Does anybody here have any experience in setting up e-commerce/webstores? I'd like to get some recommedations as to which set up is better. I'm weighing options between the following:
1a) Hosting our own web (OS X Server) and database (Filemaker 8 Advanced) server.
Pros:
- Our webstore and database will be tightly integrated. no need to retype orders into our invoicing database. we update the prices and photos on our database, and our website is dynamically updated as well.
- we have the most control if we want to change anything.
- we can work with a consultant that can provide database and website development
- No transaction fees
Cons:
- Most costly ($7000 for pieces of server software, $300/mo for static IP + cost for development of the webstore)
- Requires consultant to integrate UPS and payment features
- Probably more custom development required vs. what's out there.
- Does FM server seem slow?
- We need to handle server maintenance ourselves.
- No web analytics
Cost: 1st year: $12,000-15,000, 2nd yr: $3,600/yr
1b) Database consultant hosts our webstore and database server with mirrored database kept in our office. It would be daily synchronized.
Pros:
- Much less costly than Option 1a
Cons:
- Database and orders would not be up to date real time. (how important at this point depends on how much business)
Cost: 1st year: $8,000-10,000, 2nd year: $2,200/yr
2) Hosting via Yahoo merchant solutions
Pros:
- Yahoo has developed quite a robust feature set: web traffic analytics, payment solutions (credit card processing), UPS integration taken care of
- Association with Yahoo benefits search rankings
- Less development to do on the back end
- Experience with e-commerce
- No worry about downtime
Cons:
- About 1% transaction fee for each sales. (not including credit card processing fee which is 2-3% usually)
- Uses special Yahoo programming so we'd have to find a new developer to work with, and if we want to change to another host, it would be difficult.
- Need a Yahoo developer with Filemaker experience. Probably more difficult to find and also developer may not be local.
- Is not tightly integrated with our database. we will probably need to re-type orders, and also probably have more work in trying to keep both the website and database data current and synchronized.
Cost: 1st year $7,000-9,000 + 1% of sales, 2nd yr: $2,500 + 1% sales
As a small business that is starting out, cost is a factor in everything. But so is growth and flexibility. My concern between these 3 options are:
1) How good is Filemaker for this?
2) How much development time and thus cost?
3) Security and maintenance?
4) Flexibility & growth - again
5) Yahoo tie-in ... if we want to get out, would it be difficult?
Any thoughts and recommedations?
Thanks,
dw
1a) Hosting our own web (OS X Server) and database (Filemaker 8 Advanced) server.
Pros:
- Our webstore and database will be tightly integrated. no need to retype orders into our invoicing database. we update the prices and photos on our database, and our website is dynamically updated as well.
- we have the most control if we want to change anything.
- we can work with a consultant that can provide database and website development
- No transaction fees
Cons:
- Most costly ($7000 for pieces of server software, $300/mo for static IP + cost for development of the webstore)
- Requires consultant to integrate UPS and payment features
- Probably more custom development required vs. what's out there.
- Does FM server seem slow?
- We need to handle server maintenance ourselves.
- No web analytics
Cost: 1st year: $12,000-15,000, 2nd yr: $3,600/yr
1b) Database consultant hosts our webstore and database server with mirrored database kept in our office. It would be daily synchronized.
Pros:
- Much less costly than Option 1a
Cons:
- Database and orders would not be up to date real time. (how important at this point depends on how much business)
Cost: 1st year: $8,000-10,000, 2nd year: $2,200/yr
2) Hosting via Yahoo merchant solutions
Pros:
- Yahoo has developed quite a robust feature set: web traffic analytics, payment solutions (credit card processing), UPS integration taken care of
- Association with Yahoo benefits search rankings
- Less development to do on the back end
- Experience with e-commerce
- No worry about downtime
Cons:
- About 1% transaction fee for each sales. (not including credit card processing fee which is 2-3% usually)
- Uses special Yahoo programming so we'd have to find a new developer to work with, and if we want to change to another host, it would be difficult.
- Need a Yahoo developer with Filemaker experience. Probably more difficult to find and also developer may not be local.
- Is not tightly integrated with our database. we will probably need to re-type orders, and also probably have more work in trying to keep both the website and database data current and synchronized.
Cost: 1st year $7,000-9,000 + 1% of sales, 2nd yr: $2,500 + 1% sales
As a small business that is starting out, cost is a factor in everything. But so is growth and flexibility. My concern between these 3 options are:
1) How good is Filemaker for this?
2) How much development time and thus cost?
3) Security and maintenance?
4) Flexibility & growth - again
5) Yahoo tie-in ... if we want to get out, would it be difficult?
Any thoughts and recommedations?
Thanks,
dw