Demandware Labs Projects
Hatched: These prototypes are complete and are available for our customers to use and modify.
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Android Mobile Native Application
The Android platform is one of the leading operating systems that powers mobile devices used by consumers around the world. This project provides retailers a mobile native reference application optimized for Android smart phones built using Demandware’s Open APIs to leverage the full capabilities of Demandware Commerce and can be customized to the specific needs of the brand.
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Facebook Open Graph
Facebook's Open Graph makes it easier for retailer's to connect with shopper's once they've taken a social action, such as "Like" or "Want" with the brand. This project explores making retailer web pages ready for the Facebook Open Graph protocol and enables social actions on retailer web pages.
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Facebook Shop
How do you engage the 500+ million users of Facebook as another channel to interact with your customers? This project demonstrates how Demandware can power a retailer’s store directly in Facebook, making use of the rich social interactions your consumer expects.
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Google Plus +1 Button
The Google Plus +1 button helps get the word out about your products and services. Put the +1 button anywhere you'd like people to be able to recommend your products or services to friends and contacts all across the web, while improving Google Search results.
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Internet Explorer 9 Site Pinning
The current version of Internet Explorer, version 9, offers interesting new capabilities for web-based applications. In particular, site pinning allows a web page to behave like a Windows application pinned to the Windows 7 task bar, providing real-time notification options, site preview, and one-click menu options. This project explores ways retailers could use this capability with Demandware to make it easy for consumers to engage and shop the brand’s website without being in a browser on the site.
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Mobile Touch App
The mobile consumer enjoys a rich touch-based experience with the latest generation of smartphones. This project shows how that experience can come to life through a mobile hybrid app that blends a mobile website (mobile web) with a mobile native application. Features such as barcode scanning using the smartphone’s camera and displaying nearby stores using the devices GPS, are now possible over the mobile web.
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PHP Software Development Kit (SDK)
The PHP SDK provides a rich set of server-side functionality for accessing most of the features of the Demandware Open Commerce APIs. The PHP SDK is an extension of the Demandware Open Commerce APIs that allows you to access and manipulate data from the Demandware platform in a way that feels native to a PHP developer
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Pinterest Pin It Button
The Pinterest Pin it button for websites helps get the word out about your products and services. The Pin it button looks and functions similarly to both Facebook's and Twitter's buttons.
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WordPress Plug-in
Blogging provides retailers with a powerful way to engage consumers in a dialogue about a brand. In particular, Wordpress, as one of the most widely used blogging platforms, is able to reach many potential consumers worldwide. With the Demandware Wordpress Plug-In, retailers can make content published on Wordpress sites more shoppable by tagging text and images with product details and by making product information more search engine optimized so that consumers can find it more easily online.
Incubating: Here are some interesting ideas that are in the works. We’ll let you know when they’ve hatched.
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Facebook Check-In
Facebook Check-in allows consumers to check into physical store locations directly from a mobile web storefront.
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Gamification
Gamification is a unique way to engage consumers through the use of game design and techniques, making the shopping experience more local, personalized and entertaining. This project provides a gaming layer on top of the core Demandware Commerce platform which can be used to create reward, loyalty and frequent shopper programs.
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Tablet Optimized Website App
This Tablet WebSite App provides a framework for how retailers can provide an optimized shopping experience on the mobile web for their customers.
Mature: This functionality is now fully baked into the Demandware Commerce feature set.
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Facebook Connect
Facebook Connect is the evolution of the Facebook platform that allows websites-- including online ecommerce sites-- to connect with a user's Facebook identity, profile, friends, and overall social graph. This project enables user registration and site authentication to a retailer’s Demandware commerce site using Facebook credentials, making the registration and login process easier.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Demandware Labs?
Demandware Labs is an experimental zone where we openly explore applications, innovations and extensions that sit on top of the core Demandware Commerce platform. We generally focus on the frontier of digital commerce, where new consumer experiences are being shaped and transformed by the advancements in technology.
Are the things built in Demandware Labs "product"?
No. Demandware Labs is prototype development. Think of it like Google Labs or Twilio Labs. It's a place where the most ninja of developers employed at Demandware can explore innovations in digital commerce and creative combinations with other on-demand services (you know, like, mashups). There's a lot of cool stuff happening in commerce and in addition to their day jobs of building the industry's leading on-demand ecommerce platform, our developers wanted a place to cut loose. Labs is their playground.
Why did Demandware start Labs?
Demandware believes that there's a great idea (or two, or three) inside every developer. Labs gives Demandware developers the freedom to explore their ideas openly in the market (feedback is good). It lets the market see what we're up to and helps us identify those rock-star ideas that should be productized.
So, will these things ever become products?
Maybe. We hope so. The general idea with Labs though is not to let all the considerations of building and delivering enterprise-class supported product get in the way of quick, free-form developer creativity. With Labs, it's all about operational prototypes; the rest can come later. Of course, we hope the market likes everything in Labs and asks for it to be added to Demandware's roadmap, but the nature of ideas is that most likely only a few will be long-term hits.
I'm a Demandware developer and I want to play with a Labs project. Can I?
Absolutely. Take it. Use it as is. Or tear it apart and use only the pieces that you want. That's all fair game and you can find the code on the Demandware XChange Portal. But (and this is important so pay attention!) this is not productized and supported code. It may have bugs. It might need a little developer love. We'll do our best to answer any questions you have, but this is as-is, no-guarantees code. But for those of you who read this and say "of course," or maybe "No Duh Right?," have fun.
I've played with a Labs project and have feedback. How do I pass it on?
When you log into XChange to get the code, you'll also see a link to the Labs forum. Hop onto the relevant thread (or start a new one) and post a question or comment. The Demandware developer leading the project will respond there. We're asking feedback be handled openly so that every Demandware developer--employees as well as developers from our customers and partners-- can follow the conversation and join in.
I'm not a Demandware employee but I want to work on a Labs project. Can I?
Sorry, Labs projects are for Demandware employees only. However, if you already have a Demandware sandbox, please join our developer community where you're free to work on your own cool thing. If you don't have a sandbox but want one, let us know.
How do I contact Demandware?
Please call us at +1 (888) 553-9216 or send us an e-mail at info@demandware.com.