers have an impressive education level and can help you keep an eye on your project, ensuring that it meets your unique needs and stays within budget.

higher development costs

Longer development time: 

Because a bespoke eCommerce website is custom-built, it can take longer to develop than using an off-the-shelf platform.

Mitigation: We at ProCoders help you save time on development by providing round-the-clock development and by developing an MVP (minimum viable product) first. This approach allows you to start selling almost immediately and then add new features and functionality over time. Please check out cost to build a WordPress website for further details

Limited support: 

With an off-the-shelf eCommerce platform, you can usually rely on a large support community to help troubleshoot issues and provide support.

Mitigation: ProCoders understand the importance of ongoing maintenance and support for a bespoke eCommerce website. That’s why we’ve developed a unique solution to address this concern. Our WordPress SEO Services package includes a dedicated support plan, which provides up to 40 hours of maintenance and support each month. 

This ensures that any issues that arise are promptly addressed by our team of experienced developers and that your website remains secure and up-to-date. Additionally, we establish clear communication channels to keep you informed of any updates or issues and work closely with you to provide the support you need.

support community

Potential for bugs or errors: 

While it’s true that any web development project can encounter bugs or errors, it’s worth noting that a bespoke eCommerce website that’s been thoroughly tested can actually have a lower risk of bugs than an off-the-shelf platform. With a bespoke solution, you have the ability to thoroughly test and quality assure every aspect of the website, ensuring that it functions smoothly and meets the needs of your business.

In contrast, with an off-the-shelf platform, there’s always a risk of bugs and errors, especially if the platform is heavily customized. In some cases, developers may implement “crutches” to achieve certain functions, which can cause bugs or conflicts with other parts of the website.

Mitigation: At ProCoders, we prioritize testing and quality assurance in our bespoke eCommerce website development projects to ensure that your website functions smoothly and effectively.

In summary, while there are potential disadvantages to building a bespoke eCommerce website, working with ProCoders can help you mitigate these issues and ensure a successful project that meets your unique needs. Our team of experienced developers, designers, and project managers can help you build a custom eCommerce platform at an affordable rate, provide ongoing support and maintenance, and implement preventive measures to ensure that your website is functioning properly.

How Can ProСoders Assist You In Expand Your Online Business?

ProCoders is a trusted IT outstaffing company with a team of over 100 software engineers that can help you expand your online business with a bespoke eCommerce solution. We offer a range of solutions, for example, a Discovery phase service, which helps businesses find clear answers to three essential questions during their software development process:

  1. How long will the development lifecycle take?
  2. How much does my business need to invest?
  3. What are the risks and how can those risks be avoided?

We believe that a lack of clear requirements and poor project explanation are some of the most common reasons why software products fail. We help businesses avoid this by following a structured process that includes research, estimation, prioritization, and roadmap creation. During the Discovery phase, our experts conduct qualitative and technical research to identify the most suitable technologies for features and scalability, evaluate the difficulty of the tasks, and determine the engineering skill level needed to do the job right.

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ProCoders also offers a self-managed dedicated development team service that allows businesses to build an expert group of engineers who meet the unique needs of their project. This service provides ultimate flexibility throughout the progression of the project, with the opportunity to utilize full-time or part-time team members, all based on the scope of the project and how it evolves. ProCoders’ self-managed dedicated team service delivers endless benefits because it’s built according to your specific requirements, providing complete control over the development process and allowing for easy changes as the project evolves.

ProCoders’ Experience

Case 1: 

ProCoders successfully assisted Deine Baustoffe, a German retail eCommerce company, in creating a bespoke eCommerce software to meet their specific business requirements. Our team utilized the PHP Spryker framework to provide a tailored solution that enabled Deine Baustoffe to sell building materials by the piece, square meter, or liter – something that is not possible on off-the-shelf platforms like Shopify. We ensured that the website was scalable, flexible, and secure, allowing Deine Baustoffe to offer a unique shopping experience to their customers. Our expertise in developing custom eCommerce platforms helped Deine Baustoffe to achieve their business objectives and stand out in the competitive eCommerce market.

Case 2: 

Our second case involved an e-commerce service for online delivery, which started as an alcohol delivery service for parties and expanded to a full-fledged delivery of goods from stores. ProCoders developed a custom solution that allowed the client to add their own stores and products to the platform, enabling customers to order online. We also created separate applications for customers, delivery personnel, and stores, all hosted by ProCoders. Additionally, we implemented a superadmin role to resolve conflicts. The depth of goods and diverse descriptions required a customized solution, which we delivered to the client’s satisfaction. For this project, we utilized Angular/Ionic for the front-end, Firebase for the real-time database, and Node.js for the back-end development, creating a robust and scalable tech stack to support the client’s needs.

FAQ
Is Bespoke good for B2B ecommerce?

Yes! Because B2B eCommerce often involves more complex business processes and a greater need for customization and integration with other systems, a bespoke solution may be a better fit than an off-the-shelf platform. A bespoke eCommerce solution can be tailored to the specific needs of a B2B business, such as custom pricing models, tiered pricing, or customer-specific discounts. It can also be integrated with other systems, such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, customer relationship management (CRM) software, or logistics systems, to provide a seamless and efficient workflow for the business.

Which is better in 2023: open source or Bespoke?

The choice between open source and bespoke eCommerce solutions depends on the specific needs and goals of your business. Both options have their advantages and disadvantages, and the best choice for your business will depend on factors such as budget, timeline, level of customization needed, scalability, and ongoing maintenance and support requirements. Open-source eCommerce solutions, such as Magento or WooCommerce, can be a good option for businesses looking for a cost-effective and customizable solution that offers a range of features and extensions. On the other hand, bespoke eCommerce solutions offer a high level of customization and flexibility, which can be particularly beneficial for businesses with complex requirements, unique business processes, or the need to integrate with other systems.

How switch to Bespoke from Shopify?

Switching from Shopify to a bespoke eCommerce solution can be a significant undertaking, but with careful planning and execution, it can be a smooth and successful transition:

 

  1. Evaluate your business requirements: This can include features, customization options, scalability, and integration with other systems.
  2. Choose the right development team: Look for a team that has experience building custom eCommerce platforms and can offer a comprehensive solution, from initial consultation and requirements gathering to design, development, and ongoing support.
  3. Plan for data migration: If you have existing products, orders, or customer data in your Shopify store, you’ll need to plan for data migration to your new bespoke platform. 
  4. Design and develop your bespoke solution: This will include creating a custom design, building out features and functionality specific to your business, and integrating with other systems if necessary.
  5. Test and launch your bespoke solution: Once testing is complete, you can launch your new bespoke platform, and work with your development team to provide ongoing maintenance and support.

 

What is the benefit of Bespoke software?

Bespoke software is custom-built to meet the unique needs of a business, offering greater customization, scalability, and efficiency compared to off-the-shelf solutions. This can result in better performance, improved productivity, and a more streamlined workflow, leading to increased business success and growth.

Conclusion

Сhoosing the right eCommerce platform is critical to the success of your online business. While off-the-shelf solutions like Shopify and WooCommerce are popular and convenient options, they may not always meet the unique needs of every business. In such cases, a bespoke eCommerce solution, which is custom-built for your business, may be a better fit. 

With our extensive expertise in developing custom eCommerce platforms, we can ensure that your platform is scalable, flexible, and secure. Our solutions offer greater flexibility and deeper integration with other systems or third-party applications. Choose ProCoders to expand your online presence with a unique and efficient eCommerce platform that will help your business succeed. Also, make sure to check out outsource website development for further understanding. 

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