Shopline vs BigCommerce: Choosing the Ideal Ecommerce Platform

Are you planning to start your ecommerce journey but confused about which ecommerce platforms to choose to ensure the success of your business? This decision is more critical than ever as it is a market that is set to surpass $8.1 trillion by 2026. In this regard, you are expected to come across two of the most popular options, which include Shopline and BigCommerce.

Before you make a decision on whether to go for ecommerce Shopline development or BigCommerce development, you should essentially have a look at the differences existing between these two platforms. We are going to discuss this in detail in this comprehensive blog post. So, let’s find out:

What is Shopline?

Shopline is a leading ecommerce platform that is designed to empower businesses, which includes both medium and small-sized enterprises. With this platform, businesses can establish and effectively manage their online presence.

It comes with a user-friendly interface, which makes it accessible to entrepreneurs possessing different levels of technical expertise. To leverage the most out of this platform, all that you need is to choose a professional ecommerce Shopline development agency involved in offering the best services.

What is BigCommerce?

BigCommerce is a scalable and robust ecommerce platform designed to cater to businesses of almost all sizes. It has gained a lot of recognition due to its comprehensive set of features, scalability and flexibility, which makes it best suited for large enterprises and small businesses.

With a user-friendly interface, this platform can effectively cater to a diverse range of ecommerce requirements. Hire a reputed BigCommerce development agency to receive the best development assistance.

Major Factors to Consider in Choosing an Ecommerce Platform

The success of an ecommerce business hugely relies on selecting the right ecommerce platform. There are multiple factors that come into play when choosing an ecommerce platform for your online store. These help ensure the platform effectively aligns with your unique business requirements and goals. Let’s have a quick look at these factors:

1. Pricing

• Cost Structure: When selecting an ecommerce platform, you should first understand its pricing model. Some of the platforms are involved in providing subscription-based plans. Whereas, some others may focus on charging transaction fees. So, it is crucial to evaluate the overall cost to ensure it matches your business model and budget. 
• Scalability Costs: You should also consider how pricing scales with the growth of your business. Some available platforms may provide tiered pricing plans with diverse feature sets. Also, it becomes vital to anticipate future costs. 

2. Ease of Use

• User-Friendly Interface: Another important thing to consider while choosing an ecommerce platform involves evaluating its user interface. You will require intuitive tools and a user-friendly dashboard for efficient store management. 
• Onboarding Process: You should take into consideration the learning curve for both you and your team. You should choose a platform that comes with an effortless onboarding process. This way, you can ensure a smoother transition to the new platform. 

3. Customisation Options

• Theme and Design Flexibility: You should evaluate the level of customisation the platform allows for design and themes. With a tailored storefront, you could come up with a branded and unique customer experience. 
• Functionality Customisation: You should check whether the platform lets you customise the functionality of your ecommerce store to cater to your unique business requirements. Customisation plays a vital role as it allows you to adapt to your unique needs. 

4. SEO Capabilities

• SEO Features: Another important thing involves examining the built-in SEO tools that are offered by the particular platform you are focusing on choosing for your requirements. It includes customisable meta tags, structures, URLs and other features that contribute to better search engine rankings. 
• Mobile Optimisation: You should also make sure whether the platform supports mobile responsiveness or not. This consideration is important as Google always takes mobile-friendliness into consideration when ranking sites. 

5. Payment Gateways

• Supported Payment Methods: You should also check the payment gateways that are supported by the ecommerce platform. When the options available are more, the better it is as it can effectively cater to the preferences of a diverse customer base. 
• Transaction Fees: You should be well aware of any transaction fees linked to the employment of any particular payment gateway. In this regard, it is essential to consider the impact on your overall revenue. 

6. Scalability

• Business Growth: It becomes crucial for you to evaluate the scalability of the platform so that it accommodates your business’s growth. Whenever you choose a scalable platform, it will help ensure that it supports higher website traffic, increasing the product catalogue, and extra features with the expansion of your business. 
• Performance under Load: You should also consider how the platform handles a rise in traffic during peak periods. By choosing a scalable solution, you can ensure a reliable and consistent shopping experience for your customers.

To learn more or get expert assistance, all that you need is to approach a trusted ecommerce development company.

Comparison between Shopline and BigCommerce

It becomes imperative to evaluate different aspects that contribute to the overall performance and user experience when deciding between BigCommerce and Shopline for your online business. Below is given a detailed comparison based on the key factors: 

• Performance

Shopline

Shopline is an ecommerce platform that is designed for simplicity. So, it can positively impact page load times and overall performance. However, it is essential to note that the degree of performance optimization is influenced by the specific features and customisation implemented in ecommerce Shopline development.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce, on the other hand, is well-known for its scalability. Also, it offers robust performance which makes it suitable especially for larger enterprises. The infrastructure of this platform is designed to manage high traffic volume, so businesses with complex needs might leverage great benefits out of this. 

• Design and Themes

Shopline

Shopline is known for offering a diverse range of customisable themes. So, it lets users come up with unique and eye-striking storefronts. The focus on simplicity usually extends to design customisation, which makes it accessible for businesses with different design preferences.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce also provides a large selection of professionally designed themes. This particular platform greatly emphasises design flexibility, which lets users tailor themes easily to match their brand identity. Thus, the focus on aesthetics makes it best suited for businesses that prioritise visual appeal. 

• Integration Options

Shopline

Before opting for ecommerce Shopline development services, you should essentially know about the integration options. Shopline supports integration with different payment gateways, which helps in making transactions convenient for customers. Although it may have fewer integrations when compared to larger platforms, it covers integral third-party services and tools.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce comes with a vast selection of integrations with popular third-party services. It includes marketing tools, analytics and shipping solutions. The API and app marketplace of this platform is known for offering much-needed flexibility to users who are looking for a diverse range of integrations. 

• Customer Support

Shopline

The customer support of Shopline is excellent. This platform always makes sure to assist users with technical issues and inquiries. The level of support may typically vary depending on the pricing plan. You are expected to receive more comprehensive assistance by choosing higher-tier plans.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce is known for offering 24/7 customer support across all its plans. Whenever anyone chooses this platform, they have access to different support channels. It typically includes live chat, email and phone support. So, with this comprehensive support, customers are assured of getting timely assistance at any stage of their ecommerce journey.

Which One Do You Choose between Shopline and BigCommerce?

The choice between BigCommerce and ecommerce Shopline development is dependent on your unique business requirements, preferences and growth plans. So, to assist you in making a well-informed decision, you should essentially weigh the considerations for each of the platforms, which we are going to discuss in the following section:

Choose Shopline if:

• Simplicity is Key: If you are a small or medium-sized business looking for a user-friendly and straightforward platform, then the simplicity of Shopline can prove to be advantageous to you. It is incredibly easy to use, so even business owners with limited technical expertise can use this platform effectively. 
• Budget Constraints: In case, you are just starting or operating on a limited budget, then choosing ecommerce Shopline development can be a more cost-effective option. This particular platform is known for offering many essential features without the complexity of larger platforms. 
• Mobile Focus: Shopline focuses more on user experience and mobile responsiveness. So, choosing this platform is a good idea if mobile commerce is the top priority for your business. Also, it is more pertinent if a considerable portion of your target audience shops on mobile devices. 
• Localised Presence: Shopline can be an excellent choice for you in case your business primarily operates within a particular geographic region. It is known for offering specific features such as multi-language support that effectively caters to local markets. 

Choose BigCommerce if:

• Scalability is Crucial: If you, as a business owner, are planning for considerable growth and expansion, it can be a good idea to choose BigCommerce as it offers robust scalability features. It can effectively handle increased website traffic, larger product catalogues, and evolving business requirements. 
• Extensive Customisation: There is the availability of a large selection of professionally designed themes in BigCommerce, which you can easily customise to match your brand identity. So, people who are looking for extensive design customisation and flexibility can choose this platform. 
• Integration Requirements: If your business depends on different 3rd party tools and services, you may reap benefits from extensive integration alternatives available in BigCommerce. It offers much-needed flexibility by seamlessly integrating different analytics, marketing and shipping solutions. 
• 24/7 Customer Support: By choosing BigCommerce, you can get around-the-clock customer support across all plans, which ensures that you receive assistance whenever you require it. 

Consider Both for:

• Global Reach: Both platforms come with features that effectively cater to a global audience. Shopline offers multi-language support. Whereas the scalability feature of BigCommerce can effectively meet the demands of an expanding international customer base. 
• Payment Gateway Options: Both Shopline and BigCommerce are known for supporting multiple payment gateways, which offer flexibility to customers, especially in terms of payment alternatives. So, it becomes crucial for you to assess the specific payment methods supported to ensure that they align with the preferences of your target audience. 
• SEO Capabilities: While making a choice, you should essentially evaluate the SEO features of each platform. It will help ensure that your ecommerce store can be optimised for search engines. Both of these platforms recognise the importance of search engine visibility for ecommerce businesses. 

Wrapping Up

All in all, the selection between BigCommerce and ecommerce Shopline development solely depends on your budget, business size, growth plans and other specific preferences. So, you should meticulously assess your priority, consider future scalability and weigh the features that align with your business goals. It will help you make the right decision for your ecommerce business.

If you still have any doubts, then a professional ecommerce development company can assist you in the best possible manner.