BigCommerce provides a robust platform for businesses looking to establish and scale their online presence. But the platform itself is just the starting point. To truly maximize its potential, understanding and utilizing the available tools is crucial. From built-in features to third-party integrations, BigCommerce offers a diverse toolkit designed to streamline operations, enhance customer experience, and drive sales growth. Let’s dive into the essential BigCommerce tools that can elevate your e-commerce strategy.
BigCommerce Native Tools
BigCommerce comes equipped with a plethora of built-in tools designed to handle various aspects of your online store. Leveraging these native features can significantly reduce reliance on external applications and streamline your workflow.
Product Management Tools
Managing your product catalog efficiently is vital for a successful e-commerce business. BigCommerce offers powerful product management tools right out of the box.
- Product Variants: Easily create variations of your products (e.g., size, color) to offer customers diverse options without creating duplicate listings.
Example: Selling a t-shirt in different sizes (S, M, L, XL) and colors (Red, Blue, Green) is easily managed using product variants.
- Bulk Import/Export: Save time by importing and exporting product data in bulk using CSV files. This is particularly useful for migrating from another platform or updating a large product catalog.
- Product Options & Custom Fields: Provide customers with more customization options and collect specific information during the ordering process.
Example: Offer gift wrapping with a personalized message box at checkout. Or, for custom-made products, allow customers to upload images or specify dimensions.
- Inventory Management: Track your stock levels in real-time and set up low-stock alerts to avoid overselling.
Marketing & SEO Tools
BigCommerce understands the importance of attracting customers and getting found online. It provides a range of built-in tools to help you market your store and optimize it for search engines.
- Built-in Blog: Create engaging content directly on your BigCommerce store to attract organic traffic and establish your brand as an authority in your niche.
- SEO-Friendly URLs: BigCommerce automatically generates clean, SEO-friendly URLs for your products and categories.
- Coupon Codes & Promotions: Offer discounts and promotions to incentivize purchases and boost sales.
Example: Create a “Back to School” promotion with a 15% discount on all backpacks and school supplies.
- Email Marketing Integrations: Integrate seamlessly with popular email marketing platforms like Mailchimp, Klaviyo, and ActiveCampaign to nurture leads and drive repeat sales. (While integrations are third-party, BigCommerce facilitates them easily).
Customer Management Tools
Building strong customer relationships is crucial for long-term success. BigCommerce provides tools to manage customer data and provide excellent customer service.
- Customer Accounts: Allow customers to create accounts, save their shipping addresses and payment information, and track their order history.
- Order Management: Easily manage and track orders from placement to fulfillment.
- Customer Segmentation: Segment your customer base based on demographics, purchase history, and other factors to personalize your marketing efforts.
BigCommerce App Marketplace
Beyond the native tools, the BigCommerce App Marketplace offers a wide array of third-party integrations to extend the platform’s functionality and address specific business needs. These apps cover everything from marketing and sales to accounting and customer service.
Marketing & Sales Apps
These apps can help you drive traffic, increase conversions, and boost sales.
- Klaviyo: A powerful email marketing and automation platform designed specifically for e-commerce. It allows you to create personalized email campaigns, automate email sequences, and track your results.
Example: Setting up a welcome email series for new subscribers or a win-back campaign for inactive customers.
- Shippo: Simplifies shipping by allowing you to compare rates from multiple carriers, print shipping labels, and track shipments.
- Yotpo: A comprehensive platform for collecting and displaying customer reviews, ratings, and Q&A. Social proof is crucial for building trust and driving sales. Studies show that products with reviews have significantly higher conversion rates.
- Smile.io: Build a robust loyalty program with points, rewards, and VIP tiers to encourage repeat purchases and increase customer lifetime value.
Accounting & Finance Apps
Integrate your BigCommerce store with accounting software to streamline your financial management.
- QuickBooks Online: A popular accounting software that helps you track your income and expenses, manage your inventory, and generate financial reports.
- Xero: Another leading cloud-based accounting software offering similar features to QuickBooks Online.
Customer Service Apps
Improve your customer support and build stronger relationships with your customers.
- Zendesk: A comprehensive customer service platform that allows you to manage support tickets, track customer interactions, and provide self-service resources.
- LiveChat: Engage with customers in real-time on your website to answer their questions and provide assistance.
BigCommerce Analytics and Reporting
Understanding your store’s performance is critical for making informed decisions and optimizing your strategy. BigCommerce provides built-in analytics and reporting tools to track key metrics and gain insights into customer behavior.
Built-in Analytics Dashboard
The BigCommerce dashboard provides a high-level overview of your store’s performance, including:
- Revenue: Track your total sales revenue over time.
- Orders: Monitor the number of orders placed.
- Conversion Rate: See the percentage of visitors who make a purchase.
- Top Selling Products: Identify your best-selling products.
- Traffic Sources: Understand where your traffic is coming from (e.g., organic search, social media, paid advertising).
Advanced Reporting
BigCommerce also offers more detailed reporting options, including:
- Sales Reports: Analyze your sales data by product, category, customer, and more.
- Marketing Reports: Track the performance of your marketing campaigns.
- Customer Reports: Gain insights into customer demographics, purchase behavior, and lifetime value.
- Abandoned Cart Reports: Identify potential issues in your checkout process by analyzing abandoned carts.
Google Analytics Integration
Integrate your BigCommerce store with Google Analytics for even more comprehensive tracking and analysis. Google Analytics provides valuable data on website traffic, user behavior, and conversion goals. This integration allows for deeper insights into things such as:
- Audience Demographics: Understanding the age, gender, and interests of your website visitors.
- User Flow: Tracking how users navigate your website and identifying areas for improvement.
- Goal Tracking: Setting up conversion goals and tracking your progress.
BigCommerce SEO Best Practices
Optimizing your BigCommerce store for search engines is essential for driving organic traffic and increasing visibility.
Keyword Research
- Identify Relevant Keywords: Use keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, or SEMrush to find relevant keywords that your target audience is searching for. Focus on long-tail keywords that are more specific and less competitive.
* Example: Instead of targeting “shoes,” target “comfortable walking shoes for women.”
On-Page Optimization
- Optimize Product Titles and Descriptions: Use relevant keywords in your product titles and descriptions to improve search engine rankings. Write clear, concise, and compelling descriptions that highlight the benefits of your products.
- Use Heading Tags: Use heading tags (H1, H2, H3) to structure your content and make it easier for search engines to understand. Use your primary keyword in your H1 tag.
- Optimize Images: Use descriptive alt text for your images to improve accessibility and help search engines understand the content of your images. Compress your images to reduce file size and improve page load speed.
- Internal Linking: Link to other relevant pages on your website to improve navigation and help search engines crawl your site more effectively.
Technical SEO
- Mobile-Friendliness: Ensure that your website is mobile-friendly, as Google prioritizes mobile-first indexing.
- Page Speed: Optimize your website’s page speed to improve user experience and search engine rankings. Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to identify areas for improvement.
- SSL Certificate: Make sure that your website has an SSL certificate to encrypt data and protect your customers’ information. This is represented by the “https” in your website address and the padlock icon.
- Sitemap Submission: Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console to help Google crawl and index your website.
Conclusion
BigCommerce offers a powerful and versatile platform for e-commerce businesses of all sizes. By leveraging the native tools, exploring the app marketplace, and implementing SEO best practices, you can unlock the full potential of BigCommerce and create a successful online store. Remember to continuously analyze your performance, adapt your strategy, and stay up-to-date with the latest e-commerce trends to remain competitive in the ever-evolving online landscape.
