Table of Contents
- What Is An eCommerce Development Company?
- What Do eCommerce Development Companies Do?
- What Is The Best Platform For eCommerce Development?
- How Much Do These Companies Charge For Their Services?
- Why Hire An eCommerce Development Agency?
- Hiring Local vs. Foreign Specialized Companies
- 7 Questions To Ask Developers Before You Hire One
What Is An eCommerce Development Company?
An eCommerce development company exclusively builds trustworthy eCommerce websites and mobile apps that meet the unique needs of their clients.
They are skilled in coding and various programming languages like Java, Javascript, PHP, Python and CSS.
Unlike eCommerce designers who are responsible for website aesthetics, these developers are in charge of the technical aspects of the products they build. And their job is to deliver fully functional stores that provide visitors with an outstanding experience.
eCommerce has changed the way businesses sell and consumers buy. It grows at a fast pace and it shows no signs of slowing down.
In fact, online retail sales are projected to reach $6 trillion by 2023.
To get a piece of this pie, businesses are bound to consider investing in online stores.
What Do eCommerce Development Companies Do?
These companies offer standard web development services and some of the primary responsibilities are:
- Creating databases
- Configuring and installing shopping carts
- Integrating payment gateways
- Securing websites
- Integrating APIs
- Performing QA testing
- Maintaining websites
- And more
However, unlike other developers, they have additional skills and particularly specialize in tools and platforms commonly used by businesses that sell online.
These may include:
- Shopify
- BigCommerce
- WooCommerce
- Salesforce
- And more
What Is The Best Platform For eCommerce Development?
There are many platforms that these types of companies use to build websites, and each comes with its own pros and cons.
Some platforms, such as Magento and Shopify, are powerful systems that allow for complex customization and are great for large-scale online retail stores.
While others, such as WooCommerce from WordPress, can also be personalized, but are better suited towards small to medium-sized eCommerce brands.
Other common eCommerce website platforms include:
- BigCommerce
- 3dcart
- Volusion
- Drupal
- And more
However, the best agencies will be able to work with your brand to determine the right platform that suits your brand’s needs and objectives.
What Do Magento eCommerce Web Developers Do?
A Magento development company specializes in developing mobile apps and websites using the Magento eCommerce platform.
They provide businesses with easy shopping features, highly customizable, secure and reliable products that are extendable for future growth.
Most businesses rely on the help of Magento eCommerce web developers because the solutions they offer are SEO friendly, have great performance and scalability.
What Does A Shopify eCommerce Development Company Do?
A Shopify development company creates digital solutions using the Shopify eCommerce platform.
They help brands grow by developing fully functional and scalable online stores with many advanced features including direct selling across different platforms.
Shopify is the second most popular platform with a market share of 19% and businesses mostly consider it because of its reliability, powerful marketing tools and outstanding customer support.
How Much Do These Companies Charge For Their Services?
The cost of these professional services will mostly depend on how complex your project will be in terms of features and functionalities, the number of developers who will work on it and the timeframe.
Some other factors that will influence the cost are:
- Your goals and expectations
- Data imports
- Domain name
- Hosting
- Integration
- SSL certificate
- Payment gateway
- SEO features
- And more
However, it will also depend on the location of the agency.
Thereby, here is how much you should approximately expect:
- Eastern Europe: $27- $35 per person, per hour
- India: $10- $50 per person, per hour
- The USA: $50-$200 per person, per hour
What’s more, the cost also varies based on the platform the website is built with. Whether you choose Shopify, Magento or WooCommerce, these tools also have their own pricing structures.
Approximately, an eCommerce website can cost between $5000 to $350,000. But, if we are talking about a very complex website with many features, then businesses can pay as high as a few million dollars.
Why Hire An eCommerce Development Agency?
The number of digital shoppers is projected to surpass 2.14 billion by 2021. (Statista)
While it may take years or even decades for brands to expand their physical businesses in another city or country, selling online offers great expansion opportunities.
With an online store, they can reach international and multichannel markets easily and quickly.
However, for you to close more deals successfully, investing in a professional website is of key importance.
This is where professional companies become an invaluable asset. Thanks to their technical expertise they will deliver a store that offers an outstanding user experience, engages and converts the visitors into paying customers.
In addition, while the upfront costs for an online store may seem hefty when you think long-term they are lower compared to investing in brick-and-mortar stores.
So, eCommerce is a cost-effective investment.
Here are a few more reasons why you should consider investing in a professional eCommerce website:
Reason #1: Personalized Online Experience
80% of consumers would rather buy from a brand that offers personalized experiences. (Epsilon)
eCommerce personalization is a great tool that can enhance the online shopping experience. Users prefer seeing recommendations and messages created only for them.
These are proven to be highly effective at stimulating conversions.
The agency you hire will create personal interactions and experiences through personalized content.
They will pay attention to purchase history data, user behavior, likes and dislikes, demographics and other factors to re-engage your clients which will ultimately result in increased profit.
Reason #2: Better Customer Experience
Having an online store means that your products and services are available 24/7.
You allow your clients to buy at any time with just a few clicks on their mobile phones without having to visit your physical store.
What’s more, on your website they can find useful information about your business like FAQ, working hours, sales and discounts.
This increases customer satisfaction and improves the customer experience.
Reason #3: Customer Data Insights
Unlike physical stores, eCommerce produces a wealth of customer data.
This will help you optimize your products and pricing offerings to fit your client’s needs.
However, you don’t only get insights into their behavior, but you can also collect their contact information.
What’s great about this is that you have several ways you can communicate with your leads and clients. By sending promotions, discounts and sales, you are able to generate more leads and nurture your clients.
Your chosen partner will use advanced analytics to provide you with insightful reports. And, they will also make sure your data collection and management practices are in line with data protection laws such as GDPR.
Hiring Local vs. Foreign Specialized Companies
If you are not sure whether you should outsource your project to an onshore or offshore developer, here are a few tips to help you decide.
On the one hand, a local eCommerce web developer speaks your language, is close enough to visit your offices and understand the business environment you operate in
What’s more, they are also internationally competitive and keep abreast of the latest trends in the industry.
There is a cost associated with these advantages, though.
If you are looking to hire a home-grown agency, be prepared to cash out about $10,000–50,000 for your project.
On the other hand, many businesses are offshoring their eCommerce efforts to get the best of both worlds: a well-developed solution and an intuitive user interface (UI) at a great price.
The inherent disadvantages of offshoring, however, surround a crucial aspect of development which is communication.
Different time zones, language proficiency and cultural differences can take their toll on the development process, so if you opt for offshoring, it is important that you go in prepared with a strategy to cover all contingencies.
Foreign companies, especially those in the regions known for their lower cost of living, typically command lower prices. The leading regions, in this respect, are:
- Eastern Europe
- South-Eastern Europe
- South Asia
- South-Eastern Asia
- East Asia
7 Questions To Ask Developers Before You Hire One
1. Have you developed a similar eCommerce website in terms of industry and/or functionality?
Previous experience and domain knowledge could greatly accelerate the eCommerce website development process, but should not be the decisive factor in your decision making.
2. Where can I see your portfolio?
Previous experience in your industry will help your partner understand and meet your goals faster, if not better.
3. Which technologies have you mastered and why you’ve chosen to specialize in those in particular?
Tech is changing by the day and serious companies in the United States will strive to be on top of their game, always. However, sometimes novelty is not the best indicator of agility, so if your prospective partner has chosen to forsake the latest tool on the market, seek justification for their decision.
4. What features do you think my product will need?
Your website will be unique and developed for your needs only. So, define your goals and communicate them with the best developers. Then, ask what features your site will need to have to meet your requirements.
5. Do you offer post-development services?
You need to make sure the company you hire will be there to update your site to the latest platform versions and handle security threats. This is important in keeping your product up-to-date and fully functional.
6. How long will it take to finish my project?
It may happen that the best professionals on the market work on several projects at the same time. However, obviously, you want your product finished as soon as possible. Therefore, ask these companies what is the deadline and require them to include it in your contract.
7. Who will work on my project?
It is important to know who will work on your project and who you will communicate with. You need to make sure that the people you work with are easy-going and communicative to ensure the success of your project. And knowing who they are in advance will help you achieve that.
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