When looking for an ecommerce service, the first names that come to mind are usually Shopify and BigCommerce.
However, there’s an ecommerce platform that performs as good as them -and sometimes even better- Storebuilder by Nexcess.
So in this post, we’ll talk about StoreBuilders’ main features, pricing and how to get started.
But first, since ecommerce is a big, big world, let’s talk about the different types of ecommerce platforms out there.
Ecommerce platforms
When looking to sell online, your first step is choosing an ecommerce platform. These platforms mainly gather into 4 types:
- Ecommerce solutions: they have easy-to-use interfaces that make setting up an online store a piece of cake. The best example is Shopify. However, they have limited customization options.
- Ecommerce marketplaces: here you get high volumes of web traffic but at the cost of high competition. Some examples are Amazon and Ebay.
- Custom ecommerce websites: platforms like WooCommerce give you a lot of customization freedom, but you need some level of coding skills to use them.
- Website builders: ideally, they have the best of both worlds: all the benefits of ecommerce solutions and of custom ecommerce websites. Here is where you’ll find StoreBuilder by Nexcess.
StoreBuilder
Nexcess is a web hosting company that ranks among the top 5 best web hosting providers in 2022. It’s a Liquid Web brand that was founded back in 2000 and hasn’t stopped growing since then. One of its most recent releases is StoreBuilder.
So, what is StoreBuilder?
StoreBuilder is a drag and drop website builder for WordPress. You can sell digital content, physical goods or even your services in their stores.
The builder is particularly designed for WordPress and includes WooCommerce plugins. In fact, you can easily migrate your current WordPress online store for free. And, if by chance you ever want to leave StoreBuilder, unlike with Shopify or SquareSpace, you can take your ecommerce website with you!
One of the things that make StoreBuilder ideal for beginners and non-tech savvy is it uses artificial intelligence to lay out a store completely unique to your selling needs. That’s because they want your site to stand out!
Features
Dashboard
StoreBuilder has a modern UX-friendly dashboard.
Recently, Nexcess made a few changes to make the panel more accessible for beginners. However, for those already comfortable with the WordPress Classic Admin, the option to revert the change is also available.
Store design
Templates are designed especially for you. When you sign up, the StoreBuilder will ask you a few questions to know which design is better for you.
Then you have complete design freedom: you can customize the store to your liking, from custom color palettes to modern fonts and more.
Staging and development environments
Work and test your store without disrupting your live site. StoreBuilder offers one staging environment on the starter plan and you can add more for a fee.
They also have Automated Testing on their hosting plans, which makes sure everything runs smoothly.
Smart sales and performance tools
Gain valuable insights that can help you make decisions about your ecommerce store with their Sales Performance Monitor and Plugin Performance Monitor.
For example, if sales dropped after you made a site change, StoreBuilder will alert you so you can make adjustments.
Sales and conversions
- Create promotional and discount codes to attract customers.
- Offer different payment systems to your clients including PayPal, Stripe and cryptocurrencies.
- The StoreBuilder also offers Recapture, an application that assists in abandoned cart recovery.
- Customers can leave reviews and star ratings.
- Promote your products with social media sharing.
Auto Scaling
Nexcess Cloud Auto Scaling prevents your site from slowing down dramatically and then crashing after a significant increase in traffic. This feature ensures your store can handle seasonal spikes and keep offering a great customer experience.
Every plan receives 24 hours per month of auto-scaling for free, and you’ll be notified of your usage when you start using it.
Integrations
Integrate with Amazon, Walmart, Facebook, and other ecommerce services to reach millions of shoppers.
StoreBuilder has more than 50,000 WordPress plugins, including Kadence Theme PRO and Kadence Blocks PRO to create beautiful modern online stores.
Support and resources
Nexcess provides chat, phone, and email support 24/7.
They also have YouTube videos, blog posts, a knowledge base, and even a podcast to help you on your journey. Once you buy a plan, you’ll also have access to video tutorials right from your WordPress dashboard.
Finally, Nexcess has a whole set of browser-based tools such as a Global DNS Checker and a Unix Timestamp Converter that you can use for free.
More features
- Security: free SSL and security monitoring.
- Add team members and manage permissions.
- Server-side caching built-in.
Pricing
Prices vary according to the number of sites you want and the bandwidth required.
StoreBuilder costs start at $19 per month. You can choose the monthly billing cycle to get a free trial for 30 days.
You can also choose to pay annually, saving 2 months of payment. It includes one store, 30 GB of storage, and up to 500 orders per hour.
You can also get it for free if you already have a Nexcess’ hosting plan (StoreBuilder is included in their Starter and Creator Managed WooCommerce Hosting plans).
And if you’ve gone over the 24-hour threshold of auto-scaling, you’ll be billed $.10 per minute in 30-minute increments, with a $3 minimum charge.
In case you need more, you can upgrade to their creator plan, which costs $79 per month. It includes Beaver Builder Page Builder, double the storage, and up to 3 stores.
Tutorial
Getting started
- Go to Nexcess StoreBuilder and click “Try StoreBuilder”.
- Answer some questions to give the AI the needed information to create a store. Then wait a few minutes as your account is created.
3. Select “Plans”, then click on your StoreBuilder Plan and under “Sites”, you will see your temporary URL. This temporary URL serves as a place to set up your site before the world sees it.
4. One of the first things you’d want to do once the wizard built your store is adding products to it, of course. To add a new product, simply go to the left sidebar of your dashboard and scroll down to the Store>Products option.
Then select “Add New” and you’ll be taken here:
You can add your product photographs, descriptions, prices, and more!
- Another thing you might want to add your team members. To do that, simply go to your Nexcess Portal and click “User Menu” > “Team members”.
- You’ll see this popup where you have to add the member’s email and specify the level of permission you want to give them.
You can also go to the tab “Team permissions” and make adjustments. For example, select which roles should trigger email notifications.
Going live
Once you fine-tune your store design, add all your products and team members, and take all the necessary steps to feel ready for it, it’s time to go live!
- Buy your domain name. Remember you’ve been building your store on a temporary URL and you need a real name so your potential customers can find you. You can buy your domain name on popular domain registrars like GoDaddy or buy one from Nexcess.
2. Follow your domain registrar’s instructions on configuring your name servers. You’ll need to update your name servers and this might take between 24 to 48 hours to update across the internet.
3. Once that time has passed, go to the “Go Live” option in your Dashboard.
Clicking on “View nameservers” shows you the nexcess nameservers. You can double-check your domain registration information against these addresses.
- Enter your domain name in the box.
- You’ll see the system display this option:
As you can see, the checkbox is included for people using advanced DNS techniques. So if that’s not your case, please don’t skip validation!
- That’s it! Your store is live online. Congrats!
StoreBuilder Pros and Cons
Pros
- Artificial intelligence that creates smart custom designs.
- Lighting-fast load times.
- Competitive pricing.
- Support 24/7.
Cons
- No email accounts.
Conclusion
StoreBuilder by Nexcess is a powerful beginner-friendly website builder. Thanks to its AI technology, it facilitates a lot of the process of creating a store while also carving a unique site that stands out from the rest.
And once you have your site running, StoreBuilder takes care of everything thanks to its multiple automating features such as Automating Testing and Auto Scaling.
So really, for anyone looking to create a fully customizable store that doesn’t require you to be tech-savvy, StoreBuilder is an awesome choice!
Have you used StoreBuilder before? We’d love to hear about your experience in the comment section.
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