Support for Magento - what do you need to know?
Magento, like any software, requires updates and maintenance. On top of that, there are quite a few people working on the admin panel who should have their own roles. In this article, I will tell you about the rules that will make it simpler to keep your Magento shop healthy.
Magento is an online shop engine. It is a very mature software that is provided by Adobe. It contains a great many modules that allow you to start selling online even with a little modification. However, adapting Magento to the competitive advantages and individual nature of your business already requires the help of specialists.
Maintaining the health of your shop on Magento
Magento, like any IT system, is constantly evolving. The manufacturer releases security and performance patches for the system and new features in cycles. As installing new features may not be that important, security patches should be installed as quickly as possible.
Carrying out these updates should be done by specialists. This is not the typical process we are familiar with for updating operating systems. Because modern systems are not monolithic in their architecture, there are many moving components that can behave differently during an update.
It typically involves updating application files, rebuilding the view layer and updating the database to the latest version. If your shop does not use the frontend from Magento but is in a headless architecture then it is a little safer.
I say a little because the API your frontend app uses or other systems and mobile apps are also subject to updates. Before each one, you should check very carefully whether the changed components make a fundamental change to the API. Such a change introduced without analysis can prevent systems that use Magento as a backend from working correctly.
In addition to the aforementioned conditions related to updates, it is worth having a process that will check the correct operation of the ecommerce platform. In the event of problems, use the rollback procedure We are talking here about restoring the shop to the state before the update.
Such a checking process should include: smoke test of product card categories adding to basket setting up accounts logging in and payment gateway(s). In this way, you will quickly ensure that the update has not spoilt the most important customer paths
This and several other processes are customised as part of application support. This is a service that provides expert care not only for the update, but also for L1, L2 and L3 business support.
This means that, as part of this package, you can count on a team that is ready to answer your questions and respond quickly so that your shop is constantly available for customers.
Store management on Magento - what roles?
There are many roles working on an online shop on Magento. In addition to technical roles such as:
- DevOps
- developers
- testers
- integrators
- architects
There are quite a few business roles. Depending on the case, these can be:
- those responsible for product data quality
- marketing
- customer service
- complaints department
- logistics
- e-commerce manager
- project manager
etc. Each person who is technical or business should have an appropriate role. This role must be aligned with the level of authority that comes with the job description.
Magento has a flexible permissions system that allows a lot of freedom in configuring access permissions. Maximum permissions cannot be assigned to every team member.
In addition, it is good to have roles duplicated, i.e. in case of absences, so that there is substitutability and operational continuity.
Is it expensive to maintain a shop on Magento?
I am aware that I am raising a controversial topic. The determination that something is expensive or not has a very subjective tinge.
However, as in life, everything can be justified. It is like choosing optional extras when buying a car. A basic version is always cheaper than one with a full package of extras.
The same is also true for maintaining an online shop on Magento. Of course, there are elements that are absolutely necessary, such as the server infrastructure. In addition to this, there is ongoing maintenance. For this service, the 8/5 support option will certainly be cheaper than the 24/7 option.
In order to make a good decision you need to be aware of the scale of your e-commerce business. Of course something can always happen, the question is how much of an impact this will have on operations or the wider revenue stream.
If your shop does not have a turnover that contributes significantly to the overall business, it is worth considering fewer options. This is where the fundamental difference from the car example comes in.
When you buy a car it is difficult to add extra options to it in the future. If I didn't choose heated seats from the start, I probably have to live with that.
However, with a shop on Magento it is different. Different in Mongo at least. You can always add a service option in the future that is suitable for the time. The redundant ones can also be dispensed with.
In summary, maintaining an online shop on Magento can be expensive but always at your own request It is good to consult your needs with specialists who have transparency values written into their business model This way there is a good chance of avoiding unnecessary costs
Is it difficult to operate a shop on Magento?
Magento has many modules and moving parts. This is so on the technical side. A company without the right certifications and experience can make a lot of irreversible or costly to reverse mistakes.
To ensure that these mistakes do not have a negative impact on revenue, you should always choose experienced suppliers with a good market reputation. So yes, technically, operating a shop on Magento is difficult.
And what does it look like from the management side via the administration panel? After all, in this case we are looking at your employees!
These employees definitely need to be well trained. In addition to this, on lower-level, test or sandbox environments, they should be able to check the configuration changes they make.
One wrongly enabled option in promotions can completely change the way discounts work. Unfortunately, but change to the detriment of your business. That's why it's so important that there is a high level of awareness among your team of what can happen.
If said awareness is at a high level and they follow the principle of 'I'll test first in a controlled and private environment before putting it into production', then all should be well. Well, or at least the risks will be easier to manage.
All in all, Magento is a powerful system with lots of options and a complex design. I recommend taking a serious approach to the subject and building awareness among employees. And I recommend choosing suppliers according to experience.
Ideally, this experience should have been gained in regulated industries. Such a supplier certainly already has the right procedures in place to handle serious e-commerce business.
However, all this does not mean that operating a shop on Magento has to be expensive. The right application support parameters will certainly allow you to fit into the budget. And options that are missing in the future can certainly be supplemented. At least in Monogo!