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To manage your e-commerce business and ensure its success, you will need different skills and tools to help you do that. One of these tools that will act as your success deal breaker is the e-commerce website builder!
Let us introduce to you first what is an e-commerce website builder.
An e-commerce website builder platform is a platform that enables you to launch any type of e-commerce business, whether it is a physical product, service, or digital goods (such as e-books). E-commerce builders provide you with the tools that you need to market and sell your products, accept payments, and manage all your online business.
E-commerce website builders come in versatile shapes and sizes; each e-commerce builder provides you with certain features and tools tailored to your needs and business status. The ultimate goal of any e-commerce website builder is to let you launch your online store effortlessly and quickly without any experience or technical skills.
But why would you use an e-commerce builder in the first place?
1- Zero maintenance hassle:
First of all, using an e-commerce website builder will save you the hassle of trying to solve any technical or coding problems. Also, it will save you the struggle of trying to figure out a solution for hosting problems, as these issues are solved automatically by the e-commerce builder.
2- Time saver:
Another reason is that it will save you so much time as you will be able to launch your e-commerce website instantly, and it will take you no time to design and style it as it provides you with different tools to create and customize your website.
3- Cost-efficient
You won’t need to hire a graphic designer or a programmer each time you want to change and fix something in your e-commerce website. Also, if you don’t have a domain, some e-commerce builders provide you with one, so you don’t have to spend more and buy a domain.
4- Help and support:
You will always have someone who gets your back! Using an e-commerce builder comes with the perk of having continuous customer support (with its different types) to solve any issue that you might encounter or answer any inquiry you might have.
Now, before you start searching for different e-commerce site builders and settling on one, it’s crucial to understand how to evaluate these options. Much will depend on where you are starting from, where you want to go, and the skills you own.
If you already have an e-commerce website and need to expand it or leverage some features, you will need a different e-commerce builder than someone who will use it to start his website from scratch.
So, you will need to consider the following points:
Technical skills.
Some e-commerce builders are easier and more user-friendly than others that need technical and coding skills. Some are designed for beginners, others for advanced users and developers, and the rest fall somewhere in between.
Usually, most e-commerce builders will have their own themes and codes and won’t need any technical skills from you unless you want more customized features and themes; in this case, some coding experience will be needed. However, you can make use of other code generating tools such as OpenAI Codex in which you can write what you want and it will translate it into ready codes you can use without the need for any technical or programing skills.
Business stage and size:
This is another crucial point you need to take into consideration. Small businesses, start-ups, and already well-established ones; each will need different requirements and needs. There are website builders that provide you with many capabilities, including a domain and hosting plan in a single platform.
In contrast, others will require you to have your own domain and hosting plan separately. Also, large businesses might need a CRM system, so this might be an essential feature for such businesses. That is why you need to know your business size and needs before deciding on which e-commerce to use.
Built-in functionality:
Not all e-commerce websites have the same features or functions. Sometimes you will need to customize the functions you need in your website by adding some features from a marketplace or app store; you might even need to integrate your site with a third-party tool or platform. In comparison, other site builders will provide you with all of the functions you could need.
Limitations:
You might be limited in how many products you can promote on the site by some e-commerce website builders. Depending on your traffic volume, other platforms can even charge you extra. Although this often isn’t a problem for brand-new websites, it may become one as your site grows. In addition, some e-commerce builders might have some limitations when it comes to your sales volume; if you exceed a certain limit, you would be required to upgrade to a more expensive plan.
Another essential point you need to look at is the customer support type each e-commerce provides. Sometimes customer support is limited to emails or phones. However, it is better to have 24/7 customer support with live chat opportunities for more immediate communication and problem-solving. Also, the number of users who have access to the e-commerce builder might be prone to some limitations according to each platform, and to each plan, so you need to decide the number of users needed before applying for any plan.
Determining the best e-commerce builder can be a hassle for you, with many options on display and puzzling features. But don’t worry! The good news is that This guide has a solution for you whether you’re expanding your current store online or starting a new business from scratch.
Let’s take a tour through different e-commerce website builders, and dive deeper into their features and capabilities.
Thamara’s best e-commerce website builder ultimate list
1- Shopify:
A well-known e-commerce platform with an intuitive user interface, various integrations, and templates. It is one of the easiest, most well-known, and most reliable e-commerce website builders. This e-commerce website builder is suitable for beginners.
Features:
- Professional themes with drag and drop tool.
- Built-in mobile commerce shopping cart.
- Mobile optimization
- Full access to your store’s HTML and CSS so you can customize every aspect of your e-commerce website
- Search engine-optimized stores.
- Simple inventory management.
- No restrictions on the number of products you can sell in your store
- Unlimited bandwidth, so you’re never charged based on the amount of traffic your store receives
- Simplified reporting and analytics
- Shopify POS system integration to connect in-person and digital storefronts
- App store with over 4,000 marketing, sales, and customer support tools
- Shipping and Tax computation.
The price plans at Shopify start from $24 per month. More expensive price tiers come with more advanced features. It Supports and consultancy 24/7 through email, live chat, and phone
Pros: A vast app store with integrations, dependable hosting, and security, along with easy customization.
Cons: Some themes have limited design options, advanced capabilities are more expensive, and limited customization freedom
2- BigCommerce:
A broad range of features and integrations are offered by this user-friendly and simple-to-use e-commerce platform. It is for tech-savvy business owners who wish to scale; it offers web hosting and a massive amount of customization choices. However, You must purchase a domain name elsewhere and link it to your store since you cannot acquire a domain name through BigCommerce.
Features:
- Easy to use and secure platform.
- Effective and powerful e-commerce analytics and customer insights
- Visual editor to edit website pages with Drag-and-drop building tools with no coding required.
- WordPress integration.
- Full theme customization built with HTML, CSS, and Javascript.
- Optimized for mobile and SEO
- Faceted search (product filtering)
- Multiple currency support.
- Global content delivery network.
- Customizing the checkout process using the server-to-server checkout API and SDK
- Digital wallet payment options with wallets like Amazon Pay, Apple Pay, and more
- Cross-channel commerce with marketplaces such as Amazon and Google Shopping
- Multi-language support for international sales
Price plans start at $29.95 a month, and higher tiers of pricing offer more sophisticated features.
Pros: There are no transaction fees, many features, and interfaces with different sales channels. It has B2B-specific features like bulk pricing rates, quote management, customer groups, and custom price lists.
Cons: Some themes have limited design options, and more complex features cost more money.
3- Squarespace:
An online store builder that enables users to establish and manage their e-commerce website.
It is a popular choice for creative professionals. It is suitable for anyone, whether you are a beginner who is still figuring it out or a seasoned pro.
Features:
- Integrated tax tools and calculation.
- Interfaces with different payment gateways.
- Drag-and-drop builder with customizable templates.
- Image scaling and automatically responsive web designs
- Specialized WYSIWYG editing to support many content kinds and intricate layouts
- the capacity to sell an infinite number of goods
- Automatic post-purchase email sequences
- Extensions in finance, marketing, shipping, and sales
- award-winning templates for designs
- Supports sales for subscriptions and digital content
- Supports gift cards, discount vouchers, and subscription sales
- secured online checkout on any device
- Abandoned cart recovery tools
- E-commerce integrations for shipping and payment processing
The pricing plans start at $16 a month; more expensive pricing plans offer more features.
Pros: Multiple payment gateway integrations, attractive and contemporary design options, built-in SEO tools, analytics, and blogging tools with 24/7 customer support.
Cons: There are fewer customization choices than those offered by other e-commerce platforms; if you want to install a third-party app that’s not already built into Squarespace, you’ll need to use code to accomplish that.
4- Zyro:
It is a cheap, easy, and simple option to start building your online store. It will take you only less than an hour to build your e-commerce website.
Features:
- Different templates to choose from.
- Drag and drop builder.
- Seo and Marketing integrations
- Simple CRM
- AI tools.
- One dashboard for everything.
Price plans are 11.99$ and 14.99$ per month.
Pros: There is no need for coding knowledge; you won’t have to go back and forth between preview and edit mode. Integrations with google analytics and other platforms.
Cons: The store manager and website editor don’t work along very well. Limited SEO tools and there is little assistance available, and there is no onsite editor support or email or phone support.
5- Weebly
It is a basic online store builder powered by Square. It’s perfect for small to medium-sized businesses that want a small online store and don’t want to be bothered by much maintenance. So, If you’re a beginner who doesn’t want to get lost in any technical elements, This might be a good option.
Features:
- Drag and drop builder
- Responsive themes
- Tracking reports
- Customized domain name
- Powerful SEO
- Third-party integration
- Mobile optimized
- Inventory management
- Simple coupon builder
The price plans are as follows: A free plan and paid plans start from 10$ per month.
Pros: Anyone can build a website for free. The free plan offers a few solid and basic features, such as real-time shipping and coupons. Updated templates and customized options.
Cons: you can’t use your own domain name, and you can’t get rid of ads until you purchase a plan. Customer support is not the best if you want to build a more complex website with it.
6- 3dcart
It is an all-inclusive e-commerce builder. 3dcart was acquired by shift4shop in 2020. This e-commerce website builder offers a comprehensive solution and can be perfect for advanced users who want full control.
Features:
- Unlimited storage options
- Variety of supported Payment Gateways
- Strong Chat and Phone Support
- Abandoned cart notifications
- Built-in SEO functions.
- Different templates to choose from.
As for the Price Plans, They offer a free unlimited plan to US users. This plan allows you to create your online shop with unlimited products, unlimited bandwidth, unlimited staff users, and an integrated blog. As for other users, they can choose between three plans from $29 per month to $229 per month. Shift4Shop Enterprise also provides a custom eCommerce platform for high-volume online stores.
Pros: Scalable, adaptable, and interfaces with different payment gateways
Cons: Limited customization choices in comparison to other e-commerce platforms, and some users may find it challenging to manage the user interface. In addition, you may find it limited in terms of creativity and templates.
7- Big Cartel:
This might be the right option if you are a small business or just kicking off your online store. Big Cartel is a simple, straightforward e-commerce builder suitable for beginners or those who don’t like to deal with technology.
Features:
- payment processing integrations
- abandoned cart recovery,
- shipment tracking and a sales tax autopilot
- promotions and sales
- Ready templates to be used
- Onboarding guide
Concerning the pricing plans: there is a free plan that can make you sell up to 5 products for free, besides the other three paid plans starting from 9.99$ per month.
Pros: user-friendly interface, the ability to integrate third-party apps, does not require a lot of configuration or setup. Perfect for artists who want to sell a few products without much hassle.
Cons: Low level of customization, you will need coding knowledge if you want to go beyond what is offered, you can’t sell in more than one language, and it isn’t scalable as Shopify or BigCommerce.
8- Volusion:
It is one of the oldest e-commerce builders. However, it has updated its operating system to stay up-to-date. This e-commerce website builder is more focused on data than web design. It is suitable to do the heavy lifting and processes when establishing your online store.
Features:
- website creation tools
- Shopping and marketing features
- inventory management
- payment processing
- Built-in SEO
- Free Slideshow
- Easy Editor
- Customizable storefront designs
- Social media sharing and integrations
- Email marketing tools
- Process returns and refunds
- Abandoned cart reports
- Third-party integrations
Regarding the pricing plans: It offers four paid plans starting from 35$ per month. Higher plans come with more features.
Pros: it doesn’t require any transaction fees from you, it is easy to use with a variety of templates to choose from, it is mobile friendly so that you can manage everything on the go, and it supports third-party apps.
Cons: It can’t be used to sell digital products such as e-books or online courses, it doesn’t include a blog feature, and you might encounter some difficulties in reaching out to customer support.
9- GoDaddy:
GoDaddy is known for being a hosting service, along with being a website builder. However, you can also use it as an easy e-commerce website builder for your online store. It is perfect for beginners who don’t know anything about website building. It allows you to build your store with WooCommerce, the world’s most popular open-source e-commerce solution with over 50,000 WordPress plug-ins and 10,000 themes.
Features:
- Integrations with social media
- Multiple payment options
- Different templates to use
- Inbuilt customer and revenue tracking
- Marketplace feature
- Support abundant cart notifications.
- Premium extensions
The pricing plans start from 20$ per month, with more features for higher plans and add-ons.
Pros: GoDaddy has a beginner-friendly builder that is fast and easy to use. It includes excellent marketing tools and supports more industries than the rest of the e-commerce website builders.
Cons: it is limited in terms of freedom of creativity, and some of its features lack quality and depth compared to other e-commerce builders. Also, if you are looking for scalability, this e-commerce site builder might restrict you and won’t be your best choice.
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Conclusion
To sum everything up, in this article, we tried to save you the struggle of going back and forth between different websites and opinions, trying to figure out the best e-commerce builder to use. Hopefully, now you feel that you have found what you are looking for. We have explored Thamara’s best 9 e-commerce builder recommendation list and tried to give you a glimpse into the pros and cons of each one to make you ready to make your decision.
Bare in mind that the right e-commerce builder can take your business to the next level and help you reach your ultimate desired goals. So, go ahead and make your next step now to elevate your business.
