Founded on the principles of Openness, Agility, and Innovation, Magento is one of the most dynamic and high functioning platforms out there.
To put this in perspective, its commitment to these principles has allowed the platform to be able generate over 155 billion dollars in gross merchandise value by the year 2018 alone.
In addition to this, it is also widely recognized by leading analysts, including Gartner; and is said to be the largest eCommerce Ecosystem out there as of now.
The use cases which Magento has been used for thus far, are consequently, also very dynamic in nature and tend to range from B2C to B2B; including all other types of business transaction models that fall on the spectrum in between.
As a matter of fact, ever since its launch, many big-ticket brands have used the platform to not only set themselves up for the online sphere, but also, to engage in new opportunities such as brand customization and optimization etc.
The primary reason for billion-dollar businesses to invest in Magento perhaps, is that its product offerings differ significantly from its counter parts and can, therefore, create a truly nurturing environment for eCommerce storefronts.
One of these offerings includes Magento Business Intelligence (MBI), that can absorb data from Google Analytics etc. to provide real time analytics about customer behavior. And all this, is in addition to the primary offerings, that is, Magento Order Management and Magento Commerce which, when combined, allow for efficient order fulfilments, and satisfy a number of touch points- which are hard to cater to while using other platforms.
So, with that in mind, let us now look at just what are the eCommerce Solutions which Magento is so highly praised for, and which have truly turned it into a strong disrupting force within the world of eCommerce.
Going Mobile
In a report published by Adobe Insights, it was found that shoppers are becoming increasingly reliant on their mobile devices when it comes to visiting and shopping online. Which is why, smartphones accounted for over half of the holiday season visits for 2018 and were responsible for generating upto 31% of the overall revenue stream from eCommerce.
Consequently, it is predicted that smartphones will be responsible for approximately $447 billion in revenue generation by the year 2023.
Yet the same time, it is worth understanding that mobile experiences often require making a proper app- all of which sucks in extra capital and is, therefore, largely avoided by most brands.
Magento’s partnership with Google, however, has allowed it to play with Progressive Web Apps (PWS)- a browser-based application, which enables users to enjoy a seamless experience of the best eCommerce stores, right from their phones.
Expansive Commerce
The reason we say that Magento has been a truly disruptive force, however, is because this actually is one of those few platforms that cater to the needs of a really broad audience, and that too, from all sorts of geographical locations.
The thing about eCommerce you see, is that it is not just done locally- unlike most brick-and-mortar stores of the past. Instead, it is supposed to link buyers and sellers that could be continents apart.
Magento, for its part, has played an almost revolutionary role in doing so as it caters to multiple languages for both mid-market and large-scale enterprises, thereby allowing for truly global interactions to now become the norm in our world.
Exploding Unified Commerce Needs
For the end consumer, whether the exchange is B2B or B2C in nature does not matter all that much. The thing that does matter to them, however, is their ease of access.
And this is one of the primary reasons why there has been a global rise in demands for a platform that caters simultaneously to both, B2B and B2C exchanges. And Magento, of course, being the only platform, which allows this to happen (due to its immense built-in scalability), has been at the forefront of dealing with this challenge.
For B2B buyers and sellers, for instance, the comprehensive toolkit enables highly sought after features like self-service company accounts, custom catalogs, pricing, and quick ordering options etc. Thereby making the process efficient rather than being frustrating and tedious for the end consumer.
Commerce is Omnichannel
While consumers can just visit your site directly, according to one report, the growing trend is to visit at least one third-party site before visiting the actual storefront, that is, if it gets visited at all.
Magento, however, seems to have proactively dealt with this problem. In 2018, the platform introduced a new feature known as Amazon’s Sales Channel, which allowed businesses to maintain brand visibility, even if the consumer did not visit their site directly.
Bridging the Gap Between Physical & Digital
According to research reports, upto 63% of millennials are likely to make a purchase online and then pick the product up from the store later.
Figures like these get to show just how rapidly the gap between physical and digital is beginning to decrease in recent times.
With that being said, however, the growing expectation nowadays is to have the same kind of experience in a virtual shop, as one would get to have if they were to physically visit a store.
One of the ways in which Magento caters to this is by making order fulfilment seem like an almost physical experience. And it does so, by using ‘Buy online, pick up in store’ options, which allow the customer to place the order online but return products physically etc.
At the same time, it also caters to the needs of the merchants themselves. This is done by allowing better inventory management tools and allowing the merchant to deal with multiple distributers, procurement sites as well as fulfillment centers via the platform itself.
Embracing Growth
It is worth appreciating that commerce, and especially eCommerce, is a continually evolving and growing process. So really, the way in which this platform embraces agility really does set it apart from other vendors.
Magento Marketplace for instance, has over 4500 extensions- all from different categories, using which, businesses can tackle their growing business needs.
So, the way we like to see it, growth is kind of in-built when it comes to Magento. And extensions or no extensions, the sheer fact that the platform operates on a community-based model, means that it has already braced itself to deal with challenges that affect its community members.
Using Data
Finally, it is important to understand that most eCommerce models are heavily reliant on consumer data. Primarily, because this is what allows businesses to understand consumer behavior, thereby enabling them to implement new strategies which will be effective in making their business grow.
This is why, having access to report building tools which integrate with multiple sources, and can be shared easily across all teams is vital to maintaining business growth. And all of these are actively provided by Magento to its users.
Because of all of this, Magento has and continues, to act as the leading disruptive force in the world of eCommerce.
