3 e-commerce replatforming project myths debunked

One of the most difficult parts of an e-commerce replatforming project is getting key stakeholders on board. Oftentimes, people have preconceived notions about what a replatforming project entails. Myths of high costs failed implementations, and long timelines can deter even the most tech-savvy stakeholder. 

When you’re trying to spearhead an e-commerce replatforming project or have recognized the need for modern e-commerce, it can be discouraging to face “no” after “no.” But, often the reasons why leaders are apprehensive are based on myths. Facts can help set these myths straight.

Here are 3 e-commerce replatforming project myths debunked:

Replatforming Myth #1: E-commerce replatforming projects are expensive

To many, any tech project means a high price tag. Especially because development on traditional, monolithic software can be very expensive.

But, not all e-commerce replatforming projects have to break the bank. Replatforming to a headless, cloud-native e-commerce platform can often be less costly to implement. The headless nature of the application leaves you starting from scratch instead of having to customize a pre-built user experience. This is often more efficient, less time consuming, and therefore more cost effective for developers.

Replatforming Myth #2: E-commerce replatforming projects have long implementation timelines

It is often the case that technology projects mean extensive timelines - sometimes even years - before the application goes live.

But that no longer has to be the case. Agile, flexible technology platforms enable businesses to take a more phased approach to their replatforming initiative. This drastically cuts down on time-to-market.

A phased approach - which we often refer to as starting with a minimum viable product (MVP) - allows you to get the application in front of your users faster so that you can start gathering feedback sooner.

Replatforming Myth #3: E-commerce replatforming projects require an extensive development team

Enterprises who are used to development on traditional, monolithic platforms may falsely believe that they'll need extensive, internal development resources in order to complete a move to an API-first platform. But this isn't the case. Traditional, monolithic platforms often require development resources who specialize in a particular platform - for example a Magento developer or an Oracle developer - who knows the platform well. But the beauty of API-first, headless platforms is that development of the user interfaces can be done in any language your developer chooses. This opens up your pool of resources available to develop and makes their job less specialized.

Enterprises who are less digitally mature and lack internal development resources can also rely on agencies or partners to complete the replatforming project for them. These agencies act as an extension of a technology team, through the initial design and development of the application, all the way through support and ongoing optimization.

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When looking to replatform, many businesses get stuck because they are unsure if they can afford to replatform, if they can replatform in their desired timeline, and if they are digitally mature enough to replatform. A strong partner,  like those in Sitecore's partner network, can help with the development, and implement within your budget as an extension of your enterprise team.