There comes a time in the life of every ecommerce business when it needs to decide: to replatform or not to replatform.
It’s an eat-your-vegetables moment: not a lot of fun, but undoubtedly good for you. The need to decide is actually a good thing: It means you’re growing or ecommerce is growing or innovators have come up with a significant number of ways to make your customers’ digital experience a better one. But how do you decide — first whether you need a new platform or simply an upgrade; and if you need a new platform, which one?
Brian Benic has given the questions a lot of thought. He’s the director of global sales at Signifyd’s strategic partner Corra, a leading digital agency that works with premiere enterprise ecommerce platforms. He was kind enough to sit down for a video interview with us to run through a few of the key considerations for retailers wrestling with the replatforming question.
Benic’s advice is sound, if not obvious. Take your time. Blow up your preconceived notions. And our favorite: Don’t make your decision in a vacuum.
In other words, a platform might look great: It’s got the right features. It’s being used successfully by retailers selling in your geography, or perhaps in your vertical. But how do the requirements for the care and feeding of the platform fit with the team you’ve assembled? Is the platform compatible with your merchandising philosophy and your merchandising practice? How does the platform and its capabilities and features line up with your plans in the next year, two years or even three years? Does the platform provider share your commitment to innovation and change — or is your platform going to hold you back?
No question choosing a platform or choosing whether to replatform are big decisions. They are decisions that will not only affect your customers’ experience, but also the experience your team has every day. So move deliberately. And remember: You’ll be better off for having decided in a thoughtful way.
Contact Mike Cassidy at [email protected]; follow him on Twitter at @mikecassidy
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