Delivering a seamless online shopping experience requires companies to invest in the latest eCommerce system technology. One such investment is in commerce APIs. Short for application programming interfaces, APIs have become a critical component in today’s vast online retail landscape.
Why is that? Capable of enabling advanced integration, APIs allow various applications and systems both within and outside of a commerce platform to communicate with one another. What’s more, they accomplish this despite differences in internal data structures and technology. As these innovations facilitate enhanced connectivity among authorized applications and machines, it improves data accessibility and synchronization on the back end. The result is a considerably smoother, feature-filled experience on the front end.
What does this mean for customers? As shoppers browse and eventually purchase items, APIs work behind the scenes to make the process almost effortless. From facilitating the change from one channel to the next, to the creation and editing of a shopping cart, the process is augmented to drive them through the sales funnel in an efficient, yet natural manner. APIs can appear in the form of widgets, auto-populated transaction information and personalization all designed to optimize the unified, omnichannel experience customers have come to expect.
While a robust experience can greatly impact customer satisfaction and, therefore, a company’s bottom line, APIs provide other considerable benefits as well. One such benefit of an API-rich approach is increased site security. By placing an additional layer between an organization’s software system and potential cybercriminals, APIs can offer enhanced protection for customer data, both personal and financial. Another advantage of APIs is their reusability. Capable of being reused numerous times across applications and platforms, these programs help save companies time and money as they modernize.
Want to learn more about APIs and how they can improve the online shopping experience? Check out the accompanying resources for more information.
Infographic created by Commercetools
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