Pinnacle Cart has been around since 2004. They are based out of Phoenix, Arizona and specialize in the marketing and business development aspects of e-commerce. You aren't just dealing with coders. With Pinnacle Cart, you get a well-rounded approach to opening a store. It helps you avoid wasting time learning design so that you can focus on building your business. Read our Pinnacle Cart review below.
OverviewIf you are looking for a solid all-around shopping cart, then Pinnacle Cart is an excellent choice. You can migrate your existing store or build a storefront from scratch. It has a reputation for reliable performance and a feature rich design. Pinnacle cart comes with marketing solutions and customizable templates.
Who is the Pinnacle Cart ideal for?
Pinnacle Cart offers a scalable design, which makes it right for any size business. It also comes with hosted options and an enterprise account for large firms. It can help any size business build an online storefront. There are no limitations to who will find the software useful. However, it is best for those who want marketing help and are willing to pay for custom services.
Critics disagree about whether the interface is user-friendly. Pinnacle Cart claims that novices can use the design tools. However, some clients have trouble setting up their store and making adjustments. It might not be the best choice if you are completely new to e-commerce. If you want help with marketing, then it is a safe bet.
What are the benefits of using Pinnacle Cart?
Pinnacle Cart comes packed with standard features. You can design your website, manage orders and run marketing campaigns, all in one program. Free hosting provides another level of convenience. Don’t worry about setting up multiple accounts. One website can do it all.
Awards and Quality Certificates
Key FeaturesThe experts have more consistent praise for Pinnacle Cart. It is touted as a leader when it comes to ease of use. Between the attractive and fully customizable dashboard, drag and drop editor and instructional resources, Pinnacle Cart is clearly in the running for the best shopping cart. In fact, PC Magazine named it Editor’s Choice based on the programs substantial offering of features and options.
Whereas users seemed only briefly to mention the quality of the backend, experts put more emphasis on the importance of this area. Pinnacle Cart offers one of the only dashboards that can be configured to address user needs. The tools and categories that you visit most can be prominently placed for easy access. Users are in complete control.
Critics could also clearly tell that Pinnacle Cart has been around for some time. While other eCommerce platforms are still working out glitches and deciding on the best combination of features and pricing, Pinnacle Cart has already ironed about these issues. While certain programs offer more features, Pinnacle Cart has absolutely everything you need and the experience to provide excellent support. In the end, Pinnacle Cart was more highly regarded among experts than consumers.
Based on the positive reviews for Pinnacle Cart, some customers chose the platform based on individual features. QuickBooks integration alone was enough for some small business owners go with Pinnacle Cart over its competitors. Consumers also cite abundant features as a plus. The software is compatible with a variety of payment gateways and can be expanded with a long list of add-ons.
Compared to other products, users were also pleased with the marketing and SEO tools that come standard. These allow users to make the most of their site and promote their products.
Despite some drawbacks, those who like Pinnacle Cart give it a rating of 4.5 to 5 stars. The Pinnacle Cart website is also full of glowing testimonials from satisfied customers who enjoy the attractive templates, intuitive backend and ease of use. Access to code means that you can change any and every detail.
When it comes to Pinnacle Cart, there are some clear themes among the negative reviews. While setting up a store is relatively easy, migrating an existing store can be full of headaches. Users often encountered problems with bulk uploads and naming images. This was especially true among stores with large inventories.
There also seems to be a threshold when it comes to ease of use. Customers were able to easily customize their sites, but only up to a certain point. More sophisticated changes will require code and Pinnacle Cart as also been singled out as having one of the more difficult coding systems.
Finally, customers also seemed unhappy with Pinnacle Cart’s support features. You will only be able to directly contact support during business hours and for a few hours on the weekend. Since online businesses are always open, this isn’t an ideal way to deal with problems.
Design & CustomizationThemes
This is one area where Pinnacle Cart is clearly lacked. They offer a very limited number of themes. The available choices are modern and sleek. You can quickly make changes. There is no need to know coding. The WYSIWYG editor is just like using Word.
Design Services
You can hire a designer to create a custom website for between $2,100 and $5,200. A few thousand dollars can be a chunk of change for a small business. Remember though that you are investing in your business. Spending a little money on design could mean more profit down the line.
Customization
You can easily customize your site without coding experience. Almost any feature and button can be adjusted. Store owners can make necessary changes. There is no need to call a designer for every detail. Compared to other software on the market, it is one of the easiest to use. You can easily navigate the interface and find your way around.
If you know coding, making specific changes is even easier. “Design Mode” allows for HTML and CSS code.
Design Conclusion: Your best bet is to hire a design for the initial setup. This will save you time and make sure everything is exactly the way you want. After that, you can quickly make changes as you go.
Features & Tools | Feature | Overview |
| Shopping Cart Plugins and Add-ons | This is one area where Pinnacle Cart shines. They have partnered with other big names to offer easy integration. You can quickly add a MailChimp newsletter or Quickbooks. Unfortunately, you may have to integrate quite a few add-ons to enjoy full functionality. |
| Store Setup: | Setting up your store is easy. Designing the storefront can be more difficult. For $550, Pinnacle Cart will do all the setup for you. |
| Gateway Integration | You can add your gateway, but this requires coding. PHP source code access costs $2,995. You can also pay their designers to customize a gateway. |
| International Capabilities | Claims to be ready for a global market. It does offer translation services, but they aren’t very strong. Limited payment options can also make it hard to handle different currencies. They are working on adding more global gateways. |
| Customer Rewards and Wish Lists |
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| CDN Technology | Uses CDN technology for faster load times. |
| Order Management: |
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| Inventory Management | You can add an unlimited number of items to your store. |
| Shipment Tracking | Use tracking numbers for better shipping. Customers can also view their order status through their account tab. |
| CRM Features | Pinnacle Cart does not offer full CRM services. You may have to add software to improve customer relations. The most customers can do check on their order and view previous purchases. |
| Templates and Themes | Choose from 30 free templates. There are no premium options. Pinnacle Cart is more geared towards selling their custom design services. If you have the money, this is a good route to go. Otherwise, the free themes provide a professional looking storefront. |
| Integrations and Add-Ons | Pinnacle Cart is easy to customize with add-ons. The software is lacking in some areas. Luckily, you can fix that by quickly integrating add-ons. You can quickly integrate some of the most popular programs in the industry. There are plenty to choose from, and most of them are free. All it costs is the time it takes to hunt down the right add-on. |
| Mobile Optimization | All templates and mobile friendly and responsive. Customers can shop using any device. Even your admin panel is mobile responsive. You can make changes and monitor your site from anywhere. |
| Web Hosting | Free web hosting and free site migration. You will have to purchase a domain name. |
| SEO and Marketing | Strong marketing tools that are ready to use on day one. Drift marketing helps you never to lose a sale. You can also hire their marketing team. They will audit your site and make suggestions for improvement. You can also use them on a long-term basis for continuous marketing. |
| Newsletters | Use the Product Update Email Wizard to connect with customers. Quickly create and send emails to all your customers – it’s an excellent way to advertise new products. You can also use newsletter add-on programs to create email campaigns. |
| Site Security |
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| PCI Certification | All hosted accounts are PCI compliant. |
| Content Creation | No built-in blog. You can always add this on. Create as many pages as you want. Beginners can use the WYSIWYG editor to add content. More advanced users can enter design mode and format text in HTML or CSS. |
| Gift Certificates | Allows shoppers to purchase gift certificates. |
| Payment Options | Offers just 30 payment gateway options. This number puts it behind other competitors. |
| Tax and Shipping Calculators | Available with all plans. |
| Reports | Easy to integrate with Google Analytics and Google AdWords. |
| Statistics | You can easily view: Who is visiting your site, Visits per day, Top products, Top categories, Top referring sites, Payment types, Overall profit |
Plans & Pricing Pinnacle Cart offers four pricing plans:
Start Up for $29.99/month.The perfect for businesses just getting off the ground. It does come with limited storage and bandwidth. You may have to upgrade as your business grows.
Small Biz for $59.99/month.This plan offers more storage and bandwidth. It is best for businesses who are already receiving steady traffic.
Entrepreneur for $94.95/month.Enjoy 10GB or storage and handle up to 20GB of traffic.
Enterprise for $149.99/month.A scalable design can handle even large businesses.
The pricing plans are in line with competitors. Even startups can enjoy a secure payment gateway for around $30 a month. Unlike other software,Pinnacle Cart does not offer a discount for paying the entire year upfront. You can incur additional charges for bandwidth overages.Penalties range from $2.50 to $3.50.
You can try Pinnacle Cart for free for 14 days. No credit card is required. Cancel at any time without any penalties.
Customer Support Pinnacle Cart has earned a reputation for excellent customer support. Their representatives are quick to respond and very helpful. Customers often comment on how friendly the support staff is. Here are just a few ways you can get in touch with customer support:
If you want to search for answers without contacting the company, there are plenty of options.
When you need an immediate response, don’t hesitate to use the live chat or 800 number. You can get a quick response and be able to keep working.
Ease of Use Setting up a store from scratch can be hard for anyone. Pinnacle cart makes it less stressful with a fine organization. Finding your way around the interface is easy. You will also find the Quick Start Guide helpful. The guide starts from the beginning and walks you through each step. You get to see how to add products and make changes before you try it out for yourself. Enjoy full control of your website at all times.
The admin area is also well designed. It both looks great and is easy to use. A column on the left side holds all the important functions. You can scroll through the categories to find the right place. Sub categories are hidden until you click on the main category. This helps the page look less cluttered. You can also use the “Most Used Header” to head right to your primary functions. The drag and drop editor even allows you to customize your workspace. With the click of a mouse, you can rearrange the dashboard to suit your needs.
Compared to other software, Pinnacle Cart can take more time to setup. Novices can certainly use it to get started, but they may have trouble.Ultimately, Pinnacle Cart is best if you pay for their installation and design services.
Conclusion There are some definite drawbacks to Pinnacle Cart. You will have to integrate several add-ons to enjoy a robust shopping cart. While it does offer you enough to get started, it is missing key features for long-term success. Over time, you will want to add:
Another negative against the software is that it has a lot of limits on usage. Even with the enterprise plan, you are still limited when it comes to storage, website traffic and email addresses. Yes, it is scalable and can grow with your business. But that doesn’t make it the best choice for big enterprises that receive a lot of traffic.
On the whole, the software is relatively easy to use. You can get started quickly and enjoy access to a lot of useful marketing tools. The user interface is the one place where Pinnacle Cart stands out. Another software tends to look cluttered and feel overwhelming. Both the admin and design sections of Pinnacle Cart are well organized and easy to navigate. This can help cut down on any learning curve for new users.
In a nutshell: There are better options that offer more standard features and versatile programming for the same price.
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