Headless e-commerce vs. traditional e-commerce

If you or your colleagues are focused on innovation and evolution when it comes to your e-commerce experience, you’ve probably heard about “headless e-commerce.” But what exactly is headless e-commerce and what’s the difference between it and traditional e-commerce? And maybe most importantly, which do you need? Let’s dive in.

What is headless e-commerce?

Headless e-commerce represents a platform or solution that abstains from defining the perfect front-end by simply not having one. This means that the front-end has been decoupled, or removed, from the backend, and you are not forced to remodel or live within a tightly coupled user experience. Instead, you are free to develop any front-end experience you want and can call all the complex e-commerce functionality from the backend via a RESTful API.

In general, businesses that are interested in a headless business model tend to be larger, with complex business rules and ordering processes. They may also have a variety of other systems that need to integrate elegantly with the e-commerce system. In some cases, they might just have a really unique ordering experience that has never been contemplated before and needs to be developed in the best possible way.

In every one of these cases, these businesses are interested in making a move to a next-generation architecture to respond to their business’ evolving needs and are driven by factors like the consumerization of the enterprise, the proliferation of connected devices and sensors inside and outside of the workplace, and the need to lower the costs associated with delivering new online ordering use cases.

Headless commerce key features

1. Decoupled architecture: The front-end and back-end are separate, enabling independent development and updates, on the storefront and more.
2. Flexibility and agility: With the decoupled nature, businesses can easily adopt new technologies, implement changes, and experiment with various front-end experiences.
3. Omnichannel capabilities: Headless commerce enables e-commerce businesses to deliver consistent experiences across multiple channels, such as websites, mobile apps, voice assistants, or IoT devices.
4. Faster time-to-market: Since the front-end and back-end can be developed independently, updates and new features can be implemented quickly, reducing time-to-market.

What is traditional commerce?

Traditional commerce refers to the conventional way of conducting business, where a single platform or system handles both the front-end (customer-facing) and back-end (business operations) aspects of an e-commerce website. In this model, the website's front-end and back-end are tightly integrated, meaning any changes or updates made to the front-end often require modifications to the back-end as well.

Traditional commerce key features

1. All-in-one monolithic architecture: The front-end and back-end are coupled together within a single system.
2. Limited flexibility: Changes made to the front-end often require modifications to the back-end, making it challenging to implement new templates, features, or technologies quickly.
3. Centralized management: All aspects of the online store, including design, content, and functionality, are managed through a single system.
4. Slower time-to-market: The tightly integrated nature of traditional commerce can result in longer development and deployment cycles.

Headless e-commerce vs traditional e-commerce - key differences

1. Headless e-commerce does not limit front-end developers 
   With traditional e-commerce solutions, front-end developers are constrained to the front-end design and process that is created by the solution. If they wanted to change the data or the experience, they’d need to change the database, the code, and the front-end, making even the smallest change a large business risk. By not having a defined front-end, headless e-commerce allows front-end developers to create a completely catered and unique user experience that fits exactly what the business needs, without worrying about modifying the database.
2. Headless e-commerce offers almost limitless customization and personalization
   Traditional e-commerce platforms come with a predefined experience for both an end user, as well as an administrative user. Headless e-commerce allows businesses to define the exact experience they want, for both buyers and administrative users.
3. Headless e-commerce improves your time to value
   No matter your e-commerce platform, back-end business logic, functionality, and capabilities usually comprise up to 85% of a software development process. With a headless commerce platform, you are starting from the point of completion, which allows you to focus on the customer experience and deliver a final solution for far less cost, time, and effort.

Headless e-commerce benefits

Still wondering whether headless commerce is for you? Here are some of the main benefits of headless commerce:

1. Flexibility and agility: Headless commerce enables businesses to adapt quickly to changing market conditions and customer expectations. Since the front-end and backend are decoupled, updates and changes can be made independently, allowing for rapid iterations, upgrades, and experimentation. This greater flexibility is particularly advantageous in a fast-paced digital environment and leaves behind time-consuming processes.
2. Enhanced user experience: With headless commerce, businesses can deliver highly personalized and immersive user experiences across various touchpoints, including e-commerce stores, mobile apps, voice assistants, social media, and more. By leveraging the capabilities of modern front-end technologies, such as progressive web apps (PWAs) and native mobile apps, retailers can provide seamless, intuitive, and engaging experiences to their customers.
3. Omnichannel commerce: Headless architecture enables businesses to deliver a consistent shopping experience across multiple channels. By decoupling the front-end, it becomes easier to integrate with different online shopping touchpoints, such as e-commerce sites, mobile apps, smart devices, IoT devices, social media platforms, and even emerging technologies like augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality (VR). From browsing to checkout, this allows customers to engage and transact with a brand through their preferred channels, increasing customer satisfaction and boosting conversion rates.
4. Scalability and performance: Headless commerce architecture provides scalability and performance benefits. Backend systems can be optimized for high-volume transactions, while the front-end can be tailored to deliver fast and responsive experiences. This separation allows business owners to scale each component independently, ensuring that the system can handle increasing traffic and transaction volumes without sacrificing performance.
5. Integration and customization: With headless commerce, businesses can integrate various plugins and third-party services, tools, and platforms easily, such as a content management system (CMS) shopping cart, payment processing, and product management tools. The decoupled architecture allows for seamless integration with external systems, such as payment gateways, marketing automation tools, customer relationship management (CRM) systems, and inventory management systems. It also enables businesses to customize the frontend experience based on their specific branding, design, and user interface requirements.
6. Future-proofing: Headless commerce solutions provide a future-proof foundation both for big and small businesses. As new technologies, touchpoints, and channels emerge, businesses can adapt and integrate them into their commerce ecosystem without having to rebuild the entire system. This flexibility allows businesses to stay ahead of the curve and leverage new digital experiences as they arise.

In 2023, the buzz around the headless commerce approach will continue to grow as today’s buyers demand more from the B2B e-commerce buying experience and seek a greater degree of flexibility, lower cost options, and better performance from their platform. Learn more about Sitecore’s headless commerce features and pricing by reaching out to our team for a demo today!