SaaS vs. Open Source

timer 4 min read

If you have decided to open an online business, you are faced with a very important decision - choosing which solution to run your shop on. We are talking about SaaS vs. Open Source. Which is the better choice?

Why is this choice so important?

For someone who has dealt with online sales before, this is obvious, whereas someone setting up their first shop needs to look at things 'from the inside'. For many users, an online shop is simply a website where they can do their shopping, while for the creator it is a website of a trading company that uses software to manage sales and this includes products, shipping, payments, customers, marketing and many other tools. Such a shop has its own administration panel, where the company's employees can manage it. In order to make a good choice of solution, it is therefore important to consider first and foremost what the shop in question will need.

SaaS vs. Open Source

We have two choices when it comes to 'owning' an online shop - we can either create a shop ourselves or with the help of an IT specialist or interactive agency according to our individual needs and vision, or buy a ready-made shop on a selected shop platform and, in theory, start selling. The difference in these two options is primarily in the finances, as the cost of creating dedicated software can often be prohibitive in the initial phase of running a shop.

A ready-made shop based on a subscription and SaaS service significantly lowers the entry threshold and takes the responsibility of building a shop from scratch off your shoulders. As Megamo, we strongly recommend that you choose a ready-made shop, and preferably one already stocked with products.

Advantages of a ready-made online shop

The turnkey shop has all the necessary tools and integrations to start selling professionally online. It has ready-to-use and state-of-the-art channels for fast payments, parcel and courier services and much more, and what's more, it offers technical support depending on the subscription chosen.

    • Looking at the shop life process itself, going from the beginning, the owner of a ready-made online shop does not have to analyse the available shop platforms on the market one by one in search of the best one to meet his or her needs.
    • What's more, all configuration matters, including familiarisation with the technical documentation, or the concept for building the shop, have already been done, thought through and, most importantly, resolved.
    • The finished shop grows with you - you don't have to think about hardware requirements, as this is the responsibility of the provider of your chosen service, guaranteeing that the shop will function stably and reliably.
    • Next, every ready-made shop has at least a few graphic templates to choose from, which makes the process of selecting the graphics or style you want for your shop much easier.
    • Next, stocking your shop with the products you want to sell. This topic is closest to us because of our business and the service of automatic integration of shops with wholesalers, which we have been doing for more than 14 years. With our Integrator, you can add thousands of products from different suppliers in just a few hours, set your own pricing policy for different product categories and, above all, prices and stock will always be up to date in your shop.

Disadvantages of a ready-made online shop

The only disadvantage of ready-made shops based on the SaaS model is the degree of control the shop owner has over the construction of the shop. By choosing this solution, you are not involved in many of the stages of shop development, as these are carried out by your chosen service provider. Of course, the end result is tailored to your requirements, whereas when you receive a ready-made solution, you should take the time to fully explore its capabilities and make sure they meet your expectations.

Advantages of Open Source

Open source platforms are those that primarily give you the freedom to build a basic shop on your own server. If you need any functionality, you will need to add external modules and plug-ins (which are usually available on the market). As a rule, the engine itself is free of charge, but this will also be mentioned under disadvantages.

    • Freedom and adaptability of the shop to individual needs
    • You are the manager and you control the operation of the shop (you own the code)

Disadvantages of Open Source

As we mentioned earlier Open Source is a free solution, but not completely. More often than not, you have to pay a lot for integrations, plug-ins, services or hosting. Additionally, Open Source requires a lot of knowledge and configuration specialists.

    • Paid plug-ins and integrations
    • Little protection against hacking attacks
    • Self-connection of modules
    • The need for IT expertise

Summary

A ready-made online shop has many advantages and benefits that can make your shop run more easily and quickly. As a seller, you only need to know what you want to sell, as the other necessary tools such as payments, couriers and goods are already waiting for your customers.

If you are about to start selling online, need the technical support of an experienced company and are looking for a supplier you can recommend - contact us. We will provide you with a ready-to-sell shop stocked with the assortment of your choice. Visit megamo.pl, where you can find out more in the For Shops section in the section I want to build a shop or write to us at biuro@megamo.pl and we will advise you which solution will meet your expectations.

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