Basic elements of e-commerce applications:
The product catalog is the foundation for e-commerce applications, it is the basic part of the system responsible for presenting products to users. Organized products, e.g. in the form of a category tree, and well-prepared descriptions with parameters are a necessary component of the equation for good sales in the e-commerce system. Extensive descriptions guarantee not only reliable information to users about product properties, but also support the process of website positioning (SEO). A well-prepared catalog of products will also allow you to list the so-called microdata (microdata) in JSON-LD format for search engine bots. Thanks to this, products will be better presented on the search results page. Another important element of the product catalog in the e-commerce system is providing product data for price comparison systems (e.g. in XML format).
For each product with a description, we can assign detailed values or a range of parameters. Precise preparation of descriptions and their parameters will help protect customers from unwanted purchases. The name, description and contents of the parameters can also be used to build the search index, e.g. based on ElasticSearch. A good search system can significantly improve sales and improve the visit-to-purchase conversion rate.
The product catalog is usually organized around a multi-level category tree. It is worth making a lot of effort to prepare the category tree, if we prepare an overly complicated hierarchy of categories, the customer may not reach the right products. A category structure that is too shallow will result in products being too dense and difficult to view. It is worth noting that the category tree allows you to associate the category with a pool of parameters and, when equipped with a filter mechanism, it allows you to easily limit the pool of displayed products. The filter mechanism can operate separately or be part of the product search mechanism.
The cart (basket) is an element of the system characteristic only for e-commerce systems. It is usually divided into steps and corresponds to a physical basket as we know it from our normal, classic stores where we shop. Products from the product catalog are added to the basket, after completing the products, the next steps are usually:
The online payment system is currently an indispensable element of every e-commerce web application. Until a few years ago, it happened that sellers omitted this important element of the system in favor of bank transfer. However, this type of payment method imposes more obligations on the seller and makes it necessary to manually intervene in the payment processing process (payment verification). Online payment systems make the process and verification of the payment completely automatic, and the transfer of funds is guaranteed by an intermediary providing a payment service, eg PayPal (one of the most popular online payment systems worldwide).
The order history allows the user to obtain complete data about their purchases, payments and information about order fulfillment. Access to order history usually requires a user account, but the vast majority of e-commerce applications allow you to shop without registering and logging in. This is an undoubted advantage of modern e-commerce systems.
Development and implementation of a dedicated e-commerce system is not cheap and requires a lot of time. So when is it worth investing in your own dedicated e-commerce system?
Certainly, the needs of our business are crucial. At the beginning of their development, many companies use ready-made e-commerce solutions, often open-source, due to the low cost of implementation. The second option is low-cost e-commerce application licenses offered in a lifetime model or in a monthly or annual subscription model. As the company grows, our needs change, and ready-made solutions may be too limited. Introducing your own ideas to improve the operation of the system in out of the box solutions is often impossible. If you feel that your e-commerce system limits the development of your business, this is the time to develop a dedicated system tailored to your needs.
Technologies used to implement ecommerce systems:
devee.co has many years of experience in the implementation of e-commerce applications. if you are looking for subcontractors for your project: office@devee.co
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