Online shopping has exploded in popularity over the last decade, and it shows no sign of slowing down. As ecommerce continues to grow, many brands are looking for solutions to help them scale and optimize their performance online. Enter headless commerce—a powerful website architecture that offers a host of valuable benefits for digital retailers.

What is headless commerce?

Before we explore the benefits of going headless, it’s important to understand what that actually means. While we could go into a lot of detail (and we have!), simply put, a headless site is one built with the frontend (what users see and interact with) separated from the backend (the tech that handles transactions—like Shopify). The two are then connected through an API that allows them to work together to form a functional ecomm site.

What are the benefits of headless commerce?

There are a lot of reasons brands are making the switch to a headless setup. Let’s run down a few of the most prominent.

1. Optimized performance

Did you know that even a 0.1 second decrease in page load times can lead to an 8.4% increase in conversion rate? That’s according to a study by Deloitte Digital, who also found that average order value increased by 9.2% following the same slight improvement in speed.

When it comes to ecommerce, time is literally money. The faster your site loads, the more likely it is that potential customers become actual customers. Site performance is also one of the biggest factors in determining your search engine placement—the faster pages load, the better you’ll rank on Google.

With a traditional site, optimizing performance can be challenging. As the workhorse of an ecomm operation, a site’s backend has to do a lot of the heavy lifting. Being closely tied to that backend can slow things down on the frontend significantly, frustrating users and increasing your bounce rate.

For headless sites, this isn’t an issue. Because the frontend is separated from the backend, things like product pages, category pages and search are able to load much quicker than on a traditional site. Headless sites are also more reliable with fewer instances of downtime.‍

2. Complete design freedom

Feeling creatively limited by Shopify’s templates? Try going headless! With a separated frontend, the only limit on your site’s design is your imagination and the skill of your designers. With a headless site, the user experience can be tailored to perfectly match your unique brand.

Shopify templates are great for getting your ecomm business started, but they have limits on how much they can be customized. If you want your site to stand out from the competition and feel completely your own, you need a headless setup.

In addition to looking better, headless sites are also much easier to update. You can make any changes you’d like without worrying about how it will affect your site’s backend. This is a huge selling point for businesses looking to reduce development bottlenecks as they follow industry trends and experiment with marketing strategies.‍

3. Robust data and personalization

Personalization is the name of the game for growing ecommerce brands. Being able to target specific customers and sell to them directly can increase revenue dramatically. There are tools built to help you do this, but what’s the best approach?

Once again, headless can help. Building your site with an open, headless architecture makes it simple to utilize third-party integrations that can help you track customer data, analyze purchasing behavior and help people find exactly what they’re looking for.

Ecommerce is all about getting customers to add just one more thing to their carts before checking out. With more robust data, you can offer personalized product suggestions that you know your customers will love. The financial benefit to you is obvious, but this strategy also creates value for your customers, helping them find relevant products they might have overlooked.

Analytics platforms like Mixpanel and Heap work seamlessly with headless sites, providing businesses with real-time tracking and insights. With access to these powerful tools, you can personalize your user experience like never before and start selling more than you ever have.

Get a free site audit

At CrateBind, we leverage headless architecture to transform ecommerce, giving our partners unparalleled control over customer data and experience while dramatically increasing performance and sales—all without moving away from Shopify.

Not sure if headless is for you? We’d love to take a look at your current setup and help you determine your next step with a free site audit. Get in touch and book a meeting with us today.

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