LemonStand Review

PROS: It is not my proudest moment, but we weren't really the most communicative company before we purchased Lemon Stand. The platform helps us fix problems and respond to questions in a timely manner. In fact, we tweak templates and websites whenever users require us to. Websites are quite easy and straightforward, and I see users have no troubles to navigate them, which affects the bottom line in a positive way. We are happy to record conversion rates bigger than our average order value, and we are so grateful!

CONS: I'm missing a couple of backend features, but it would be unfair to say that's a problem, since I know how devoted they are to add functionality. In fact, I'm quite sure that by the time you're counting pluses and minuses, this will already be a plus. There is an accurate product map on the website, and you can see all features that are about to be introduced. My experience so far shows me that they pay attention to their customers' feedback, and I believe they will do in the same case.

PROS: The biggest advantage is, summing up, total front-end customization with no back-end implications. Doing this was a big discovery for our agency, as we were supposed to provide clients with an on-page customizable solution where they can transform their product and reviews. The open-source command line was a real blessing for us, since it improved our work within our local workflow, and it helped us design a dynamic and flexible website. We examined other e-store solutions too, but none was this robust, complete, and fast.

CONS: There are integration gaps to fulfill, as Xero for instance. It is a big problem for us, and we hope the LS team considered our request to enable it. Another problem that seems more difficult to solve is the lack of active enterprise SLAs which stops many large companies from purchasing the product. The APIs can solve this problem, but it usually takes more time.

PROS: LemonStand is a perfect platform in terms of back-end performance and management, as it clarified ecommerce UIs to the extent of enabling tech-savvy users to configure their sites and e-stores, and to document information in an amazingly accurate way. The best side of LemonStand is that it is a platform one enjoys to use, and it turns the experience of running an e-store into an entertaining task.

CONS: I'll have to nitpick here, because I really can’t think of an issue worth of mentioning. They could introduce a blog/news feature, eventually, even if their marketing strategy insinuates that they’re already doing it. Still, I'm working on 5 new stores at the moment, and none of the clients seem to even notice it. After all, it is just a nice addition, not an essential feature that would devalue the final product.

PROS: I'm often wondering if LemonStand's customization capacity has limits at all! My experience with it has been nothing but flawless and impeccable, and I see they're not planning to stop enriching the product map with new features and assets. I coded my webstore to make it more personal, including even customer emails upon their purchases and orders, which is a really unique feature for an ecommerce platform. LemonStand can fulfill every need that comes to your mind, as complex and impossible as you think that is.

CONS: They've just introduced the second version, so there are still flexibility issues that have to be taken into account. I find it a bit frustrating not to be able to adjust product discounts, but as an expert user of Version 1, I know they will deliver nothing but perfection. And I'm eager to see that!

PROS: We're currently migrating from the standalone version to the cloud-hosted one, and the process is very smooth. They've preserved the same efficiency, admirable support, and growth VP to help us enhance the relationship with our faithful clients. Their features are just amazing, but still accessible to developers with significant front-end development experience. Still, as an e-commerce customer you're not supposed to care about it-your side of the coin is to expect efficiency and increased revenue, especially coming from a platform that is so cheap and powerful.

CONS: LemonStand doesn’t deserve a single bad comment, because they take care of their weaknesses, and work hard to improve their product. Some of their themes come without gulp files, but support is always at stake to solve the problem.

PROS: The front-end themes are among the best I've ever seen, not only because they look fantastic, but because you get to control the software UI from the beginning until the end. LemonStand decouples standard URLs from the server code, which leaves plenty of room fro you to set up an URL you like. It's nothing like other programs, where you'd have to use their products and collection, you get to do stuff your way. Support is also top, as developers like myself get answers even to the most complicated technical questions. In fact, most of the people there are experts in the sphere, and you can direct every question directly to them.

CONS: I have a complaint and a suggestion. The complaint is that there are no specific features that enable you to integrate and place your store on thrid party marketplaces. You get to interact with the platform using the REST API, but the process is quite complicated even for developers. The suggestion, on the other hand, is to make use of users' feedback to extend functionality. A feature like that would be really awesome.

PROS: I've always highlighted the meaning of flexibility in the ecommerce world, but such is unfortunately sorely absent in most of the cases. SaaS platforms obviously prefer the plain cookie-cutter approach, with carts and payouts enginnered to function in one way only, which doesn't help diverse and unusual businesses sell online. LemonStand complemented this lack of flexibility, as it ensure respectable space for compromising various business models, and allows you to tailor and customize front-end functionality to the specifications of your own business. Together with flexibility, you can count on various starter themes that have all the elements your store needs, and you can get them running in minutes. The experienced among you can even use the TWIG templating engine to tweak the templates and to adjust your appearance and behavior. This sometimes means you'll have to involve a developer in the process if you're not experienced with CSS, TWIG, or JavaScript, but you can always opt for a standardized theme and skip the fuss. Finally, Lemon Stand is a downloadable, modern ecommerce platform that you could use in cloud, or host it yourself instead. My experience shows that the cloud-hosted version is better, since it eliminates the need to update software manually, eases updates and server configuration, and provides for security monitoring. The pricing plan is quite modest compared to competitors' ones, especially if you consider the feature versatility and service-wise support that is included in the intial investment. I assure you there will be no extra storage fees, gateway or bandwidth payments, or any other cost that your limited-budget business had not considered. Finally, their advanced secuity monitoring makes the platform fully reliable, meaning there will be no downtimes or data loss.

CONS: I'm using it for quite a while, and I didn't experience any downfall. I have in mind few features I'd like them to introduce in future, and I'm positive that the experienced team behing this young platform is already considering them. At least that's what the roadmap attests.

PROS: Being in the business for around 12 years, we weren't really planning to change our standard ecommerce platform and to go out of our comfort zone, to say so. There were ups and downs, as usual, but the fact that the platform couldn’t respond to the mobile avalanche was the drop that spilled the glass. We reviewed three separate platforms, and our final choice was Lemon Stand. They have a new, cloud-based version, which looks like an attractive option for customers to come on. We chose it because it had a positive impact on our expenses-we're not paying transaction fees anymore, and we still get incredible flexibility. There are other pros too, powerful integration, for instance, and mobile-friendly themes that one could use but also modify. I'd highlight design support too, as they take feedback really personally, and they stand out with an amazing startup culture other platforms cannot hold a candle to. Just to mention a case, we needed to import 1000 tax rates and zip codes manually, but a single call to their agents made integration with our homegrown system possible in 15 minutes. That's when we fell for them, and we're loving them ever since!

CONS: It's not such a problem, but remember that they only give you the tool, not the skills to work with it. If you want to design an amazing store, you will need an amazing developer and a designer to assist you. Look for somebody that knows CSS and twigs, especially if you assign the task to a single person instead of a team.