There are features you must have if you’re running an online business and have an eCommerce website. The features below are some of the standard eCommerce features for online stores and shopping cart platforms.

The success of many websites is determined by not only the products offered and how well the website is marketed, but also by the features the website offer both the customer and the website owner. As a business owner, it is important that you have the tools to manage your website and that the administrative features fit with your business processes. For example, if you offer payment terms to your customer, you’ll need to be sure the platform you’re using gives you the ability to set a credit limit for a customer. Before diving into an eCommerce project, think carefully about the features needed, or you’ll be regretting it later!

 The Most Important E commerce Features Include:

• Content management capabilities
• Promotion and discount code tools
• An easy-to-use checkout
• Search engine optimized code and layout
• Reporting tools
• An integrated blog or articles section
• Email marketing integration
• Multiple payment options (Credit card, PayPal, PO, Terms, etc.)
• The ability to scale up with your platform

Catalog Management

Categories

• Search and sort to easily find categories
• Manage categories and sub-categories
• Feature categories within navigation or on the homepage
• Set categories as “active” or “inactive”
• Set page URL’s and SEO elements for categories
• Manage categories thumbnails and images

Brands

• Manage brands
• Feature brands on the homepage
• Set brands as “active” or “inactive”
• Set page URL’s and SEO elements for brands
• Manage brand logos

Products

• Search and sort to easily find products in certain categories or with specific attributes
• Easily manage and edit products
• Product fields include name, SKU, product details, additional details, list price, your price, weight, stock, minimum quantity order amount,  handling fee and more.
• Ability to select options such as featured, free shipping, reviews allowed, require moderation for reviews and more
• Add and manage main product image and additional product images
• Microsoft Word-like editor for managing content block, such as product details
• Feature products on the homepage
• Set products as “active” or “inactive”
• Add products to a single category or multiple categories
• Select product brand
• Add and manage product options and option groups
• Add and manage related products
• Add and manage accessories
• Attach and embed YouTube videos
• Manage (approve and delete) product reviews
• Set product page URL and SEO elements for products

Content Management

Pages

• Manage content pages and create new content pages
• Edit pages using a Microsoft Word-like content editor
• Add images and manage uploaded image library
• Image editing and cropping tool
• Set page as “active” or “inactive”
• Set page URL and SEO elements

Blog

• Manage blog posts
• Set blog publish date
• Set post as “active” or “inactive”
• Add blog summary and full blog post using Microsoft Word-like content editor
• Add images and manage uploaded image library
• Select blog category and author
• Attached blog posts to product pages
• Set post URL and SEO elements

Homepage Banners

• Manage homepage banners
• Set banner sort orders
• Set banner URL or leave unlinked
• Set banners as “active” or “inactive”

Navigation

• Manage your main navigations including header, side and footer
• Add drop down to main navigation
• Manage SEO elements on links such as link title
• Set links to open in same or new window

Auto Email Messages

• Manage main email template design
• Set messaging for order status emails
• Set messaging for thank you email on product reviews and blog comment submissions

Review Management

• Manage all product reviews
• Set reviews to “approved” or delete reviews

Comment Management

• Manage all blog comments
• Set comments to “approved” or delete comments

Customer Management

Customers

• Search and sort to easily find customers by first name and last name
• Manage customer accounts
• View customer details and previous orders
• View individual customers product reviews
• Add private comments to a customer
• Delete customer accounts
• Reset customer passwords
• Export customers to Excel
• Export customer subscribed to email newsletter to Excel (import capabilities for 3rd party email systems)

Order Management

Orders

• Search and sort to easily find orders by specific variables
• Manage and updated order status
• View order number and all customer information
• View order information and purchase details (products, tax, shipping, addresses, etc.)
• Add private notes to the order
• View shipping and billing address maps
• Create and manage custom order statuses
• Receive email when order is placed
• Export orders to Excel

Discount & Promotion Management

Discount Codes

• Create and manage discount codes
• Add discount codes to categories, brand or products
• Add discount codes that affect shipping
• Set codes as “active” or “inactive”
• Ability to set percentages off, amount off or a set price
• “Auto Apply” discount codes when product added to cart option
• Set and manage dates code is active
• Set minimum and maximum quantity requirements for discount codes
• Set number of times code can be used before automatically becoming inactive

Reporting

Dashboard

• Interactive administrative dashboard with charts and statistics
• Ability to change dashboard statistics to reflect specific date ranges
• Dashboard date-range reports include store sales by amount, store sales order volume, new customers vs. returning, top selling products, top selling brands, most used discount codes
• Dashboard general reports (not based on date range) include low inventory reporting, total products in store, total categories in store, customer count, lifetime orders and lifetime revenue

Single Reports

• Single reports, outside of the dashboard, include sales by date range, top selling product by date range, low inventory by quantity and new customer by date range.

Search Engine Optimization Management

Dynamic Titles

• Manage all dynamic title tag structure throughout the website
• Configure dynamic title and META tags for categories and sub-categories
• Configure dynamic title and META tags for brand pages
• Configure dynamic title and META tags for product pages

Specific Titles & Meta Information

• Configure site wide default title and META tags
• Configure homepage title and META tags
• Set unique title, META tags and URL information for specific content pages, category, brand or product pages

Settings

Shipping Options

• Set store static shipping rates based on weight, dollar amount and zone
• Set specific price or percentage of order
• Live shipping rates based on shipping address utilizing UPS, USPS and FedEx
• Set and manage shipping discount codes and promotions
• Set free shipping on individual products
• Set your stores origin of shipment zip code and country code
• Active and deactivate shipping carriers
• Manage UPS, USPS & FedEx available shipping services (ground, first-class, express, etc.)

Payment Options

• Active and deactivate payment types available
• Manage Authorize.net account settings
• Manage PayPal account settings
• Allow offline payment option

Taxes & Locations

• Manage countries available
• Manage tax rates for each US State or Canadian province by percentage
• Activate and deactivate countries
• Set shipping zones per state or province

Email Configuration

• Set email server configuration and store email address
• Fields include server name, server port, username, password, enable SSL and store email address
• * Email will be configured during development

Administration Users

• Add and delete administration logins with name, email and password