Headless commerce, first coined in 2013, is the newest kid on the block in eCommerce technology, but it’s quickly becoming the go-to architecture for businesses that want to create custom and unique customer experiences.
Are you ready to go headless?
What is Headless Commerce?
If you have not yet heard of headless commerce, it’s an e-commerce structural design that splits the user interface from the back-end, allowing them to function independently. Using it means that as a business, you can create custom and unique customer experiences in various channels with just one back-end.

Key advantages of Headless Commerce:
A headless commerce approach extends beyond the scope of e-commerce websites. It offers you a versatile and adaptable system to manage and deliver buying experiences to your customers, whatever platform or technology they prefer. Below are some of the key advantages of headless commerce.
- Multi-Channel Flexibility: Headless Commerce enables you to use the same back-end to power different digital interfaces, like mobile apps, social media platforms, or even Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Thus, enabling you to sell and engage with customers across various channels, even in-person touchpoints like kiosks or pop-up shops.
- Easy Website Maintenance: With headless commerce, you can change or customize the website's appearance, user interface, and experience without disrupting the back-end operations. You can also easily integrate your website with different other platforms and systems, enhancing the overall digital ecosystem of your business.
- Seamless Integration with Marketing Platforms: You can also integrate it with a range of marketing tools and platforms to provide more personalised and targeted experiences for your customers, whether through email marketing, social media campaigns, or digital advertising.
- Content Management Systems (CMS): You can link headless commerce with your CMSs, blending your content and commerce seamlessly. This is particularly useful if you use content-driven commerce experiences, like blogs, informational sites, or educational platforms, to sell your products or services.
- B2B and B2C Applications: It's applicable in both Business-to-Business (B2B) and Business-to-Consumer (B2C) contexts. If you’re a B2B company, you can use it to power portals, catalogues, and bespoke ordering systems tailored to specific clients.
Will headless commerce impact search advertising?

Headless Commerce enables a more seamless and responsive user experience across various platforms. Better user experiences often result in lower bounce rates and higher session durations, which can lead to higher engagement and conversion rates.
Seamless and responsive user experience
Consider a B2B company that supplies industrial machinery parts. If they are using a traditional or "coupled" commerce setup, their website, apps, and social media will have separate back-ends, offering different functionalities and consequently varying user experience. With headless commerce, the company can manage their online catalogue, customer portals, and mobile apps in a single back-end. Since various user interfaces access a single backend, the company can provide clients with a consistent experience and quick access to product information, pricing, and order placement options regardless of whether they access the company’s catalogue through a website, a specialised client portal, or a mobile app.
So, when the company runs a LinkedIn ad campaign targeting procurement managers and a procurement manager clicks the ad, he is directed to a custom client portal where he can easily find what he needs and place an order. He can do all this without going to the company’s website. If another client accesses the company’s mobile app through a search ad, he gets the same experience without leaving the app. This increases the chances of the client spending more time exploring the different parts and exploring options, which can eventually improve conversion.
Enhanced Personalisation:
With Headless Commerce, you can personalise the shopping experience more effectively, which you can leverage in search advertising to target specific segments of your audience with tailored ads, leading to more effective campaigns.
Here’s an example of how a B2B company using Headless Commerce can enhance its personalisation efforts in search advertising campaigns:
Imagine you’re ‘B2B Solutions Inc’ and you provide cloud-based software services to other businesses and John who is an IT manager for a midsize finance firm is a potential client.
John visits your website and downloads a white paper on cloud security. He later clicked on an email link to register for a webinar on data compliance in the cloud but didn’t attend.
In headless commerce, your centralised system updates John’s profile with his interest in cloud security and compliance.
- Personalisation and PPC Campaign:
You create a PPC remarketing campaign targeting leads who registered for the webinars but didn’t attend.
John sees a personalised ad on Google, LinkedIn, and Facebook highlighting information in the webinar he missed.
- Cross-Channel Experience:
John clicks on the ad and is directed to a landing page showcasing highlights from the webinar study and offering him a consultation on compliance.
The website also features personalised content and resources on compliance tailored to John's industry.
John books a consultation and eventually subscribes to your service after a detailed demo.
- Outcome:
In this example, headless commerce enables integration of personalised content and offerings based on customer data with targeted search advertising. This results seamless user experience and more effective campaigns, as business clients are presented with solutions and information that directly address their specific business needs and interests.
SEO Benefits:
Even though Headless Commerce primarily decouples the front-end from the back-end, well-implemented headless solutions can still be d for search engines. Improved site speed, mobile responsiveness, and user experience are SEO-friendly traits that can positively impact your search advertising efforts.
Imagine a B2B company named "Efficient Energy Solutions," which specialises in providing energy management systems to other businesses. They've implemented a Headless Commerce solution for their digital presence.
Even though their website's front-end (what users see) is separated from the back-end (where all the data and functionalities are stored), they can still optimise the front-end for search engines. Headless commerce ensures that Efficient Energy Solutions’ website has fast loading times, is responsive on mobile devices, and offers an intuitive user experience. These are all critical factors for good SEO.
Impact on Search Advertising:
When they run a search advertising campaign on Google, targeting businesses looking for energy management solutions, the quality of their website directly influences the effectiveness of these ads.
A potential client, after clicking on an ad, is more likely to stay on a fast-loading, easy-to-navigate website. This reduces the bounce rate (when people leave quickly) and increases the chances of engagement.
Example Scenario:
A facilities manager from a large corporation is searching for “sustainable energy management solutions” on Google. They come across an ad for Efficient Energy Solutions and click on it.
Due to the responsive and fast-loading nature of the website, the facilities manager easily finds relevant information about energy management systems tailored to large corporations. They spend more time on the site, increasing session duration and potentially filling out a contact form for more information or a consultation.
In this example, the SEO-friendly traits of Efficient Energy Solutions’ Headless Commerce setup enhance their search advertising efforts. The well-designed front end ensures that potential B2B clients have a positive experience when they visit the site from search ads, leading to higher engagement and better chances of converting ad clicks into business inquiries or leads.
Data-Driven Insights:
Headless systems often come with robust analytics and data capabilities. These insights can be used to refine your search advertising strategies, helping you understand customer behaviours and preferences better.
Let's look at a B2B scenario to understand how data-driven insights from a Headless Commerce system can refine search advertising strategies.
- Robust Analytics in Headless Commerce:
Consider a B2B company, "TechLogix Solutions," which provides enterprise software solutions. With their Headless Commerce setup, they have access to detailed analytics about how businesses interact with their online platform. This includes which pages are most visited, how long clients spend on different sections, and what content is most engaging.
- Gathering Data-Driven Insights:
From their analytics, TechLogix Solutions discovers that a significant number of visitors are interested in their "Inventory Management Software." These visitors spend a lot of time on case studies and demo videos related to this specific software.
They also notice that these visitors often come from industries like manufacturing and retail, indicating a clear sector interest.
- Refining Search Advertising Strategies:
Using these insights, TechLogix Solutions decides to create targeted search ad campaigns focused on "Inventory Management Software for Manufacturing and Retail."
They tailor their ads to address specific pain points identified in the analytics, such as inventory accuracy and real-time tracking.
Example of Implementation:
When a procurement manager from a manufacturing company searches for "efficient inventory management solutions," they encounter TechLogix Solutions’ ad. The ad resonates with their specific needs, leading them to click through.
On the landing page, the manager finds exactly what they were looking for - detailed information about inventory management software with relevant case studies and a call-to-action for a free demo.
In this example, the data-driven insights from TechLogix Solutions’ Headless Commerce system enable them to understand customer behaviour and preferences better. This understanding allows them to refine their search advertising strategies, creating more targeted and relevant campaigns that directly speak to the needs of their potential B2B clients, thereby increasing the effectiveness of their advertising efforts.
Agility in Marketing:
Headless Commerce allows for quicker updates and changes to content and marketing strategies. This agility can be advantageous for search advertising, as you can rapidly adapt to market changes and experiment with new approaches and campaigns more efficiently.
Let's illustrate this with a B2B company example:
- Quick Updates and Changes in Marketing Strategies:
Imagine a B2B company, "Advanced Analytics Inc.," that provides data analytics services to other businesses. Using a Headless Commerce setup, they can swiftly update content and marketing strategies on their digital platforms, independent of their backend systems.
- Agility in Responding to Market Changes:
Let's say there's a sudden surge in demand for AI-based analytics due to new industry regulations. Advanced Analytics Inc. quickly updates its website content to highlight its AI analytics services and creates new marketing collateral that addresses these regulatory changes.
- Experimenting with New Search Advertising Approaches:
They launch a search ad campaign targeting businesses looking for AI-based analytics solutions. Mid-campaign, they gather data indicating that certain ad messages are resonating more with their audience.
- Efficient Optimisation of Campaigns:
Utilizing the flexibility of their Headless Commerce system, Advanced Analytics Inc. rapidly tweaks the ad copy and refines the targeting criteria to focus more on industries most affected by the new regulations.
They also update their landing page to better align with the revised ad content, ensuring a cohesive message from ad click to website visit.
Example Scenario:
A compliance officer from a healthcare company searches for "AI analytics for healthcare compliance." They find Advanced Analytics Inc.’s ad, which has been designed to highlight compliance-focused solutions.
The officer clicks the ad and lands on a page specifically discussing AI analytics in healthcare compliance, finds relevant case studies, and requests a consultation.
In this example, the agility provided by Headless Commerce enables Advanced Analytics Inc. to quickly adapt their marketing and search advertising strategies to market changes. They can efficiently experiment with their campaigns, ensuring their marketing efforts are timely, relevant, and more likely to appeal to their target B2B audience.
Consistent Branding Across Channels:
Since Headless Commerce enables uniform content management across different platforms, it ensures consistent branding and messaging. This consistency is crucial for effective search advertising, as it strengthens brand recognition and trust.
Here’s an example of how Headless Commerce can help a company maintain its consistent branding across channels, which is beneficial for search advertising:
- Uniform Content Management Across Platforms:
Consider "GreenTech Solutions," a B2B company specializing in environmentally friendly industrial equipment. With Headless Commerce, GreenTech Solutions manages their content centrally, ensuring that their branding and messaging stay consistent whether a client interacts with them through their website, mobile app, or social media platforms.
- Consistent Branding and Messaging:
For example, GreenTech Solutions uses a specific set of brand colours, logos, and a tone of voice that emphasizes their commitment to sustainability. This branding is uniformly presented across their website, app, and social media, creating a cohesive brand image.
- Impact on Search Advertising:
When GreenTech Solutions runs search advertising campaigns, they ensure that the ads reflect the same branding and messaging. For instance, their Google Ads use the same colour scheme and sustainability-focused language as their website.
Example Scenario for Effective Brand Recognition:
A procurement manager at a manufacturing company searches for "eco-friendly industrial equipment." They click on GreenTech Solutions’ ad because they recognize the brand from a previous encounter on a different platform, perhaps LinkedIn or a mobile app.
The landing page they arrive at carries the same visual and textual branding as the ad, reinforcing the company's identity and values. This consistency in branding across various touchpoints builds trust and recognition.
- Building Trust through Consistency:
Over time, as the procurement manager encounters GreenTech Solutions’ branding consistently across different channels, their trust in the brand grows. This trust leads to higher engagement and a greater likelihood of choosing GreenTech Solutions for their eco-friendly equipment needs.
In this example, Headless Commerce plays a vital role in ensuring that GreenTech Solutions' branding and messaging remain uniform across all channels, including search advertising. This consistency is key to developing and maintaining brand recognition and trust, which are crucial for the effectiveness of search advertising campaigns in the B2B sector.
Integration with Marketing Tools:
Headless Commerce platforms often integrate well with various digital marketing tools, including those used for search advertising. This integration can streamline campaign management and tracking, making your search advertising efforts more cohesive and less fragmented.
Let's explore this concept using a B2B company example:
- Integration with Digital Marketing Tools:
Imagine a B2B company called "LogiChain Solutions" that offers supply chain management software to other businesses. LogiChain Solutions uses a Headless Commerce platform for its digital presence. This platform is integrated with various digital marketing tools, such as Google Ads for search advertising, a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system, and analytics tools.
- Streamlining Campaign Management and Tracking:
Through this integration, when LogiChain Solutions runs search ad campaigns on Google Ads, the performance data (like click-through rates, conversions, etc.) is automatically fed into their CRM and analytics tools. This allows them to track which ads are leading to inquiries or demo requests and how these leads are progressing through the sales funnel.
Example of Cohesive Campaign Management:
For a campaign targeting businesses looking for "efficient supply chain software," LogiChain Solutions creates specific ads. Once a potential client clicks on an ad and fills out a form on the landing page, this action is captured in the CRM.
The integration enables LogiChain Solutions to follow up effectively with personalized email campaigns, using data from both the search ads and the interactions on their website. They can see which ads lead to more engagement and adjust their strategy accordingly.
- Efficient Tracking and Optimization:
The seamless flow of data across platforms helps LogiChain Solutions understand the customer journey better. They can easily identify which ads and keywords are most effective, allowing them to their search advertising for better results.
Additionally, by analyzing the combined data from their Headless Commerce platform, Google Ads, and CRM, they gain insights into customer behaviour and preferences, further refining their overall marketing strategy.
- Enhanced Customer Experience:
This integration not only improves internal campaign management but also enhances the customer experience. Potential clients receive more relevant and timely communications based on their interactions, making the marketing efforts of LogiChain Solutions feel more personalized and less fragmented.
In this scenario, the integration of Headless Commerce with other marketing tools allows LogiChain Solutions to manage and track their search advertising campaigns more effectively. This leads to more cohesive marketing efforts, better customer insights, and ultimately, improved campaign performance.
In summary, Headless Commerce can enhance the effectiveness of search advertising by improving user experience, enabling better personalization, providing valuable insights, and ensuring consistency across various digital touchpoints. This leads to more efficient and impactful search advertising campaigns.
Should B2B companies look into using headless commerce? What do they need to do to get it right?
"How can B2B companies effectively leverage Headless Commerce to enhance their digital strategies, and what key steps should they take to ensure successful implementation and optimal results?"
B2B companies should certainly consider exploring Headless Commerce, especially if they aim to provide flexible, personalized, and seamless experiences to their clients across various digital channels. However, getting it right involves strategic planning and execution.
Here are key considerations and steps for B2B companies looking to implement Headless Commerce:
- Assess Your Business Needs and Goals:
Evaluate whether Headless Commerce aligns with your business strategy, especially in terms of multi-channel engagement, customization needs, and digital transformation goals.
- Understand Your Client's Requirements:
Analyse your clients' buying behaviours, preferences, and the kind of digital experience they expect. B2B buyers often look for efficient, tailored, and easy-to-navigate purchasing processes.
- Choose the Right Platform:
Select a Headless Commerce platform that best fits your business model, technical capabilities, and budget. Consider factors like scalability, API maturity, integration capabilities, and support services.
- Invest in the Right Technology and Skills:
Headless Commerce typically requires a robust technology stack and skilled development resources. Ensure you have the right IT infrastructure and a team (in-house or outsourced) skilled in API management, front-end development, and system integration.
- Focus on Seamless Integration:
Integrate the Headless Commerce platform seamlessly with your existing CRM, ERP, and other business systems. This integration is crucial for maintaining data consistency and operational efficiency.
- Prioritise User Experience (UX) Design:
Invest in creating intuitive, user-friendly interfaces. B2B purchasing processes can be complex, so a well-designed UX is vital for encouraging engagement and conversions.
- Implement Robust Security Measures:
Given the nature of B2B transactions, security is paramount. Ensure strong data protection, compliance with relevant regulations, and secure integration across all channels.
- Leverage Data for Personalisation:
Utilize data analytics to personalize the buying experience. Personalization can range from customized product recommendations to individualized pricing and tailored content.
- Plan for Scalability and Flexibility:
Your Headless Commerce solution should be scalable to accommodate business growth and flexible enough to adapt to changing market trends and technologies.
- Continuous Testing and Optimization:
Regularly test and different aspects of your commerce experience for performance, usability, and conversion efficiency.
- Prepare for an Ongoing Commitment:
Headless Commerce is not a set-and-forget solution. It requires ongoing management, updates, and iteration based on customer feedback and market changes.
By carefully considering these aspects, B2B companies can successfully implement Headless Commerce and leverage its benefits to create more dynamic, responsive, and personalized B2B commerce experiences.
"Which are the leading providers of headless commerce platforms in 2024, and what are the distinctive features or strengths of each provider's solution?"
There are several headless commerce solutions available in the market for businesses looking to decouple their front-end presentation layer from their back-end e-commerce functionality.
Here are some of the recognised providers:
- Adobe Commerce (formerly Magento): 604 users on software review platforms, Capterra and Software Advice, rate Adobe Commerce 4.3 and 4.2 respectively out of 5. It scores highly in features, customisation and support but average with regard to ease of use.
- Shopify Plus: Shopify's enterprise-level solution, Shopify Plus, offers headless capabilities, that allows larger businesses to extensively customise their online stores and integrate with many front-end frameworks. It has an average star rating of 4.8 stars out 5 from 104 users at Capterra and Software Advice review platforms. Shopify Plus scored highly on both ease of use and features.
- BigCommerce: BigCommerce supports a "headless" approach. It has 4.4 star rating on Software Advice and Capterra from 323 reviews.
- Commercetools: It’s a cloud-native platform that specialises in headless commerce. Dirk Hoerig, Commercetools’ Co-Founder, is said to have coined the term ‘Headless Commerce.’ Commercetools offers a suite of APIs that allow you to build customised and scalable e-commerce experiences. It doesn’t have as many reviews yet. From 17 reviews on Capterra it scored a 4.6 average star rating, scoring 4.2 on ease of use and 4. On Gartner (Software Advice), it received an average of 4.7 star rating from 23 reviews. However, it’s worth noting its an API-first and uses microservices-based approach, so you will need skilled developers to fully take advantage of its capabilities.
- Elastic Path: Elastic Path, like Commercetools, is cloud-native and uses microservice-based approach. It hasn’t been reviewed on Capterra yet, but it has 4.6 average star rating from 90 reviews on Gartner (Sortware Advice). It has a bigger market share than Commercetools. It’s widely used in the US, Canada and India, while Commercetools are more popular in Germany and the UK as well as the US.
- Salesforce Commerce Cloud: Salesforce Commerce Cloud boasts Amazon and Costco as it’s users. It’s comparable to Shopify Plus but is far more extendable in terms of heavy customisation. It doesn’t have many reviews on both Capterra and Gartner (Software Advice).
- VTEX: VTEX is another cloud-based headless commerce platform that uses microservice architecture. It has 227 reviews on Gartner (Software Advice) with 4.7 average star rating. It has the same average rating on Capterra from 15 reviews.
Each provider listed above has unique features and capabilities. Your choice depends on the specific needs of your business, such as the level of customisation you need, scalability, integration, capabilities and budget. When deciding on a headless commerce solution, keep in mind factors like ease of use, support, community, network, and how smoothly it will integrate with your existing systems and processes.
B2B Companies using headless commerce.
Headless commerce has been increasingly adopted by B2Bs companies to offer their customers more personalised and seamless user experience. Here are some notable companies that have been using headless commerce:
Stanley & Decker - Stanley Black & Decker leveraged VTEX Commerce Cloud as a headless commerce platform to build a tailored field sales application that gave each sales rep an overview snapshot of customer insights. They can now drill down into how the customer prefers to buy, their order history, and additional information that helps them give each customer personalised service.
Powered by AWS services, VTEX Commerce Cloud provides Stanley Black & Decker a single, cloud-based B2B platform for ecommerce that’s easy to maintain and always up to date. With one ecommerce solution, Stanley Black & Decker was also able to cut costs. According to Orlando Gadea Ros, Business Innovation Director at Stanley Black & Decker: “Having a single comprehensive platform versus multiple platforms with separate implementations and integrations reduces the total cost of ownership”. (VTEX, n.d.)
Colgate - Pro Brazil’s story with VTEX is one of innovation. For, a marketplace was a must-have for the project, and Colgate made the most out of VTEX’s native marketplace functionality to build a B2B ecommerce website. Leveraging a pre-integrated system meant TCO and implementation time would be lower. Additionally, Colgate was looking for a SaaS platform that could be customized to meet their and their clients’ specific business functions. Although it is difficult to accommodate this level of complexity in the B2B digital commerce world, it is also fundamental. (VTEX, n.d.)
GE Renewable Energy - Users of GE Renewable Energy’s e-commerce site of its onshore wind parts was dropping, and shoppers getting frustrated with its poor navigation, slow load times and inconsistent part naming. To address the issue, the company decided it needed to quickly build a new B2B storefront. It rolled out its new storefront using Salesforce Headless Commerce. Since then, had seen improvements in customer visits and engagement. (Salesforce, n.d.)
Chambers Gasket builds a self-service B2B online storefront using Salesforce B2B Commerce Cloud for an online portal that frees up sales reps to pursue new business.
Industrial Tools Supplies (ITS) – Over the last two decades ITS has widely expanded its ecommerce offering, selling hardware tradespeople in the UK — from carpenters and builders, electricians, plumbers and landscapers. As company continues to expand its online reach, it wants to make sure it keeps to its vision of putting the customer first. For them, BigCommerce headless solutions is the answer, as it gives them tools to effectively sell without worrying about managing the technology. (BigCommerce, n.d.)
Cimpress – The company launched 2 gigantic projects in 5 weeks with the help of headless commerce from Commercetools. Cimpress makes customized print, signage, apparel, gifts, identity merchandise, packaging and other products accessible and affordable to everyone. They’re able to do this by using mass customization capabilities they’ve been developing over the last 20 years. Vistaprint, a Cimpress company, helps small business owners create expertly designed, up-to-date custom marketing materials — the assortment of products they need to look and feel professional, prepared and plugged in. (Commercetools, n.d.)
Dawn Foods is a B2B manufacturer and distributor of bakery ingredients and baked goods to 22,000 independent and local bakeries in North America, as well as to customers worldwide. It uses Commercetools provide self-service capabilities to their customers, so they can quickly and efficiently manage their accounts, browse product catalogues, and place orders. Customers can see their order history, pick the order, and then reorder – three clicks, and they’re done. They can also view the entire product catalogue online for the very first time.
I hope you’ll find this introduction to the basics of Google ads useful. Google Ads remains a powerhouse in the digital advertising landscape, and that is not going to change for some time. By understanding its core tenets, you are better equipped to navigate the digital marketplace, ensuring your advertising budget is spent wisely and effectively. As the world of online advertising continues to evolve, staying informed and adaptable is the key to sustained success. Whether you're just starting out or refining your strategy, remember that success with Google Ads doesn't come overnight. It requires continuous monitoring, testing, and optimising. But with patience and persistence, the rewards can be significant.
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vtex.com. (2023). Colgate Pro: a one-of-a-kind B2B marketplace tailor-made for dentists - VTEX. [online] Available at: https://vtex.com/au-en/cases/colgate-b2b-marketplace/ [Accessed 2 Aug. 2024].
Streamline B2B buyer and seller collaboration. VTEX 2021. https://vtex.com/gb-en/cases/stanley-black-and-decker/ (accessed August 2, 2024).
Salesforce. (n.d.). How GE Renewable Energy Deployed a Digital Commerce Portal in Just 10 weeks. [online] Available at: https://www.salesforce.com/uk/resources/customer-stories/general-electric-b2b-storefront/ [Accessed 2 Aug. 2024].
BigCommerce. (n.d.). ITS Case Study. [online] Available at: http://www.bigcommerce.com/case-study/industrial-tool-supplies/.
commercetools. (n.d.). Cimpress Commerce Possibility Story. [online] Available at: https://commercetools.com/customer-stories/cimpress.