Building Ecommerce Tech Stack: Why Is It Important?
In 2022, it is definitely worth trying to start ecommerce business. Even if the market seems a bit overcrowded. And one of the reasons is a growing number of online shoppers/consumers. But if you don’t have an ecommerce app yet, be ready to spend a fair amount of time wondering what technologies to opt for. And these can be tough decisions to make, especially in today’s rapidly changing tech environment.
If you think you’ll be wasting your time thinking about what technology you should go for. Or that you’ll have a tough time trying to choose the best tools to build a successful ecommerce app with. You can kill two birds with one stone by building the right tech stack. Basically, once you create your strong tech stack, you’ll get an assortment of all necessary arrangements for assembling your future ecommerce app or website.
If you are wondering what a tech stack actually is and why it is important to have one, if you want to build a successful ecommerce app or website, read this article and take a note of it.
Tech Stack: What Is It?
A technology stack implies a bundle of most efficient digital tools, right frameworks, hosting platforms, programming languages, etc. In other words, a tech stack is a list (or outline) of the most appropriate skills & technologies selected for building a particular mobile app or website.
For example, you want to create a successful ecommerce business. But, at the same time, you’ve realized that the idea you’ve got is still kind of foggy and you’re still baffled by what components ought to be thought of… Start off by building a tech stack! This will help you tremendously to make the right choices and save time.
Here is a quick list of major elements to consider:
- Front-end CSS frameworks (Bootstrap, Foundation)
- Back-end scripting languages (PHP, Python, Node.js)
- JavaScript libraries
- GUI framework
- automation frameworks
- Data & key-value storage
- Web server
- Hosting
The main goal here is to build a tech stack that would work as a good guide for devs (or the whole team). This guide should clearly show what efficient elements are needed for a particular project or idea to shape it into a successful digital product. Obviously, if you choose the wrong elements, then your project will most likely crash down or require a significant amount of additional funds. Bummer! But if you’ve got the right tech stack on hand, you’ll construct a strong foundation for your project that won’t collapse.
Before settling down on your own choices, do some research and look at the top e-commercial ventures’ tech stacks:
- Airbnb is currently based on Ruby on Rails in the back-end; React.js in the front-end
- Uber picked Python and, of course, Java joined with Fusion.js
- Etsy chips away at PHP and Backbone.js
- Online Shopping for electronics, apparel, computers, books, etc. more leans on Java, C++, and Angular.js
- Fiverr likes Ruby on Rails & React.js
What Can the Right Tech Stack Bring To an Ecommerce Project?
The best tech stack provides the most help in terms of logistics and makes logistics more efficient. Also, it can automate your time-consuming and expensive processes. This will reduce your expenses and leave some extra cash to spare. And the more additional time and cash you have, the more customized and complex arrangements you will be able to afford.
The right ecommerce tech stack not only helps online businesses like B2B or direct-to-consumer to establish lean supply chains. It also enhances consumer experience by providing tech solutions like transparent order tracking, fast users’ returns, and reliable delivery system that would let users track orders from the very first mile and all the way down right to the door.
By choosing a correct tech stack, you will be certain that your upcoming ecommerce apps/websites will not only look sleek and modern but also it is going to be maintainable, stable, and reliable. And that’s what every startup founder needs.
Again, be very clear what is that exactly you want to do with your future ecommerce app or website. Before starting off, think about these questions:
- Would it be capable of solving the problem?
- Who, how many, and at what price?
- What amount of time do I have?
- When would I want to dispatch my ecommerce project?
- What amount of cash can I spend?
Keep in mind that each technology stack has its pros and cons. So, focus on what particle set of unique features & functions you’d want to see in your ecommerce app. Even though, every online marketplace has its own set of unique features, most of them provide the following:
- Website personalization
- eCommerce analytics
- Integration of Google merchant
- Automatic tax & account calculation
- Multiple Payment Gateways experience
- Headless commerce
- Buyers review feature
- SCV (single customer view)
- Flexible ecommerce shipping system
In case if you’re planning to prototype, your choices of technology stacks will be pretty much limited. At the same time, the final costs will be less. But if you’re firm about getting your app out on the market as soon as possible, base your final decision on the ROI of your ecommerce business and maintenance that should definitely be easier.
What can you do with a strong tech stack?
With a strong tech stack you can:
- Rely on tech systems based on the specifics of your project;
- Design an architecture that will solve the problem;
- Decide whether performance or scalability is important for your final product;
- Choose technologies that are appropriate to achieve your goals;
- Determine where exactly scalability would be important (based on the planned architecture);
- Decide what will work: going server less like AWS Lambda, going for more traditional servers like Kubernetes (or even combining);
- Decide what database(s) to use based on actual needs of the project balanced against speed of development;
- Put the processes in place to ensure robust web/app development;
- Hire the right developers that your ecommerce start-up needs.
Some Tips On How To Build a Tech Stack
Stick to popular technologies. Why do popular technologies matter? According to the Stack Overflow survey conducted in 2022, JavaScript took the 1st place as the most popular and commonly utilized in the world of programming.
Obviously, building your ecommerce project with JS means easier maintenance since the choice of JS specialists will be huge. Since JavaScript is a fast-paced technology, most frameworks based on JS are insanely popular for providing excellent support. Basically, you can’t really go wrong with such JavaScript frameworks/libraries like React, Angular, Vue, Nest.js, Node.js.
By the way, Grinfer has some really awesome online courses on Java. If you ever wanted to learn JS or any other programming languages, check those courses out. Get ALL of them with just a single subscription!
As for Python, it is also heavily utilized by 58% of devs in 2022 (44% last year), C++ by 35% (compared to 20%), and C by 32% (vs. 17%).
Don’t go for outdated technologies. Keep in mind that if the technology you chose is a bit outdated or barely used, this means that in case of any issues, odds are you’ll have a hard time getting your problems fixed. In fact, there were some cases when startup founders would switch to Go programming language from JS and TypeScript. Consequently, they end up having a really hard time while looking for quality Go developers who would be able to provide a good maintenance and develop their app further.
Look out for technology that’s supportable. For instance, Facebook supports and maintains React, while Google takes care of Angular. Why is it important? Working with React and Angular means that new versions and updates will be released on a regular basis and your app will always be up to date.
Make sure your MVP is adaptable. Of course, there is a big change that you’ll construct MVP in WordPress just like Airbnb did at its earliest reference point. But as the quantity of your clients increases, you will be getting more traffic and more data. So, make sure that you switch to MVP which is more adaptable. The reason is that most consumers continue to make purchases via cell phones, tablets, etc., which means that an ecommerce venture needs to have a versatile rendition of its app or website.
How To Discover Specialists For Your Tech Stack?
On the off chance that you don’t have your own group, you will probably search for the one that is knowledgeable about structure with specific advancements. There is some commercial center programming available for those who would prefer not to build everything all alone.
Yes, out-of-the-container arrangements are typically very convenient. But the other side of the coin is that you might end up being restricted by their limitations. For instance, they may ask you for reconciliations with your preferred frameworks. These arrangements might appear to you to be alright at the first glance. However, as you move ahead with the development, you most likely will have to move on to some customized arrangements.
CRM (customer relationship management) incorporations can be very effective too. Start off by doing the basic checking whether a specific group realizes how to construct a commercial center site in the exact manner you need. For example, check their portfolio out, request some counseling, and clarify how they can assist you with making your ecommerce venture stunningly better.
In any case, aside from that, you will need to utilize some heat maps, installment arrangements, mailing, and so forth. Yet, before you pick them, you have to conclude in what capacity you will code your e-commercial venture. If you’ve found a group that’s already done it in the past, odds are they’ll provide you with some great e-commercial tips.
Bottom line
If you want to make a plan for your future e-commerce app or site, the right tech stack will help you determine when and to what degree you need the devs skills to get things up and running. Keep in mind the things like: priorities, budget, your team, time table, add-on features, server support, security and fraud protection measures. Then build a tech stack based on your burning needs.
If building an efficient marketplace has been on your mind, learn more on the Grinfer e-learning platform. Learn from the industry experts and discover lots and lots of opportunities in the web development industry!