E Commerce Software Question

I'm not a developer but I do know that several of my clients have used zen cart and found it to be a good way to go. I also know that zen cart integrates fairly well with most gateways. Something to keep in mind while you're shopping these services is that they all go together. Shopping cart, gateway and Visa/mc processing all have to work together. Art T.

The key issues to think about are:

-number of items, you may think you have 20- but how many do you plan on growing to?

-what payment options do you need to take?

-shipping options, digital e-goods, customization?

-ease of use/usability. Most low end shopping carts suffer from extreme alienation issues with the end user.

-support. If you don't know anything about it now, are you planning on learning to do it or have someone else support it?

I have built sites with Zencart and it is very robust. All the different options of payment, shipping, and handling multi-categories with multi-level categories are supported right out of the box installation.

Payment options include the more popular Authorize.net for more advanced usage to Paypal for the most simplified e-commerce method.

Shipping options include connections to UPS, USPS, flat-rate, flat-rate plus handling fee, free shipping, etc.

The standard install also includes gift certificates, discount certificates, discount for groups of users, newletters (with optin optout features), inventory tracking (to show sold out when the last item is purchased), and some other stuff that I don't remember.

The thing I don't like about Zencart is that the code is not very well written for maintainability. That means if you are to make changes to the package to meet any special needs not covered by the standard install, it would require a bit more work. There are lots of community created modules out there that can add or improve features, but it require a bit of getting under the hood to incorporate the code as I had to do with one of my projects. If you are comfortable with hacking php code, it is not a problem. It just requires a bit of time. If you have used open source packages like Wordpress, then you will notice the difference in how much easier it is to add components than in Zen Cart. But then again, usually once you setup your e-commerce store, changes are not done regularly to the software so it might not be that much of an issue.

Hope that helps.

Hi Veronica, I use and recommend www.1shoppingcart.com for a few reasons...

1) It's an industry standard so it's very easy to find people who know how to use it. And it's very customizable.

2) They have terrific tech support and because they are one of the larges out there they regularly update their system with new options.

3) You can export your sales data directly to QuickBooks in a jiffy.

4) It has a built in email autoresponder/broadcaster so you can set up automated follow-ups and easily stay in touch with customers.

5) You can start with their small package and then upgrade later.

6) Their credit card merchant is one of the most reasonably priced out there.

I've been using them for a couple of years now and have been thrilled.

Best of luck! Stacy

Like others have said, there are lots of variables you need to consider. Having used system like Zen, oscommerce, monster commerce, and magento your biggest hurdles will likely be:

• integrating the system to work with your site
• payment processing
• customization

I AM a web developer and I have developed a number ecommerce sites. In addition to what Barry said about ease of use, payment options, etc. you also need to consider cost - both cost to set up and monthly overhead. A hosted service like www.1shoppingcart.com is good if you want someone to handle all that backend stuff for you - you just plug in your products - but your monthly cost is higher - $59/month (for the cheapest option) whether you sell anything or not. But the start-up cost is low - just the first month "rent" plus whatever costs are associated with stocking your store.

A cart you host yourself will cost more to set up (you'll need to pay someone to install it for you if you can't do it yourself), but your monthly cost is lower - basically your hosting fees which you'd probably be paying anyway for your website, and possibly, about $100-$200/yr for a secure certificate (depends on your hosting).

Zen cart is a good cart. However, IMHO, it is more than you need for a small store with 20 items. It does have a lot of features like a newsletter manager, ad banners etc. Are these features you want? Zen cart, because it has so many features, takes longer to configure and to learn how to use. It also can be slow to load - again because there's a lot going on.

When selecting a cart what you should do first is decide what you want your cart to do. Do you want to use PayPal or Google for payment processing and/or a merchant account like Authorize net. You'll want a cart that works with your choice.

Do you need real-time shipping calculation? What about pricing options - do you want to have sales, discount multiple item purchases, offer free shipping to some customers? Have affiliates? A wish-list feature?

Another consideration is how hard it is to learn to use; how comfortable are you learning new applications?

Think about how you want to use you cart; make a list of features you want.

Here's an online application that you may find helpful:

shopping cart reviews

http://www.shopping-cart-reviews.com

Be sure to read the guide on how to choose.

You'll note I haven't recommended any carts. That's cause I'd need a lot more info from you to find out what you need before I'd make a recommendation. I've used a few and all can be either really good and terrible depending on what you need.

You can contact me off-list if you have any questions for me. I'd be happy to help you.

Susan