The eCommerce industry is growing exponentially these days. Businesses require a better return on the investment they make while choosing a solution to support their eCommerce websites and online business operations.
eCommerce APIs can help you leverage the power of developing your mobile application using third-party services. However, as technology advances and grows, so does the complexity of eCommerce development projects.
This has made it important for every online business to have proper, eCommerce website development services in place so that these services can be effectively utilized for your organization’s growth.
If you are going to imply eCommerce APIs, then you must know what they are in the first place. It is also important to understand what API integration is and how it can benefit your eCommerce business. Let’s get started.
What are eCommerce APIs?
E-commerce APIs are software interfaces that allow you to perform actions on your eCommerce website or in a third-party shopping cart. It is usually available as a REST API, which means they use HTTP request methods for communication.
This makes them very easy to use since you don’t have to learn anything about programming languages or frameworks to interact with an eCommerce API. All you need is a browser and some knowledge of how computers work.
eCommerce APIs are how an online business can interact with its customers allowing them to complete transactions and return results. Third-party websites can use these eCommerce APIs to manage customers shopping carts and create functionalities that enhance their shopping experience.
Let’s consider an example of eCommerce API;
Amazon APIs for eCommerce
Amazon API is an open-source web service that offers a suite of tools for managing and integrating with the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud infrastructure. This application programming interface (API) allows developers to build eCommerce websites and applications that leverage the full power of AWS services, including storage, computing, databases, analytics, and more.
Amazon API is a simple and reliable way to access information about products, categories, and prices on Amazon.com. The API enables developers to integrate their eCommerce site with the functionality of the Amazon website.
The Amazon API also allows you to access real-time information about your orders, products, and inventory. The API is available in multiple languages and can be accessed using HTTP, SOAP, or JSON protocols.
Types of eCommerce Platform APIs
Shipping API
Shipping API is an eCommerce API that allows you to get shipping rates for your products. It fetches the information that is needed for calculating the shipping cost and returns it in JSON format.
You can easily integrate this API into your online store, and it can be used to check shipping charges before buying any product from online stores. They also allow developers to integrate third-party shipping services like UPS and FedEx directly into their eCommerce sites and store.
This makes it possible for customers to track their packages in real-time see when they will be delivered, and even receive notifications about when their packages have been delivered or when they are on the way.
Payment Gateway API
Payment gateway APIs are used in online businesses to securely accept or send payments with the help of third-party services. These gateways are often provided by banks, credit card companies, or other financial institutions and can be used to process credit card transactions, debit card transactions, electronic checks, or any other form of electronic payment.
The payment gateway API is typically implemented as a single call that handles everything from authentication to authorization to payment processing. It’s also possible to integrate multiple gateways with one API call if your e-commerce website supports multiple types of payments.
The main benefit of using a third-party payment gateway is that it provides you with access to the underlying infrastructure that powers your eCommerce systems and online eCommerce store. This means you’ll be able to accept payments from customers who don’t have an account with your own eCommerce website and don’t have an address associated with their credit cards.
Catalog API
A product catalog API is a type of eCommerce API that allows users to interact with a merchant’s product catalog. The merchant’s e-commerce data catalog can be updated and changed, which means that users will always have access to the latest products available for sale.
Through an eCommerce API, merchants can easily get customer attributes, add new products and also let their customers know about the newly added products. The advantage of using eCommerce data using a catalog API is that it helps in increasing sales by providing more products for customers to choose from.
By using a catalog API, merchants can do inventory management and also keep track of all their sales data in one place, making it easier to analyze and improve on future strategies.
Cart API
The Cart API is a REST API that allows merchants to manage the products, orders, key systems, and inventory of their eCommerce business. Merchants can use the Cart API to create, update or delete a product, an inventory management, a warehouse management system, or an order.
The Cart API supports two types of calls: Create, Update, and Delete. The Create call returns an object with information about the new object or record. The Update call returns an object with information about the changed object or record. The Delete call returns an object with information about the deleted object or record.
Login API
This eCommerce API allows you to access the account information of your customers. It also enables you to get their profile and cart details.
You can use this eCommerce API to check whether a particular customer has already logged in or not and if they have, what is their current session and what are their previous sessions in an eCommerce ecosystem.
You can gather all this information using the Login API and later use it to send various types of relevant or personalized offers and promotions to customers. You can also use this eCommerce API to send them emails based on their current session or previous sessions.
For example, if they have previously purchased products from you before, then you can send them email notifications about sales promotions or discounts related to those products using Login API.
Recommendation Engine API
Recommendation Engine API allows users to create and manage their own recommendation engines. It offers an easy-to-use interface for building sophisticated recommendation engines, which can be accessed through its website or through RESTful API calls.
The API allows users to create their own customized recommendation engines, which are then accessible to others via the Recommendation Engine API’s website or REST API. The Recommendation Engine API enables users to create custom recommendation engines by using RSS feeds or topic search results as inputs, but it does not offer any prebuilt models or algorithms.
The Recommendations Engine API is free for use, but there is an optional paid tier available if you want to have more features such as advanced user management, email notifications, and so on.
Third-Party Supplier API
The third-party supplier API is a method of creating an eCommerce website that allows customers to order products directly from their suppliers. The APIs are useful for online shopping platforms like Amazon and eBay, where there are thousands of products from many different companies.
An example of a third-party supplier API is the Yelp for Restaurants API, which allows businesses to integrate their restaurant information into their websites. By using this API, business owners can make it easier for customers to find and book reservations, view menus, and check in at their restaurants.
Third-party suppliers are also able to provide specialized services that aren’t available through any other platform or system. For example, a third-party supplier may provide a content management system that enables businesses to publish content on their websites without having to worry about creating or maintaining the content themselves.
What is API Integration?
A process used to make an app or a software service compatible to work well another one is called API integration. APIs enable consumers to programmatically access data from a corporate website using standard programming tools, such as JavaScript.
This enables the developers to create software applications that can interact with external services or websites. ECommerce APIs work for a variety of purposes, including providing access to information from the corporate website and building applications that interact with it.
For example, if a company’s marketing department wants to make its website more useful for customers, it may create an API that allows third-party companies to integrate their services into the eCommerce site. This would enable business partners and other third parties to create additional functionality for customers who are interested in it.
Benefits of API integration
eCommerce API Integration with multiple stores
An API integration allows you to integrate your eCommerce platforms and store with other popular eCommerce platforms and stores. When you integrate your eCommerce platform and store with multiple stores, you’ll be able to serve your customers through your own eCommerce platform, giving them access to product information, payment options, and more.
API integration with multiple stores can be done in several ways. The simplest way is to use a single-sign-on (SSO) solution that allows users to sign in to an eCommerce store with their existing credentials and have the stored information retrieved.
A more complex SSO solution would allow you to send user information from one application to another, such as your payment processor or merchant services provider. That’s how eCommerce APIs help you provide an experience that is consistent across all of the applications
You could also integrate with multiple eCommerce stores using a third-party tool, and different software components such as Zapier or IFTTT, which can automatically update content on various stores based on changes in your data.
More effective data management
API integration brings new opportunities to companies that have traditionally been limited by their ability to collect, manage and analyze data.
API integration allows the company to expand its reach into the vast world of customer data, allowing it to transform its business and improve its performance. With API integration, your company will be able to access your customers’ data and create more effective marketing efforts.
Organizations can also use eCommerce APIs to store their data in a central location, providing them with an easy way of accessing the information on demand. This enables them to quickly gain insights into their market and develop new products or services that best suit consumers’ needs.
E-commerce APIs enable businesses to access real-time data that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to get through the web interface or other key systems. This means more accurate reporting, more timely insights, and more accurate decision-making.
More accessible data repository
When you have a custom data repository, it’s easy to collect and store the information that your e-commerce business needs. But when you allow your data to be accessed through an API, those same search and query tools can be used by anyone, anywhere in the world.
That means your customers can access the information you provide from their own devices, which is much more accessible than having to log into your eCommerce system and search for it based on its file name. When people can access your e-commerce data directly from different sources, it opens up a lot of possibilities for collaboration and innovation.
For example, if a user wants to know how many people live in their neighborhood, he or she can pull up an API that provides this information instead of having to go through your website or app to order data.
Increased sales
The use of most eCommerce APIs allows you to extend your business with new products, services, and features. This is accomplished by generating a new revenue stream, enabling the development of new revenue-generating products and services, which in turn can help you to achieve your overall business goals.
In addition, it will allow you to access new markets, which may not have been accessible before due to geographical constraints or other factors. The API integration also provides an effective way for your own customer relationship management CRM and content management system to develop a brand image and attract new customers.
Cost-effective extensibility
The API integration is cost-effective. It is possible to manage customer identities and handle a large number of customers through API integration. The data can be integrated with other systems, such as ERP (enterprise resource planning) and MES (manufacturing execution system) so that it can be used to improve the efficiency of production.
The API integrates into your application and becomes the lifeblood of the product. By making them available to other applications, you can quickly and easily add new features and functionality to your product. You don’t have to waste time or money building these features from scratch, saving your company time and money.
APIs personalize and automate your eCommerce business services
API integration allows you to personalize and automate your eCommerce operations. This is one of the most widely used features of application programming interfaces. They offer a way for online businesses to create their tools and integrate them with other tools or services that are already available on the market.
eCommerce APIs can be used for anything from creating an app to creating an e-commerce website, from processing transactions to sending email messages.
API provides a better customer experience
it’s important to note that APIs are often used as a way for businesses to manage their data and improve their customer experience. For example, let’s consider an e-commerce platform where users can choose what products they want and then pay for them using the payment method (credit card, Paypal, etc.) eCommerce platforms.
These platforms will need an API that allows them to communicate with external systems such as Stripe or Braintree Payment Gateway so that users can make payments without human intervention.
API improves the marketing process
System APIs allow you to connect your marketing campaign with other systems such as CRM or analytics tools, meaning you can use data from one source to help improve your marketing efforts.
For example, suppose your website is sending out emails to customers but you want them to be more targeted and relevant.
In that case, you could use an API to access their contact details from your database and send them more relevant messages based on their preferences or previous behavior.
Productivity and Efficiency Increase
One of the biggest benefits of API integration is increased productivity and efficiency. As soon as your employees can access data from other systems, they can make better decisions, save time, and produce higher-quality work.
For example, imagine that you have a finance department that has software systems that deal with invoices for different departments within your company. Since many departments use different software for this task, it is not efficient for them to send their invoices to an external company and then check it manually.
With APIs, these departments can easily share their data through a simple API call. The external company only needs to check the invoice once and then send it back to all interested parties in its original format.
Easier Payment Process
API integration makes the payment process much easier. It helps make payment transactions more secure and easier. Also, while using this API, you do not need to have any worries about credit card security.
The process of payment can be as simple as sending a message over an API call or as complex as implementing a third-party payment processor like Stripe or an order management system from Braintree. This gives merchants greater flexibility and control over their business, which is especially important when dealing with eCommerce sales.
Final words
One of the biggest opportunities eCommerce companies have is in building an API. APIs provide a way for developers to build programs that use data from one of your systems. We have already seen the benefits they provide, and this was just a short list, there are more of them.
And it is important to note that eCommerce APIs are the backbone of any successful eCommerce business. They enable you to connect your website with other businesses and provide an easy way for customers to order products online.
