PrestaShop: Overview
PrestaShop is an ecommerce platform that uses the self-hosted or open source option. This means that you can download it and modify it anyway you want. The solution was launched back in 2007 with its headquarters in France.
PrestaShop recently introduced the PrestaShop Ready version, which is their Software as a Service (SaaS) or hosted option. However, unlike the open source version, this option limits your access to the code needed for customization but it’s more user-friendly.
PrestaShop Review: Key Features
Here is a list of the best features that PrestaShop has to offer.
Ease of use
Setting up PrestaShop can take a bit of time because its backend is more technical. However, PrestaShop provides a demo to take you through the whole process.
After the setup process is complete, the next step is to decide which modules you need for your online store. If your tech expertise is limited, it’s wise to seek a web developer to take care of the integrations for you.
Luckily, once you’re done with the setup, integrations, and modules, daily operations such as product creation, order management, and inventory are simple.
Store customization
Fact is- open source is the way to go if you want your website to have a unique feel. In the highly competitive world of ecommerce, building a memorable brand is key to your long-term success.
To customize an online store, you will need two modules. One that’s easy to make quick edits and an advanced module for changing the code to customize your store to your liking. This is why you will need access to CSS, HTML and JavaScript files.
The customization tools in PrestaShop will help you to complete product organization, create an internal search engine tool to help customers easily navigate your store or set up different payment methods.
You will also find over 1500 templates and a vast collection of customizable themes in the PrestaShop official marketplace. Third parties develop most of these templates and that’s why you can end up paying from around $60 for a high standard template from PrestaShop certified partners.
Product creation
PrestaShop features an intuitive product creation area where you can list as many products as you’d like to sell. You can also configure features to display expiry dates for time-sensitive products. You can also sell downloadable products using PrestaShop.
Apart from this, you can also manage your inventory and set restocking alerts whenever a product goes out of stock. It also includes an SEO section where you can enter a Meta title and a Meta description.
Google rich snippets
The sheer number of people searching for products on Google shows that ranking on SERPs is crucial. Rich snippets are codes that make it easy for search engines to organize information.
This offers shoppers the ability to see products that they search for and compare prices. This is why you should add Google Rich Snippets to your product links and give an immediate boost to your SEO efforts.
The Google Rich snippets are in the PrestaShop add-ons marketplace. Leverage it to improve your reach and the shopping experience for customers.
Marketing
Even though you have to go the extra mile to find custom features, PrestaShop boasts an extensive list of built-in marketing tools. Some of these options include:
- Special offers
- Discount mode
- Coupon codes
- Free shipping
- Email marketing
- Gift wrapping
- Affiliate programs
Payment processing
To make your site fully functional to accept payments, you need to setup a payment gateway.
PrestaShop supports a wide range of payment gateways including PayPal, Bambora, Discover Global Network, Amazon Pay, Worldpay, First Data and Authorize.Net. It also has over 250 payment providers as add-ons.
In contrast, PrestaShop Ready has only four payment options. These include Stripe, PayPal, bank transfers and check payments.
Customer relationship management
To keep in touch with your customers, PrestaShop allows you to send automated emails after a transaction to give them a sense of security.
You can also set promotions targeted to specific products, orders or customer groups.
To reduce abandoned cart rate, PrestaShop lets you email customers to remind them about the products they have left in their carts.
Legal support
The ability to comply with laws is an essential part of running an online store. PrestaShop comes with shopping cart tools that make your shop compliant with the laws of a specific country. For instance, Germany has placed some specific shopping cart rules for online stores.
This is a huge plus as you don’t usually see legal support through ecommerce solutions. With PrestaShop, you even get design tools for creating quick pages that explain some legal information to your customers.
Security
The open source version of PrestaShop is PCI Compliance ready. This means that you’ll have to do this process yourself. Therefore, you’ll have to buy an SSL certificate and regularly check in on security patches.
On the other hand, the PrestaShop Ready version has its security accounts already updated for you. This is because it’s hosted on the Google Cloud platform that includes a free SSL certificate.
Integrations and add-ons
PrestaShop has many integrations available in their marketplace. Some modules are free while others are available as one-time purchases.
It’s true that adding integrations to boost your site using PrestaShop can end up being more expensive than the SaaS alternatives like Shopify. However, once you sell high volume, you come out on top with PrestaShop. So it all depends.
Besides this caveat, the second one is usually the deal breaker for most merchants. The modules are created by different developers and may not be compatible with each other. This may lead to a glitch site and PrestaShop cannot always help out on this issue.
The PrestaShop version limits access to the entire marketplace. This way, users only get to use the module's built-in to the platform. At the time of this review, there are 100 modules built-in to PrestaShop Ready.
Pricing
While PrestaShop does not offer a free trial (why would it when its software is already free?), the company does have a demo available. This demo gives you a chance to explore the admin and storefront on many devices. Everything’s already filled in with sample information, so you get a good feel for how the software works on a daily basis.
Setup costs for PrestaShop are as low as can be. However, you can expect some extra expenses for hosting (although these shouldn’t be too bad).
Ongoing expenses vary depending on a number of factors. PrestaShop is not the easiest software to use; it can be difficult to set up, and modules often interfere with one another, leading to an overall glitchy site. If you don’t know how to resolve technical issues on your own, you’ll probably have to hire web developers and designers to do the work for you.
Furthermore, modules and add-ons often come at a steep price (after all, that’s how PrestaShop makes money). If you want to integrate your site with QuickBooks, Amazon, eBay, Facebook, and/or TaxJar, you may end up paying a pretty penny.
Pros
- Free to download
- Highly customizable
- Numerous integrations
- Excellent support materials
- Strong user community
Cons
- Expensive customer support
- Developer skills required
- Limited integrations with the hosted version
