Stamp Collection Marketplace Development

Technology Stack

WordPress
WooCommerce
MySQL
Bootstrap
JavaScript
AWS

The Client

Antonios Philatelics is an online marketplace that helps people discover and buy antique and rare stamps at affordable prices. Owned by a US-based stamp seller, the eCommerce store lists over 50K historical stamps to help both seasoned collectors and newbies fuel their passion for philately.

The Challenge

Before launching the online store, the stamp seller used to sell philatelic products for savvy collectors through the HipStamp marketplace. However, after years of being associated with HipStamp, the seller wanted to create his online store to sell vintage stamps. So, he contacted Capital Numbers to create this new store.

We engaged in a kickoff meeting with the client to empower his business with an eCommerce platform that wins conversions. Our goal was to create a feature-rich stamp marketplace that is in-line with the client’s digital commerce vision and audience demographics. We also had to make sure that the client is able to sell his stamp collections both through the new store and HipStamp.

In other words, we had to ensure that if the client sells a product on the new store, it gets reflected on HipStamp. Similarly, if he sells any item on HipStamp, it gets updated on the new store.

Simply put, we had to implement a real-time synchronization between the new store and HipStamp and keep both these sites updated in the event of a sale.

The Solution

Because Capital Numbers has been serving global clients with robust eCommerce solutions, we quickly formulated strategies to create the marketplace from the ground up.

We began by leveraging the following solutions stack:

We used WordPress to develop this online store. WordPress is a powerful eCommerce store builder with thousands of plugins, third-party integrations, and reduced development costs. Moreover, it’s secure and offers multi-user capability. Plus, it runs on all devices, provides an intuitive interface, and helps add unlimited products and product attributes. So, WordPress was our obvious choice because it reigns the CMS market and blows the competition out of the water.

For database management, we used MySQL because it makes debugging and maintenance effortless. Aside from unmatched scalability, MySQL handles high-speed transactional processes and million queries every day, while ensuring high speed and zero downtime.

Our design team used HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and jQuery to make the online store eye-catching. The cross-browser JavaScript library, jQuery, helps animate elements, simplifies Ajax interactions, and loads pages fast.

We used the HipStamp API to sync data between the new store and HipStamp. The API helped us efficiently conduct all CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) operations on product listings. We could simultaneously relist and delist products from the new store and HipStamp via the API.

We chose PayPal as the payment solution because it lets buyers easily link their cards and bank accounts for secure transactions. PayPal also allows easy checkouts without letting buyers leave the merchants’ sites. Plus, it charges nominal currency conversion fees, which is a boon for global customers.

To host the site cost-effectively, we used AWS. It can throw in infinite computational power required for our massive online store. Plus, it offers adequate bandwidth and guaranteed uptime at any time of the day or night (despite traffic spikes).

Results

With the right mix of people, processes, and solution stack, Capital Numbers successfully developed the eCommerce storefront, Antonios Philatelics, from scratch.

The client can now sell thousands of rare postage stamps, miniature sheets, revenue stamps, souvenir sheets, etc., through this store.

Users need to register with the site for free to purchase their favorite stamps and grow their collection.

Our contributions included the following:

Powerful Dashboard Design

We created a robust admin dashboard to help the client with:

Content Management - We integrated the WYSIWYG editor to help the client add/delete/edit web pages and other WordPress site elements.
Inventory Management - We used WooCommerce inventory management so that the client can manage stocks, shipping, orders, etc., and sync inventories between the new WordPress site and HipStamp.
Report Management - To help the client generate and download sales reports daily, quarterly, and yearly, we used the WooCommerce report plugin. The client can forecast demand based on these sales reports.

ListView and GridView

We used both ListView and GridView to display stamp collections better. While the ListView helps users select stamps by reading texts (in a listed format), the GridView allows users to choose stamps by viewing and comparing stamp images in grid cells.

Each of these layouts impacts the product selection process in its way. So, we added both to ensure a top-notch UX design and deliver an improved shopping experience.

Default Sorting

To enhance personalization, we added a ‘Default Sorting’ dropdown option in the site so that buyers can sort and filter stamps based on popularity, user ratings, and prices.

Optimized Search

We incorporated a powerful search box to connect philatelists to their needs without requiring them to perform extensive site exploration. This can eventually translate to higher sales.

Recently Viewed and Most Viewed Products

Our developers used separate shortcodes to display the ‘recently listed items’ and the ‘most viewed products’ on the home page.

This can help users quickly scan products from the home page and speed up selection.

Country-wise Product Listing

We used custom algorithms to group stamps based on their countries so that philatelists can bring valued collectibles from various parts of the world (e.g., New York, France, Argentina, Vatican City, Kenya, etc.) into their homes.

Social Media Integrations

We integrated social widgets, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, in the WordPress site to help strengthen the brand image.

Our experts linked these plugins to the brand’s social profiles to strengthen the brand’s credibility and encourage conversations among customers.

CRON Jobs

Currently, Capital Numbers regularly syncs data between HipStamp and the WordPress site through CRON Jobs.

The CRON scheduler automatically modifies and updates inventories on both these platforms at specified dates and times, thereby eliminating manual processes and errors.

Successful Online Store Setup

With its team of experts, Capital Numbers could develop the online marketplace, Antonios Philatelics, within budget.

The client is happy with the resulting product. He is impressed with our: