In an increasingly digitalized world, where the volume of online purchases is increasing, there is a need for businesses to adapt and also convert to the digitization of our society.
Gone are the days when having an online store was only within reach of the giants of commerce.
Nowadays there are tools that facilitate this process of digitalization of business, even allowing smaller commercial establishments to compete in the jungle that is online commerce.
There are currently two platforms that stand out in terms of popularity as a solution to this problem. Shopify and WooCommerce.
Shopify is currently the best-known e-commerce platform worldwide and WooCommerce is the fastest growing platform (according to bultiwith.com).
Choosing the right e-commerce platform is one of the most important decisions an entrepreneur can make.
So what is the best platform?
In addition to the experience we have in this segment, we have also done some research in order to observe what each platform has in its favor.
What is Shopify?
By this we mean that Shopify is completely based and hosted in the cloud, which implies that there is no concern on the part of the store owner, regarding the technical aspects of website management such as server, domain and caching.
What is WooCommerce?
WooCommerce is an Open - Source plugin developed for the WordPress. Since it is open-source, there is the possibility to customize all aspects of the store and add customized extensions easily.
Cost
For obvious reasons, one of the most important factors to consider, regardless of the state of the business, but especially when we are trying to launch a business, is the cost! The cost of launching the platform is not the only thing that matters. Possible extra costs that may arise should also be taken into account.Shopify
It has a set of fixed plans and the most basic plan has the cost of about 24 € monthly.
This plan is able to offer you all the basics to start a new business. Shopify offers superior subscription plans with extra features that may be useful depending on turnover.
Each plan includes a domain, an SSL certificate and “web posting”. If you need the use of Third Party Add-ons, which you will need at some point, these will also have an added cost that must be taken into account.
Shopify greatly simplifies the implementation of payment methods, however the conditions are not the most pleasant. Shopify offers a default payment solution called Shopify Payments which is provided by stripe.
On the most basic plan, in addition to the monthly plan price, Shopify will charge 2.9% + €0.25 of the transaction value. If the store wants to add additional payment methods, such as: MB Way where an additional fee of 2 will be charged%.
This means that in a transaction of 40€, if the customer of your online store chooses to use another payment method in addition to Shopify Payments, Shopify will automatically charge €4.21 (4.9% + €0.25)
Note: Currency conversion values recorded on the day: 21 Dec 2020. Bank fees are not included.
Shopify Payments It is not valid in all countries. For example, Portugal is not part of the list where this tool is optional. That is, an online store in Portugal, adhering to the most basic Shopify plan, is always subject to being charged 4.9% + 30 cents USD (approximately 25 cents EUR).
You can find the list of countries where Shopify Payments can be used here. https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/payments/shopify-payments/shopify-payments-requirements
WooCommerce
It is open source and available in WordPress, no subscription plans are required.
However, here it is already necessary to add certain extensions or add-ons or plugins to your store.
In WooCommerce there are no longer any of these problems, as the platform does not charge any type of transactional fee (it will always be subject to the value of banking transactions).
In Creathing, during the process of creating the store, the addition of these add-ons will not have an added cost to the store owner, due to our ability to customize and add features to your store without resorting to paid plugins.
Choosing WooCommerce, the solution offered by Creathing following this route, will only cost the implementation of the store, and later, the monthly maintenance of the domain, store hosting server and billing software.
SEO
Shopify
You have almost everything you will need, however, a small setback, is the fact that Shopify always adds slugs such as “pages”, “products” in its URLs. Although it is not a decisive factor for SEO, it would be good if these slugs were not imposed on the user.
WooCommerce
After installing the plugin Yoast, you will have complete flexibility on everything. This flexibility is undoubtedly a factor that may well give you advantage over your competitors in the field of Seach Engine Optimization.
Multi-Language
If your goal is to implement an international multi-language store, there is a significant difference between the two.Shopify requires an add-on, where the most used costs 14.84€/month.
WooCommerce on the other hand offers a plugin, called WPML, which integrates no problems with WordPress. It can even offer its products in various types of currency. It has a membership cost of about 65€ in the first year, and is renewable annually for about 48€.
As we can see, even this feature is substantially more taken into account for international stores.
In conclusion...
Shopify is a very good, intuitive and user-friendly platform, even for non-programmers. However, over time, it manages to become a platform with high usage costs.
Already the WooCommerce, although it requires a little more dedication to the construction of your store, it is extremely attractive financially making it the ideal solution for businesses that are starting out.
A Creathing is able to implement your online store, with WooCommerce:
- 100% customized to your business model
- Safe
- Ready to act
- With a pre-defined one-off cost
We create your store, and then the only expense you have to worry about is the hosting domain and server. No monthly subscription plans, no transaction fees for using this platform.
In this case, WooCommerce is the clear winner for E-Commerce election platform.
If you want to know more, do not hesitate to contact us.
