Magento’s Enterprise edition has the caught eye of several retailers over the course of years. The latest version of the Enterprise Edition (EE) which is 1.14.1.0 was produced on May 13, 2014.

 

The Magento Enterprise Edition is a relatively expensive e-commerce solution and is suitable for companies that have an annual turnover of over $200,000.

 

Features of Enterprise Edition

 

Unlike the Community edition, Magento EE edition comes equipped with technical support. The technical support is given when one signs the Service Level Agreement (SLA).  The most basic Magento Enterprise Edition package is priced at $15,550 per year.

 

This technical support is provided via the phone or email. The technical experts guiding you in the Enterprise edition are Magento approved and appointed experts.

 

The Enterprise Edition also comes armed with additional features that the community edition does not provide. This support is much needed for Magento users who do not have an on deck technical team to take care of their needs.

 

Reporting Bugs:

 

As a subscriber of the Magento Enterprise Edition, you get the priority treatment when it comes to bug reporting and fixing. The Magento technical team will resolve your issue as soon as possible.

 

Pros:

 

Magento Enterprise edition is one of the most sought for e-commerce shopping platform as far as scalability and variety is concerned. Magento gives you the freedom to create a shopping store that will fulfill all your needs.

 

•         Customer Segmentation:

 

This wicked feature allows you to divide your customers depending on their shopping patterns. This is a great feature as it allows you to keep a track of your selling trends. This helps you in categorizing your products in a better and more “sellable” fashion.

 

This feature allows for private sales directed for specific customers who will willingly participate in those sales.

 

•         Full page Caching:

 

Every retailer knows the value of a faster loading time. Full page caching results in a much faster website loading time. It is irrespective of the number of products that you have loaded.

 

•         Tax Calculation

 

Magento is very flexible when it comes to tax calculations. Its features are easy to use and it allows for tax calculations optimization depending on the area that the retailers are targeting.

 

•         Security Features

 

In the past few months Magento has considerably improved its security features. The Enterprise Edition comes with integrated PCI compliance giving your customers the assurance that they need. Now, you won’t have to run around trying to get PCI Compliance for your website, Magento does that for you.

 

•         Staging Sites

 

Staging a website allows you to test out your newly created pages before you officially run them on the website.

 

•         Automatic Upselling and Cross Selling Features

 

The cross selling and upselling features give the customers a personalized shopping experience and increase your sales.

 

•         Mobile compatible version

 

Mobile compatibility increases your customer base as it gives you the means to target

smartphone and tablet users.

 

You can check out the complete list of Magento’s features athttp://enterprise.magento.com/explore/features.

 

Cons:

 

Considering the amount of features that Magento presents, there are some drawbacks that limit the potential of Magento as a shopping platform.

 

•         No Access to full source code

 

Unlike the community edition the Enterprise edition limits the access to the source code of Magento as a result, its potential for customization gets limited. The users are restricted to using the features provided by Magento and even buying other add-ons.

 

•         Not hosted by Magento

 

Despite the hefty fee that Magento Enterprise edition charges its customers it does not provide hosting. You will be responsible for renting space for your website from a hosting company.

 

•         Complicated admin interface

 

Magento may claim that its Enterprise Edition is easy to use. However, this claim cannot be farther from the truth. There is no denying the fact that Magento’s admin panel is pretty complicated and not easily understood by those users who are technologically challenged.

 

•         No Built in Blog

 

In an age of SEO optimization, most shopping carts have a need for a blog to optimize their website and hit higher ranks on Google. Magento Enterprise Edition has no built in blog it has to be added as a plug-in.

 

•         Technical support

 

Magento’s Enterprise Edition boasts about its 24/7 technical support. However, every person who is familiar with Magento as a shopping platform knows that without an on deck technical support team there is no way to run a Magento based store smoothly.

 

There technical support is simply not enough to run a store independently.

 

•         Pricing

 

Magento is a powerful and resourceful solution. But this solution is not for everyone.  It is an

option that only users who have heavy consumer traffic can afford.

 

Final Tally:

Features
Customer segmentation	A+
Full Page Caching	A+
Tax Calculation	A
Security Features	A+
Staging Sites	A+
Upselling and Cross selling	A+
Mobile Compatible Version	A
Source code access	D
Magento hosting	C
Admin interface	D
Blog feature	B
Technical Support	B
Pricing	C

Final Verdict:

 

Considering the advantages and disadvantages of Magento’s Enterprise Edition, it is not a favorable option. Magento’s steep learning curve requires an on deck 24/7 technical support

that Magento’s team of technical experts simply cannot provide.

 

It is an option unofficially reserved for companies with big pockets like Nike and Oneida.