When embarking on e-commerce, the first thing to determine, after choosing what type of product we are going to sell, is to know which CMS we are going to use to build our online store. A CMS, for “Content Manager System”, is a platform that, like WordPress, allows you to create and manage an online site. Today, unless you go through a dedicated service and opt for professional site creation, it is impossible for ordinary mortals to do without a CMS of this type.
The particularity of CMS dedicated to e-commerce is that they are, unsurprisingly, designed for online commerce, Dropshipping (e-commerce without stock), Print On Demand… Among the various e-commerce CMS available, some of them stand out easily, this is the case of Shopify which remains, to date, the most used e-commerce CMS by e-merchants and drop shippers.
We will see, however, that competition is strong in the CMS market and that Shopify is not the only serious alternative available to you. Before discussing Shopify’s competitors, let’s see together why it dominates the market…
Summary :
Shopify, the solution acclaimed by e-merchants
Prestashop, the CMS made in France
WooCommerce, a WordPress plugin more than a CMS
Magento, a powerful but complex e-commerce CMS
WiziShop, a very attractive French CMS
Wix, a solution designed for beginners
So which e-commerce CMS to choose?
Shopify, the solution acclaimed by e-merchants
What has probably contributed to the success of Shopify development and what explains why this CMS is the one that is currently the most present on the web, is its ease of use. When you start in the world of e-commerce, if there’s one thing you hate, it’s being lost in the settings, do you want some of our showcase sites? Indeed, what an e-merchant is looking for when he starts, is to start his business, and not to spend whole days setting up his site… this could be a task that is carried out over time when the young entrepreneur would then have established himself as a leader in his sector, and not at the beginning of the process.
The strong point of Shopify, however, is to offer many features, without complicating things. Thus, everyone is there, whether you are a simple beginner in the world of e-commerce or an experienced e-merchant. With Shopify and its Oberlo application, it has never been easier to dropship. Dropshipping consists of doing e-commerce but without the stock part. Thus, there is no need to invest in stock and manage expensive inventory. Dropshipping is based on the Just-in-Time business model. When a customer places an order in our shop, we just have to place the order with the supplier, and the latter ships it directly to the customer.
So what should we remember from Shopify?
That it is certainly one of the best, if not the best platform for managing and creating an e-commerce site online. First of all, because of its excellent handling, but also and above all for the speed of implementation of a website. Let’s not forget to mention that it is from the Shopify platform that you can also manage everything related to the hosting of your website or even SEO. All these features make Shopify the most popular CMS today. By the way, the reviews on Shopify are very positive overall.
But this dominant position is certainly not acquired by Shopify ad Vitam eternal, since competition is fierce. Other quality CMSs also have their share of the pie in the e-commerce oriented CMS market. Among them, we find in particular Prestashop, WooCommerce, Magento, Wizishop, or Wix. Let’s take a closer look at the strengths and weaknesses of each of the CMS we have just mentioned.
Prestashop, the CMS made in France
This cm is a bit special in the sense that it is an open-source CMS. What do you mean by that? Open-source software is a product whose code is visible to everyone and everyone can modify it as they wish. Prestashop brings together a large French-speaking community of passionate web developers who act for the good of all by offering their paid services, services aimed at personalizing the creation of an internet showcase site according to everyone’s preferences. This is why creating an e-commerce site with Prestashop is reserved, above all, for seasoned people. This cm is therefore not for everyone due to its apparent complexity. The neophytes will pass their way.
The second disadvantage of Prestashop is the fact that you will have to contact a developer to initiate the creation of your website. And, like all work deserves a salary, web developers will ask you for remuneration that could be a deterrent for anyone who simply wants to get into the field of dropshipping by creating a simple, efficient, and unsophisticated showcase site. However, this can be seen as an advantage for some entrepreneurs who want an elaborate website. As such, know that Prestashop uses the MySQL language, which allows you to manage a large database.
What about natural referencing? The answer is negative since it is indeed one of the other weak points of Prestashop.
WooCommerce, a WordPress plugin more than a CMS
So, of course, WooCommerce is not a CMS as such, but the purpose is the same for those who use this tool, a tool that is therefore similar to a CMS but which remains a simple plugin or extension running under WordPress. It is therefore not very fair to want to compare WooCommerce with an e-commerce CMS such as Shopify because they do not play in the same court. However, we must resign ourselves to making this comparison given the growing number of users who use WooCommerce to manage their e-commerce services.
WiziShop, a very attractive French CMS
Indeed, behind its simple appearance, this CMS dedicated to e-commerce turns out to be a very interesting solution. This is how WiziShop offers many free themes, themes that would make, for some of them, those from Shopify jealous.
Wix, a solution designed for beginners
Wix allows you to design both traditional websites and websites dedicated to e-commerce. This cm is primarily aim for beginners. CMS remains an alternative solution, a solution that is, in our eyes, a little wobbly and limited.
So which e-commerce CMS to choose?
You are now arm to make your choice! The best e-commerce CMS will depend above all on your needs, your experience, and your means. Because you will have understood that there is not an ideal solution for all. It is up to each individual to determine which is the best solution to adopt.
Shopify remains, to this day, a complete and particularly simple solution to set up. WiziShop can be a nice 100% French alternative. As for the other solutions, these will require more advanced expertise. Make a good choice!