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Aphix vs Shopify | eCommerce Comparison

Choosing the right eCommerce platform for your business can be a daunting and tough decision. That's why we took the time to compare the Aphix eCommerce Platform against Shopify's eCommerce Platform.

Kevin Faulkner - Marketing Executive Written by Kevin Faulkner - Marketing Executive 21 Sep 2020 in Best eCommerce Platform

Choosing the right eCommerce platform for your business is tough. There are so many solutions available and they are all very different. Inevitably during your research, you will come across Shopify as it’s one of the best-known starting points for small businesses taking their first steps towards selling online.

If you’re a small to medium-sized business looking towards eCommerce or a larger enterprise who’s unhappy with your existing eCommerce solution, the following content will help you understand Aphix’s eCommerce when compared to Shopify’s.

We want to help you make the right decision, and in this post, we’ll be putting Aphix and Shopify head-to-head in terms of the most critical factors to be taken into consideration when making such a business changing decision.

The 10 areas we’ll be comparing are:

  1. Specialisation
  2. ERP Integration
  3. Ability to Edit Code
  4. Security
  5. Hosting
  6. Complexity
  7. Scalability
  8. Upgrades
  9. Features
  10. Pricing

See the comparison table below:

Aphix VS Shopify Comparison Table

So without any further ado, let’s get started.

  1. Specialisation

    The Aphix Digital Platform is developed with B2B, B2C and D2C market needs in mind. We understand the complex nature of B2B for wholesalers, distributors and manufacturers while catering for the needs of retailers who have a less complex approach to products, pricing and volume discounting.

    Shopify’s origins and main speciality is mom and pop stores on the B2C market. Although, in 2014, they launched Shopify Plus, a more mature solution that now has some extra features which are aimed towards the B2B market.

  2. ERP Integration

    As a certified technology partner with most major ERP providers, Aphix takes security very seriously. We provide a “closed source” SaaS software, which means that only the Aphix team can access and edit the code of your eCommerce solutions. We’re PCI compliant, and that means we maintain all webshops under a secure and safe network, and we offer SSL security, system monitoring, firewall management, backups, and security updates.

    Shopify doesn’t offer out-of-the-box, real-time ERP integration and neither does Shopify Plus for this matter. However, it requires a connector that provides this integration between your ERP and web store. 3rd party connectors lead to extra costs, they increase complexity, add another stakeholder to the mix and can cause issues if not up-to-date with both systems.

  3. Ability to Edit Code

    Aphix’s philosophy Is that no business should have to write code. We do that for you, entirely. If you need anything from a contact form to live chat to tracking and analytics tools, we have all the tools to meet your expectations and needs. If you need to change your store’s content, we have a great CMS that will allow you to do so. We are here to help you with all your eCommerce related needs.

    Shopify is also "closed-source", they allow you to edit your theme code to make changes to your online store. Their theme files contain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files. This is great as long as you understand what you are doing and have coding skills, or have an in-house developer to look after that for you. Otherwise, it should be left untouched so you don't mess up your store.

  4. Security

    As a certified technology partner with most major ERP providers, Aphix takes security very seriously. We provide a “closed source” SaaS software, which means that only the Aphix team can access and edit the code of your eCommerce solutions. We’re PCI compliant, and that means we maintain all webshops under a secure and safe network, and we offer SSL security, system monitoring, firewall management, backups, and security updates.

    Shopify also ranks well when it comes to security. Shopify is also PCI compliant and offers SSL security on the sites that they host. They have 2-step authentication and 3D Secure to verify online purchases and the cardholder’s identity to prevent fraud. In general, we found that Shopify follows all best practices when it comes to security for their users.

  5. Hosting

    Aphix is a cloud-based solution and as such, we provide hosting to all our customers on the world’s leading cloud provider, Amazon Web Services (AWS). Our amazon hosting usage is based on a fair use policy and is set up in the Amazon data centres closest to your ERP installation base guaranteeing uptime of 99.95%.

    Shopify is also cloud-based, and hosting is included with all of their subscription plans. This ensures that you won’t have to look for third-party hosting and deal with any challenges that come with managing it. Each plan includes fairly good, unmetered hosting for your online shop.

  6. Complexity

    Aphix offers an intuitive and easy to use CMS with an intuitive user interface that makes for great customer experience. The back-end allows you to build beautiful web pages even if you’ve never done it before. Also, Aphix provides a full day of hands-on training where all of your questions can be answered. Our implementation team will help you to build a beautiful eCommerce site that suits your requirements before you go live.

    Shopify is also user-friendly and allows you to create an online store even if you’ve never done it before. Shopify has drag and drop areas, making it reasonably easy to build a site. It works well for businesses that are new to website building. Simple steps can be completed to get your standalone website up and running quickly.

  7. Scalability

    Aphix’s Digital Platform was created with business scalability in mind. When you integrate your ERP to the platform, you can choose any of the other eCommerce, eProcurement, or Mobile App solutions and easily add them to your business. This way, you only have to focus on how you can grow your business as the future-proof Aphix platform will scale with your business.

    Shopify offers different plans that include various features and functionality, depending on your business needs. They currently offer three packages that allow you to upgrade as you grow. When you’ve grown beyond a certain point, you’ll start to realise that a lack of real-time ERP integration will prevent you from scaling any further and force you to move to a different platform.

  8. Upgrades

    The Aphix SaaS solution ensures that your eCommerce site is continuously improved, updated, and upgraded with new features that are delivered automatically. Any new features or functionality is based on our roadmap and the needs of our customers. The software upgrades are covered by your annual license fee and there’s no extra cost.

    Shopify is also a SaaS-based solution which means that they always upgrade it with new improvements, features, and functionality that follows their product roadmap and their customers’ needs. The upgrades are also included in the monthly costs and are applied automatically to your store when available.

  9. Features

    Aphix has a wide selection of both B2B and B2C features that meet our customers’ needs. From simple B2C features to complex B2B functionality, Aphix has a lot to offer. Features include multiple product variants, related products, period discounts, coupons, multi-buy offers, customer-specific pricing, paired products, and volume breaks.

    Shopify, as a platform, has many features to offer. However, depending on the plan you’re on, those features may be limited. With Shopify the more you pay the more you get. They have some native features, but additional functionality is also achieved through third-party apps through its app store. For more advanced features, you will need to do some customisations, which will add to your overall costs.

  10. Pricing

    Aphix offers a premium SaaS solution with multiple product options that integrate with most major ERP systems. Aphix includes ERP integration, hosting, security checks, system monitoring, upgrades, support, training, roadmap, and more… all for a very competitive price. Once the ERP integration has been set up, customers only have to pay their annual license fee thereafter.

    Shopify offers several pricing models depending on your business needs and complexity as part of their SaaS offering. A basic plan starts at $29, and the most advanced package starts at $299 a month. They also have Shopify Plus for larger businesses which is priced at around $2000 per month. Hosting, support, security, training guides, roadmap, and more are also included. The downside is that many many advanced features are not included nor is the ERP integration which adds to the overall costs.

    Shopify also charges businesses who choose not to use the Shopify payment gateway and they charge a 2% transaction fee on each transaction on top of what your preferred payment gateway provider’s charge.

Summary

By now, you probably understand that choosing the right eCommerce platform for your business means taking a lot of things into consideration.

If you’ve no ERP system, then you won’t have to manage data in two places and you’ll have no problem!

But if you do already have an ERP system and you choose not to integrate to it, that can significantly affect your business. It will increase the amount of manual processing of information that you’ll need to manage across two systems and you’ll struggle to scale your eCommerce as a direct result.

If you have a small business and you’re looking for your first eCommerce platform, then Shopify may be the best option for you. With Shopify, you can start with minimal costs and commitment and scale up to a certain degree before moving onto something more efficient.

For ERP users looking to future-proof their business, there’s no doubt that the Aphix Digital Platform is the right choice. Seamless out-of-the-box ERP integration coupled with B2B industry expertise is a clear pathway to eCommerce success.

Take a look at the Aphix Platform for all your digital transformation needs. We not only offer an award-winning eCommerce platform, but we’re also ERP certified, meaning that you’ll have peace of mind when it comes to future software upgrades.

You can request a demo to view our eCommerce platform in action or feel free to email us on sales@aphixsoftware.com or call us on +041 213 7222 if you have any other questions.

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