Top Reasons We Love Ecwid Over Woocommerce

Woocommerce is the most well known ecommerce solution for WordPress. While Woocommerce is popular, does that mean it’s the best choice for your business? There are a number of ecommerce alternatives that offer comparable and sometimes superior features. One of our favorites is Ecwid. Although it is not as well known, Ecwid is one of the most feature packaged and reliable ecommerce solutions on the market, and it offers some clear advantages over Woocommerce. Below we explore just a few of these advantages.

Flexibility

Woocommerce is a WordPress plugin. It allows you to add ecommerce functionality to your WordPress website. Ecwid is a powerful ecommerce solution that allows you to sell on WordPress, but also on multiple places on the web, including eBay, Amazon, Facebook, Instagram, and various website building tools. Woocommerce only works on WordPress. So when you get started with Woocommerce it’s quite easy to get locked in to selling only on your WordPress site. Ecwid can be added to virtually any website builder, and on multiple social media and selling platforms.

Security

Ecwid is a PCI-DSS Level 1 Certified Service Provider. This means that Ecwid is extremely secure, by default, without any need for configuration or tweaks from a developer. Woocommerce on the other hand is not secure by default. Woocommerce requires the work of a WordPress developer to configure your website security to ensure your transactions are secure. WooCommerce also requires users to attain PCI-DSS certification from their hosting provider, since they do not host stores themselves. Although setting up this type of security is relatively common, it is a set of technical steps that if done in error can be disastrous for your website. When using Ecwid these security steps are configured automatically.

Multiple Store Fronts

Ecwid allows you to sell on multiple platforms at the same time. With this feature you can have your products on multiple websites and social media outlets all at the same time and manage them from a single dashboard. You can even define which products display on each platform.

Fast Setup

In just 5 minutes Ecwid will have you set up, running your business, and selling products. You don’t need any technical knowledge to get started. Woocommerce can be much more complicated if you don’t come from a coding or development background. With Woocommerce you need to understand how to install plugins, configure Woocommerce, and you have to have a functioning website. When using Ecwid you can begin selling products before your website is even completed.

Built in Features

Ecwid has a ton of built in features. The model for Woocommerce is to add various plugins, called extensions, to your website as you want more features.  Although there is nothing inherently wrong with this, there are some downsides. The two most notable are that 1) adding plugins to your website slows your page load time and decreases site performance, and 2) every plugin you install is another plugin you have to keep updated to avoid security vulnerabilities.

Ecwid does not require you to install additional plugins to your website as it’s features come built in as part of the Ecwid platform. Some features include:

  • Google Shopping which allows you to sell on Google
  • Snapchat advertising gets your products in front of Snapchat users
  • Pinterest advertising showcases your best deals on Pinterest
  • Advanced product filters make searching for products easier
  • Abandoned cart emails remind buyers to return to orders they left incomplete
  • Favorite product reminder pings shoppers about the products they liked
  • Wholesale pricing groups can set special prices for specific buyers
  • Local delivery zones let you define delivery zones and prices as easy as drag-n-drop
  • Tips on checkout unlocks the ability to accept appreciation from loyal customers

None of the features above require you to install additional plugins, although some of them are only available on Ecwid’s Venture and Business plans.

Traffic Spikes

I’ve heard horror stories of websites crashing because so many customers are trying to buy a particular product and the website can’t handle the influx of traffic. Think of the amount of sales you would lose in that moment.  Not to mention the damage to the customer’s trust in your brand. Since Ecwid is not hosted on your website you don’t run the risk of a site crash. Ecwid is a hosted solution with a team of developers that constantly update the platform for you. They are prepared for high traffic selling scenarios. When using Woocommerce your ability to deal with high traffic is strictly dependent on the type of hosting you’ve purchased and how good your hosting provider is.

User Experience

Ecwid has a stellar user experience. It’s very easy for non technical people to get in there and start managing products. In most cases it will not be the website developer that manages the products in an online store. It will often be the owner of the online store or someone on their team. This means the process of managing the products needs to be user friendly and non technical. Ecwid is designed for people who do not have a technical background. It’s set up guide will quickly walk you through setting up all of your products. Ecwid has a resource of easy to follow tutorials and guides that will help you with all aspects of managing your store.

Conclusion

Overall Ecwid is our top choice as an ecommerce solution for your WordPress website. The fact that Ecwid does not depend on your WordPress website to function adds a lot of benefits for security and handling high sales volumes. Ecwid is a better solutions for people who:

  • Want to sell on multiple platforms
  • Want to get up and running easily and quickly
  • Don’t have development or coding skills
  • Have a small to medium size business

Make sure Ecwid is at the top of your list when choosing an ecommerce solution.