Search engine optimization
SEO is a central issue for all web stores, which is why Magento has many features that help users reach those coveted top spots on the search engine results pages. For example, the system can automatically generate search engine-friendly URLs and sitemaps (hierarchically structured overview of all the web store’s pages) as well as statistics about the most common search terms entered by customers to find your store. In addition, you can easily define meta information for all pages featuring products, categories and content. With the support of Google Content API for Shopping, you can also allow your products to appear in the Google Shopping search results.
Marketing and customer service
Thanks to the software’s diverse range of resources, marketing a Magento CMS webstore couldn’t be simpler. You can use these to create and export gift cards and promotional codes for various campaigns (i.e. newsletters, print media, etc.). Users also have the option to suggest related items and show recently viewed products. With Magento, it’s possible to create polls, and what’s more, users can also give customers the option to recommend products or send wish lists to friends. Furthermore, implementing a shopping cart that can be accessed across multiple devices increases the chance of transactions being completed.
Catalog and product management
One of the greatest defining features of Magento software is the great variety of ways to design your catalog, including individual products. For example, you can configure different product categories individually or add search filters (i.e. filter by price range). Magento’s features also include search functions such as autocomplete and day and comment functions. You can give further details in your catalog by adding multiple images and provide information about bulk prices or how many items you have in stock. By using Facebook’s share buttons and a zoom function, you can make your product images more interactive.
Checkout and methods of payment
With Magento, you can choose to offer your customers a one page checkout – this is where the entire payment process is displayed on one page. This enables you to decide whether users need to first register as a new customer, or whether they can continue as a guest. In order to keep the data secure, Magento offers the support of SSL certificates for both front-end and back-end processes. Customers can save their shopping cart and obtain information about shipping cost and tax. You can also offer different payment options, including bank transfers, direct debit, credit card payment, PayPal, and Amazon Payments. Further payment methods can be integrated at any time via extensions.
Globalization
Using international currencies and tax rates, as well as foreign language characters and text that reads right to left, you can offer your products to a global audience. Product and category texts can be entered and displayed in different languages. If you wish to limit your range to specific countries, you can define your target regions by determining permitted billing addresses or setting policies about who can create user accounts (the latter option only works if you do not allow users to purchase products as guests).
Mobile commerce
Mobile devices have taken on a supporting role in e-commerce. It’s therefore more important than ever to support native apps for iOS and Android, which can take on updates (i.e. promotions) in real time. Thanks to mobile HTML5, which automatically optimizes content for mobile devices, your Magento desktop site will adjust perfectly to the display and requirements of any portable device. This programming language also enables you to implement specific functions, including zoom, drag and drop into the shopping cart, and multi-touch.