The List
Hello all. Well, my homework assignment is complete. My shopping cart list has been made. I used shopping-cart-reviews.com. I did a search for all shopping carts for the Windows operating system. That gave me 144 to choose from. They range in price from free to a couple thousand dollars each. I didn't sort at all by price as it doesn't seem to directly corelate to the features or options much.
As you read my search options and methods, keep in mind, these are MY choices and reflect my personal opinion and my personal situation. You may have a completely different set of needs and wants with your business and that's quite alright. I'm OK, you're OK.... kum ba yah.
And so the contest begins. I started eliminating shopping carts based on the options I see as important. First and foremost, I need a user friendly software since I'm a newbie. There are a few that look intersting but too intimidating at this point in my ecommerce career. Unlimited products and categories is a must for our business, shipping options, and tax calculating is next in line. I also want the ability to use gift certificates and discounts but it's not a deal breaker at this point. Good reviews also weigh in but again, not a deal breaker. This got me down to 14 carts.
Next, I took a closer look at each company web site. I looked to see how hard it was to find some form of support. I checked to see if I could find a phone number and physical address in the US. Don't get the wrong impression here, that certainly doesn't mean I won't do business with anyone outside the US but I don't want to have to chase someone down in Australia if I have a problem in Missouri. I also checked out the look and feel of the site. This is purely a gut instinct thing but it plays in there somewhere. I also took a quick peek at any sample sites offered. This got me down to six.
And here they are and not in order of ranking, just in the order I have them written down.....
ASPDotNet Storefront ML - This package had lots of good reviews and offers the appropriate options. As a bonus to me, it will allow us to use our current merchant service. This is not a deal breaker but a definite plus. I did notice the cost in shopping-cart-reviews.com is shown as $699 but the company site quotes it at $899. Then comes a slight negative. There are two options, one for integration with our software and one for support that cost $199 each. Others also charge for support so that is not unique to this package.
Cart Genie - Made the cut on reviews and options offered alone. It's cost is $599.
ClickCart Pro - Good reviews and offerings. Has web-based admin which makes me nervous but I left it on the list. Cost... $249.
PDG Commerce - This is the shining star in the group for me. I didn't find anything negative here... which may mean it's too good to be true. It integrates with Quickbooks but I don't know yet if it integrates with QB POS. This is really what would do me the most good.... huge bonus in my book. I get to keep my merchant service, another bonus. No reviews but not a deal breaker. Cost is $999
Product Cart - Good reviews and offerings. Cost is $495
Miva Merchant5 - I've been reading about this in Michelle's "A Day In The Life" blog so I would like to check it out. Cost is $999.
As a side note, I wanted to check out CubeCart as recommended by Euan but it doesn't do a few key things I need. I may still do a download as I am curious about it.
The next step will be to download a free trial of each if available and find out as much as I can about each one. I may drop some emails out to folks who are using it to see what they think.
I feel pretty good about my list. I'm sure there are things that are more important than those I note as important but I have to stick with what I know right now. There is a lot of uncharted territory out there for me and I have to start somewhere. Wish me luck!
I'm hoping to run these carts through the final check-out and have a decision in a few short weeks. I will keep you posted on my progress.
Till next time, Sandy
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