Commerce Layer vs. Optimizely Commerce Connect

Commerce Layer is a great choice, if you want to build a tailored system. The flexible API allows to build all kinds of applications around commerce, but you also need to deep dive a bit into the structure. If you want to set up a simple store and sell a few SKUs, you're probably rather a Shopify customer, but if you want to build great customer experiences and tailer the software to your business, Commerce Layer is a very good choice.

Incentivized

Our experience may be unique because we opted for an Optimizely team to implement our website/console set-up and connection to our PIM and ERP. The experience may have been different with a 3rd party or it may not have. That said, we have been live with our primary website for almost 2 years and I still do not consider it was ever "done". We have been going back and forth on functionality issues and bugs since launch. I have low confidence that changes made the previous day will 100% be online the next - so my team rechecks the work they did the previous day to ensure everything is online. The addition of a second channel and enhancement requests have compounded the issues. I feel this product would work fine with singular or less complex market SKU offerings.

Incentivized

• Flexibility
• True headless (based on MACH principles)
• Integrated sales/shipments solution
• Seamless integration (extensive API, webhooks, etc.)

Incentivized

• Episerver has a robust discount engine. This engine, combined with "visitor groups" allow our marketing department to categorize customers and offer a variety of discounts to targeted customers at specific times.
• Episerver has a full-featured, storefront experience that can handle everything you might want for an e-commerce website.
• Episerver offers A/B testing that can be helpful for trying out new content ideas and tracking the results.

Incentivized

• Specific POS features are on the roadmap (we're using now a market per store, which works but creates some issues with it)
• Payment flexibility (as we're using it fully as a POS solution)
• Flexibility in order editing after approval of order

Incentivized

• Support. Episerver used to have direct support and access to the tech team to discuss and resolve issues. The new support portal is not enough for developer needs.
• Quality Assurance. We find issues in the Episerver code that should have been resolved in QA before release.
• Sales. Episervers sells the framework as a solution while showing Alloy. While it helps Episerver sell more, it puts the implementation partner into trouble as the client thinks they bought the solution. Episerver does not provide a solution. It provides a framework that you can build a solution on.

Incentivized

Commerce Layer is at the core of our operations

Incentivized

Really want to be able to spend more time and resources on rolling out new things with Episerver but at the moment we seem to be fixing alot of issues and pain points with the way our system was setup.

Incentivized

The new apps are great, but in our case, we built so specific functionalities around it that we built our own admin tool. Based on the complexity (especially for after sales processes), no off the shelf tool would have been able to do this.

Incentivized

The administrative interface is largely intuitive and relatively easy to use. The complexity of business needs and ability to customize can affect this (i.e. you have to set up and develop with the user in mind), but the basic structure is largely solid. There are some areas of redundancy (such as Commerce Manager overlapping with other administrative areas) that can sometimes cause confusion or offer some functions in one place, whereas other related functions are managed on a completely different page.

Incentivized

We're in regular contact with Commerce Layer and regularly also discuss issues directly with the tech team

Incentivized

We had an incredible team at Episerver Supporting us with the go live, reviewing our integration, and pushing our integration partner to deliver a quality product

Incentivized

The Commerce Layer data model is very flexible, which also creates a certain complexity. It's important to understand how the data model works and how relationships between them are built.

Incentivized

Fully understand what is OOTB feature of the platform before proceeding to develop. Then implement a customization of key features once you can prove they are working as OOTB to make them more user friendly and productive for the business. Eg pre order and e gift card

Incentivized

Real headless solution, fully SaaS. In comparison to all other solutions, Commerce Layer has an integrated order management which is lean, but very flexible. With all other solutions, we would have needed a separate OMS which would have increased both the complexity and the cost of the solution.

Incentivized

Optimizely Commerce Connect offers a very wide range of features for admin users. There is less a need for an IT specialist or programmer to be involved when changes need to be made.

Incentivized

• Reduction of support staff by 2/3 as we could implement a full self-service solution
• 1-2 days faster delivery of glasses to customers due to automated lens ordering (built into Commerce Layer)

Incentivized

• Positive: We have a usable website - better than what we had before and we are seeing a constant increase in adoption.
• Positive: Counter associates are using the website to help customers.
• Negative: Too much time being spent QCing previous work.

Incentivized