Imagine a nightmare scenario: your online store is lagging, and your physical shop’s point-of-sale system has stopped working. What do you do? Gelo, a software and AI agency based in Tampere, Finland, specializes in untangling these kinds of e-commerce knots. Seravo is their hosting provider of choice for WordPress and WooCommerce sites alike – find out why!
Gelo: Expert in E-commerce & AI
Founded in 2010, Gelo is a Tampere-based software house specializing in e-commerce solutions. Recently, they have also leaned heavily into AI as tools for product data management and translation have matured.
“While Shopify is a straightforward solution, it doesn’t cover everything, such as specific checkout customization needs. We run into its limitations in almost every project. While open source doesn’t mean free, with WooCommerce the costs remain much more sensible,” says Tero Lahtinen from Gelo.
Gelo.ai
- Specialists in e-commerce and WordPress development.
- Founded in 2010, based in Tampere, Finland.
- Core expertise: Implementation, maintenance, and integrations.
- AI solutions for product data management and enrichment.
When Technical Issues Paralyze Business: The Case of Skiservice
Demanding projects require a strong technical backbone. Many modern retailers rely on the synergy between their brick-and-mortar stores and their online presence with omnichannel sales solutions. But what happens when the technical platform rebels? Gelo helped the skiservice.fi online store to thrive.
What is Omnichannel?
Omnichannel (or multi-channel) is a strategy where all of a merchant’s sales channels work seamlessly as a single entity, such as the online store and physical brick-and-mortar shop. The goal is to ensure the customer experience is as smooth and uninterrupted as possible, preventing any breaks in the buyer’s journey.
“Such a situation is a nightmare for an online merchant. Because of inefficient hosting, the store performed abysmally,” Lahtinen explains. The rescue operation began by migrating the site to Seravo’s WordPress-optimized environment.
The results were immediate:
- Speed: The site sprang to life, with loading times dropping to a fraction of what they were.
- Reliability: The POS (point-of-sale) system finally began communicating with the online store without interrupts or timeouts.
- Security: During the migration, signs of a data breach were discovered and promptly fixed.
Security is a Priority at Seravo
During the move, Seravo’s systems detected hidden malware on the site. Thanks to Seravo’s Security Guarantee and daily malware scans, the malicious code was eradicated. Soon after, Google search results also returned to normal – they had been compromised due to the malicious code injected to the site.
Why Professionals Choose Seravo
“In a way, Seravo is positioned somewhere between a managed hosting service and having your own server. We always have SSH access and can read the logs, which is a lifeline in troubleshooting”, Lahtinen describes.
Gelo also utilizes other tools provided by Seravo, such as the Docker environment and pre-installed Git. “We need a good and professional deployment system, but it’s not worth building one yourself. Seravo offers a good template for project management.”
The level of customer service also receives praise: “Seravo’s customer service is frankly amazing. The first customer service representative doesn’t just know how to say hello: you can directly ask about things like WordPress transients. At Seravo, you always reach an expert who knows what you’re talking about.”
Technology must not be an end in itself – instead, one must start from the needs of the business.
Gelo
Business First, Technology Second
Technology must not be an end in itself; instead, one must start from the needs of the business. What tips does an experienced developer have to share with online retailers? Tero Lahtinen has a clear message: technology must not be an end in itself, but the business needs have to be the starting point for the entire process.
“Only in the next stage do we look for the right technology to achieve those business goals. If an existing online store is struggling, it’s worth first finding out if it really must be rebuilt from scratch, or if it could be repaired.”
Lahtinen also highlights cost-effectiveness: repairing and improving an existing system can be more affordable than building a completely new one. However, the right solution is always found by mapping out the situation and deliberating together.
Good Hosting & Peace of Mind
For an e-commerce site owner, it is of paramount importance that the website works well. Cheap hosting with minimal maintenance can become very expensive if it is paid for with lost sales and compromised security. “If Gelo gets to decide the hosting solution, we choose Seravo. The support is excellent, and I haven’t come across another where the customer service is at the same level,” Lahtinen praises.
In the case of skiservice.fi, the right tools, premium-level hosting, and a technically skilled developer partner saved time, money, and nerves. Most importantly, they restored the smoothness of trade – both online as well as in the physical store.
Looking for a Developer?
Are you planning a redesign or do you want your online store to flourish? Don’t waste time searching! Seravo has a network of digital agencies and developers you can get in touch with. Turn your project into a success story today!