SAP Commerce Cloud – previously known as Hybris.
Salesforce Commerce Cloud – previously known as Demandware.
Hybris was acquired by SAP (2013), likewise Salesforce acquired Demandware (2016) – both to strengthen their e-commerce, digital and physical footprints in the retail sector. There are 2 areas in e-commerce where these robust tools are used. One is what we see –Online shopping store, which is called B2C e-commerce. Second is what happens in the background, which most of us don’t get to see, like vendors and suppliers, their bulk ordering, payments and logistics, etc.; this is B2B e-commerce.
Both platforms have robust native functionalities. SAP tapped the high market cap which Hybris had, being a leader in the e-commerce segment, it was listed as the leader in Gartners magic quadrant for Digital Commerce. Salesforce has integrated Demandware with all of its existing products like its famous CRM, CPQ (configure price quote), etc. Thus, an end user gets a holistic view of the website’s visitor. The market-leading CRM helps to engage more customers and deliver seamless Sales processes from lead to conversion.
Salesforce acquired CloudCraze (2018), to optimize its B2B e-commerce capability. Now Business buyers will be able to get the same personalized, intelligent shopper journeys as the Consumer, across all channels – social, in-store, mobile and digital. Be it pricing, contracting, multi-contract management, bulk booking, delivering to different addresses, etc. is available.
Predictive sort is a new feature introduced in Commerce Cloud. It gains power with the AI engine that works at the backend to study the search, sorts the results based on it, and suggest choices – Einstein AI-Powered Personalization for shoppers. Purchasing cycle is monitored by the AI engine to predict the next purchase, consumer behavior and selection of products. Smarter insights on consumer behavior and purchasing patterns to identify opportunities for upselling and cross-selling.
It is the Team which is going to be responsible for taking care of day to day activities. Software complex at core also needs to be user-friendly and understandable. Salesforce Commerce Cloud has an unbeatable advantage over SAP Commerce Cloud when it comes to the Admin interface. For anyone involved in day-to-day platform operations, it is incredibly user-friendly. A study says 64% people who find it complex while tryinga software don’t end up using it. Salesforce Commerce cloud’s ease of use helps save time for the team.
SAP Commerce Cloud is sold through (1) Subscription based pricing and (2) priced with the total number of parallel users on the site during peak time. Salesforce Commerce Cloud pricing is based on a revenue sharing model. As the revenue increases the percentage reduces.
Not all the features are available in the full-blown version of Salesforce Commerce Cloud, the add-ons include –
Commerce cloud Order Management
Commerce Cloud Endless Aisle
While you are on the hunt for the best e-commerce platform, more than anything else, it’s these 2 things that are make or break –
Are you a SAP shop? If yes, it’s advisable to go with SAP Commerce Cloud. Though integrations are technically achievable, it could become more of a blame game in the future. If you are mixed environment hosting multiple vendor applications, or if you are setting up from scratch, Salesforce Commerce Cloud is the tool for you.
What are your Teams strength? This is more important than anything else, as bringing in new resources to support a platform can be a nightmare, and time taking.
If you are in the retail space looking to up your game, it is advisable to consult a local partner who could assess your operations and suggest which platform would suit you best. Having implemented simple to complex environments, Certified Salesforce Commerce Cloud Consultants from Zivoke could take a look at your environment and suggest the best platform for your business.
