If the Queen of Hearts could only have known she was centuries ahead of her time with her infamous command: “Off with his head!” Now, with headless eCommerce pushing the boundaries of digital sales, the possibilities are limitless.
But making the decision to migrate can feel intimidating to say the least. What are the crucial factors you need to consider? Let’s break down the good, the not-so-bad, and the exciting aspects of going headless.
The Basics
Before we dive in, let’s first establish what exactly we are talking about when we say headless eCommerce. When you break it down, headless architecture is really about separating the front and back ends of an eCommerce platform.
The front end is often referred to as the client side because it’s what consumers see when they access your site. In contrast, the back end is the behind-the-scenes technology that users never see. It encompasses the inner workings of the site and ensures everything on the front end performs smoothly. When you separate the two with a headless approach, it ensures access to 100% of the eCommerce platform using the API interface.
Why go this route? There are many reasons, which we’ll dive into below. But overall, the flexibility and customization it provides make for a speedier and more satisfying customer experience. And that’s exactly what we’re all aiming for, right? Let’s look a little more closely at how headless eCommerce makes that possible.
The Good
1.) Increased Customer Satisfaction
Of course, the main objective in digital sales is to create consistency and an optimal experience for consumers. Not only do you want them raving about your product or service but also about the experience that comes with it.
A headless platform changes with customer needs while remaining consistent and uses back-end consumer data to create personalization engines on CMS, mobile apps, and social channels. Social commerce is expected to grow by 30% in 2021. As your business grows, a headless platform will intuitively grow with you, scaling in a way that simply wasn’t possible before.
2.) Seamless Integration
An API-first approach, which is at the foundation of ZiftrShop, is a defining characteristic of headless eCommerce solutions. It allows for ease of integration and communication with other platforms so you can watch your sales skyrocket. For instance, have you ever tried to add your brand to a new device? Was it a painfully slow process?
With a headless system, you can substantially decrease the time it takes to execute those kinds of initiatives, while simultaneously expanding your consumer opportunities and outreach.
3.) Speedy Omnichannel Delivery
A headless platform will seamlessly take your content to any existing—or future—channel without disruption of delivery because we all know that new channels are around every corner. Be prepared.
An omnichannel retail experience on a traditional eCommerce platform results in tortoise-speed time to market and massive hurdles when scaling. Headless eCommerce eliminates these challenges with the central housing of content and products to be delivered via API wherever needed, resulting in faster time to market.
For example, ZiftrShop was designed to integrate effortlessly with numerous channels including Amazon, Overstock, eBay, Walmart, Rakuten, to name just a few. And what about your ERP solution? No problem. Our tool also integrates with NetSuite, Odoo, and more.
4.) Stay Competitive with Agility and Conversion Optimization
Update rapidly without impacting your back-end system and keep up with the rate of consumer technology on your front-end. Headless platforms enable businesses to continuously deliver quickly without outages due to updates and stay in the competition.
These platforms also support emerging technology, which means ease in development of new customer experiences and the agility necessary for marketing teams to launch new campaigns for roll-out quickly.
The ability to run continuous tests and optimization cycles on a headless eCommerce platform leads to consumer understanding at a faster pace, facilitating ease in the testing of alternative templates or approaches.
The Not-So-Bad
It sounds good on paper, but maybe you aren’t fully convinced going headless is for you. It certainly isn’t flawless. When executed without an experienced team, the main challenges companies report are cost and feeling over-reliant on a tapped out IT department.
That’s why we offer the ability to partner with ZiftrServices, trusted teams of experts that provide tailored technical support and competitive pricing. Through cutting-edge customization, targeted training for your internal team, and evolving site enhancements, ZiftrServices partners keep eCommerce enterprises at the forefront of market innovations.
And the Exciting
The ultimate takeaway is this: Though headless eCommerce marks another significant shift in the way we do business online, it offers up the chance to propel your enterprise to new heights. As with any transition, there are challenges to overcome, but the positive return for both your business and customers is evident and worthwhile.
If you’re curious about what it would take to migrate your platform, download our free whitepaper, which focuses on How to Plan, Perform and Grow for success with headless eCommerce. It’s a comprehensive resource that will empower you to finally take the leap and position your business for limitless growth and profitability.