Magento is a common and very popular content management system on the web. The open-source platform offers companies of all sizes a customizable and affordable e-commerce application. Gartner listed Magento as a leader in their 2017 Magic Quadrant for Digital Commerce report, further cementing its status in the industry - both today and in future.
Users of the platform will know that Magento has been available in two versions since its formation in 2008:
- Open Source Edition. This is the free version of the program. It is relatively straightforward to lean - though setting it up with a team of web specialists is still recommended - and offers a glimpse into the vast collection of extensions and features available to e-commerce merchants today.
- Commerce Edition. Designed for larger businesses, scalable to any size, and packed with hundreds of plugins!
For startups and businesses looking to grow, an open source platform is an appropriate choice. Unlike a traditional SaaS(software as a service) product, which controls the software roadmap for merchants, an open source platform can be modified to suit merchant needs.
However, there comes a time when the needs of the business outgrow the functionality of the Open Source Edition. In these instances, the company should take a step towards enterprise level and migrate to the Commerce Edition. Built on the same code stack, relocating to the Commerce platform increases the number of tools at a merchants disposal: from automated marketing techniques to new plugins for order management. Here are four benefits to making the upgrade:
Stronger Sales Growth
What is more important than bringing in stable revenue? The wide range of marketing tools is bound to increase traffic and ultimately make more sales.
Take ElasticSearch, for example. A conventional SQL(Structured Query Language) database is not designed for full-text searches, and as such, they produce slow and often inaccurate results. When this occurs within a merchant’s store, it is an automatic turn-off for the customer. ElasticSearch is far more user-friendly, and customers are likely to respond favorably be returning time and again.
Personalized Shopping Experience
Marketing capabilities are only possible in the Commerce Edition. Customer segmentation and targeting, visual merchandising, customer attribute managing, customer email automation - these are all powerful tools to track user behavior and personalize the buyer's journey for each customer.
Tracking Performance
A company needs to monitor their performance to understand customer issues and adjust accordingly. Measurement tools are available in the Commerce platform, both regarding IT and employee management, that track the essential metrics. For example, the DareBoost extension will monitor the cache, SEO, security, and accessibility of the store. The best part? All the metrics come in one tool that requires minimal setup.
Team Efficiency
Google G Suite compatibility and advanced permissions are part of the extensive team management toolkit. As the company begins to scale and the employee base grows, building a network of transparent communication channels should be a priority.
Are you thinking of migrating to the Magento Commerce platform? Let the experts at Commercebees guide your transition and setup your e-commerce business with scalability in mind.
