Over 7.9 billion people worldwide currently shop online, and over 2.14 billion do so consistently. Market research trends suggest that these numbers will continue to grow in the years to come. Recent research estimates that over 2.77 billion people will shop online by 2027.

This means it is impossible to ignore having an online presence if you have a business. You need to have an impressive website optimized for search engines, responsive to mobile devices, and an online store. This ensures that your customers have a strong omnichannel experience and that you tap into every possible market space. 

Having an e-commerce store might only be possible for some businesses. This is especially true if you have a small operation and want to save money on building, developing, and maintaining your own e-commerce platform. 

So, how do you handle this situation? How can you have an online store without spending a fortune on the same? This is where platforms like Shopify and Commerce Cloud come into play. These websites help you have an e-commerce setup without building your online store from scratch. 

What Is Shopify?

Shopify is a leading software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that helps businesses create and manage an online store. Its vast app catalog, integrated payment options, and ease of use have made it one of the biggest e-commerce platforms in the world. 

It has over 4.4 billion stores and over 2.1 million activities daily. Acting as a one-stop shop for e-commerce businesses, Shopify allows users to perform multiple functions seamlessly from its website. Using Shopify, you can 

• Build an Online Store
• Manage Sales
• Sell on Numerous Channels
• Market Your Business Online

Why Should You Choose Shopify?

Shopify helps you streamline many tasks. Thus saving you time and money on separate tools. So, you should try Shopify if you want a comprehensive and user-friendly solution to manage your e-commerce business. Read on to learn how Shopify can help your business. 

• Easy to Use:  Shopify is easy to set up as it has a simple drag-and-drop feature. This means you can set up your online store without coding knowledge. 
• Customizable Storefronts: Shopify offers a wide range of free and paid themes. These can be used to create a professional website that reflects your brand identity, or you can customize them to match your needs using the paid apps feature.
• Marketing and Sales Tools:  It has built-in features like SEO tools and social media integration to increase sales. You can also manage marketing campaigns through Shopify.
• 24/7 Customer Support:  Shopify’s round-the-clock customer support means you can get help anytime. 
• Inventory Management: Inventory management is critical to running a successful business. Shopify lets you do that seamlessly on its platform without needing an additional tool. 
• Payment Gateways:  You can integrate multiple payment gateways with Shopify. Thus letting your customers choose their preferred payment method.

What Are The Disadvantages of Shopify?

Shopify is a great platform for starting an e-commerce business. However, it also has a few drawbacks, which you should consider before making the decision. 

• Pricing:  Shopify has huge monthly fees, which can increase your business’ operational costs. 
• Limited Design Customization:  While it has thousands of themes, customizing them to suit your business needs requires ample coding knowledge.  
• Dependency on Third-Party Apps:  While it allows features like marketing, optimization, shipment tracking, etc., you need third-party apps to perform these functions. 
• Difficult To Migrate: Data migration is challenging. Some features are Shopify-specific, so if you are used to Shopify’s features, you will need help moving to a different platform at a later stage. 
• Transaction Fees: If you are on a basic plan, you must pay fees on every transaction. This eats into your profits and makes it difficult to run a business online. 

What Is Commerce Cloud?

Commerce Cloud is a Salesforce platform that helps businesses set up their e-commerce stores. It is a one-stop solution for all the cloud-based tools necessary to manage an online store.

According to a recent report by Salesforce, Commerce Cloud has around 14,287 companies signed up as users on its platform. While most of the platform’s users are from the US (56.18 percent), the rest are spread out around the globe. Using Commerce Cloud, you can

• Set up E-commerce Sites
• Drive Automation
• Improve Customer Experiences

Why Should You Choose Commerce Cloud?

• Ideal for Large Businesses: While most online shopping platforms are built for smaller and medium businesses, Commerce Cloud focuses on companies with large-scale operations. The platform is designed and built to handle large catalogs, huge visitor spikes, and complex business operations. 
• Omnichannel Experience: Customers are online 24/7 and shopping from around the world. Your business has to be wherever the customer is. Commerce Cloud helps you create an omnichannel experience for your customers. Thus allowing them to pick up brand interactions from where they left off. 
• Personalization: 60% of consumers prefer brands that offer personalized service. You can take advantage of this by customizing your store to provide personalized services to your users. 
• Integration Advantage: Commerce Cloud seamlessly integrates with other Salesforce products. This means you can create a unified business ecosystem without using multiple platforms.

What Are the Disadvantages of Commerce Cloud?

Commerce Cloud is a great way to set up your e-commerce business. It offers scalability, robust features, and a focus on personalization and omnichannel experiences.  However, its cost and complexity make it less suitable for smaller businesses.

• Cost: It is expensive in comparison to other basic e-commerce platforms. While it is perfect for large-scale operations, small businesses cannot justify the costs. 
• Complexity: A lot of technical knowledge is necessary to set up and manage Commerce Cloud. 
• Learning Curve: This is only user-friendly if you have coding and Salesforce knowledge.

Shopify vs Commerce Cloud: Which is The Right for Your eCommerce Business?

Choosing between Shopify and Commerce Cloud depends on many factors.  Shopify is ideal if you are starting a new business and need a cost-effective, easy-to-use solution. 

However, as your business grows in operations and scale, you will need a more customizable platform. This is where Commerce Cloud comes into play. It is ideal for large-scale operations, with great customizations and an omni-channel experience.

Take a quick look at the table below to compare Shopify and Commerce Cloud. This will help you understand which tool best suits your business needs.

 

Feature	Shopify	Commerce Cloud (Salesforce Commerce Cloud)
Target User	Small and Medium Businesses	Large Enterprises
Ease of Use	Drag-And-Drop Interface	Requires Complex Coding
Scalability	Scales with your growing businesses	Handles high-volume and complex operations
Cost	Affordable	Expensive
Customization	Limited Customization	Extensive Customization Available
Omnichannel Experience	Integrates with Some Channels	Seamless omnichannel experience
Marketing and Sales Tools	Built-in tools and app integrations	Robust marketing and sales functionalities
Analytics and Reporting	Basic Analytics	Advanced Analytics and Reports
Security and Reliability	Secure Platform	Enterprise-Grade Security

 

Still not sure which one is better for you? Here is a quick breakdown that will help you decide: 

Shopify is right for you if:

• Are starting out as new entrepreneurs with limited budgets.
• Want to focus only on selling products and need extensive branding selling products? 

Commerce Cloud is right for you if: 

• You want more control over operations. 
• Need more personalization and customization. 
• Need to manage large-scale inventories, product catalogs, and shipping.

When it comes to pricing, Shopify and Commerce Cloud take very different approaches:

Shopify: 

Shopify has a transparent pricing structure. Its monthly plans range from $29 for basic to $299 for advanced plans. This predictability is a major advantage for budget-conscious businesses.

Salesforce Commerce Cloud: 

They have a custom quote system. Pricing depends on factors like store volume, features, and level of customization. While this can be flexible for complex needs, it lacks upfront transparency in costs. 

In short, Shopify’s transparent pricing is ideal for startups. Commerce Cloud’s customizability is perfect for larger businesses.

How Do I Integrate My Website With Shopify?

Shopify offers two options to help you integrate it with your website. The first one is the buy button. You can just copy and paste the iframe code on your website, and it will embed the page with a Shopify buy button. When your customers click on this button, they will be redirected to Shopify’s checkout page. This is ideal if you already have a website and want to add the e-commerce function to it. 

The other option is to add a Shopify storefront. You can use this feature to create a complete online store using Shopify and link it to your website. The storefront can be customized to match your business needs and integrated with features that make your website stand out from the rest. For basic customizations, you can use the drag-and-drop feature on the platform. 

While the Shopify Lite or Shopify buy button’s basic plan starts at 9 dollars a month, the Storefront is slightly expensive. You would have to pay 29 dollars or more based on your chosen customizations. 

How Do I Integrate My Website With Commerce Cloud?

Commerce cloud is ideal for businesses with larger scale of operations and a bigger inventory. It offers a lot of customization and personalized marketing features. However, this integration requires coding and Salesforce experience. Finding a Salesforce integration partner like Cloud Street Services would make this process seamless. 

API Integration: Commerce Cloud offers APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). This helps your developers to integrate your website with the platform. 

Headless Commerce Approach: Commerce Cloud is the product data and order management backend. Your website is built separately using a custom content management system (CMS). This approach allows maximum flexibility in terms of design, operations, and customizations. 

Some Frequently Asked Questions About Using Shopify or Commerce Cloud for E-commerce Business

Is Commerce Cloud Suitable For A Small Business? 

Commerce Cloud might be an overkill for a small business due to its complexity and cost. For small businesses, simpler platforms like Shopify would be a better fit.

Do I Need To Know Coding To Use Commerce Cloud?

Some technical knowledge is necessary for setting up and managing your store. It would help if you could hire a Salesforce certified professional to help you with the integration. 

Shopify Vs. Commerce Cloud, Which Platform Is Easier To Use? 

Shopify is known for its intuitive easy-to-use interface, while Commerce Cloud has a steeper learning curve and requires coding knowledge.

Do Any Of These Platforms Offer Built-In Marketing Tools? 

Shopify has basic marketing tools. Commerce Cloud on the other hand integrates with Salesforce Marketing Cloud for a more robust marketing suite.

How Easy Is It To Manage Website Content On Each Platform? 

Shopify’s CMS is user-friendly. However, Commerce Cloud’s CMS has more advanced features.

Can I Sell Digital Products On Shopify?

Yes, Shopify has features to sell digital products as well. This means you can list your ebooks, software, or printables as well using the “buy button,” or storefront. 

Does Commerce Cloud Integrate With Other Salesforce Products?

Yes. As Commerce Cloud is part of Salesforce’s ecosystem, it integrates seamlessly with other Salesforce products. You can integrate it effortlessly with Marketing Cloud or Service Cloud, giving you a unified business ecosystem.

Can I Switch Platforms Later if I Choose One Now?

Yes. However, it might be difficult to migrate data from one platform to another. So, make sure you pick the platform carefully. 

Which Platform Is Better, Shopify Or Commerce Cloud? 

There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to choosing between Shopify or Commerce Cloud. You should consider factors like budget, size, technical needs, etc. Shopify is ideal for beginners. Commerce Cloud has advanced features which is perfect for established businesses.

Based on your business’s scale of operations, your budget, and features you need, you can pick Commerce Cloud or Shopify. No matter which tool you pick, you can customize it to suit your business needs with the help of the right partner. Drop us a message today and we will help you go about with it!