If you have turned the other ear due the complicated matter of the business, this post will hopefully help you. We try to set the record straight about what a headless commerce system is – and the advantages connected to this popular IT-architecture.
Remember this going forward: Headless CMS is not for everybody.
In short, shopping is changing. A raging COVID-pandemic has quickly changed every step of your customers’ buying journey. As countries locked down and retailers were forced to close, global ecommerce businesses experienced a rise in retail sales, from 16 % to 19 % in 2020.
This, not only puts a pressure on businesses ability to expand their brand, but also creates a more urgent demand for a flexible and agile system. Such a system has to adapt to customers’ new touchpoints and a buyer’s journey that keeps getting more and more fragmented.
A system such as Headless Commerce.
In a nutshell, a headless commerce solution is a separation of the customer-faced frontend and the backend layer. It is an architecture that allows each to operate independently so that changes on one end do not require reciprocal changes in the other end. Clever, right?
With a headless solution, background processes make data available to separate frontend applications. Background processes, including pricing, checkout, customer data etc., run invisibly, and the communication between the back and frontend is primarily handled through APIs.
The APIs work as the “glue” between the frontend and backend – and through which all information travels.
This way, the frontend (aka. the head) purely serves a presentational purpose which can have multiple channels and platforms connected, such as SMS, mail, POS, Social media channels, apps etc.
In a headless commerce structure, as the image below illustrates, the presentation layer is seperated from the eCommerce platform. However, APIs make it possible to stay connected and to provide solid and secure service.
So far so good.
However, you might already be wresling with the name of the concept: isn’t the head usually where the “brain” is located?” And is it then really a good idea to go without it?
Traditionally, (e)commerce software is built as a single, integrated application which allows for little to no flexibility in terms of making changes or testing new software.
It is known for being static and out-of-date when keeping up with the shifts in customer behavior and demands, not to mention the eternal shifts in the technological development.
According to the Gartner Industry Vision 2018, introducing API-based and a headless architecture is one of the most important initiatives for businesses today.