Types of Marketplaces

There are a number of different ways you can run a Marketplace.

Open vs Closed Marketplaces

Open Marketplaces

These are typically where products and services are available to the general public. Useful to reach out to a wider audience without any restrictions.

Closed Marketplaces

These are typically where products and services are gated behind a login. This scenario would be where you may have a niche market or a specific business model (eg B2B that requires restrictive purchasing of products).

On Platform or Headless Marketplace

On Platform

This is where both the Front End (customer facing view) and Back End (admin portal) are managed entirely on Ultra Commerce Marketplace.

Headless Marketplace

In this scenario, the Front End is managed elsewhere, or not required. The Marketplace Platform acts as a data collection or source, which is then sent to different systems. This may also include management of the Back End to be housed elsewhere, in which case the platform will act as a middleware that obtains data, then sends the data only (very little management involved).