E-commerce platform?

[KateCB]

Web based seems to be the way forward- nearly into the relams of 'cloud computing' and it is faster, sleeker and less costly in most cases than 'install this on your own server' type e-commerce software; Actinic used to be a leader, but expensive and at the time i last looked was based on how many products you sold; so expanding your product line could cost you a lot more than you bargain for if it pushed you into the next 'product break'!

 

[edmondscommerce]

for me its a no brainer

 

[los_design]

Actinic comes into every equation when we speak to clients until we ask how many products they have and the answer goes above 500...

I have worked on Actinic stores for years and if you run a low SKU based business without the need for wishlists and online account management then it is fine.

Otherwise, it is as EDC states, a no brainer.

As a sub-note, it [Actinic] is excellent when used for an affiliate store with no direct purchases required...

 

[stasilo]

what is the best E-commerce platform? i'm thinking of using Tigercommerce, it looks pretty good. also how good is oscommerce? thanks.

Magento or Joomla+VirtueMart.
both are very popular and open source free solutions.

 

[soundbite]

I had Actinic and experienced so many problems with it. The support is terrible and I was paying £45 per month just for support on top of the cost of the software which is overpriced and very outdated. I would not want someone to go through the time and effort I wasted on it as there are better options available.

I would recommend any web based ecommerce system as you don't have to deal with the technical and hosting problems. If you look at software like sage and Actinic (which is installed on your local computer/server) you will see they have overpriced support packages. Good web based systems do not charge much for support because if their software is good (like Kashflow & Bluepark) you will never have to call them about any problems because they manage the technical stuff.

 

[Golf Tee Warehouse]

Actinic used to be a leader, but expensive and at the time i last looked was based on how many products you sold; so expanding your product line could cost you a lot more than you bargain for if it pushed you into the next 'product break'!

Actinic still is a very good package and worth considering. It is not the cheapest product on the market, but the pricing is not dependant on the number of products, although
The pricing is:
Actinic Catalog: £399 + VAT (available for £320 + VAT through an authorized reseller)
Actinic Business: £799 + VAT (available for £645 + VAT through an authorized reseller)

The current version is V9 (2 years old) and V10 is due out in the coming months. I personally have not had any problems with Actinic but would not pay for the Actinic Support options.

It is starting to look a little dated when compared to some of its competitors and the 'out of the box' templates certainly need bringing upto date.

It is desktop based rather than server based, but personally I prefer that, although realise many prefer the online based packages.

I am unsure of the official maximum number of products but I think sites with 5,000 - 10,000 products start to experience a slow down and certainly wouldn't want to run a shop with 20,000 products on Actinic, although they do have a SQL based version called 'Enterprise' (very expensive) which is designed for larger sites as the standard versions are MS Access based.

Another package I have heard positive reviews about is 'Interspire' which seems very good out of the box.

 

[iphone137]

try BigCommerce, they offer a free trial on there site.

 

[Golf Tee Warehouse]

try BigCommerce, they offer a free trial on there site.

BigCommerce and Interspire Shopping Cart are very closely linked, I believe BigCommerce is a hosted platform but shares many of the features of Interspire Shopping Cart.

 

[soundbite]

I have read so many bad reviews about poor support for Interspire. It has lots of amazing features but I wouldn't recommend it. Check out their forums and see what you think. I would rather get Actinic as it is sold in the UK and doesn't have as many problems as interspire. I have tried the trial for Bigcommerce and it looks really good. You can get a nice looking website up and running in no time.

Bigcommerce seems like a much better package. Ok it isn't as feature rich as Interspire but I'm sure its a product that works without any problems as it is a hosted version.

You have to do some research before you purchase a product. Ring up companies that use the sofware and see what they think. Also check out the forums. If you look at the Actinic forums generally people are moaning about the lack of functionality. If you look at the Bluepark forum it is littered with positive reviews for the software and developer. Not too long ago somone started a post about how great the software was and so many people responded in such a positive manner. You'll have a job trying to find a similar post on the actininc forums.

 

[cornish hosting]

all are customers use oscommerce we have updated all the shops for security and loads of add-ons to make them user friendly and all the customers love them

 

[TWD]

Hi i have hosting options avaible please pm me for more info are hosting packages are from £4.99 unlimited categorys and products pm me if your interested.

Regards Wesley

 

[limessl]

all are customers use oscommerce we have updated all the shops for security and loads of add-ons to make them user friendly and all the customers love them

I used osc to build some shops a few years back, but the software's become dated now and whilst it is free the whole project seems to have fallen behind its competition.

I wouldn't totally discount it, but with the web moving forwards at a rapid pace it is starting to look a bit outdated. Also a lot of the really good functionality is in the form of add-ons and contributions - some of them need tinkering with and there is a huge issue with compatibility of some extras, which required me to code a lot of php.

 

[cornish hosting]

I used osc to build some shops a few years back, but the software's become dated now and whilst it is free the whole project seems to have fallen behind its competition.

I wouldn't totally discount it, but with the web moving forwards at a rapid pace it is starting to look a bit outdated. Also a lot of the really good functionality is in the form of add-ons and contributions - some of them need tinkering with and there is a huge issue with compatibility of some extras, which required me to code a lot of php.

all are oscommerce shops have been updated and loads of add-ons added so they have no security problems at all. also the new version will be out soon plus you can use sts template system so you can change the whole look of the shop with one click.

 

[los_design]

As with all ecommerce queries, you ask which is best and you will get 50 different opinions, many from peeps who have a vested interest in the result.

What I would suggest AND what I ask prospects BEFORE I accept a project OF ANY TYPE IS....

What do you want your store/site to do, what are the 'key features' for you, what do you see as vital customer interactions outside of the norm (if any), what kind of support will you need after sales, where are you based (UK etc) and where is the support based (usually India LOL) and so on....

when this information is gleamed, you can then go ahead and state which suits best.

There are so many small time carts, white labelled carts (children of OS such as osc etc) and big time carts such as X Cart, Actinic etc so you must make sure it suits you first and foremost.

Sorry to chime in guys but how many times do I read the same theme and then see 100 posts, mine is best this is best etc without fully gauging what the full story is....

IMHO to answer the OP's question...

The one that suits your needs best

Regards
Daren

(ps, to help prove my point, check the number of posts from the majority of people offering services ;-))

 

[los_design]

Take into consideration that web hosting is a global service. It does not matter what country you are located in; US, UK, Canada, Australia or Romania. It is good to note that the cost of hosting services in most countries is generally a little more expensive in comparison to the same services in Canada and the United States. Specifically, American web hosts offer a much better value for money than any local hosting.

Nonsense!

Point 1. If you are selling to the UK only, you are BEST ADVISED to host your services in the UK

Point 2. American hosts may well offer cheaper hosting, but vetter value for money? Come on....search this forum for godaddy support* and read up dude! I f you are running a UK business, your site goes down, then what? Call up your local host at 5pm EST etc.....give me a break.

Pay pennies in america and guess what you get...oversubscribed, under supported and potentially poor SEO peanuts that's what!

You are welcome to your opinion as I am, but please do not make it out to be a fact!

JMTC and of course, all are my opinion based on over 15 years experience in the e Marketplace.

*GODADDY are used as an example after forum feedback from other members and may well offer great services elsewhere to US and NON-US clients

 

[quikshop]

What I would suggest AND what I ask prospects BEFORE I accept a project OF ANY TYPE IS....

(ps, to help prove my point, check the number of posts from the majority of people offering services ;-))

Oh, can I borrow your soap box after you

 

[los_design]

Oh, can I borrow your soap box after you

LOL

I have sent it using Fastway so you should get it just in time for Good Friday

 

[Free Radical]

I have read so many bad reviews about poor support for Interspire. It has lots of amazing features but I wouldn't recommend it. Check out their forums and see what you think. I would rather get Actinic as it is sold in the UK and doesn't have as many problems as interspire. I have tried the trial for Bigcommerce and it looks really good. You can get a nice looking website up and running in no time.

Bigcommerce seems like a much better package. Ok it isn't as feature rich as Interspire but I'm sure its a product that works without any problems as it is a hosted version.

You have to do some research before you purchase a product. Ring up companies that use the sofware and see what they think. Also check out the forums. If you look at the Actinic forums generally people are moaning about the lack of functionality. If you look at the Bluepark forum it is littered with positive reviews for the software and developer. Not too long ago somone started a post about how great the software was and so many people responded in such a positive manner. You'll have a job trying to find a similar post on the actininc forums.

Thanks for this invaluable round-up. But from what I gather Interspire and Bigcommerce are one and the same company, difference being Bigcommerce is the hosted brand. Interspire is the parent company.

btw Los design, I take your point about each website having unique specifications. But talking in general terms is very useful as some platforms are good for nothing, others are worth every penny. Some people may not have such a concrete brief as you would like and this discussion helps to us to weigh up the various features available whilst at the same time comparing the ecommerce options.

 

[seiretto]

I have read so many bad reviews about poor support for Interspire.

Please elaborate on this....?

I would be very interested to know any good or bad experiences you have with Interspire.

 

[ICEY]

Please elaborate on this....?

I would be very interested to know any good or bad experiences you have with Interspire.

I can't speak for the hosted version but there are big issues with VAT compatibility for Interspire.

Basically the situation as I saw it was as follows:-

* Display prices excluding VAT and add VAT on at checkout for relevant EU countries - works ok, is a ball ache to set up but does work. However prices for UK (& European) consumers should show including VAT (according to trading standards).

* Display prices including VAT as standard. However, it *cannot* deduct VAT for countries outside of the EU. This just doesn't work and thus far Interspire had declined to acknowledge this as a problem.

There were lots of other issues with it but for me the main one is the legalities surrounding the VAT compatibility.

It is a great, feature rich package but it isn't VAT compliant and this is a big issue if you are VAT registered (unless you want to either ignore that VAT isn't deducted for all orders outside of the EU which isn't legal or you you manually produce invoices with the correct VAT deductions and refund that amount to the customer each time).

I did not have good experience with Interspire's support, however, their UK reseller who in my opinion is stuck between a rock and a hard place with this was brilliant and did try very hard to come up with a solution.

 

[Golf Tee Warehouse]

One thing that puts me off Interspire is that they only allow existing customers access to the main areas of their forum so you don't get to see or read negative comments and discussions from its users.

 

[seiretto]

ICEY - Thank you for your useful feedback.
(see, even without access to their forum you have been able to aire your views)

 

[kitschagogo]

i like the layout of your shop i would want mine to be of a similar layout. thankyou for the link, i'll have a look at the details.

has anyone delt with 'venda' before?

Hi there, I'm new to the forum - so browsing through.

I've been using Venda since Aug 09 - and am really on the fence about it. I'm an eBay powerseller and wanted to attract buyers to my website rather than eBay (whilst managing the same inventory for both) - Venda have a massive reputation with enterprise clients like Tesco, DeBeers, Arsenal etc. but the small/med businesses is completely new ground to them.

Unfortunately, this shows - I was 'sold' the software as eBay integrated, but very little of the eBay functionality actually works in reality. This meant I lost 8 months of eBay ranking and am now back to juggling stock by running my eBay store and my website seperately.

Because of this I haven't had to pay any monthly fees (which is the only reason I'm still with them). Normal price is £50pm.

They only integrate with PayPal - so you can't use better/cheaper providers. No google checkout, streamline, etc.

On the plus side, it's easy to load the system and thier WYSIWYG editor is good. Staff are very helpful, and there is no contract.

If you have any specifics, let me know and I'll be happy to share my experience - to see my Venda site type 'kitschagogo' into google.

I'm interested to hear of recent views regarding eSeller Pro and Channel Advisor?

Tony

 

[lesliedocherty]

look at www.visualsoft.co.uk ,quite impressive

 

[kitschagogo]

look at visualsoft, quite impressive

Thanks - I think I have come across them before - I love their design work and their websites look great - also looks like their clients have been up for a few awards - another one for my list of potentials !

 

[GroundHog]

Hi. I like WebAsyst Shop-Script. A great e-commerce solution - 100% opensource and superable support team.

 

[edmondscommerce]

interesting to read about Venda blowing their SME level offering...

I've seen this kind of thing before where companies catering for the bigger spenders try to launch a lower price offering but it just ends up being useless for everyone, them because it doesn't bring in revenue like they are used to and the users because it just doesn't fit.

For ebay integration there are a few that do seem to work well. I know there's one that links up well with osCommerce

 

[lesliedocherty]

i have received my proposal from visualsoft and going to sign it off over the weekend, was very impressed by their work and cant wait for them to deliver my new site.

 

[kitschagogo]

i have received my proposal from visualsoft and going to sign it off over the weekend, was very impressed by their work and cant wait for them to deliver my new site.

Cool! What solutions are you going for? And is it rude to ask for a budget/ballpark?

 

[lesliedocherty]

£10k, and most of the bells and whistles

 

[kitschagogo]

Wow - that's well out of my league at the moment!

I'm interested to see the changes/new site when it's up! Good luck

 

[jelly3]

Never heard of them so had a peek, their admin demo has a '404 not found' page

As someone said, it really depends on the features that you want.
I looked at a few over the last couple of years but there's always an issue.... The last one I was interested in didn't allow for customers to buy without creating an account, which is about 50% of my customers. They come back but they don't want to create an account.

That was January 2010 and the situation remains the same in July 2010.

 

[judy1105]

I don't know if you have heard dhgate, a wholesale online platform origin from China,for wholesaler ,distributer and so on .
As I know it has been known by about 220 countries clients ,especially in the european countries .

 

[amazestore]

in china dhgate and aliexpress are reletively good

 

[kitschagogo]

I've just had a quote from Ritecart Multi Channel by Palindrome Software Labs (thinking they would be an economical stepping stone before moving to Channel Advisor or EsellerPro) - at £305 pm (incl. VAT) for a webstore, Amazon integration and eBay integration.

Set up fees are £350. No transaction % fees.

Having such a bad time with Venda SaaS (now named POWA) - I'm hesitant to jump ship - does anyone know of Ritecart/Palindrome?

I've searched for reviews and even called a few of their customers, but can't speak to anyone who is using more than the webstore without multichannel.

 

[edmondscommerce]

its a lot of money per month, worry about venda lockin (pun intended)

 

[kitschagogo]

No lock in to Venda at the moment (as I'm not paying a monthly fee for it - due to mis-selling me eBay integration that doesn't work).

I think they are 30 day notice and that's it - I've just had my fingers burnt, so don't want to jump ship without it being the right step!

Tony
www.kitschagogo.com

 

[amazestore]

I like amazon too

 

[edmondscommerce]

I meant vendor lockin..

its often more subtle than being physicially locked in.. its to do with how easily you could switch from one vendor to another - how much access to your data, domain etc you have

 

[kitschagogo]

Good point!

I've decided on a few more - so will draw up a table of multichannel ecommerce features and prices for each one and post on here.

So far I have details for Ritecart, eSellerPro, and Channel Advisor.

Next 3 I'm comparing are:

Orcus Myriad
Intelligent Retail
Etail Systems

Anyone any experience of these three?!

Cheers
Tony
www.kitschagogo.com
retro gifts for when life's a kitsch