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The best user experience for customers should be at the forefront of every company’s mind. This is especially true in the case of online shopping experiences, where an intuitive yet effective design can make or break a sale.
Many eCommerce businesses are ditching their traditional web designs in favor of more modern, streamlined approaches. One of these streamlined approaches is headless eCommerce, something we will be talking about today.
What is “headless” eCommerce?
Without going into the specifics, headlines eCommerce means that the front end is separate from the back end when it comes to eCommerce applications.
It’s a different system of platform architecture that gives you a lot more freedom and flexibility. It stands out because it utilizes experience managers and APIs (bits of software that let two applications talk to each other).
It would help if you also kept in mind that many high-quality eCommerce platforms, like Salesforce, offer headless solutions.
So, if you’re thinking of going headless, hire proper Salesforce Development Services, and think about how you can apply this to your own business.
But, you might be thinking – why go through all of this trouble? Well, check out the list of benefits below, and decide for yourself.
Security and Flexibility
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Since there is no web interface, your system becomes much more secure. Nothing can be exploited to steal customer/product information or bypass the checkout process – the only way to work with such a system is via API calls.
With a proper headless implementation, you can change your site’s look and feel very quickly – create a new design, connect via API and implement it in no time.
You can even create an entirely different frontend for various purposes (e.g., one optimized for desktop computers, another meant only for mobile devices).
Remote Work and Multiple Users
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You don’t need to give employees access to the admin panel or any other UI part of your eCommerce platform anymore – any API call will do the job perfectly.
This makes it possible for various people in your company to work with such a system without any “rights” issues.
The best advantage of the headless architecture is that there is no need to have anything installed on your computer or take care of hosting – all you need is an Internet connection.
As a result, you can add new products from home, while commuting, or right before going to sleep! In addition, many providers offer affordable cloud hosting for all kinds of PHP applications, so you can get your headless implementation up and running in just a few minutes.
Easy to Setup
You can update prices, product details, and stock levels from outside without having an admin panel open for this. Everything can be done automatically. You can import orders via API and keep all inventory levels correct without doing anything manually.
The headless architecture usually utilizes the latest PHP versions with built-in support for REST API calls. This allows creating pages very fast – basically, any HTTP client will do the job.
This type of architecture is probably the easiest way to set up a fully functional eCommerce site. You just need to have your platform installed, connect it with your store via API, create some products/categories & that’s it – you have a working eCommerce platform!
Customer Support
With a headless approach, you can automate many responses to customer inquiries and help reduce time spent on issues. This will allow for more effective communication with customers without feeling like they’re being ignored or forgotten about.
Customer Satisfaction
Here’s the thing – you want your customers to be happy because happy customers mean delighted CLV (customer lifetime value). And a high CLV means more money long-term.
The significant part about headless eCommerce is that it increases customer experience. It gives your website greater loading speeds. Furthermore, it prevents high volume traffic from tanking your website.
Customers hate it when they can’t make a purchase they have already decided on. If a website slows down to a crawl, not letting anybody buy what they want results in losing customers.
In fact, you will not only lose that sale but many potential future sales that person might have made if your website worked.
Scalability
Rather than having one client-facing website that aims to please everyone, a headless approach allows you to create different versions of your website for specific business goals.
This makes it easier to scale and meet customers’ needs while also maintaining a consistent level of quality across every campaign or campaign group.
Difference Between Traditional and Headless eCommerce – An example
The main difference between headless and more traditional forms of online retailing is that it does not require shoppers to use a web browser and actively navigate to an eCommerce website for purchase.
Some companies prefer a headless eCommerce system to provide a more targeted audience for advertisers. It is unnecessary to drive shoppers from the store website to a separate purchase page.
Instead, shoppers can enter the website from any page and be directly driven to an advertised product or specific landing page, enhancing online marketing efforts.
Furthermore, headless architecture eliminates the limitations of traditional eCommerce platforms that only display products on one web page at a time. A good headless system can connect multiple products and pages to serve targeted ads.
These platforms allow for dynamic content that matches customers’ search history or browsing preferences to drive greater conversions (sales).
An example of this system is Amazon’s Alexa service, which provides web owners with JavaScript code for adding voice commands to their websites. The code is used to give options for voice-activated purchases on websites and applications.
Suppose a customer has the Alexa app installed on their device. In that case, they can add items to their shopping list or reorder products they’ve previously purchased without needing to navigate away from the current page.
This method of eCommerce eliminates the need for customers to switch from one web page to another during the purchase process.
Conclusion
Headless eCommerce is making headway (pardon the pun) in the world of eCommerce today for a good reason. Its more flexible, cost-effective, helps with customer retention. Whether it’s going to overtake the future or simply stay a vital option, only time will tell.
Author’s Bio
Christopher is a Digital Marketing specialist, Project Manager and Editor at Find Digital Agency and a passionate blogger. He is a devoted and experienced author who loves to pay attention to quality research and details. Focused on new digital trends and voice distribution across different channels, he starts the day scrolling digest on new digital trends while sipping a cup of coffee. In his free time Christopher plays drums and Magic: the Gathering.
