In August I launched the online store site, APODEXI. The store and its purpose are a topic for another time but I wanted to talk about the company I partnered with to make my business a reality. If you don't know who Big Commerce is then maybe it's time to meet them.
After surfing the wave of eCommerce site hosts, I started out with Volusion, the self-titled 800 lb marketplace gorilla. That relationship lasted less than 30 days. King Kong had a longer life than those guys. It was typical of the software sales versus business analyst relationship at most software companies. You know what I mean. Sales oversells the capabilities and business analysts are overwhelmed training customers around the lack of capabilities.
I went back to research, found Big Commerce, and began a great partnership. Here are a few tidbits based upon my experience so far:
- Technical support is actually helpful, friendly, and available during the hours I need them. The company is on CST but they recently expanded hours to accommodate the growing number of client businesses. Humor is a good thing to have, too. These guys know how to diffuse an unhappy situation.
- Releases and code updates work and if by chance they don't, they're quick to note and correct.
- Online forums are open and they don't try to hide all the comments - good and bad. You'll always have the people you can't satisfy.
- Flexibility is good and BC knows how to adjust. Tickets track issues, service surveys are actually read, and social media integration tools provide networking with other business owners and provide online store enhancement for clients.
- BC offers weekly newsletters to help maximize your store with video tutorials and relevant topics.
- Improved (and improving) inventory management and product upload tools.
Is the Big Commerce solution perfect? No, but they've been the most responsive company I've dealt with for my company's online store, and frankly, in the software industry. In the end, the really big deal is they're a company I can see growing my business with.
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