Item: BigCommerce
Rating: 9
Author: Michael Vasta

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

BC is an e-commerce platform offered by our agency. We have over 40+ websites that have been launched on BigCommerce, from pro to Enterprise, with the vast majority at Enterprise. We are exploring headless options, custom programming, and other ways to extend the platform to meet our client's needs while offering a robust OOB e-commerce experience at a reasonable price.

Pros and Cons

Extendable API
Headless capabilities
Strong core e-commerce business logic and experience

Lack of content management options.
Lack of access to server-side APIs without the usage of middleware.
Lack of flexibility when it comes to payment gateway integrations.

Return on Investment

We've built a very large and successful department.
In the 3 years we've been using it, we've greatly expanded and extended the platform's capabilities.
We are still hamstrung with highly custom implementations that are trying to still use BC storefront with a lot of server-side integrations.

Scalability

The APIs offer a lot of opportunities to expand, but they cannot come fast enough, and we've seen a number of issues where something will be promised or on the roadmap and then it disappears as something else catches the product team's eye. If we have a better view of the roadmap, we can help our clients plan strategically better instead of tactically.

Alternatives Considered

Magento Commerce Cloud (formerly Magento), Shopify Plus and Salesforce Commerce Cloud

BC easily beats Shopify, and since Magento has moved to M2, it easily outpaces Magento as well. Salesforce Commerce Cloud is more powerful and robust but requires a significant investment that is not necessarily desirable for those looking for something more lightweight, which BC fits into.

Likelihood to Recommend

We've found that BigCommerce works very well when you are either beginning from scratch or have a robust support system of external systems already in place. The BC clients who adapt best are those who can be flexible in their external systems and willing to adapt to meet BC's offerings. While we can customize to make BC fit into the external system, the most successful are those that are flexible.

Implementing BC as an agency

Software Version

Overall Satisfaction with BigCommerce