A Step-by-Step Guide to Implementing Headless Commerce 

We have discussed headless commerce in detail. The benefits of headless commerce outweigh the cost and complexities involved in implementing it. The decoupled frontend and backend enable flexibility, scalability, innovation, and future-proofing. It empowers businesses to deliver personalized, fast, and enjoyable shopping experiences. Headless commerce is not just a technical upgrade; it’s a strategic move to future-proof your eCommerce business. 

However, the challenges involved in transitioning from traditional commerce to headless architecture should not be underestimated. A one-size-fits-all solution does not work. Customizing the headless platform and implementing it to suit your business is critical for success, and it requires meticulous planning. 

This article outlines the critical considerations and steps involved in implementing headless commerce to ensure a smooth and successful transition.  
 

Things to Consider Before Headless Transition 

Headless commerce can be complicated, expensive, and time-consuming. Therefore, before deciding to move to a headless commerce platform, you must spend valuable time planning the transition and laying the groundwork.  

Following are some of the things you need to consider before transitioning to a headless commerce platform. 

1. Evaluate Your Current eCommerce Architecture 

Understanding your current eCommerce platform and website structure, evaluating their limitations, and identifying the scope of headless commerce for your business case are crucial for deciding whether to remain in a traditional eCommerce architecture or choose the headless architecture. Headless commerce is not necessarily a suitable architecture for small businesses that do not have massive scaling requirements or need agility. Businesses that do not require constant modifications to the current frontend setup also do not need headless commerce. Hence, it is crucial to determine whether you need it in the first place. You can identify that by seeking answers to the following questions. 

Do you constantly modify your frontend to meet changing business conditions and customer expectations? 

• Is your eCommerce site bulky and slow? 

• How important is incorporating emerging technologies and innovations for your business strategy? 

• Do you have plans to scale your operations and expand your traffic, transactions, and market reach? 

• Is your current system robust enough to handle APIs? 

• Can it integrate with third-party applications and microservices? 

• Are your developers familiar with decoupled systems? 

2. Define Clear Business Objectives 

Every business has a different reason for choosing headless architecture. Identifying your specific business goals is critical for customizing the headless platform to your requirements.  

For instance, you may need better site speed and the ability to handle sudden fluctuations in traffic and transactions, a robust omnichannel strategy implementation, or to expand the product catalog and search capabilities. It is critical to define these objectives as it will enable you to select the right plans and integrations to meet these goals.  

For instance, low-tier plans may not offer the bandwidth to handle increased traffic. If that is your objective, you must choose an upgraded plan. Similarly, third-party integrations and tools for adding features and functions may require separate subscriptions; if your goal is to integrate the latest and greatest functionality, you must consider the additional costs and accommodate them in your budget. In both cases, you must clarify your objectives first. You can define your business objectives by answering the following questions. 

• What is the primary driver for headless commerce? (faster time-to-market, enhanced UX, omnichannel readiness, etc.) 

• Which KPIs will measure success? (conversion rate, page load time, customer satisfaction, etc.) 

3. Assess Your Technical Capabilities 

Different platforms utilize different frameworks, APIs, and coding languages. They require specialized skills and knowledge to work with. When you transition from a traditional platform to headless eCommerce, it may necessitate extensive training to handle the platform better. So, you must find answers to the following questions: 

• Does the new headless platform come with unfamiliar frameworks, APIs, integrations, and coding languages? 

• Are your developers skilled in modern frontend technologies?  

4. Find the Resources 

While the transition to headless commerce can provide long-term benefits, it comes with higher ongoing and upfront costs, including development, infrastructure changes, hosting, training, and brand-new tools and integrations. It is vital to do budgeting, allocate resources, and ensure you have all the resources for the transition. 

5. Map Your Customer Journey 

When you decide to proceed with the headless transition, it is crucial to leave no stone unturned. While you can modify the frontend whenever you like and add new features and functionalities in the future, it is indispensable to complete the customer journey mapping, identify the customers’ pain points, identify the devices and channels they frequently use, and learn how they interact with your brand. It will enable you to deliver a seamless customer experience across touchpoints from the start and help prevent unforeseen ongoing costs.  

This exercise helps you prioritize the relevant touchpoints, design a frontend that appeals to your audience, and add the most suitable feature set to ensure a good user experience.  

For instance, the customers of a fashion accessories store may expect a virtual trial room. In contrast, those interested in buying electronics will more likely prefer voice commerce. Identifying what your customers want can help you make critical decisions that positively impact customer experience. 

6. Identify the Right Technology Stack 

Headless commerce relies on APIs, microservices, and frontend frameworks. Choosing the right tools ensures scalability and performance.  

For instance, a medium-sized business that wants to start with headless commerce would prefer a pre-built solution, while a large enterprise might prefer more customization. 

Depending on your requirements, you must also select your third-party integrations. For instance, if you have a massive product catalog, you can add inventory management integrations that automate adding new products and apply pricing rules. 

7. Secure Executive and Stakeholder Buy-In 

Implementing a transition to headless commerce impacts multiple departments. For instance, after the transition, the marketing department may be forced to use a different email marketing integration as the old tools are not available on the new platform in some cases. So, you must consult all stakeholders, communicate the long-term ROI of headless commerce, help them understand the benefits and the potential challenges, achieve consensus, and gain the approval of senior management to secure the required investment and support. 

A Step-by-Step Guide to Implementing Headless Commerce 

Once you have done the groundwork and secured the budget, you can implement the headless transition with the following steps. 

1. Create a Roadmap 

You can start by creating an implementation plan for the transition along with a detailed roadmap that includes timelines, milestones, and the division of responsibilities among team members involved in the project. You can aim for a pilot launch, implementing the transition on a trial basis for just one product. Once you find solutions for the challenges during implementation, you can implement the change on a larger scale across products. 

2. Choose Your Headless Commerce Platform 

Headless commerce platforms are not created equal; not every platform meets your business requirements and budget.  

Platforms like BigCommerce offer entry-level plans with basic features and lower pricing, making them affordable for small and medium-sized businesses. In contrast, other platforms, such as Shopify Plus, offer plans that are only affordable to large enterprises. The features and capabilities of these platforms may vary, and they offer multiple pricing plans that suit different business types and sizes.  

It is crucial to assess these factors and select the right platform and pricing plan to meet your goals. 

3. Build Your API Strategy 

List the features and third-party tools and integrations you need and identify essential APIs, such as payment, inventory, CRM, etc. Use the relevant APIs to integrate those third-party services to your website to enable the features and functionality required to deliver a good customer experience. 

4. Develop the Frontend 

You can select a framework like React or Vue.JS to build a frontend that creates a good customer experience and meets your goals and customer expectations. You can optimize it for mobile usage by building a Progressive Web App (PWA). 

5. Implement Microservices 

The backend consists of multiple systems handling various processes in perfect harmony. Headless commerce allows you to develop these functionalities in a modular fashion. You can break them down into independent microservices and make the transition gradual. For instance, you can use the serverless AWS Lambda API for dynamic scaling. This approach lets you complete the transition smoothly with minimal disruption to your eCommerce operations. 

6. Integrate and Test 

While integrating these microservices, you can thoroughly test them, identify bugs and issues, troubleshoot, and run A/B tests on the new frontend to measure conversion improvements. 

7. Launch in Phases 

You can opt for a phased launch of your new eCommerce store based on the headless architecture by rolling it out in stages. For instance, if you run international operations, you can start with a specific region; if you have multiple product categories, you can add one category and slowly move to others. This approach minimizes disruption and ensures a smooth and seamless headless transition. 

Final Thoughts 

Transitioning to headless commerce can bring unparalleled flexibility and innovation. However, careful assessment of the current setup and its limitations is required. You must evaluate if the benefits gained align with your business goals. By carefully doing the groundwork, aligning your team, and following a structured implementation process, you can unlock the full potential of headless commerce to deliver exceptional shopping experiences. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

1. How does Arizon Digital improve website performance with headless commerce? 

Arizon Digital builds lightning-fast storefronts by separating content and commerce layers, which results in faster page loading, smoother browsing, and a superior user experience. 

2. Can non-technical teams manage content easily with Arizon Digital’s headless commerce implementation? 

Yes. Arizon Digital offers easy-to-use tools and integrations for your teams to manage product catalogs and campaigns. 

3. Does Arizon Digital’s headless commerce implementation support multiple storefronts? 

Yes. Arizon Digital’s headless commerce implementation enables businesses targeting different regions, languages, or customer segments to manage multiple storefronts from a single backend. 

4. How quickly can Arizon Digital launch a headless storefront? 

Depending on your scope and requirements, Arizon Digital can launch a headless storefront in a matter of weeks.