Solve It With Software: E-Commerce and Headless Content Management
Building an e-commerce solution is a step toward future-proofing retail spaces for large and small businesses. From groceries to couches, options for curbside or in-store pickup along with delivery are now the expectation of typical consumers.
Although the sharp pivot away from a brick-and-mortar shopping experience was well on its way before this past year, the final three quarters of 2020 saw an explosion in e-commerce. According to the US Department of Commerce, total e-commerce sales were up 32.4 percent from 2019, while retail sales only saw a boost of 3.2 percent. With a few notable exceptions, most businesses need robust, agile methods to sell online.
Below, we’ll walk you through some of the questions you need to ask about your business’s approach to selling online. Most importantly, we’ll talk about how and why using a headless content management system is gaining popularity for retailers and developers alike.
What is headless commerce?
We define headless commerce as an intentional decoupling of the front-end (what users see) and back-end (where the data is stored) of an e-commerce application. You can achieve this by designing a content management system (CMS) that can plug into multiple front-end frameworks, also known as a Headless CMS. By building the content into an API, you can easily include the data in an application built using (our favorites) React and Angular. You could even plug it into a native mobile application. At the core of headless is the idea that no matter how consumer-facing technology changes, your data can adapt.
Headless commerce is shorthand for the idea that a sales database isn’t shoehorned into predetermined logic or preexisting templates. Headless systems give stakeholders the most critical functionality when designing any sort of shopping experience: flexibility. With this flexibility comes sacrifices, the chief being that a headless solution isn’t as simple as the drag and drop answers from off-the-shelf suppliers. If you’re not sure whether or not you’re ready for headless, our checklist can help.
Why headless commerce?
After committing to exploring e-commerce solutions, how should small businesses decide which platforms and sites to use for selling? Do you want the customizability of a unique site? Would you sacrifice customizability for off-the-shelf options? How robust is your sales pipeline? Do you want to chase customers beyond the edge of your online store?
“It can be complicated to choose between a headless and a traditional CMS. The fact is, they both have potential advantages and drawbacks.” — Zoe Koulouris Augustinos, Partner & Cofounder, Upstate Interactive
For businesses with considerable inventory and anything beyond a two-step sales cycle, all of these are critical questions to ask. If your business is trending towards a customizable platform with a robust sales pipeline that uses multiple online spaces to sell- headless commerce is worth serious consideration.
Flexibility. In the case of e-commerce, the “content” of a CMS are like inventory, marketing data, customer service FAQs, and more. Separating these from the customer-facing aspect of an e-shop allows the content to be plugged into mobile apps and optimized for IoT devices like Google Home, Amazon Echo, or Facebook Portal. Not only can you leverage unique frontend usage, but a headless CMS also allows developers to connect and sell through chatbots and social media integrations. The most significant benefit of headless e-commerce for businesses of any size is that it can be seamlessly integrated with a POS system at your brick-and-mortar store. Blurring the lines between your e-shop and IRL store makes a more seamless experience for all shoppers.
Security. If flexibility isn’t enough to convince you to go headless, maybe the potential security benefit will. Simply, if your e-commerce shop is centralized and controlled by a single point of access, even a lost password can be potentially catastrophic. You can implement several security protocols with a headless CMS, which is especially useful if you don’t want to worry about things like Payment card industry (PCI) compliance.
Scalability. Small businesses don’t want to stay small… do they? With a headless solution, it’s as easy as plug-and-play. So, if you need to build a front end from scratch to support growth, scale your current solution, or even integrate with another business for co-branding purposes, your content can do with you everywhere. By leveraging an API-connected CMS, any of these options is much less of a hassle.
What does a software consultancy bring to the table?
Choosing to go headless is a commitment to building out an e-shop intentionally, not simply. Although there are loads of appeal for businesses to launch with an off-the-shelf model, you’ll likely find the need and uses for a headless solution in the future. Investment in the short term can mitigate growing pains down the line.
Headless solutions take development work. Often, full-stack development work. If your business doesn’t have that skill set at hand or can’t spend precious dev hours working on this project, it may be time to bring a software consultancy on board. Often cheaper (and more flexible) than hiring an individual employee, full-stack consultancies like Upstate Interactive offer a viable solution.
“A software consultancy can make decisions simpler by translating business needs into user requirements. Through research, experience, and an empirical approach to project management, they can move quickly from diagnostics to action.”
Perhaps even more valuable than providing free hands to code, any consultancy worth their salt will engage in a discovery process that should allow you to see a complete picture of your business and business problems that need solving. If they’re really good, you’ll learn about pain points in your sales process you couldn’t see previously. Think of hiring a software consultancy like having your business look in a mirror… in a world where your mirror is also a barber, a makeup artist, and a personal trainer.
Recap
Is the jury still out? Not sure whether to go with an off-the-shelf option or take the plunge into a headless solution? Maybe this quick checklist will help. If you…
Hope to scale in the future
A headless CMS can be unplugged and replugged into any front end, reducing the risk for lost information and maintaining consistency for operators.
Want to leverage emerging technology
The flexibility of CMS data transmitted via API is unmatched. If the new tech can receive it, you can send it.
Want to use several different plugins
Headless CMS is compatible with plugins from the biggest providers in the e-commerce space.
Are concerned about security and compliance
Both a headless and off-the-shelf solution could be in the cards. Just know that with an off-the-shelf option, you’re blindly trusting a one-size-fits-all answer.
Are you looking for a quick, low impact, drag and drop solution
Perhaps an off the shelf option is right for you
Still not sure? Drop us a line- we’ll be happy to talk through your needs and help you get to the right solution.
FAQ
Whether you need a quick refresher or just scrolled all the way down to get some easy answers, you should find a solution to everything you need to know right here.
What is headless e-commerce?
Headless e-commerce is a content management style where the back end (inventory, sales, customer service) is disconnected from the client-facing application and fed via an API.
What is a CMS?
CMS is shorthand developers use that stands for a content management system.
How do you use headless CMS?
You use a headless CMS by creating an API that delivers content back-and-forth from your database to a front-end application.
Is headless CMS the future?
Headless CMS is the future for many businesses interested in leveraging multiple selling points like social, IoT devices, and chatbots.
