An ecommerce presence is vital. As a small business owner, it’s sometimes difficult to set up and maintain all the infrastructure and functionality you need for a website or other online offerings. One thing that can help you get started is scheduling a meeting with a company that helps ecommerce businesses keep customers. However, many also rely on online presence and getting it to sell as easily as possible. Luckily, there are products out there to help out with that!
What is Shopify, and how can it help business owners?
Shopify is one of these digital products. It is an ecommerce platform described as a “store-building tool” for business owners to bring their products and services to an online audience. With Shopify, you can choose from pre-existing themes to help you set up a website. Or you can integrate it into an existing website to send invoices, add chat features, let customers pay with credit cards, and much more.This article will discuss how to sell on Shopify, the pros and cons of using it, and more tips you might find useful.[caption id="attachment_4484" align="aligncenter" width="529"]
CHIANG MAI, THAILAND - Jan 20, 2019 : Male holds iPhone 6s with Shopify application on the screen in coffee shop. Shopify is an e-commerce platform for online stores - Image[/caption]
How much does it cost to start selling on Shopify?
Shopify payments are on a subscription-based plan. They charge monthly payments and a small percentage of each transaction made with credit cards.There are three levels of Shopify plan pricing:
- Shopify Basic: $29/month, plus 2.9% and 30 cents per online credit card transaction;
- Shopify: $79/month, plus 2.6% and 30 cents per online credit card transaction;
- Advanced Shopify: $299/month, plus 2.4% and 30 cents per online credit card transaction;
You can pay month to month for your Shopify account and website. But if you sign up for long-term plans, you can receive some up-front discounts on your subscription (10% for one year, and 20% for a two-year Shopify plan). Let’s look at the differences between the plans:Shopify Basic offers the main things you’ll need for running your online Shopify store:
- Unlimited sales allowance.
- Blogging space.
- 24/7 support systems from Shopify.
- Free SSL (or security certificates).
- Even the ability to incorporate discount codes.
With all these basics at a fairly low price, and access to Shopify’s themes to help you set up a Shopify account or website easily, Shopify Basic is probably the best place for new companies. Shopify, the mid-tier plan, adds a few more features to those offered in the basic plan, including the option for gift cards, abandoned cart recovery for returning site visitors, and more detailed reporting on your site’s interactions and statistics. This tier is recommended for businesses with around $5000 monthly income.Advanced Shopify comes with everything from the earlier tiers, including Shopify themes and the other ecommerce resources available. It also adds “advanced reporting” with even more details, plus real-time shipping updates. This tier is recommended for businesses with around or more than $10,000 in monthly income. Each tier offers access to different Shopify themes to structure your ecommerce website. Some Shopify themes are free, and some are available for additional purchase; some themes are also offered from third parties.Each higher-tier plan also reduces the fee for credit card transactions and transactions through other processors. Aside from the three normal plans, there are two more: Shopify Plus, and Shopify Lite.Shopify Plus is a premium option that’s meant to help established ecommerce sellers work through a Shopify store, and it is structured to help higher-volume, more complex needs. It offers more security for your site, including web hosting. This plan’s cost varies by company, and it’s targeted towards companies with at least $1,000,000 in annual revenue. If you’re already selling a lot and just need to know how to sell on Shopify, for increased support and applications, this option might be helpful for your company.Shopify Lite is the cheapest of all these plans and offers the fewest features. This plan costs $9 per month, and doesn’t set up a separate Shopify store for you or give you access to the theme templates to make a new website. Instead, the basic Shopify Lite plan can integrate with a website or social media page that you already have up and running, adding Shopify functions to your page. This can include credit card transactions, invoices, customer chat features, and more. While this plan might not be the best for everyone, it can be a great tool to add to your existing online presence if you just need extra functionality.
Do you need a business license to sell on Shopify?
Generally, you won’t need a business license to sell on Shopify. At least, you won’t be required to have one when setting up your online store. However, there are situations in which you will need to get a license:
- If you make more than $20,000 a month through Shopify.
- If you use the Shopify Payment Gateway
- If your business requires a license based on federal or local law.
A Shopify store lets you sell many products and services. So if you work in a field where a license is required by law, you’ll need to have the legally-appropriate license whether or not you sell through Shopify. Make sure you’re aware of the laws related to your field of work![caption id="attachment_4483" align="aligncenter" width="515"]
POZNAN, POL - FEB 6, 2021: Laptop computer displaying logo of Shopify Inc., a Canadian multinational e-commerce company headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario[/caption]
What are the pros and cons of selling through a Shopify store?
Pros:
- Marketing tools. Shopify offers tools to help you run email and social media marketing campaigns, track their effectiveness, and more.
- Analytics reporting. Shopify tracks how things are working for your business and sales.
- Beginner-friendly site-building. Shopify’s templates and themes make it easy for people with little/no web design experience to create a good-looking, functional website.
- Self-help libraries. Shopify offers a wide variety of information to help you deal with potential issues.
- Security. Shopify offers free SSL certificates at every level, which allows you to build a website through their services, and they use secure transactional functions.
Cons:
- Lack of flexibility. Although the Shopify site builder is easy to use, with plenty of themes to choose from, it doesn’t offer much customization. If you want to change the look of your site, you’ll have to change the theme, and many themes require additional purchases.
- Support is sometimes lacking. Some Shopify users have found that although 24/7 support is offered through email and chat, this support can take quite a while to respond.
- Price. Shopify’s prices depend on which plan you use, but they tend to be on the higher end compared to Shopify alternatives.
Helpful Hints
Now that you know more about how to sell on Shopify, here are a few additional hints for running an online store:
Hint 1: How to deliver what people buy on Shopify
Many small businesses have to box and ship orders themselves or work through dropshipping (paying a third party for the product, which they send directly to customers). While there are many guides on how to ship things yourself as a small business, you may eventually want to consider working with a fulfillment service if your order volume increases too much. Make sure that you’re not just trying to take on all your orders yourself if it’s too much!
Hint 2: Consider your on-site marketing
There are many things to consider when it comes to marketing, including how to get one-time visitors to your website to come back and make a purchase. One company that can help you with this is Ampry, an ecommerce platform that helps you bring customers back to your site for purchases. You can schedule a strategy call with Ampry today if you’re interested.There’s plenty more to learn about selling on Shopify, but we hope this is enough to help you get started!