Magento is an e-commerce platform owned by eBay which, thanks to being Open Sourced – which means that it is technical specifications, or Applications Programming Interfaces (APIs), are available to anyone to write applications for – has become something of a de facto platform for SME retailers worldwide.
You’ve probably heard of Magento – many of you may well be using it or thinking about using it – but here is a short overview of what it is and what it offers.
Launched on 31 March 2008 – although a public beta version had been available since late 2007 – the fact that Magento is open to third party developers to create all manner of interesting plug-ins means that most businesses can use it to tailor make their own customer experience and create their own back-end workflows.
As well as the hundreds of applications that have been developed for it, the Magento platform also has a global network of partners and certified developers that can help an e-comm start up build and implement the solution that best fits the business needs. The company also offers a host of training and consulting services and a vast library of guides and information sheets.
So what is the technology all about? Well, Magento’s platform effectively comes in three basic flavours, aimed at different sized businesses with differing needs and skills.
Enterprise Edition
Magento Enterprise Edition is the high performance, scalable eCommerce solution for fast-growing and large businesses. Featuring the kind of enterprise-class features that major retailers rely on, the enterprise edition is to be fair aimed at the more established, larger retailer – or those ready to make an investment in going hell for leather into e-commerce.
Along with all the usual platform stuff that makes your site look good and work, Enterprise Edition also features a number of tools designed to help you more effectively convert browsers into buyers. It is also highly scaleable so that, as you get more successful, you can grow it.
Community Edition
Magento Community Edition is perfect if you’re a developer or tech-savvy merchant that wants to explore the flexibility of the Magento platform. It is open source software and can be downloaded for free. Developers can modify the core code and add features and functionality by installing extensions from the Magento Connect marketplace.
However, businesses using Community Edition to run their stores will want to have access to their own Magento experts, since Magento does not provide technical support for this software. Answers to many technical questions are available on the company’s user forum.
Small businesses that prefer to have access to technical support and a more comprehensive feature set should consider Magento Go (see below), the vendor’s “commerce in the cloud” solution. Mid-large size businesses that need support, additional features and our best performance should consider the Enterprise Edition (see above).
Magento Go
Magento Go is Magento’s hosted eCommerce solution for small businesses just getting started in eCommerce. It is designed for small businesses that do not have the technical resources to build and customize their online store. Users can customise the design of their store and extend the functionality with extensions and generally get much of the benefits of using the Magento functionality, but at a more affordable price.
Magento Go is PCI compliant, so that it can offer trusted transactional services from the off, and is hosted on top tier, resilient data centres – so that sites are always available and the retailer doesn’t lose valuable custom. Should there be a problem, Magento Go users get access to technical advice.
Magento Mobile
OK, so I said there were three flavours of Magento available to merchants. Actually there is an added extra to them that allows you to incorporate mobile support into what you do. Currently, Magento Mobile allows you to create Android and iOS (Apple) compatible store front app versions of your website and the company helps you do all the necessary approvals with the relevant apps stores.
It adds some $700 each for iPhone, iPad and Android to what you already pay, but it does help you get your site and products out to that all important mobile savvy audience. And Magento’s own mobile team will test your apps before they submit them to Apple and Android so that you don’t waste time submitting apps that aren’t right.
Partner Programme
Part of Magento’s offering is a rich a varied array of partners and it is these that help develop a vast array of plug ins and other services.
• Solution Partners – these are experts that can help with the design and implementation of your site from scratch to make sure you get what you are trying to achieve and make the best of the technology available.
• Industry Partners – there are a range of industry partners and companies that can help you extend your store covering expertise in, among other things, marketing and sales tools, payment processing, shipping and fulfillment, accounting, back-end integration, CRM and SEM/SEO.
• Hosting Partners – you have to keep your site running no matter what, and Magento has a range of hosting partners that make this happen: both with dedicated servers and in the cloud.
• Associates – Magento Associates are companies focused on implementing Magento Community Edition sites, or interested in developing their Magento Enterprise skills in order to become a Silver or Gold Solution Partner. Becoming a Magento Associate is the first step for all companies interested in becoming a Magento Solution Partner. Magento Associates can primarily focus on implementing Magento Community sites if they desire.
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