OsCommerce is an open source software to create online shops. Many hosting providers include osCommerce into their Fantastico bundle. Even the default version is full of various features while add-ons may expand the script abilities to an enormous extent. While osCommerce is positioned as easy to install and configure, this is not always true. In order to utilize all the advantages of osCommerce you'd better find a qualified integrator of this product who will tune everything the way you need it.
OsCommerce shopping cart allow you to add multiple products and organize them, run discounts and promotions, set prices in different currencies and accept payments through all most popular methods.
X-Cart is another popular and powerful solution. This shopping cart script has more than 100 features and it has a very demanded module that allows to deliver software products online.
X-Cart payment gateway supports over 60 different methods and the cart itself is very comfortable and easy to configure. The developers of the script offer installation and configuration services so that you can have a turn-key project in the end.
X-Cart is a commercial script offered in two varieties - Pro and Gold. The only difference between them is that the Pro version allows you to set up unique accounts for different merchants.
CubeCart is an open source script which is very similar to osCommerce and other shopping cart solutions alike. CubeCart needs your hosting to support PHP and MySQL. The script has extended configuration capabilities and can be connected to different payment gateways including PayPal and VeriSign.
Zen Cart is an open source product developed by a group of shop owners who know what they need in product implementing this into Zen Cart. Designers, programmers and ecommerce consultants help them on the way. This is probably one of the most user-friendly shopping cart scripts, though the functionality is still to be extended.
Shopping cart script named Agora is also quite a popular solution which is like osCommerce is often bundled into hosting providers' Fantastico installation packs. It is one of the best shopping carts for beginners and has enough features to satisfy advanced users as well. Agora is famous for the excellent tutorials and support forums. Even if your HTML knowledge is not your strong side, it is quite possible you'll be able to set up a nice online shop if you use Agora.
Of course, it's up to you what to choose. It could be a wise decision to try all of the products described above and maybe some else to understand which of them offers the features you really need to create the online shop you think will be fantastic. Sometimes open source projects are more suitable than commercial ones. Sometimes it's the other way round.
Shopping cart software is an indispensable component of your online shopping website. It's because it can definitely help you increase your profits and make you a much better manager. But then again, you may ask, ?How??
Here are the 5 essential tasks of shopping cart software:
1. Pricing. One of the crucial elements of business is the price. How much should you charge for a product or service? It should not be too high that it becomes hard to sell or not too low where you are going to be earning losses instead.
A shopping cart software will make it easier for you to come up and manage the prices, especially if you have wide range of products. You can have the option to include the shipping and other miscellaneous costs to your price and allow the program to calculate everything for you based on the embedded formula. What's more, you can monitor currency rates and their changes. This way, even if you're selling your products in a country where conversion is low, you could still be profiting something from the sale.
2. Images. This is more in relation to branding. Customers would learn to trust you a lot faster if you have proofs of your products. One way to do it is to upload their pictures in your Products Page. A shopping cart program has different kinds of layouts that you can choose from, and all of them can be used to present your images in a professional way. Almost all applications, moreover, can accept various file types of your images. You can even modify their settings, allowing customers to get a full view of the items when clicked or hovered by the cursor.
3. Payment Processing. You don't need to constantly remind your customers to pay you every time they buy something from your store. The shopping cart program can automatically reduce the amount from their credit or debit card, or even from their e-wallets. They also make use of a special system that will guarantee secured transactions to prevent unscrupulous online users and scammers from stealing credit card details. Moreover, to make it a lot easier for your customers, you can add these different kinds of payment options into your website as buttons.
4. Inventory Tracking. You can avoid having items that are out of stock. You can also prevent keeping hard-to-sell items in your inventory. A shopping cart software is equipped with an inventory tracking feature, where you can monitor any unsold items or even back orders. Just so you'll remain updated, you can have out-of-stock items e-mailed into your mailbox. You can also modify the settings to allow the shopping cart program to inform you ahead for some lead time.
5. Shipping. You can actually coordinate shipped goods in FedEx or UPS to your shopping cart program. The data files can be directly downloaded into your PC and then uploaded in your application. If your customers can have individual accounts, they can also keep track of their bought items as well.
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