How to choose the right CMS for your eCommerce business?
Check out the list below — you might find your own challenges staring back at you:
- You’ll want a CMS that can grow with your business, not one that’ll be outdated soon enough.
- Finding a balance between a user-friendly system and one with all the advanced features you need can be a real challenge.
- Your CMS should play nicely with your existing tools like CRM and marketing automation platforms.
- Budgeting can be tricky, with potential hidden costs that catch you off guard.
Did any of these problems feel all too familiar? If “Yes,” we can help. Below, you’ll find a step-by-step guide to choosing the best CMS system for eCommerce.
Step 1: Create a list of requirements to your future eCommerce CMS
How to do that effectively? We offer you some questions to consider:
- How easy is it to use and maintain the CMS?
- How customizable is the CMS to fit your specific needs?
- What level of support and resources does the CMS provider offer?
- How does the CMS handle security and data protection?
- Is the CMS scalable enough to grow your business?
- What is the cost of operational expenses (hosting, plugins, etc)?
- Does the CMS support various payment gateways?
- Can the CMS manage a large inventory efficiently?
- Does the CMS offer analytics and reporting tools?
- How well does the CMS support mobile commerce?
- Does the CMS have built-in SEO features to help improve your search engine rankings?
- What features might you need in the future?
Your answers to these questions will help you develop a comprehensive list of requirements, enabling you to evaluate and compare different eCommerce CMS solutions.
Additionally, evaluate your budget not just for the initial purchase but also for ongoing expenses such as hosting, maintenance, and potential upgrades. Conduct a cost-benefit analysis to be sure that the CMS you choose offers significant advantages that justify its cost.
Step 2: Find a reliable implementation partner
If your company doesn’t have a large in-house development team, hiring an implementation partner is a smart move. These specialists assist in identifying the optimal CMS that aligns perfectly with your business goals.
An experienced partner can make the setup process smoother and faster, tackling tricky tasks more effectively than an in-house team might. This speeds up the deployment and helps your business start reaping the benefits of the CMS sooner.
Basically, such service providers don’t just help you get up and operating — they also make sure your digital strategy keeps growing and thriving in the long run, providing you with a sense of security and stability.
Step 3: Carry out in-depth research and gather real-world insights
With your requirements list in hand, it’s time to research and identify potential solutions. Please try to get a feel for how these solutions perform in real-world scenarios to fully realize the practical challenges and benefits you may get when deciding on this or that CMS platform. Reach out to companies similar in size and needs to yours and inquire about their experiences with the CMS they use.
Additionally, explore online reviews and case studies and participate in forums or communities where CMS users share their experiences. On these platforms, users usually highlight some common issues you may face or hidden advantages.
Engage your implementation partner throughout this process. Their expertise can help you convert the data and experiences you gather into an informed decision. They can also assist in setting up demos or trials with shortlisted CMS providers, allowing your team to test the systems and see how well they function.
Step 4: Consult with stakeholders
Start by chatting with your team and stakeholders to explore different CMS options. Since any new CMS is a major investment impacting various parts of your organization, gather input and buy-in from key players.
Engage stakeholders such as your sales team, marketing professionals, and customer service representatives. Their input is valuable in determining what features will boost customer experience, streamline operations, and support marketing efforts. For example, marketing teams might need CMS features that facilitate SEO optimization and integration with email marketing tools. At the same time, customer service might prioritize user-friendly interfaces and efficient order-tracking systems.
Thus, involving stakeholders creates a sense of shared ownership and commitment to the project’s success.
Step 5: It’s time… to make a big decision!
Once you are here, considering stakeholder feedback and evaluating each system’s ability to meet your current and future needs, the final step is to make an informed decision and proceed with implementation.
Innowise, as an implementation partner, brings a wealth of experience and specialized knowledge, which can save your team valuable time and resources. Our responsibilities stretch well beyond the initial setup phase; we provide continuous support even after implementation to guarantee your system functions perfectly all the time.
We can help implement and customize the CMS to match your specific requirements, integrate it with existing systems, and arrange training sessions so that your team has the skills to use it fully. Working with us means you can mitigate risks and devote your attention to your core business activities, knowing your digital infrastructure is in skilled hands.
We also provide continuous maintenance and optimization services to resolve issues, implement updates, and refine your strategy as your business evolves and expands.
