What is an SAP Commerce Accelerator?
SAP Commerce Accelerators are software packages designed to help businesses quickly launch ecommerce websites. They act as ready-to-use templates for online stores, providing pre-built features such as product catalogues, shopping carts, checkout processes, and customer management. These components can be customised to fit a business’s branding and specific needs.
How Can SAP Composable Storefront Help Your Business?
Migrating to SAP Composable Storefront is now necessary due to the deprecation of Accelerators. Beyond this, there are several additional benefits:
Headless Commerce
Composable Storefront decouples the front-end from the back-end, giving you the freedom to create unique user experiences across websites, mobile apps, and smart devices. This flexibility allows for highly personalised and customisable customer journeys.
CMS-Friendly
Content is managed via SAP Commerce CMS, making it easier for content managers to edit pages. Tools like SmartEdit enable more personalised content creation and preview functionality before publishing.
Enhanced SEO with SSR
Server-Side Rendering ensures pages are fully generated on the server before reaching users. This improves search engine indexing, optimises social media sharing, and significantly reduces initial page load times for a smoother user experience.
Understanding and Ensuring a Successful Migration
Before migrating, it is recommended to upgrade your SAP Commerce version to at least 1905 or later. This simplifies installation of the OCC (Omni Commerce Connect) APIs, which are now available as extensions rather than add-ons. The OCC API allows the front-end to communicate securely with the back-end, providing access to product information, customer data, and order history.
Migration complexity depends on the level of customisation in your existing Accelerator. There are no automated tools for moving to Composable Storefront, so careful planning is essential.
Implementing OCC enables more testing to be shifted from the UI to the API layer, improving efficiency and reliability during migration.
How to Migrate
- Inventory CMS Components and Pages
List all pages, controllers, and custom CMS components, including hidden elements like dropdowns or pop-ups. Identify the data each component requires. - Perform a GAP Analysis
Check if an OCC API exists to provide the required data. If not, determine which OCC extensions will need to be created. - Implement APIs Using an API-First Approach
Build missing OCC extensions and define interfaces. Starting with mock or empty implementations allows front-end and back-end teams to work concurrently. - Establish WCMS Structure
Create a CMS structure similar to your existing storefront. Configure the CMS settings for the old Accelerator to identify any gaps via error messages.
Transitioning from SAP Commerce Accelerators to SAP Composable Storefront is essential for the future growth of your ecommerce platform. Benefits include greater flexibility, CMS-friendly content management, and faster page load times.
With SYBIT’s expertise as an SAP partner, businesses can navigate the migration process confidently and unlock the full potential of SAP Composable Storefront. Contact our expert team to learn how SYBIT can support your transition.