CX
From modular architectures to composable commerce
Enabling composable commerce
In recent years, several innovative approaches have revolutionised how companies operate and act across industries. One of the most exciting developments is the concept of Composable Customer Experience. This approach allows companies to flexibly and individually design their business model and IT landscapes with a holistic view of customer interaction.
The most important idea here for companies is that companies can react quickly to changes, regardless of the nature of these changes.
What is behind the new approach of Composable Customer Experience? What influence does Composable CX have on commerce, and what are the advantages for us? In what international context should this development be seen? These and other questions are answered in this blog article:
Explained simply: What is Composable CX?
1. Explained simply: What is Composable CX?
The constant growth in communication channels, the changes brought about by new information structures, the emergence of new market opportunities, and trading on marketplaces make it hard for companies to keep up. The need for a new lightness in the face of all changes is excellent; this is precisely where the Composable concept comes in. Through a modular design, the aim is to re-orchestrate as needed and optimise again and again.
The mindset of modular architecture refers to composable business and composable commerce: the independence of individual components that communicate with each other is the crucial point here. The new approach makes it possible to take risks, as modular IT projects are no longer interdependent. At the same time, generally applicable designs and paradigms can be found in orchestration, which can simplify and control complex structures.
The new way of thinking is implemented by solution providers with suitable technology, for example, through the API-first principle or headless commerce: practical tools for composable trade.
How does Composable Commerce define itself?
Composable Commerce aims to make eCommerce flexible and customisable according to the concept of a Composable CX. Instead of using a large and rigid system monolith, Composable Commerce relies on a compilation of different, independent building blocks. This allows the best available tools and services to be selected to create a customised solution for specific requirements. It is important to strategically think through and plan the necessity of the individual components and their coordination. A consulting effort pays off quickly at this point.
The basic approach in Composable Commerce is to divide the software into two parts: what the customers see (frontend) and the technology in the background (backend). This creates the freedom to select and combine specific technologies according to a ‘best-of-breed’ approach. The goal is a flexible and responsive structure for online commerce that can cope with all changes.
“Composable Commerce” was first coined in the early 2010s when companies began to recognise the need for more flexible and customisable eCommerce solutions. During this time, it became clear that traditional monolithic eCommerce platforms needed to meet the needs of the rapidly changing digital marketplace. Companies sought new approaches to make their eCommerce systems more modular and agile.
Architectures continue to evolve
2. Architectures continue to evolve
The UK has a thriving eCommerce landscape with compelling customer experience solutions and is known for its innovation in the digital economy. British companies have realised that a flexible approach to building their eCommerce systems is crucial to keep up with ever-changing customer demands. Many companies have jumped on the Composable Commerce bandwagon thanks to this realisation.
Within the framework of this trend movement, those above technological focal points developed:
- Headless Commerce is to be seen as an essential building block in Composable Commerce: Front-end and back-end components of the eCommerce system are decoupled from each other. Companies switched to headless commerce for more flexibility and freedom in designing customer experiences.
- Composable Commerce now goes one step further by decoupling the front-end and back-end and every system element. Only in this way can a completely customised IT landscape be created.
- APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) enable integration and communication between different systems. Many companies relied on API-based solutions to make their eCommerce platforms modular and scalable.
- MACH architectures can provide an ideal foundation through microservices, APIs, cloud, and headless. They ensure that the architecture is current and that individual components are easier to adapt. The frontend and backend communicate via interfaces (APIs), and each component can be replaced without affecting other parts.
What drives Composable CX and Commerce
3. What drives Composable CX and Commerce
In the big picture, composability can apply to all business areas. A company achieves high scalability and flexibility by using the MACH principles for the entire business. The modular structure has the same activating and future-proofing effect on the company model as for an online shop.
Composable Commerce Trends
The eCommerce landscape is striving to take advantage of the modular approach across Europe, but especially in Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Composable commerce initiatives and platforms, such as those from Spryker, commercetools, or SAP, are emerging to help companies implement them.
Large retailers and international brands such as Nike, L’Oréal, and Coca-Cola are turning to Composable Commerce to make their eCommerce systems more effective and responsive to the needs of local markets. The modular eCommerce architecture enables faster scaling and high-quality personalised customer experiences.
With the growing demand for customised customer experiences and agile business models, Composable CX is expected to grow in importance and permanently change how companies do business online.
Efforts aimed at promoting the idea of Composable
4. Efforts aimed at promoting the idea of Composable
A variety of initiatives consisting of companies, research institutions and trade associations have come together to further develop best practices and standards for Composable Commerce or on a larger scale for Composable CX.
MACH Alliance: The MACH Alliance is a cross-industry initiative that promotes open and composable technology standards in eCommerce. It consists of leading companies such as commercetools, Contentstack, and EPAM Systems. MACH Alliance members work together to demonstrate the benefits of composable commerce and develop best practices. The initiative provides training, case studies, and a knowledge-sharing platform to promote the development and implementation of composable commerce solutions.
Composable CDXP Hub: The Composable Commerce Hub is a platform launched by the CMS platform Magnolia. This initiative brings together companies, technology experts, and trade associations to provide best practices and resources around Composable Commerce. The Hub provides insights, case studies, guides, and events to help advance the understanding and implementation of Composable Commerce. The Composable Commerce Hub helps strengthen the composable commerce community by sharing knowledge and best practices.
Further development through projects and studies: Experts and companies work together to further develop technology solutions. These initiatives promote frameworks for new technologies, the development of best practices, and the creation of an academic framework.
5. Challenges related to Composable Commerce
In eCommerce, Composable Commerce has established itself as a pioneering approach, but there are some challenges where new solution strategies are needed.
Countless solutions available for us to explore and utilise
Various platform and solution providers are helping to realise the vision of Composable Commerce. For the best choice, companies face difficult decisions: For example, while one solution provider focuses on content delivery and flexibility, another focuses on user-friendly management tools.
The choice between different solutions and components depends on a company’s specific needs and goals. Consultancy is an excellent support from the beginning of the planning process. One needs to know the advantages and disadvantages of each solution component well to make the right decision. With the selection of the best partner solutions, a holistic strategy for building the modular architecture must be designed.
Integration of components and systems
One of eCommerce companies’ primary tasks is seamlessly integrating different components and systems. The challenge is that companies often work with heterogeneous IT landscapes where legacy systems and various applications coexist. A robust integration strategy is needed to effectively connect these systems. Solution strategies such as using APIs, integration-as-a-service platforms, or middleware tools can help facilitate integration and make the ecosystem more effective.
Data exchange and data consistency
In composable commerce, data plays a crucial role as it needs to be shared between different components and systems. The challenge is to ensure that data is transferred in real-time and consistently to provide a seamless customer experience. By implementing event-based architectures, using ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes, and setting up data warehouses or data lakes, data exchange can be optimised and data consistency improved.
Scalability and performance
Another aspect to consider is the scalability and performance of the systems. With an increasing number of users and transactions, eCommerce solutions must be able to cope with the demands. Solution strategies such as the use of cloud infrastructures, the implementation of microservices, and the use of caching technologies are essential here. These approaches can improve scalability and performance to ensure a smooth and fast shopping experience.
Ensuring Security and Privacy
In the digital age, security and privacy are of paramount importance. Composable commerce brings new security risks as multiple components and systems interact, sharing sensitive customer data. Here, solution strategies such as implementing security standards and protocols, conducting regular security audits, and training employees on handling sensitive data are essential.
Sustainable strategy through composability
6. Sustainable strategy through composability
Let’s summarise: The concept of a Composable Customer Experience offers the possibility to build the IT landscape modularly, adapt it flexibly, and tailor it to the individual requirements of the user groups. It enables the seamless integration of different components and systems so that companies can select and combine their technology stacks as needed.
The Composable approach also allows your eCommerce business to quickly adapt to implement new functionality as needed and be fully resilient to changing market conditions.
Achieving Resilience in eCommerce
The modular building blocks are independently scalable. This means businesses can scale individual components of their eCommerce infrastructure as needed without impacting the overall system. This modular architecture allows companies to use resources more efficiently and prepare for peak times without bottlenecks or performance loss.
Customer expectations are high when it comes to personalised customer experiences.
Composable CX solutions provide companies with the tools and capabilities to deliver personalised content, product recommendations, loyalty programms, and other tailored offers. By integrating Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) and marketing automation tools, companies can get a comprehensive picture of their customers and create targeted marketing campaigns.
“In a rapidly increasingly connected world, the customer journeys of user groups are becoming almost limitless. This makes it all the more important for companies to be able to offer their products and services consistently across different interaction channels. The Composable CX concept enables seamless integration of online shops, mobile apps, marketplaces, social media channels, and other sales channels – always tailored to the corresponding needs of the users. This gives companies a clear competitive edge, enables them to reach new target groups and markets, and creates a perfect shopping experience across all touchpoints,” confirms Michaela Mürmann, Associate Partner, focus Customer Experience, at KPS.
Are you looking for an individual solution partner integration or a fully comprehensive Composable CX solution?
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