Highwire is the shopping cart branch of the eCommerce company inkFrog. Founder Greg Sisung began inkFrog in the early days of eBay. It was meant to solve common user problems and provide a simple template and image hosting program. The company continued to expand and address new eCommerce challenges. In 2012, the company launched Highwire as the full-service shopping cart. Read our HighWire review below.
OverviewFor some reason, Highwire is a shopping cart program that often gets overlooked for bigger names. Truth be told, it offers comparable features and functions for a better value. If you are on a tight budget and looking to minimize overhead costs, Highwire may be a perfect choice. It is an excellent choice for entrepreneurs who want to launch a new career without having to invest significant capital.
Standard feature include:
Areas of Focus
Highwire provides an excellent all-around shopping cart. It goes beyond the design process and offers all the tools you will need to manage a thriving store. While the platform doesn’t clearly advertise to a certain niche, it is perhaps strongest when it comes to sales and marketing management. This makes it a strong candidate for both newcomers and established businesses looking to reach new levels of success.
Checkout, Payment and Shipping Features
When it comes to checkout, payment, and shipping features, Highwire makes a strong showing. Your account comes with an SSL certificate, and you can choose from a variety of payment gateways. The platform also allows you to partner with major shipping carriers to ensure prompt delivery of your products. There is no real standout when it comes to these categories of features. Each section of the site provides robust performance and the exact tools you will need to run a business. There aren’t a lot of extras, by there are enough options to run a professional store.
Scalability
Many of platforms come with storage and bandwidth limitations. That isn’t that case with Highwire. You can start with a single product and continue to add up to 10,000 products. Highwire is fully scalable and capable of handling a large business with an extensive inventory. You won’t ever have to worry about having to switch to a different platform once your company exceeds a certain size. If you ever decide to cancel your account, you don’t have to worry about penalties. All Highwire accounts are month-to-month and can be canceled at any time.
Highwire Reputation
Highwire is a bit of an underdog. They offer all the same services and features as a lot of offer platforms, but they have yet to reach the same level of popularity. This may be because they are a smaller branch of a larger company that has been focused on eBay sellers. Perhaps inkFrog has yet to put the time and effort into marketing their shopping cart software. But just because Highwire isn’t a household name, doesn’t mean it isn’t worth your time. It is a solid choice and a well-respected program among industry experts.
Why Choose the Highwire?
If you are an entrepreneur who is looking for the most bang for your buck, Highwire is the right choice. It comes with the most features and the least limitations, all for a great price. It is a great value and will help you keep monthly costs low as you build your business.
Key FeaturesExperts who have looked at quite a few dashboards over the years, appear to be very pleased with the sleek and straightforward design that Highwire offers. Everything is neatly organized and well designed so that your eye is directed to the right places as soon as you open the dashboard. Highwire’s ability to avoid clutter and offer the most important features help make it a good fit for small businesses who may not have a lot of experience with design.
Critics were also quite pleased with the overall ease of use. It won’t take long to get everything setup and start adding products. Again, this is a significant benefit for businesses looking to expand beyond eBay and Amazon.
A lot of expert reviews also cited the fact that Highwire is a fairly solid all-around platform. Some competitors come with clear limitations that simply can’t be overcome by any amount of add-ons.However, Highwire offers decent storage and bandwidth capabilities and can be pretty flexible and scalable.
Despite some positive features, critics also seem hesitant to endorse Highwire fully. With so many options on the market, there is a pretty good chance that another program will better fit your specific needs.
Those consumers who were used to selling their products on Amazon and eBay tended to be happier with Highwire. The program offered more of a natural transition for them and helped to eliminate any steep learning curves that can go along with opening an online store. While the program may not offer a robust set of tools it does come with some basics that can help anyone start a store:
Last but not least, satisfied customers also appreciate that Highwire does offer a particular value. If you don’t want to spend a lot, and all you need are the basic features, then Highwire may be the best option.
Highwire is still missing many of the features that other eCommerce shopping cart probably consider standard options. It seems that the company is still in an eBay mindset and is still finding its footing when it comes to competing with programs that have been on the market a little longer. Users have been disappointed in the lack of:
The fact that none of the pricing plans offer an unlimited amount of products also means that the program is ultimately best suited to small or medium size businesses.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, consumers report that Highwire simply doesn’t integrate well. This makes it basically impossible to add functionality to your store. For this reason, users were reluctant to recommend the program over other available options.
Design & CustomizationeCommerce Templates
With Highwire, the savings continues with dozens of free themes. Choose among a variety of color palates and templates that are designed to highlight different businesses and merchandise. The free themes are modern and attractive and provide full access to CSS, HTML, and a WYSIWYG editor. If you know enough coding, you can customize a free theme as much as you like.
You can also shop premium themes. Even the paid themes are relatively cheap with most costing around $55. It is nice that you can filter the themes by free and paid so that you don’t waste time falling in love with a super expensive template. All the prices are advertised upfront for your convenience.
Once you have chosen a template and are ready to build your store, the website builder interface makes everything super simple. You can use the WYSIWYG editor to make changes and see how they appear in real-time. There is no need to worry about changes going live before you are ready to publish.
Page Customization
For beginners, the backend is easy to navigate, and it won’t take long to figure out how to make stylistic changes and customize pages. If you speak code, then the sky is the limit. You will enjoy full access to CSS and HTML, which means that the design choices are endless.
The admin section is split into major categories that allow you to navigate quickly to the right place. Find the design button and you will be directed to the theme editor where you can setup the site navigation and adjust fonts, colors, and other details. Adding product photos can be done with a simple drag and drop from your computer. Highwire also allows you to build an image library. This means that you can reuse photos as often as you like.
Mobile Site
Highwire does an excellent job of making the site mobile friendly. Shoppers enjoy secure checkout on their mobile devices. Store managers can perform site maintenance and other duties from any device. All the templates are designed to look great and function well on mobile devices. You won’t have to deal with setting up a separate mobile site.
Social Integration
It only takes a click to connect your store with Facebook. Highwire will even allow you to sell products on your Facebook page. This is one feature that has earned high praise from users and critics alike. Highwire takes all the work out of integrating your social media accounts and your store.
Design Services
If you want to hand off design tasks to someone else, you will have to find your freelance designer. Highwire does not offer design services.
Features & Tools | Feature | Overview |
|---|---|
| Product Display Options | The product display options are pretty basic but include everything you will need to highlight products. You can add as many photos as you like and create a carousel and check a box to create a featured product. If you want a long list of display options, you may be disappointed with what Highwire has to offer. It will certainly get the job done for small to medium sized businesses, but may not provide enough versatility for larger businesses with a diverse inventory. |
| Cart Functionality | Perhaps the most important feature of the Highwire shopping cart is the abandoned cart notification. You can see who may have added items to their cart and then left your site. The email tools will allow you to follow up with these customers and convert their visit into a sale. This is a vital tool in eCommerce. |
| Apps Integration | Unlike a lot of competitors, Highwire does not come with an extensive app store. All the functionality options are built-in. For some people, this would count as a major drawback. They want to be able to integrate their favorite programs and add functions to their store. However, Highwire comes standard with all the tools small and medium sized businesses will need. If you want to keep things simple, then you won’t even notice the absence of an app marketplace. |
| Integration with eBay and Amazon | Since Highwire is the child of a company that was specifically designed to help eBay sellers, you can bet that it is easily integrated with other selling platforms. The dashboard has an entire section dedicated to integrated your store with other marketplaces, including eBay, Google, Amazon, and Facebook. You won’t be limited to selling products on your main store website. |
| Language Support | If you are interested in making international sales, Highwire comes with certain capabilities. You will be able to calculate taxes and shipping, but there isn’t any language support. Communicating with global customers may be difficult. |
| Hosting and Security | Highwire offers a secure checkout with an SSL certificate, and it’s responsible for protecting your data through their servers. Fortunately, you can rest assured that the big name providers offer plenty of protections. |
| Bandwidth and Storage | When you choose the All Inclusive Plan, you will enjoy unlimited bandwidth, no transaction fees and the ability to add up to 10,000 products. These features are part of what makes Highwire such an incredible value. |
| Backups and Site Exporting | Backing up and exporting your site files just takes a few seconds. You can export both your site template files and product files. If you are the extra cautious type, you can even export customer orders. All these functions are available right from the main dashboard display for your convenience. |
| Custom Domain | The initial setup process will stick you with a .highwire.com domain name. If you already have a custom domain, you can simply visit the settings menu and add your custom domain. If you need to register your domain, there is a button for that too. Just keep in mind that you will have to purchase a name from a registrar site such as GoDaddy or Hostgator. The good news is that Highwire streamlines the entire process. Once you visit the settings menu, you will be walked through the necessary steps. |
| Mobile Responsive Store | In today’s competitive eCommerce market, a mobile friendly and responsive store is a must. Highwire will make sure that you get off on the right foot. Customers can shop from any device and enjoy secure checkout features. You will also be able to manage your store from any device. There is no need to be stuck to your desktop computer. |
| Payment Processing | Highwire offers ten different payment gateways. You have the ability to partner with the biggest names in eCommerce. This will help earn the trust of your customers and make your life easier. |
| Shopping Cart Plugins and Add-ons | The absence of available plugins may be a major con for some people. However, Highwire is fully equipped to handle all your eCommerce needs. Instead of offering the bare bones so that you have to purchase and integrate add-ons, your site is ready to go from day one. |
| Order Management | The order management dashboard is simple and straightforward. You can view all the details you need and filter searches. Highwire even allows you to see customers and their activity. |
| Inventory Management | For beginners and anyone else who appreciates functional simplicity, the inventory management feature is perfect. It makes easy to manage your products and receive low inventory alerts. |
| Abandoned Carts | Any eCommerce platform worth using comes with an abandoned cart feature, and Highwire is no exception. You can both view abandoned shopping carts and send a follow-up email to customers. Automated emails is an important task that will simplify your life and increase sales. |
| Mobile eCommerce | Highwire explicitly recognizes and appreciates the importance of mobile devices in eCommerce. All their templates are mobile friendly, and you can even manage your store from any device. Your business will be able to meet the demands of a modern marketplace. |
| Security Features | The good news is that every Highwire account comes with an SSL certificate. With many platforms, this is an extra cost. Your shopping cart will offer the latest in checkout security features. Other security standards will depend on your hosting provider. |
| Payment Card Industry (PCI) Certification | Highwire is PCI compliant. You can rest assured that they have taken all necessary measures to meet industry standards for credit card security. |
| Gift Certificates, Special Deals, and Coupons | Highwire allows you to create discount codes and coupons. You can easily run special promotions and promote products with just a few clicks. It provides an excellent way to market products and promote your store. |
| Tax and Shipping Calculators | Both the tax and shipping sections of the Highwire admin dashboard provide plenty of options. You can automatically calculate rates, set default carriers and modify shipping settings per order. All you have to do is check a few boxes. What could be a complicated aspect of your business is completely streamlined. |
| Shipment Tracking | Working with major carriers means that customers can easily track their orders. Tracking numbers are automatically generated and emailed. The entire process is completely hands-off and hassle-free. |
| POS Capabilities | There are more than enough solid POS tools to support your store. Reporting and inventory features will help you track store performance. You can integrate plenty of top-notch shipping and payment options. A couple of clicks also allows you to print order labels and create coupons. Unless you are looking for a very particular feature, the Highwire POS tools will make it easy to manage your store. |
| Marketing and Forecasting Features | Highwire has an abundance of effective marketing and reporting tools. As soon as you open your dashboard, you will see statistics and graphs highlighting site performance. You can see how many customers have visited the site over a period of particular time and track profits. SEO tools will guide you through the process of making pages search engine friendly, and the social sharing integration is perhaps the best on the market.
The marketing tab in your admin dashboard contains both a blog menu and email newsletter integration. You can easily publish posts and draw readers to your site and connect your newsletter provider to your website. The built-in promotional tools are also a great way to market your website without investing in advertising. You can run special discounts and publicize them on social media for free. With Highwire, you don’t need a marketing department to use the latest tools to promote your site and build your web presence. All the tools you need are right at your fingertips. |
Plans & Pricing Highwire has even simplified pricing packages. Instead of having to choose from among several packages, there are just two choices:
Starter Plan – $14.95/Month
All Inclusive Plan – $29.95
If you need to post more than 10,000 products, there are custom plans available.
With a low monthly price of $29.95, there isn’t any reason not to go with the All Inclusive Plan. Compared to other competitors, this package offers more features for a lower price. Best of all, there are no hidden costs. You won’t have to invest in add-ons or pay for customer service calls. All fees are advertised right up front.
Customer Support One real drawback to Highwire is their customer support. They are a small company and only provide direct support Monday through Friday via phone, email, and live chat. Highwire also has active social media accounts that you can use to contact them. Users can also consult the support center and visit community forums.
Overall, the available support resources are lackluster. Live chat is a convenient support feature, but only if you receive prompt and informative responses. In general, this doesn’t seem to be the case when trying to get answers and help from available representatives.
The support center was also a disappointment. Entering in search terms for basic categories yielded mixed results. Typically, the links that popped up weren’t helpful and relevant to the search topic. There isn’t a database of informative articles. You are limited to queries from other customers that have been answered by Highwire. This make ‘s hard to locate exact information.
If you are running into problems, perhaps the best resource is the support forum. Users have been relatively active in posting solutions to common problems.
Highwire would be significantly improved by adding articles and video tutorials. That being said, it is rare that you will run into any problems. The entire platform is so easy to use that everything, from setup to store management, should go smoothly. The program does an excellent job of walking you through everything step-by-step, so hopefully you won’t have to seek out help.
Ease of Use Store Setup
Simply setting up your store takes less than 60 seconds. You can start a free trial just by entering a store name and some contact information. This will allow you to view the dashboard and get a feel for available features. The interface is easy to navigate, and the drag and drop tools and WYSIWYG editor allows you to start customizing your site with confidence. There are few limitations when it comes to resizing the editing photos and changing template details. For those with coding experience, you can enjoy full access to HTML and CSS. No matter what your design experience, Highwire makes it easy to quickly setup your store.
Adding Products
The admin dashboard makes adding products super simple. The catalog drop-down menu features an “Add Product” button. From this page, you can enter product information, upload pictures, and control inventory alerts and settings. Just a few clicks and you will be selling a new product in your storefront.
Content Management
When it comes to adding content, it doesn’t get much easier than a WYSIWYG editor. If you have any experience with word processing, you will be able to create page content, publish a blog and add images with ease.
Conclusion Is Highwire the right eCommerce Platform Choice for you to Build an Online Store?
If you are looking to run and small to medium sized business and you value simplicity, then Highwire is an excellent choice. Simple doesn’t mean bare minimum. Highwire offers all the features you will need to create and manage a sophisticated store. It also avoids overwhelming you with options. Instead, the focus in on a clean and straightforward dashboard that will make your life easier.
Setting up a storefront and adding products is easy enough for beginners yet offers enough freedom for expert designers to show off their skills. For business owners who like the idea of being able to integrate an extensive list of add-ons and enjoy limitless functionality, will want to look elsewhere.
Why Choose Highwire over its Competitors?
In a word: value. A lot of other platforms have significant limitations when it comes to storage, bandwidth, themes or payment gateways. That isn’t the case with Highwire. Users can enjoy the most features for arguably the best value on the market. You don’t have to sacrifice anything to experience premium features that will allow you to create a fully functional store. If you are looking to keep costs low as you build your business, Highwire can help.
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