Guide

Achieve flexible & seamless customer experiences with Headless Commerce

Business benefits and requirements of going headless

What is Headless Commerce all about?

Headless Commerce is a paradigm shift in how we think about, create and deploy solutions. This is necessary because modern markets and customer requirements change too quickly for traditional technology to keep up. If you experience pain points with rigid systems and fast market developments, learn in this handout what it means and how it works to make your business go headless.

Traditional e-commerce systems are mostly monolithic and give very little room for flexibility. With such systems, the front-end and back-end are inextricably linked to each other, making it difficult for developers to make modifications to the front-end without compromising the back-end. This typically poses a challenge for businesses that desire a much more tailored and flexible user experience.

Implementing a headless solution makes it easy for businesses to support new technology and meet their customers where they are. Headless commerce refers to an e-commerce solution where the front-end of an e-commerce system is separated from the back-end.

By decoupling the back-end functionalities from the front-end, it is easier to connect multiple channels such as mobile, social, wearables, voice assistants, and other IoT devices. This is done through an application programming interface or API. APIs interact with back-end systems such as content management systems (CMS), customer relationship management (CRM) solutions, and inventory management systems.

Source: 1 – “Becoming Composable: A Gartner Trend Insight Report”, Gartner, 17 September 2021 | 2 – “10 Things COVID-19 Will Change in Digital Commerce”, Gartner, 28 August 2020 | 3 – “2021 Magic Quadrant for Digital Commerce”, Gartner, 31 August 2021

What are the benefits of Headless Commerce?

Going Headless with Spryker

To fully go headless, you have to consider an API-led approach. APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) act as an intermediary to transfer information between multiple applications. Integrations between systems completely different in nature, data structure, purpose, or programming language are possible through APIs. Spryker’s GLUE API enables connection to multiple touchpoints and aids in seamlessly integrating third-party systems such as a Content Management System. For larger legacy integrations like ERP or PIM solutions, Spryker offers all of its customers access to the Spryker LINK Middleware.

The GLUE API has several features that can be deployed in a purely headless way. One of such features is the customer cart feature. With a voice device connected to the Spryker Cloud Commerce OS through the GLUE API, customers can create a cart, add or remove items from the cart, by simply giving voice commands. This makes shopping on the go easier for busy customers who might have otherwise not been able to make a quick purchase. On the business’s side, there is a chance to upsell products, as the GLUE API ensures that products related to cart items can simultaneously be shared with consumers on touchpoints such as their mobile devices.

Similarly, the GLUE API’s wishlist feature enables customers to create, view, or add products to their wishlists. This can be done on the store’s mobile app or even while the customer is driving in their smart car. Voice commands can be used to update or remove items from a customer’s wishlist handsfree, while the customer is driving.

Additionally, checkouts can be carried out speedily across several touchpoints. The GLUE API not only allows for effective integration with payment service providers (PSPs) but also enables cart items to be checked out to multiple addresses in multiple shipments.

The GLUE API provides a ton of other features that make headless commerce possible. With a reliable e-commerce solution such as the Spryker Cloud Commerce OS and the GLUE API, you can create a more seamless experience for your customer.

Learn more about Headless Commerce

About Spryker

Spryker is the leading global composable commerce platform for enterprises with sophisticated business models to enable growth, innovation, and differentiation. Designed specifically for sophisticated transactional businesses, Spryker’s easy-to-use, headless, API-first model offers a best-of-breed approach that provides businesses the flexibility to adapt, scale, and quickly go to market while facilitating faster time-to-value throughout their digital transformation journey. As a global platform leader for B2B and B2C Enterprise Marketplaces, IoT Commerce, and Unified Commerce, Spryker has empowered 150+ global enterprise customers worldwide and is trusted by brands such as ALDI, Siemens, ZF Friedrichshafen, and Ricoh. Spryker is a privately held technology company headquartered in Berlin and New York backed by world class investors such as TCV, One Peak, Project A, Cherry Ventures, and Maverick Capital. Learn more at spryker.com.

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