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98% of Americans are regularly switching between devices on the same day, which means customers expect information to be available to them wherever they are, and whenever they need it.

This hyperconnectivity, coupled with the abundance of competitors in the ecommerce space, means consumers unknowingly have more control than ever over the buying process.

So what does this mean for your ecommerce businesses? That adopting an omnichannel marketing strategy gives you the air cover you need to meet every customer wherever they are.

In this article, you’ll learn:

• What omnichannel marketing is
• The importance of omnichannel marketing
• The difference between omnichannel and multichannel ecommerce
• Omnichannel marketing strategies

Omnichannel Strategy

The omnichannel experience is a multichannel strategy that aims to create an integrated and seamless user experience in both online and offline channels related to the buyer’s journey. This could be in sales, marketing, or customer service.

A successful omnichannel marketing experience is when the customer feels like each interaction with your business is a continuance of the previous exchange.

Importance of an Omnichannel Strategy

Although multichannel ecommerce is frequently practiced, truly effective rollouts can be complex. Common struggles businesses encounter are a lack of resources, investments, communication, and even support from upper management. The majority of retailers recognize that adopting an omnichannel marketing strategy is crucial for business success.

These days, customers are using up to 12 channels and devices (compared to two channels 15 years ago) before purchasing something online.

Adopting omnichannel marketing helps you create a consistent experience at every stage of the buyer’s journey, thus improving the likelihood of conversion and customer engagement, as well as longer-term customer loyalty.

Additionally, ecommerce businesses that adopt a multichannel approach observe:

How Omnichannel and Multichannel Ecommerce Are Different

Both omnichannel and multichannel ecommerce are terms used interchangeably. They are similar but somewhat different when it comes to strategy.

As the name suggests, multichannel ecommerce involves the use of multiple channels. Marketers may use each channel differently — tailored, relevant messages for each customer are not guaranteed.

Examples are businesses that use their social channels to cross-post content. What you see on their social media pages is similar to what you’d read in their email newsletters.

On the other hand, omnichannel marketing focuses on personalization and delivering a better customer experience. This ensures customers can quickly and seamlessly navigate between each company touchpoint to make a single purchase.

For example, Starbucks lets you pre-order drinks via its mobile app, and you can then pick up your order at the nearest physical store.

Because customers are the primary focus, every message should be appropriate for each channel and relevant to exactly where the consumer is in their buyer’s journey.

Implementing an Omnichannel Marketing Strategy

Now that you know the difference between omnichannel and multichannel ecommerce, here’s what you can do to implement your omnichannel marketing strategy:

Be Customer-Centric

For your business to deliver a truly superior omnichannel experience, it must fully absorb a customer-centric view from top to bottom. Since the consumer is the focus of omnichannel marketing, it’s essential to know your target audience.

To start, use all existing customer data from your customer relationship management (CRM) software to analyze demographics, behavior, and the different channels your consumers commonly use.

Leverage marketing automation tools for segmentation based on common behavior patterns. Create personalized journeys for each type of customer.

Map the customer journey to determine how you want your consumers to flow across all of your touchpoints.

Find the Right Channels To Prioritize and Design

Creating an omnichannel marketing strategy doesn’t mean taking on too much by executing across every available channel.

It’s ideal to choose the channels most relevant to your audience. Once you’ve decided which channels to join, you increase your chances of creating impactful experiences for your customers.

Because omnichannel campaigns usually involve both offline and online communication channels, it’s crucial to design a responsive website ready for different devices.

Test and Measure Data

Using existing customer data, perform A/B testing on your audience segments and digital channels. Start with simple variables such as email marketing subject lines, calls-to-action (CTAs), or designs. The point of testing is to determine what message or information you’re providing is driving people to take action.

Continue analyzing the data and metrics you collect to improve your business and sales.

Create Relevant Content

Omnichannel marketing is about creating personalized experiences suitable for the channels you choose and not repeating the same message over multiple channels.

Examine the kinds of content your customers are consuming and which part of the buyer’s journey they find most valuable. Make sure your messaging is relevant. Send it to the user on the channel they engage with the most during the most active time.

For multichannel ecommerce, don’t be afraid to experiment with alternative platforms or new features such as buyable content.

Your goal is to optimize the use of channels that lead consumers on a journey that drives them to make a purchase.

Final Thoughts: Omnichannel Marketing Strategies for Ecommerce Stores

Multichannel ecommerce businesses that adopt omnichannel marketing stay ahead of the competition by connecting with customers on their terms.

Getting started with an omnichannel strategy does not have to be daunting. By staying customer-centric, leveraging new and existing data, and continually testing in real-time, ecommerce teams can provide users with a meaningful, seamless experience that converts them into loyal customers.

Choosing a reputable web host for your ecommerce store contributes to a fantastic omnichannel customer experience. Hostdedi’s Managed WooCommerce takes care of all the back end infrastructure, including hosting, security, performance, and most importantly, providing support.

If you ever need help with your online store, you can connect with an expert 24/7/365 to get you online and keep you there.

A study by Top Design Firms shows that 42% of people will leave a website because of poor functionality. If you want to retain more customers and convert them into buyers, you may have to improve your website functionality in 2022.

Who’s going to do that for you? You guessed right — an ecommerce website developer.

If you’ve never built a website before, it can be a scary experience the first time you do it. However, hiring a developer can be simple if you know the right actions to take.

Want to know more? Read on to discover:

Benefits of Hiring a Website Developer for Your Ecommerce Website

Before we show you how to hire a web developer, let’s look at some advantages you’ll enjoy hiring a web developer to build custom features for your ecommerce website.

They are the following:

1. Saves you plenty of time — Instead of learning how to build a functionality yourself, you’re better off outsourcing it to someone who already can. It also speeds up your project. If you’re a startup or small business, it can save you tons of money, too.
2. Experience and industry best practices — An experienced developer is more likely to build a robust ecommerce website while following industry best practices like SEO and responsive design.
3. Support — Instead of hiring a full-time developer, you can hire a freelancer who also offers support and delivers updates after completing the project.
4. New technologies — Most website developers keep up with emerging technologies. Hiring one for your ecommerce website also ensures you use the latest tools and assets, keeping your website user experience refreshing.
5. Better design ideas — You may already know what you want your ecommerce website to look like, but an external developer will also show you other awe-inspiring features you can add.

Guide for Hiring a Web Developer

Hiring a developer can be a daunting process, especially if it’s your first time building a functional website for your ecommerce business. But as we’ll show you here, it’s nothing to worry about if you use the right approach.

Here are some essential steps you need to take to pick an outstanding web designer:

1. Create a Project Plan for Your Website

Before you go out and hire a developer, first make clear what you’re trying to achieve.

An imperfect plan is better than no plan, especially if you’re adding custom features to your ecommerce website.

Planning helps you in several ways:

• It helps you determine the changes you need to make and write a better job description for the task.
• It helps you save time, set clear expectations for your developer, and determine the scope of your project.
• A project plan also helps you distribute tasks efficiently across all your team members.

2. Create a Budget for Your Project

Once you’ve figured out all the action steps you need to take for your website project, you can set a budget for it. Budgeting is a critical element in this process because it helps allocate resources appropriately across your project timeframe.

If you’re planning to overhaul your entire website, that may cost much more than tweaking a few features. Also, adding more back-end features, APIs, or app development will cost you a bit more than changing your website’s template, color scheme, or user interface.

Moreover, big projects cost more than smaller projects. For example, a back-end plugin that auto-calculates tax will cost you more than a client intake form builder for your new landing page.

3. Determine the Type of Developer You Need

For your project to succeed, you’ll need to hire an appropriate developer for the job. Often, this developer will be someone with the ideal skill set and knowledge in programming languages that solve your unique website problem or build what you need.

Do you want to change your website theme? Go for a frontend developer or a website designer. Ideally, a frontend developer with web design skills and knowledge in HTML, CSS, and Javascript can also be an excellent choice.

73.1% of your visitors will leave if your website is not responsive, so don’t ignore front-end work.

Sometimes, you may have a few issues on your front and back end. If you can, get a full-stack developer with PHP, Java, or Python skills to fix your ecommerce website. Also, depending on the scope of your project, you may have to hire a development team.

4. Advertise Your Project To Hire Web Developers

A few years back, you’d have to go through your local classifieds sections and contact every suitable candidate for your website job. In 2022, it’s much more manageable. As a business owner, you can advertise your job on many job boards and quickly get programmers on board.

Here are some of them:

5. Evaluate Suitable Developers for Your Project

After posting your job, you’ll receive numerous applications. If you have several prospective hires, how do you test them for suitability?

Here are some questions to guide you through the hiring process:

• Do they meet your technical skill requirements?
• How quickly can you reach them? How well do they respond?
• Do your applicants have excellent communication skills?
• What’s in their portfolios?
• What do their previous clients say about them?

Give them a paid test to see how they perform and respond. That’s another great indicator of future behavior.

6. Run Your Project from Start to Finish

Now that you’ve selected your ideal candidate from a pool of developers:

• Set up a meeting to discuss the details of the project and address any questions your new hire may have.
• Create Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) to keep track of progress on your project management timeline.
• Agree on a payment schedule for your developer. It could be an hourly rate or a fee. Also, pay the first deposit to show commitment.
• Monitor and assess progress according to your OKRs.
• Conduct a final review and finish your payment when you’re satisfied with the result.

What To Look For in a Good Web Developer

Here are some qualities a good developer will have:

• A clear and straightforward approach to web development projects.
• Experience, often backed by a portfolio of previous work.
• Works within your budget estimates.
• Communicates and collaborates with other team members.
• Pays attention to details.

Final Thoughts: How To Hire Ecommerce Web Developers for Your Website

If you follow these steps, you’ll end up working with some of the best minds in the market and adding website features that increase your conversions significantly. Your project will also be seamless, timely, and successfully fit your business needs.

Or you can avoid that whole process altogether.

Instead, get started with the Hostdedi StoreBuilder today and cut your time to market by more than half. It takes the complexity out of building a website, making it easy even for beginners.

Check out StoreBuilder to get started today.

Shopify shares sock retailer Soxy.com raised its average order value by 358% using product bundling. The exciting part is that they did it while selling bundles that were more expensive than buying the items individually.

Product bundling is a great way to increase sales, move inventory, and encourage customers to buy more. And Magento users can do it without a Magento 2 bundle product extension.

Ready to learn how to create a bundle product in Magento?

Here’s what we’ll cover:

What Is a Bundle Product in Magento?

A bundle product in Magento 2 is a collection of simple or virtual products, without custom options, sold together as a “kit.” It lets buyers customize their purchases by choosing from a set of pre-configured options.

When customers land on the product page, they don’t see an Add to Cart button. Instead, they see a Customize and Add to Cart button that scrolls to the available bundle options and lets them customize their bundle before purchase.

Before we show you how to create a bundle product in Magento, let’s understand what makes Magento 2 bundle products unique.

The Difference Between Bundle Product and Configurable Product in Magento

Bundle products are often confused with configurable products because they allow customers to choose options. But there’s a difference between the two product types.

Configurable products let you consolidate the different product versions into a single product on the frontend. They make it easy for customers to choose product variations without browsing the entire catalog.

In contrast, bundle products let you combine different products and create bundles with varying degrees of customizability. You can offer fixed product bundles sold “as-is” or create fully customizable bundles.

Configurable products are ideal for selling variable products like t-shirts and jackets generally produced in different colors and sizes. On the other hand, Magento bundle products are perfect for selling packages of assorted products.

For example, if you sell yoga gear, you can create a customizable product bundle of mats, foam rollers, and gym balls. This will let your customers choose their preferred yoga mat design, foam roller style, and gym ball size from the preset options before buying.

How To Create a Bundle Product in Magento

• Step 1: Choose the Bundled Product Template.
• Step 2: Pick an Attribute Set.
• Step 3: Complete the Required Settings.
• Step 4: Configure the Basic Settings.
• Step 5: Add the Bundle Options.
• Step 6: Add the Optional Product Information
• Step 7: Publish the Product.

Here’s how to create a bundle product in Magento and configure its options.

Step 1: Choose the Bundled Product Template

1. Navigate to Catalog > Products in the Magento admin panel.

2. Expand the Add Product menu and click on the Bundle Product button.

Step 2: Pick an Attribute Set

Choose an attribute set for the product using the dropdown. Alternatively, create a new set of product attributes using the Add Attribute button.

Step 3: Complete the Required Settings

1. Enter the values for the Product Name, SKU, and Quantity.

2. Switch the toggle for Dynamic SKU from Yes to No to assign unique SKUs to the bundle items.

3. Configure Dynamic Price settings:

1. If you want the product’s price to change based on the options chosen by the customer, set the bundle product Dynamic Price toggle to Yes. In this case, the bundle product will display a price range on the front end.
2. To charge a fixed price, switch the Dynamic Price toggle to No and set the Price for the bundle.

4. Switch the Enable Product toggle to No and save the product as we’re not ready to publish yet.

After this, you’ll see the Store View option appear under the product name on the upper-left corner of the page. You can use the default setting to assign the product to all store views or set it to a specific one using the dropdown menu.

Step 4: Configure the Basic Settings

Configure the values for the following basic product settings:

• Tax Class.
• Quantity.
• Stock Status.
• Weight/Dynamic Weight.
• Categories.
• Visibility.
• Set Product as New From.
• Country of Manufacture.

Step 5: Add the Bundle Options

This step differentiates the process of creating a bundle product in Magento from that of other product types.

1. Expand the Bundle Items section and configure the setting for Ship Bundle Items to either Separately or Together.

2. Click Add Option to add bundle items to the product.

3. Configure the bundle options:

• Add an Option Title to use as the field label.
• Choose the Input Type from the four available options.
• Click on the Required checkbox to make it mandatory.
• Click Add Products to Option.

4. Add individual items to the Magento product bundle by selecting the checkbox beside the virtual or simple product and clicking Add Selected Products.

5. Choose an item in the Default column to set the default selection for the bundle option.

6. Set the Magento bundle product quantity in the Default Quantity column.

7. Optional: By default, customers can’t change the product quantity of a bundle option. They can only add multiples of the default product value.

Select the User Defined checkbox to let customers customize the bundle item quantity.

8. Repeat the steps listed above to add more bundle product items.

9. Click Save to save the product.

Step 6: Add the Optional Product Information

Configure the optional product information in each of the following sections:

• Content: Add the product description and product details.
• Images and Videos: Add a product image.
• Search Engine Optimization: Optimize the product metadata.
• Related Products, Up-Sells, and Cross-Sells: Add related products.
• Customizable Options: Add product customizations.
• Products in Websites: Assign the product to websites.
• Design: Choose a custom layout.
• Gift Options: Add gift options.

Step 7: Publish the Product

1. Scroll to the top and set the Enable Product toggle to Yes.

2. Click Save to publish the product.

Final Thoughts: How To Add a Bundle Product in Magento

Once you learn how to create a bundle product in Magento, you can create complex product bundles using different bundling strategies.

For example, you can create mix-and-match bundles, product launch bundles, and even buy-one-get-one bundles. The possibilities are endless.

No matter your choice, make sure you back it up with reliable hosting that ensures a stress-free shopping experience.

Dedicated Magento hosting by Hostdedi gives you access to performance-optimized servers without any overhead. We handle the backups, PCI compliance, and security of the infrastructure so you can focus on growth.

Browse our plans for more information.

By building a restaurant website, you can gain a valuable source of new customers.

You can use your website as free advertising for your business with search engine optimization (SEO) for local searches. When nearby users search “restaurant near me” on Google, your website’s homepage can pop up in the search engine results.

But that’s only true if you have an online presence.

Most people research on the internet before going out to eat. If they can easily find your operating hours or restaurant menu, they’ll come to you. A website is one of the easiest yet effective ways to share this information and attract more customers.

Read on to learn:

How To Create a Restaurant Website

1. Choose a Domain
2. Pick a Platform and Hosting
3. Design a Restaurant Website Design
4. Create a Restaurant Website Menu
5. Set Up Online Ordering
6. Establish Your Online Presence

With platforms like WordPress, making a website is no longer a difficult and expensive task. A few days of work may be all you need.

1. Choose a Domain

Choosing your domain name is one of the most important decisions while building your restaurant website. A bad domain can single-handedly ruin your website, while a memorable one will stick in potential customers’ minds.

Here are a few tips for picking a restaurant domain name.

• Keep it short and easy to remember and type.
• Craft it around your restaurant’s name for easier branding.
• Add something like the location (“NYC”) or type of food (“coffee”) If your restaurant’s name is taken.
• Consider using a top-level domain name like .kitchen or .eat.
• Avoid words that customers can misspell or characters like hyphens except as a last resort.

You can often purchase domains alongside web hosting to simplify the process. This is the case with Hostdedi’ domain registration. You can look at domain registrars and narrow down a few ideal choices.

2. Pick a Platform and Hosting

You can avoid coding a website from scratch. Many platforms exist that will let you build a restaurant website with minimal code experience. And the result will still look as professional as something built by a graphic designer and development team.

You can try dedicated ecommerce tools. Some web hosts offer restaurant templates as well. But WordPress with WooCommerce is one of the best choices at the lowest price.

You can go further with Hostdedi’s StoreBuilder, which will help you build your store from scratch and manage it with powerful sales tools.

WordPress needs a web host to get your new restaurant business online. StoreBuilder also solves that with bundled in web hosting.

3. Build a Restaurant Website Design

It’s time to start designing your website.

Pick a suitable restaurant template from WordPress’s free theme repository or a premium seller like ThemeForest, and install any plugins you need.

Get familiar with the tools at your disposal. Experiment with Kadence Blocks if you’re using Hostdedi’s StoreBuilder or similar tools if you’re using other restaurant website builders.

Research. Study restaurant website design, especially famous designs in your industry your competitors use.

Design around your customers’ expectations. If you run a high-end restaurant that serves steak and wine, an elegant or glamorous design would be appropriate. But a family restaurant may do well with a simple and friendly design.

Again, see what other restaurant websites in your niche do. Identify what’s working for them.

Coming to design elements, the little details like colors and fonts are up to your preference. But try to keep it simple and to the point, so it’s easy to skim for mobile readers.

On that note, make sure your website is responsive on all screen sizes. Optimize it to load faster on slow internet. Many people search for nearby restaurants while out and about on their smartphones. Capture their attention by offering a fast and sound user experience.

For the best user experience, make your physical location, opening/closing hours, and contact or booking info immediately accessible.

You can also embed Google Maps or add a click-to-call button by plugins for more functionality.

4. Create a Restaurant Website Menu

The online menu is possibly the most important part of your restaurant web design.

Show off your dishes in galleries with high-quality photography and mouth-watering descriptions. This isn’t just a simple list of menu items but a selling point for your restaurant. Use it to draw in website visitors and get them walking through your door.

But don’t leave out the important information. Make sure to include ingredients, dish options, and potential allergens.

5. Set Up Online Ordering

While this is optional, it’s a good idea to let users book an online reservation or even order using delivery integrations within your website to get food at home or be able to pick up food. It requires a little extra maintenance on your end but offers convenience for your loyal users.

To set up this, add a contact form or email to your website. Include a number for phone reservations, or implement live chat. Make it easy to contact you and ask questions about the menu.

For services like takeout, you’ll need payment gateways like credit cards and PayPal on your website. WooCommerce has many extensions to help you set up different payment methods.

You can also showcase online reviews and testimonials on your website to add social proof from happy restaurant customers.

6. Establish Your Online Presence

While it’s optional, online marketing will take you above and beyond. Making a new website is the first step to getting online. You can grow further by promoting your brand.

You can:

• Set up an email newsletter for updates, event notifications, and coupons.
• Make an online marketing plan to attract customers — start a blog, set up affiliate marketing, and design a traditional ad or video ad campaign.
• Create social media accounts — Facebook and Instagram are great platforms to show off your best dishes.
• Monitor review sites like Yelp and respond courteously to bad reviews.
• Set up Google My Business and optimize for local SEO.

Final Thoughts: How To Build a Restaurant Website: A Step-by-Step Guide

Remember to keep your website up to date. Update your address and contact information if it changes, and the same goes for menu options.

Building a restaurant website with StoreBuilder could be one of the best choices you make for your business. Even without setting up an ordering system, you can get more people walking through your door.

Industry Research estimates the e-learning market in the U.S. will grow by $36.54 billion between 2021 and 2025. With Magento 2 downloadable products, you can leverage this growth to sell ebooks, audiobooks, and other digital products.

Whether you’re an artist or an educator, selling digital products is a great way to maximize your profits. Because, unlike physical products, digital products don’t need to be stocked, packed, or shipped, and you can sell them without ever running out of inventory.

Curious to learn more?

Here’s a complete guide to downloadable products in Magento that covers:

What a Downloadable Product in Magento Is

A downloadable product in Magento is a product type that allows you to sell digital products through your online store. You can upload digital content such as PDFs, audiobooks, and video files to your server or link to ones hosted elsewhere.

You can sell them independently or package them with grouped products. However, you can’t sell downloadable products as a bundle product.

Magento 2 downloadable products let you choose how the content is delivered post-purchase. You can send the content as a link attachment via email or direct customers to log in to their accounts and download the file post-checkout.

How To Create a Magento 2 Downloadable Product

Our tutorial demonstrates the Magento 2 downloadable product creation process. You can refer to Adobe’s guide on configuring download options after creating the product to customize additional settings.

Step 1: Choose the Product Type

In the Magento admin panel, go to Catalog > Products.

Use the Add Product menu on the top-right corner and select Downloadable Product.

Step 2: Select an Attribute Set for the Product

Assign an attribute to the Magento 2 downloadable product using the dropdown.

Alternatively, you can use the default downloadable attribute set or create a new one using the Add Attribute button.

Step 3: Configure the Required Settings

Complete the following required settings for the downloadable product type:

• Product Name: Enter the product name.
• SKU: Use the auto-generated SKU or replace it with a unique value.
• Price: Enter the product price.

Set the Enable Product toggle from the default Yes to No and save the new product.

After the product saves, the Store View assigner appears on the top left under the product name. Use the dropdown to assign the product to a specific store view or use the default value for all stores.

Step 4: Complete the Basic Settings

Configure the value for the following basic product settings:

• Tax Class
• Quantity
• Weight
• Categories
• Visibility
• Set Product as New
• Format

Some of these attributes may vary based on your chosen attribute set or when using Multi Source inventory management.

Step 5: Configure Sources and Quantities (for Multi Source Merchants)

Suppose you’re a Multi Source merchant. In that case, you can assign sources and quantities to the downloadable product in Magento by scrolling down to the Sources section and clicking the Assign Sources button.

Browse the pre-configured sources and select the ones you want to associate by selecting the checkbox next to them.

Once you’ve chosen all sources, click Done to add them.

You can manage the settings for each source in the Sources section as follows:

• Set the Source Item Status to either In Stock or Out of Stock.
• Enter the available stock in the Qty column.
• Configure notifications when the stock drops below a set quantity in the Notify Qty column by unticking the Use default checkbox.

If the above options are greyed out, click the Advanced Inventory button in the Sources section, set Manage Stock to Yes, and click Done. You’ll be able to configure the settings after that.

Step 6: Update the Downloadable Product Information

Scroll down to the Downloadable Information section, expand it, and select the Is this downloadable product? checkbox. That makes the product downloadable.

Two new subsections, Links and Samples, will appear. Here’s how you can configure them.

Step 6A: Configure the Links

In the Links section, enter a value in the Title area to assign a heading for the links on the front end.

You can also click the Links can be purchased separately checkbox to allow customers to buy links separately.

Click Add Link.

Configure the downloadable link as follows:

Add a Title for the downloadable items. The Price option is greyed out as we’ve configured that earlier.

Choose a distribution method using the dropdown in the File column. For example, you can select Upload File to upload the file to your server. Alternatively, choose the URL to enter a link to a file hosted in a different location.

Configure the Shareable setting to define if customers can share the links with others. You can choose one of three options:

1. Yes: To allow customers to share their purchased links.
2. No: To force customers to log in to their accounts to access the links.
3. Use config: To use default settings configured in the Download Options.

To limit the number of times customers can download the product, enter a value in the Max Downloads column. You can select the Unlimited checkbox to remove download limits.

Step 6B: Configure the Samples

In the Samples section, enter a Title to use as the heading for the samples on the front end.

Click the Add Link button to add the sample links.

Enter a Title for the sample download link and choose a distribution method from the available options.

Repeat these steps to add more sample links and reorder them using the grid icon.

Step 7: Complete the Optional Information Sections

Scroll down and add product details inside each of the following optional sections:

• Content
• Images and Videos
• Search Engine Optimization
• Related Products, Up-Sells, and Cross-Sells
• Customizable Options
• Products in Websites
• Design
• Gift Options

Step 8: Publish the Product

Scroll to the top of the page, update the Enable Product toggle to Yes, and click Save to publish the product.

Final Thoughts: A Merchant’s Guide to the Downloadable Product in Magento

The Magento 2 downloadable product makes it easy to sell digital products. You don’t need to rely on a third-party marketplace or worry about sharing commissions.

But if you want to deliver a stress-free shopping experience, make sure you host your digital products on high-reliability servers like the ones from Hostdedi.

We provide an industry-leading 99.99% up-time guarantee on all Magento enterprise hosting plans and access to the Enterprise Support Group to help you tackle Magento-related issues.

Browse our Magento hosting plans to get started today.

Google AdSense is one of the most popular and widely used tools that help you monetize your site. With this program, you can automatically sell space on your site to various advertisers and get paid. Google AdSense is one of the easiest ways to start earning extra money online through your site.

In today’s article, we’ll discuss how to add AdSense to WordPress, together with some tips and best practices to help you monetize your website and make the best out of your ad space.

What is Google AdSense?

Google AdSense is an advertising program from Google that gives website owners and bloggers an opportunity to showcase ads on their websites. In other words, they get to earn money by showing images, videos, text, or some other interactive forms of advertisement in different locations of their site. For instance, you can place them in the footer, sidebar, or in-between posts.

Such ads are highly relevant since they are targeted by audience and site content. Google goes through its ads database and looks for the most related ads based on the overall content you post on your website. For instance, if you post about clothes, you’ll get ads related to shirts and pants on your site.

Related reading: Ecommerce Search Marketing Basics: The Beginner’s Guide >>

Adding AdSense on a WordPress site is hassle free, since Google is there to maintain and administer relationships with your advertisers. Also, Google collects the money and splits it — they take their cut and send the rest of the payment to you.

This program runs on a cost-per-click (CPC) basis. That means every time a visitor clicks on the ad on your site, you get a certain amount of money. The amount is determined by various factors like quality scores or keyword bids.

Benefits of Setting up Google AdSense on WordPress

Before we continue with the details, let’s review the benefits you get when using Google AdSense.

• This program is free to use. That means you don’t have to invest or risk lots of money to get started.
• You get a chance to earn more money. The Google AdSense plugin allows you to monetize your blog or site, which means you get to earn passive income through it. As your traffic gets bigger and the users become more engaged on your site, you’ll automatically earn more money through AdSense.
• It’s easy to use. In fact, all you really need to do is to set it up because Google handles everything else, including things like sizing ads to properly fit mobile and desktop screens. It adjusts the ads based on different factors such as the layout of your site and available space.
• You can use it on multiple sites. In other words, if you have more than one website, you can set the Google AdSense plugin on all of them. The only thing you need to pay attention to here is that your websites are in line with AdSense terms and policies.
• Ads you get on your website have been chosen by Google, so you know they meet quality standards. Also, they are compatible with the content you post as well as the interests of your visitors. There’s a wide variety of advertisers Google works with, which means you can pick ad content relevant to your niche.
• Not only do you choose which ads you’d prefer to see on your website, but you also get a chance to customize their design to match the visual aesthetics of your website.

Now that we’ve covered good things about this tool, let’s go over how to add AdSense to WordPress.

Getting Started With Google Adsense

How to Add Adsense to WordPress

When signing up for an AdSense account, you can use your existing Gmail account. Once you’re done with your application, you’ll need to wait until the Google team reviews it. This can take from a couple of hours to a few weeks.

Once your account is approved, log in and get your ad code. That’s the code you’ll later place on your site when you want to display ads.

Google recently released auto ads, which means you can paste one piece of code only and they automatically decide where, when, and how much your ads are going to be shown. Still, many website owners still go with the manual method and prefer to individually place ads on their sites.

Start Your Google Adsense Account

So, as we’ve mentioned, the first thing you have to do is to sign up for your Adsense account. Click Get Started to see the required fields you need to fill. Now, it’s time to connect Google AdSense account with your WordPress website.

Connect to Your WordPress Website

To do that, follow these steps:

• Go to the Connect your site to AdSense page. Over there, you’ll find a set of code you can embed into the header of your website. Copy the code. Don’t click Done or close the page yet.
• Enter the admin dashboard on your WordPress account.
• Find Appearance -> Theme Editor and click there. Go to the Theme Files section and choose Theme Header.
• Now, paste the code right above the </head> tag.
• Click on Update File. Now, Go to your Google AdSense page and tick the checkbox that says I’ve pasted the code into my site. Select Done.
• You’ll see there’s a dialog box that tells you your account is getting approved. Select Got it.

Insert Ad Unit

How do you add ads to WordPress? Once your account is reviewed and finally activated, you’ll receive a confirmation email. That’s the point where you can start with ad units:

• First, access your Google Adsense dashboard and go to the left side bar to click on My Ads.
• Go to Content -> Ad units and select New ad unit.
• You have different ad types. Choose one, for example, such as Text & Display ads. Customize it the way you prefer and make it more suitable for the overall design of your site.
  1. Name — Come up with a unique name that will represent your ads. You’ll work with multiple ads in the future, so make sure to organize them well.
  2. Ad size — To make it easier, you can choose Responsive. That way, you get ads that adapt to various screen sizes.
  3. Ad type — Of course, you can eventually switch to another type, such as in-article or in-feed ads.
• Click on Save and get code. You’ll see there’s a new window with the Google AdSense code. Copy it because you’ll need that code for your next step.

Embed Ad Code to WordPress

So, you got the ad code, which means now it’s time to embed it on your WordPress website. You can do it in two ways — by using a plugin or manually.

If you want to add the code manually, follow these steps:

• Visit the WordPress dashboard and go to Appearance -> Widgets.
• Choose Text so you can decide where you want your ads to be displayed. For instance, you can locate the ad at the footer. Click Add Widget.
• Fill in the Title field. Of course, you can leave it empty if you want. Now, find the Content field. That’s where you’ll paste your code. Save the changes you’ve made.

If you’d rather go with an easier option, install an ad plugin. WordPress offers many of them, and here are two really popular ones:

• Advanced Ads will help you manage the ads with features like saving ads draft, displaying unlimited ads, or even scheduling them. Of course, if you pay more, you get the Pro plan that will bring you extra features such as alternative ads for visitors who use ad-block programs or click fraud protection.
• Ad Inserter is a rather useful plugin that allows you to insert ads on the website. It includes options such as between posts, or before and after posts on your pages. Here you also get a chance to get the Pro license for more additions, such as sticky ad animations or sticky sidebar ads.

Best Practices for Google Adsense

Now that we’ve covered how to add AdSense to WordPress and some other technical stuff, let’s see how to make the most out of this tool.

How to Use Google Adsense on WordPress

• Check and follow the AdSense program policies and quality guidelines so the Google team quickly approves your website.
• Where should you locate the ads? Well, you want to use a visible spot where you’ll get more clicks. It’s hard to find a general formula for that, but, you can try to place the ad within post content towards the top of the screen. Other than that, the perfect placement mostly depends on your site’s layout. If you need some help with this part, you can try AdSense heatmaps.
• So, what about the best ad size? Ad placement is incredibly important, but size is also one of the main factors that can largely influence the success of your campaign. The practice has shown the best ad sizes are 300×250 and 336×280. Ads in such sizes fit the best on different screen sizes, which means they have the best pay rate too. However, the perfect ad size also depends on the overall layout of your website.
• Make sure to create content that will attract visitors as well as engage them once they come to your site. This way, you’ll boost the chances of getting more clicks — which automatically means more earnings.

How Not to Use Google Adsense on WordPress

• Even though it can be tempting, don’t click on your own ads or ask your friends and family to do that. Google has a pretty smart algorithm, which means it will “find out” you’re doing that. You won’t get any benefits from clicking on your own ads, and you may also end up banned from AdSense.
• Don’t clutter the website with a bunch of irrelevant ads. “The more, the merrier” is not something that works when it comes to algorithms. In fact, if you have more ads than content on the page, Google may either disable or limit ad serving until you remove some of the extra ads.
• Don’t force visitors to click on the ads by putting too many call-to-action (CTA) texts such as “Click on this ad.”
• Don’t include floating WordPress AdSense widgets to make your ads more prominent. Google Terms of Service don’t allow this, and if you violate the rules, you can get limited or banned from this program.

Now You Know

We hope you now understand how to add ads to WordPress as well as best practices related to AdSense on WordPress.

AdSense is an extremely useful tool. Google’s advertising program allows you to sell space on your website and earn extra money by monetizing it. You can locate the ads all across your website, but also get some help from the program itself — for example, by using AdSense heatmaps.

Google AdSense provides numerous benefits: it’s simple and free to use, uses ads that fit the context of your entire website, and meets quality standards — plus, you can customize the ads the way you prefer.

The program itself runs on a cost-per-click basis, which means the more unique visitors click on your ads, the more money you get to earn. However, the total earnings are determined by different factors such as quality scores or keyword bids.

Hostdedi Makes WordPress Better

Google AdSense is one of many tools that will help you make the most out of your WordPress website. As the most popular CMS on the internet, there are many reasons to use WordPress.

Coupled with that, WordPress hosting provides you with both storage and access to your site. With the right host, you also get 24/7/365 support that will help you with all of your issues and questions.

Hostdedi offers different WordPress hosting plans suitable for both beginners and professionals who are into creating top-notch WordPress sites.

Consider Hosting With Hostdedi

With Hostdedi, you get fully managed hosting optimized for WordPress. That means a faster, more secure, and scalable website as well as smart monitoring built-in tools to help you keep it that way. Migrations are free, plus you get a 30-Day Money Back Guarantee included in every plan.

Check out our fully managed WordPress hosting plans to get started today.

ATLANTA, GA. March 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Hostdedi, the fully managed, high-performance, cloud platform built to optimize WordPress, WooCommerce, and Magento sites and stores, today announced a partnership with StudentBeans, the world’s leading student loyalty network. The partnership expands the reach of Hostdedi’ high quality cloud hosting, premium software plugins, and site management tools to students around the world.

Having supported over 163 million students across the US and in 100 countries around the world, StudentBeans connects students with exclusive deals and discounts — now including Hostdedi’ fully managed hosting products.

Through StudentBeans, students can get 50% off a year of fully managed hosting with Hostdedi, enabling them to create secure sites and stores to showcase their portfolios, start an online business, and more.

“For students entering the workforce, or starting a business of their own, a strong online presence is no longer optional,” says Terry Trout, SVP of Marketing. “We’re thrilled to partner with Student Beans to provide these students access to our WordPress solutions for building their sites and stores. WordPress is the most used CMS in the world, powering over 40% of the Internet and an estimated 64 million websites. We’d love to be the provider that introduces them to the power and flexibility of this platform and be a part of their entrepreneurial or career journey.”

Hostdedi brings together high quality hosting with plugins and tools that work together to make it easier to build and manage a site or store. The Fully Managed Hosting experience provides infrastructure management that keeps hosting secure and up to date and comes with built-in monitoring that alerts customers when there is a problem with performance. Users can count on faster speeds, stronger security, inherent scalability, and help when they need it.

“This partnership between Hostdedi and StudentBeans includes access to StoreBuilder to help entrepreneurial students get online faster than starting from scratch,” says Trout. “With a few simple inputs, you can begin building an ecommerce store in minutes.”

It’s not just students who can take advantage of discounted managed web hosting from Hostdedi. From March 7-20, Hostdedi will extend the savings to the public, with up to 60% off Magento, WordPress, and WooCommerce hosting plans.

All Hostdedi fully managed solutions come bundled with 24/7 security monitoring, instant autoscaling, an integrated CDN, premium image compression, and expert, award-winning support.

For more on the exclusive student discount for fully managed hosting, visit StudentBeans.

For more information about Hostdedi, visit nexcess.net.

About Hostdedi

Hostdedi has been serving SMBs and the designers, developers, and agencies who create for them for more than 22 years by providing a fully managed, high-performance cloud solution built to optimize WordPress, WooCommerce, and Magento sites and stores. As a company within The Liquid Web Family of Brands, we own and manage 10 global data centers, and collectively serve over 45,000 customers spanning 150 countries and provide unparalleled service from a dedicated group of experts 24/7/365. As an industry leader in customer service, the rapidly expanding brand family has been recognized among INC. Magazine’s 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies for twelve years.

Learn more about the Liquid Web Family of Brands and StellarWP.

There’s a critical stage between developing an application and launching it — and that’s testing.

In the world of ecommerce, even the greatest marketing strategies, web designs, sales campaigns, and SEO practices can all be for nothing when errors and bugs crash your website.

To avoid this costly problem, this blog will cover ecommerce tips specifically related to ecommerce UAT, otherwise known as user acceptance testing.

Keep reading to:

• Learn what user acceptance testing is.
• See user acceptance testing examples.
• Learn user acceptance testing best practices.
• Get a user acceptance testing checklist.

What is User Acceptance Testing?

User acceptance testing (UAT) is a type of testing and one of the final stages of the overall cycle of software development life cycle. It’s also called end user testing. UAT is an important part of the process because it validates end-to-end business functionality.

It doesn’t focus on things like spelling mistakes or cosmetic errors. Instead, UAT occurs in a separate testing environment that has a production-like data setup.

Who performs UAT? The client or the end-user does it in order to verify/accept the software system after thorough integration, functional, and system testing. It’s the stage that comes before you decide to move the software application to the production environment.

What Is Ecommerce UAT?

UAT is a vital step if you have an ecommerce business. Ecommerce UAT helps you determine if your site and its functions meet necessary criteria to be successful on the market.

Within this stage, you can discover anomalies and bugs that can hinder your website’s sales and ruin your brand’s image. By testing ahead of time, you can uncover these flaws before they go live on your site.

User Acceptance Testing Examples

Here we’ll talk about how UAT looks in practice.

Test Plan

For any type of QA test, you need to prepare a test plan you’ll use to keep up with the whole project. The first step is to create the test cases.

Test Case

A test case lays out all the features and functions of your website or application that need to be tested. Some ecommerce website testing test cases include:

• Entering a promo code.
• Adding items to the cart.
• Sharing items on social media.
• Plus many other functions.

With user stories, you can check if your site meets the requirements you specified.

For instance, an online customer wants to place their cursor on some product to see information related to that product such as name, image, color options, and price. Using the user story, a person who’s performing the test can check if this function works well or not.

Testing Configurations

After you’ve outlined your test cases, you then need to consider test coverage across different configurations most common to your audience. Ecommerce UAT must cover proper testing configurations across different browsers, devices, and operating systems.

Since most of today’s traffic on the Internet comes from mobile phones, think mobile first. When performing user acceptance testing, test your website using a combination of testing configurations that represent both markets and specific habits of your customers.

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UAT Design

When you’re in the design phase, it’s crucial to determine the best way to execute your tests.

This includes making a choice between an automated or manual approach when it comes to testing. If you go with a manual approach, the next step is deciding between scenario-based or  exploratory methods.

In exploratory testing, your team will randomly, but still purposefully, explore your site and test features they may come across. In scenario-based methodology, testers follow a detailed and rather precise script or testing guide to examine specific functions.

UAT Execution

For better test execution, consider using a professional, objective testing team with relevant experience and training. For some companies, this could mean turning to their in-house QA testers or simply choosing the services of a third-party.

However, if you’re an ecommerce store owner, you’re probably on your own when it comes to testing — and doing everything else to run your business too. You probably don’t have the time or resources to devote to testing.

To help you test critical ecommerce website features, Hostdedi offers built-in WooCommerce automated testing. This keeps your store running smoothly without any major effort on your end.

User Acceptance Testing Best Practices

Here are some user acceptance testing best practices to consider for your ecommerce site.

Pay Attention to Details in Test Cases

With clear test cases, you will be able to streamline the entire testing process and clarify desired outcomes. Detailed test cases will provide you with a better understanding of what you need to do in practice. It will help developers see what needs to be fixed before checking in their code.

Be More Specific

You want your test cases to be as specific and thorough as possible. Specify literally everything you can think of: what account to use, what buttons to click, what data to enter, and what results your end user is supposed to see.

Use test cases to check how new functionalities and features fit in with existing ones. Let’s say you want to update the View Cart page of your app. You need to predict potential user actions on your website to test if everything is going to perform well.

With this in mind, include test cases with different scenarios such as one where your visitor completes the purchase, abandons it, and potentially comes back later.

Create Negative Test Cases

Negative test cases are things that shouldn’t happen when a user comes to your site. Too many times, test cases focus on the best possible scenarios where the user goes to the page, clicks the button, and successfully gets the message.

However, what will happen if a visitor does something you haven’t expected? Ideally, your test cases will include specific actions a user can take, together with what should happen as a result of that.

For instance, you have a new phone number field. What will happen if a visitor enters their number in some unusual format, like letters instead of numbers? Also, what happens if it leaves it blank instead? The more precise your negative test cases are, the fewer patches you’ll have to create in the future.

Don’t Let Developers Test Your Application

Before the testing process begins, define who will perform it. Don’t include your development team: this is the user test and developers are only supposed to deal with test results in order to fix bugs.

If the application you want to test is internal, it would be best to let the actual users do the testing. After all, they’re best suited to know what exactly they’re looking for in the application and which features they want to use.

If you’re building an application for external users, find a team member who’s familiar with its purpose to test it.

User Acceptance Testing Checklist

Below, you’ll find a user acceptance testing checklist to simplify your processes.

Initiate the UAT Project

When starting with ecommerce UAT, make sure you:

• Identify who your key stakeholders are. Generally speaking, stakeholders are individuals who are concerned or have an interest in the outcome of your activity/project.
• Choose a team leader who will take responsibility for monitoring and planning UAT activities and communicate decision making structures.
• Communicate the project intent, goals, and general criteria of the system.
• Agree on your UAT team and the resources they get.
• Agree on necessary documentation to support UAT.
• Form an initial project plan for UAT and initiate the training.

Planning the Ecommerce UAT

When planning, include the following tasks:

• Look for the best approach to the testing process by identifying the method of system acquisition.
• Check if the end user expectations and business intent are measurable.
• Verify that all requirement types are included and the business requirements are captured.
• Check the acceptance criteria.
• Capture the business processes.
• Evaluate if your current documentation is sustainable to become a test basis.

UAT Design

These are steps for UAT that will help you get the desired outcome:

• Determine the entry criteria for UAT.
• Review test scripts where available.
• Define the testing strategy.
• Review existing tests and write new test conditions if necessary.
• Review existing test cases and write new test cases based on reviewed test conditions.
• Write test scripts for your test cases.
• Make sure your tests cover all the necessary requirements.

UAT Execution

UAT execution includes the following tasks:

• Check availability and the conditions of the UAT environment.
• Define the priorities in your strategy.
• Create a detailed test schedule to make the most out of the available resources.
• Make sure your test log is up to date.
• Make sure all incidents are reported on time.
• Communicate with your developers to make sure there are no bottlenecks.
• Create test summary reports on a regular basis.

UAT Release Decisions

The following steps will help your team to decide if you should release the project or it’s not ready yet:

• Identify status against acceptance criteria as well as time and effort needed to meet them in detail.
• Look for alternative options based on potential risks.
• Determine emergency release criteria to enable release in controlled conditions.
• Report the status of the testing project to key stakeholders and prepare alternative suggestions for release.
• Get a complete UAT report with suggestions and recommendations ready.

Post-Testing Actions

What can you do when the UAT project is finished?

• Carry out user training planning and design.
• Ensure post-release support.
• Keep up with continuous testing.
• Create a UAT report with FAQ.

Now You Know

Ecommerce UAT ensures your website is in its best shape and error free. Many tend to overlook this step, even though it is critical to a solid ecommerce strategy.

You can do all these testing steps yourself, or you can leave it to the experts. With a proper ecommerce hosting solution like Hostdedi, you get the full package: built-in testing, sales monitoring, and all backed by high-performance hosting.

Hostdedi automatically tests your ecommerce website for you, so you don’t have to worry. Check out the Hostdedi-exclusive WooCommerce automated testing feature to learn more.

Or, check out our WooCommerce hosting plans to get started today.

Need to embed an iFrame on your WordPress site? Learn how to use iFrames on your WordPress site with this in-depth tutorial. Below we will cover the basics of an iframe and how you can embed iframe code in WordPress.

Keep reading to learn:

• What are iFrames and how do they work?
• iFrame vs. Embed
• Using iFrames With WordPress

What Are iFrames?

An Inline Frame, also known as an iFrame, allows for one webpage to be embedded inside of another webpage. This can be helpful when, say, displaying a map of your organization’s physical address (such as a storefront) on your WordPress website. Map tools will commonly provide embed code, such as an iFrame, to display a map as a part of a page on your website.

The use of an iFrame is also popular with adding embedded YouTube videos on your website. If you click the “share” button under a video on YouTube, there is an “embed” option — alongside the typical social network platforms — that you can use on a WordPress page or post.

Can I Use iFrames in WordPress?

Yes, WordPress iFrames are supported as a means by which to embed content into a post or page of your website. There are a couple of options to consider when adding external content to your site, with an iFrame being a popular option that is supported by WordPress.

What Is the Difference Between iFrame and Embed?

While iFrames are a technology for embedding content on your site, WordPress also offers a feature, known simply as an Embed, that is configured for common content sources, such as YouTube.

That said, you may want to consider the “embed” feature of the WordPress block editor, which supports many sites and services out of the box, before reaching for an iFrame directly.

How to Use iFrames With WordPress

Block Editor

While the WordPress block editor does not have a default block for adding iFrames, there are a number of plugins that support adding iFrames to your WordPress posts and/or pages. Using a block would be the preferred method for adding an iFrame to the page.

Related reading: How to Use WordPress Gutenberg Blocks >>

If you do not already have a plugin with an iFrame block installed on your WordPress site, blocks can be searched and installed directly from the block editor. Alternatively, you can install the plugin using the WordPress admin dashboard and then return to editing your page/post.

Shortcode

If your website is using the classic editor, as opposed to the newer block editor, then you can add iFrames to your pages and posts using a shortcode, which is provided by a number of plugins. Similar to the iFrame block mentioned above, a shortcode can be used to add an iFrame to your website.

Embed Code (HTML)

Sometimes, a site’s embed code isn’t as simple as a URL. In such a case the embed code can be added to a WordPress page using the HTML block. If this is necessary, then the site or service will provide the embed code that can be copied and pasted onto the page. In WordPress, this would use either the custom HTML block in the block editor or the HTML tab of the classic editor.

Limitations of iFrames

Keep in mind that not all web pages can be embedded. Some sites specifically prevent themselves from being embedded in another page.

If that is the case, check if the site or service has an alternative method that is recommended for embedding its content.

Now You Know

Now you should be familiar with the basics of iFrames and how to embed iFrame code in WordPress, as well as some alternative options to consider, depending on the source of the content that is embedded.

Hostdedi Makes WordPress Better

WordPress is great, but you need a great host too. That’s where Hostdedi comes in.

Fully managed WordPress hosting from Hostdedi brings out the best in your site. With Hostdedi, you:

• Get premium tools at your disposal.
• Stay secure with iThemes Security Pro.
• Load fast with built-in image compression, advance caching, and CDN.

And just in case something goes amiss, Hostdedi’ WordPress experts are there for you 24/7.

Check out our fully managed WordPress hosting plans to get started today.

How do you decide between open source vs. proprietary technology?

From ecommerce to content management, the open source vs. proprietary debate arises frequently when evaluating web technologies.

In this post, we’ll cover the differences and benefits of using open source or proprietary technology and highlight a shortcut to quickly and easily build ecommerce websites on an open source platform.

Open Source vs. Proprietary: Differences

Open source refers to technology and software that is available for anyone to use or edit. Proprietary is copyrighted technology that must be used with a license.

What is the Difference Between Open Source and Proprietary Software?

Open source software is publicly available without a licensing fee or restrictions on use or modification. The companies that own and publish proprietary software charge licensing fees and restrict the use and modification of their technology.

Differences Between Open Source vs. Proprietary

Open Source vs. Proprietary	Open Source	Proprietary
Open Source vs. Proprietary Cost	Open source software is free to use and modify. For web technologies, you still need to pay for web hosting or set up your own server.	Proprietary software requires companies to purchase a license. While companies sell some proprietary software as a one-time purchase, most businesses use a subscription model known as Software as a Service (SaaS).
Open Source vs. Proprietary Updates and Maintenance	Companies can publish open source software, but open source is often community-maintained. Either way, you can expect periodic updates and patches.	Proprietary software companies release regular updates with new features and bug fixes.
Open Source vs. Proprietary Flexibility	With open source software, you’re free to use or modify the code as needed.	Proprietary software comes with restrictions. You most likely won’t have access to modify the code. Companies also place limits on the software, such as the number of users or transactions.
Open Source vs. Proprietary Support	When you run into issues with an open source system, you’re stuck searching community forums and documentation for answers. You also can hire a developer with experience with the platform.	Proprietary software companies normally have support teams to help customers troubleshoot issues.

Open Source vs. Proprietary Examples

You can find open source software in various categories. Below are some of the most common open source and proprietary software examples in the web and mobile development space.

Types of Open Source vs. Proprietary Examples	Open Source	Proprietary
Content Management System or Website Builder	WordPress, ExpressionEngine, Drupal	Wix, Squarespace, Weebly
Ecommerce Platform	WooCommerce, Magento Open Source	BigCommerce, Shopify, Magento Commerce
Mobile Operating System	Android	iOS

Open Source vs. Proprietary: Which Should You Choose?

Proprietary and open source technologies both have advantages. Deciding between the two often comes down to your level of technical expertise and need for customization.

Benefits of open source technologies include:

• Control. With an open source system, you have total control. You can change the code if needed. You also own the system and can control who has access to it and any data it includes.
• Flexibility. There are no limits on open source software. You can customize it to your heart’s content. Also, you won’t be bound by licensing or usage limits. For example, BigCommerce places annual sales limits on its plans. If you exceed a certain threshold in annual sales, you have to upgrade to the next plan level.
• Costs. Open source software is free. You’re only paying for any technical infrastructure like hosting and the staff or contractor resources needed to build out the system.

Benefits of proprietary technology include:

• Ease of Use. Proprietary systems tend to be more turnkey. If you want to open an online store, many people find it’s easier than building a WooCommerce store from scratch.
• Dedicated Support. Proprietary software offers dedicated support for customers, so you aren’t at the mercy of community discussion boards and YouTube videos.
• All-in-One Subscription. Many SaaS platforms include hosting. You might have to purchase your domain registration, but everything else is included.

Get the Benefits of Both Open Source and Proprietary

If you want to build an ecommerce site and enjoy the best of both worlds when it comes to open source and proprietary software, consider using StoreBuilder by Hostdedi. StoreBuilder’s innovative platform runs on WooCommerce, the most popular open source ecommerce platform. But, unlike setting up a store from scratch, StoreBuilder makes building your online store even easier than using the most popular proprietary systems.

Just answer some questions about your store, and StoreBuilder’s AI engines do the rest. StoreBuilder also includes all of the premium plugins you need to make a stellar WooCommerce store. Plus, you’ll have access to our team of WordPress and WooCommerce experts.

Hostdedi Stands By the Open Source Community

At Hostdedi, we believe in the power of open source technology and support the businesses and developers utilizing platforms like WordPress and WooCommerce.

Unlike systems like Shopify or BigCommerce, the site you build with StoreBuilder is 100% portable. Meaning you can keep using your store with WooCommerce without paying for StoreBuilder.

Continuing your StoreBuilder subscription gives you access to automatic updates and our state-of-the-art sales performance monitor. But if you’re a freelancer looking for a faster way to build websites for clients, StoreBuilder is an excellent choice for quickly launching WooCommerce sites.

Whether you’re a freelancer, agency, or business owner, Hostdedi offers the best hosting for any open source solution.

Get started with StoreBuilder today.