I recently took on some freelance work for a small business and I was wondering If what I'm doing is correct. I've done freelance work before but I built the apps using traditional code not OutSystems. The application is an E-commerce store which I haven't built for a client before only for myself as a personal project. I used Stripe to handle payments but never had a "real" payment completed routing information from a card to a checking account.The client that hired me was really adamant on having a shopify store because they heard that was the best but they were hesitant to have a store built because of the cost of building it, hosting it, and the payment fees.I assured them I could build it for cheaper and help them avoid the payment fees by building it myself with OutSystems. I've built almost the entire application and myself and the client are super happy with how its turning out. My only concern is whether or not I was right in offering this as an alternative? Is OutSystems "OK" enough to run his store from? obviously they still have to host it and pay me but its significantly less than shopify.My though process behind it was that shopify is expensive because you're paying for the convenience. This project is a lot cheaper than normal because I'm using it as a resume project/work experience to add to my freelance portfolio.Was I right in convincing them that this is a better option? Can OutSystems handle all the same payment processing and order management the same way you could with a shopify store?For context, the clients business is run on the TikTok shop currently. Tiktok has a very high fee rate when it comes to transactions. They also hold your payments for up to 30 days. I know Stripe will still take a % but it's better than shopify.I know in the long term, and if the business grows significantly, Shopify is the obvious better option.Is this a good short term cost effective solution or am I wrong in offering this?
That's some different questions.
Is OutSystems OK to run his store?
You can use OutSystems for anything. I've seems a dozen of small businesses from shops, to restaurants and delivery services, all implemented in OutSystems.
Can OutSystems handle it?
OutSystems can handle what you need. There are major financial institutions using it on a daily basis and doing millions of transactions.
Is it cheaper in OutSystems?
Shopify is cheaper than a custom made solution. it is economy of scale. The question is if it is flexible enough for your business.
The most expensive Shopify plan is USD 2300/month. That's around the price of a basic license in OS. Not counting the cost of users and your development time.
You can't host production projects in a free Personal Environment. Well, you can, but there are no guarantees. At least you should keep the database external so data is safe in case the shop goes down.
Were you right in offering this solution?
Yes and No.
Yes because everything in better in OutSystems. We all know that. A full package with site, shop, customer service and so on makes total sense.
No because the client is small and probably can't afford it. Also, this is a business and it involves money. Are you experienced enough to do a safe store?
So basically what you're saying is If I host it myself off my personal environment it's fine as long as I'm ok with personally managing it and the traffic isn't too high the the site?
OutSystems ensures 99.5% of availability or (99.95% at extra cost) for paying customers. And if it crashes, you have support and backups.
PEs are in a best effort model. If it crashes, you have you.