Setting up your store and running on the BigCommerce platform is secure. Tons of features are available from the beginning; your store will look magnificent and be fully functional as soon as you launch without useless add-ons. 

Where to Go

Control Panel: Everything you need to manage your store is on The BigCommerce control panel successfully. You’ll oversee your day-to-day operations like customizing your site, updating inventory, and processing orders. 

Support Portal: BigCommerce offers 24/7 help via phone, email, and chat, as well as how-to articles, videos, guides, and troubleshooting resources. Plus, visit their forum to get advice and network with other BigCommerce merchants, staff, and Partners. 

App Marketplace: Want to integrate your store? Check out the App marketplace to find leading software for marketing, inventory management, shipping, accounting, etc. 

Getting Started 

• Themes & Categories: From professionally designed items to a robust category management system, BigCommerce has it all for you to browse and choose from. Using the Theme Editor, you can simply select beautiful, mobile-friendly themes that are ready to maximize your conversions. As for categories, their system gives your site a clear structure to make things easy for your shoppers. 
• Product Options: Add your products one by one or upload a batch via CSV. BigCommerce gives you the tools to build your categories with unlimited possibilities. Choose from size, color, style, and more for each product.  
• Payment & Shipping: If your store is eligible, then it will have PayPal powered by Braintree already enabled. Therefore, you can start accepting payments via PayPal or credit card immediately. However, they offer a variety of additional options you can choose from and a wide range of domestic and international shipping options at checkout, including free shipping, flat rates, weight-based rates, and real-time shipping quotes for all the major carriers. 
• Launch Services: No matter how easy BigCommerce makes it, sometimes there’s a ton of more important things to worry about. With second to none technical support, the in-house experts at BigCommerce can walk you through your store setup from start to finish. 

Learn more about what BigCommerce has to offer your store and get launched with its Store Launch Guide. You’ll love the options, and your visitors will enjoy shopping with you!    

BigCommerce for WordPress: The Best of Content and Commerce Combined 

BigCommerce has some exciting news! Recently they launched their early access developer beta BigCommerce for WordPress plugin. This plugin is fantastic news for the millions of merchants using WordPress. It will combine the flexibility of the WordPress platform with BigCommerce’s powerful commerce engine. This partnership will allow WordPress users to scale their eCommerce stores like never before. 

Once installed on WordPress, the plugin is powered by the BigCommerce API, passing over the merchant’s entire product catalog. In developer terms, this blending of two platforms is known as headless. WordPress delivers the front-end experience (website) while BigCommerce handles the website’s commerce-specific aspects (catalog management, transactions, order/shipping management, etc.). It is the best of both worlds.  

BigCommerce for WordPress will: 

• Give WordPress sites access to the industry-leading eCommerce capabilities necessary to grow an online business. 
• Quickly integrate end-to-end commerce capabilities to an existing site experience using all BigCommerce has to offer for your business needs. 
• Get full catalog data access within WordPress so you can do what you want – No iFrames necessary! 
• Customize your product cards, lists, and cart without risking plugin updates that will undo your work. 

That’s just a quick glimpse of what this integration has to offer. 

BigCommerce for WordPress 

This past summer BigCommerce was excited to launch its BigCommerce for WordPress plugin. This plugin combines the WordPress platform’s flexibility with BigCommerce’s powerful commerce engine, which is fantastic news for the millions of merchants using WordPress.  

Thanks to this partnership, WordPress users will now be able to scale their eCommerce stores like never before and gives merchants the best of both worlds. 

While WordPress delivers the customizable front-end experience (website), the powerful commerce engine of BigCommerce handles the commerce-specific aspects of the website like catalog management, transactions, order/shipping management, and more. You really can’t go wrong with these two powerhouses working together.    

Key Plugin Highlights:  

• Streamline your operations and save time by managing orders, shipping, and catalog updates with one control panel for multiple WordPress sites. 
• This integration is an excellent complement to the WordPress UX and creates a custom experience for your shoppers without checkout being an afterthought. 
• Build multiple catalogs and manage large order volumes thanks to BigCommerce’s unrestricted scalability. No, iFrames are necessary!  
• With streamlined security, you can reduce your risk and free up resources by letting BigCommerce take over PCI compliance burden and provide a secure checkout experience.
  

BigCommerce vs. Shopify: What’s Right for You? 

Do you have a successful business that you’re trying to grow or looking to start an eCommerce site for your business? There are so many options out there that I know it can be a daunting process to find what’s right for you and your online store. Let me try to ease the pain by comparing two popular options – BigCommerce vs. Shopify.  

While Shopify is probably who you hear about most often, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right choice. BigCommerce is no stranger to the Ecommerce world by no means. Since 2009, they have been supporting thousands of B2B and B2C companies worldwide and revolutionizing the way people shop, work, and live.  

BigCommerce has the Upperhand 

• Business owners are saving roughly $6,000 – $20,000 per year in-app subscription costs with BigCommerce.  
• BigCommerce merchants can use special rates through PayPal Powered by Braintree, but if a merchant wants to use a different gateway, there are no additional transaction fees. 
• Shopify’s credit card processing rates depend on using their native payment gateway (Shopify Payments). You will also incur additional transaction fees if you choose to use a different provider. The transaction fee ranges from 2% (on Shopify Basic) to 0.5% (on Shopify Advanced).  
• Best-in-class SEO features include customizable URL links to improve search ranks and set the default URL structure for products and categories on the store level and still modify individual products and categories. 
• Shopify and BigCommerce both have response themes and include a content delivery network (CDN) to help deliver photos and other files based on the visitor’s location. However, BigCommerce merchants also have Akamai Image Manager automatically enabled on all Stencil themes. This feature automatically resizes images to the best combination of size, quality, and file format suited for each image and device. 

It’s simple, BigCommerce has only one core product: its eCommerce platform. BigCommerce fully reinvests in the platform it powers, allocating all engineering and service resources to maintaining the best cloud-based, multi-channel solution.   

Check Shopify Full Review

Omni-Channel Retail with BigCommerce 

 In today’s technological world, the habits of shoppers can be a complicated formula to nail down. While one generation can differ in shopping style from another, and with so many different touchpoints, it’s hard to know where to focus your efforts. That’s why Omni-channel is so essential in today’s market. 

 What is Omni-Channel Retail? 

It’s the ability to connect the dots between all channels (i.e., a physical store, an online store, or social media). Omni-channel retail is designed to give a cohesive user experience for customers at every touchpoint. 

Who and How? 

There are so many variations of demographics to consider when figuring out the buying behaviors of shoppers. Men and women shop similarly but differ enough to look into, and specific age groups have their patterns. You also must take into consideration location, which can make a difference in shopping behavior.  

BigCommerce has some fantastic insight into these patterns and why Omni-channel retail is so important. Check out their Omni-Channel Retail Report for 2018 for a complete breakdown. 

Facebook and Instagram 

Making sure your customer experience crosses popular social media sites should be a no-brainer. Solutions like Shoppable Instagram feeds, Facebook Shops, etc. are also important for eCommerce brands. More than 56% of online adults use more than one social media platform. Therefore, having a presence on one platform isn’t enough. Are you looking to get your business extended to Facebook Marketplace and Instagram? Big Commerce can help.  

Try BigCommerce for free.