In JAMStack the whole is more than the sum of its API's
When we talk about JAMstack, we usually address APIs' key role for a new platform. Still, in itself, each one is also a high-quality product that seeks to become a solution for today's and tomorrow's challenges.
There is a tendency to believe that changing platforms requires leaving behind everything you had to build something new. The truth is: JAMstack is not like that; in fact, from the moment you decouple the front-end from all the business logic behind your platform, you start to experience the benefits of this technology. For example, your site will start loading a lot faster and search engines like Google will love you.
If you are still wondering what JAMstack is, we recommend visiting our blog to learn more about this fantastic web architecture and its technical properties. We really like talking about this.
Not all eCommerce platforms are the same
In a previous article, we talked about the market behavior in Colombia during 2020 and the benefits that a headless CMS brings to eCommerce platforms. We want to delve a little deeper into one of the problems brands face in the online sales arena; traffic surges.
In May 2020, the beginning of one of the economic reactivation measures aimed at benefiting the country's domestic consumption was announced; the "VAT-free days". As you already guessed, these are dates where sales can be made without charging the value-added tax, a savings opportunity for people. The result exceeded expectations for the balance sheets, with an increase in the number of sales and the average sales ticket.
However, it is not always possible to celebrate. The abrupt surge in traffic on a new VAT-free Day or similar events can have tragic consequences for those who use a monolithic web architecture. A very frequent problem is using shared servers, where if a stressful amount of visits is received, a single site can drop all the connections hosted on the same machine.
There are also compatibility issues between plugins, versions, and patches between those who offer solutions, for example, on platforms such as WordPress. It would be terrible to be on downtime within days of a similar event because your drag & drop content editor is now incompatible with business features.
The economic impact for the affected brands is essential, but even more critical is the loss of people's trust, who expect optimal service. It's about providing them with the best digital service.
A JAMstack example on your eCommerce platform
Let's imagine you oversee a sportswear brand based in Cali; 2020 put your entire platform to the test, and the business managed to respond well thanks to home exercise equipment. However, your web platform does not seem to provide a significant benefit in the annual balance sheet. It is already 2021, where shopping online is the standard, but your sales seem to remain the same as they were even before the pandemic, and the point of contact is focused on social media, which is a bad indicator.
Fortunately, you have developers who suggest you find out what JAMstack is. With the following arguments, they tell you how creative the solutions are and about the quality of the developments:
- First, because it does not depend exclusively on a server for all the platform's features, there is generally cloud-hosting. And so does each service you want to integrate into the various business features, all serverless.
- Second, because in JAMstack the integrations are done via APIs, you are instantly compatible with virtually any device that can display content on a screen, an essential condition for omnichannel.
- Third, because these integrations are charged on-demand and scale with you, you only pay when the features are used. When there are traffic surges on your platform, these features automatically scale up in the necessary computing resources; they are prepared for this. A Vat-free Day does not involve any concerns when using JAMstack.
- Finally, because the primary goal of JAMstack is to help developers create faster, safer, and easier to scale websites. That's why it constantly strives for service simplicity to power eCommerce platforms.
As Reign our first bet is to go with a static platform that uses Contentful to manage content and fully leverage the benefits of its CDNs, Reblaze to add a security layer, and Commerce Layer for business features. Although, if the company seeks to leverage the proximity to the port of Buenaventura, perhaps BigCommerce could be a better alternative due to the wonderful results offered when managing the tax rate of various countries differently. So, you could position your site also in Chile, without having to leave your city, although, of course, saying it sounds easy.
To achieve this requires transitioning and unbundling each component of your old platform, progressively replacing it with one of these products; we believe it is quite an adventure. For example, leaving behind the conventional database to adopt a GraphQL data schema, managed through one of the Contentful APIs.
At Reign, we are an expert company creating eCommerce platforms with JAMstack architecture. We are the partner that can guide you in the transition to this new standard. Do you want to prepare for what is coming, or will you continue to experience downtime?