What is Shopify and How Does It Work?

You may have heard of Shopify while browsing the web but don’t know exactly what it is or how it works. Well, Mangcoding will share and provide insights into what Shopify is.

Below, we’ll discuss what Shopify is, the pros and cons of using Shopify, what features it offers, and much more. Let’s get started!

Shopify is an e-commerce platform you can use to build an online store. The platform allows you to sell products online with your own website. Shopify is easy to use for everyone, from dropshippers and resellers to beginner sellers.

You can sign up for a free trial to experience Shopify’s features. During the trial, you can build your own store and test Shopify apps for free. If you want to use Shopify beyond the trial, you will be charged a monthly fee.

If you use the Basic plan, you will be charged a fee of $25 per month. Then, for the Business plan, you may be charged a fee of $65 per month, and if you choose the Advanced plan, you will be charged a fee of $399 per month.

Shopify combines online and retail sales into one platform. With Shopify, you can manage functions like inventory, marketing, payments, and shipping. It makes running your business easier and integrates any tools you need.

Shopify is cloud-based software, meaning you can access it from any device with internet support. Additionally, Shopify is an e-commerce solution with its own hosting, so you don’t have to worry about managing your own hosting.

Why should you use Shopify for your e-commerce business? Shopify offers several advantages over other e-commerce platforms. Here are some of them:

1. Detailed Shopify Admin Panel

In the Shopify admin section, you’ll find various reports and features that help you understand how your online store is performing.

You can find top-performing products, view order counts at a glance, and even track real-time site visitors.

2. Free Features

When creating a new website, you might need to pay for a theme (design/look of your site).

However, Shopify’s online stores come with a variety of free themes that can be customized to meet your store’s needs. You can modify the free Shopify theme to match your branding style by changing fonts, colors, adding photos, etc.

3. Cloud-Based Hosting

One of the benefits of Shopify is that your website is hosted on a cloud network, not on a server. This reduces the chances of your website going down and allows you to run your business smoothly.

However, cloud hosting reduces the chances of your website going down and allows you to run your business smoothly. You also don’t have to worry because the hosting fees are paid monthly according to the plan you choose.

4. Accessible to Everyone

When you launch an e-commerce store, it requires costs. You need to pay for products, marketing, a new domain, and e-commerce software.

But Shopify offers pricing plans for everyone. If your budget is very limited, you can subscribe to Shopify Starter for just $5 per month. And once your business grows significantly, you can upgrade your Shopify plan.

5. Low Barriers to Entry

Starting an online business may seem tough, but it’s much easier than it was 20 years ago.

In the past, people had to mail checks to Amazon when starting an online store! Shopify simplifies the process and reduces limitations compared to other platforms.

While Shopify has many advantages, there are a few disadvantages as well:

1. Time to Preview Store

Building a Shopify store is essentially building a business, not a passive income stream.

And starting a business is not an easy thing to do. Figuring out how to use Shopify and build a profitable store requires months of experimentation. It takes some time to understand where each part of your store is located in the Shopify dashboard.

2. Shopify Won’t Guarantee Success

Shopify offers many great features and apps to make online stores easier to run, but your success depends on how you manage your store.

Success is ultimately up to you — you need the right mindset, marketing strategies, and effort to outpace your competitors. Overall, your success is in your hands, not Shopify.

On Shopify, there are always new trending products you can sell. You can sell anything from fashion, beauty products, to home and garden equipment. Here are some popular products you can consider selling on Shopify:

Clothing	Jewelry
Home accessories	Travel products
Baby or maternity products	Bags and luggage
Fitness accessories	Beauty products
Kitchen equipment	Pet products
Automotive accessories	And much more!

However, Shopify also has strict guidelines and rules about what you cannot sell. Selling forbidden products like firearms, counterfeit goods, gambling products, regulated items, adult products, and drug paraphernalia can result in your store being suspended or frozen. There are several steps to follow:

Certain firearms and their parts
Counterfeit or unauthorized goods
Gambling products
Regulated products or services
Adult products
Drug paraphernalia
Event tickets

Basically, illegal products are most likely not allowed to be sold on Shopify. For those new to online selling, it is important to know how to avoid counterfeit goods when sourcing products for your business.

If you’re thinking about launching an e-commerce website using Shopify, there are several steps to follow:

1. Sign Up for a Free Trial

Shopify offers a free trial that you can access without providing credit card information. Just enter basic contact details and some business information to get started.

2. Find Products to Sell

To succeed on Shopify, it’s important to find products that interest consumers and have the potential to make a profit. Tools like Dropshipman can help you find products and add them to your online store with just a few clicks.

3. Customize Your Store

The look of your store is crucial for customer experience. Shopify offers over 100 free and paid themes you can use to customize your store’s design.

4. Activate Payments

Shopify allows you to accept payments through various methods, including Shopify Payments, PayPal, and Amazon Pay.

Please go to Settings > Select Payments to choose and activate your preferred payment method.

5. Set Up Shipping

If you’re selling your own products, you’ll need to handle logistics. Shopify Shipping can help you with this, reducing delays and offering competitive courier rates. To activate it, please go to Settings > Shipping, select Shipping, and then choose the relevant option.

Once you have completed these steps, you are ready to start selling on Shopify.

You can grow your Shopify store in several ways. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Run Ads

Run ads on platforms like Facebook, Google, and other social media networks to promote your store.

It is also important to choose a platform with broad targeting options, allowing you to accurately define your ideal customers. As of now, Facebook and Google are the most popular advertising platforms.

Leverage SEO

SEO is one of the ways to drive relevant traffic to your website. Almost all new store owners do not use e-commerce SEO as a growth strategy for their store.

Often, new entrepreneurs want to make money quickly, so they focus more on running ads. However, after months of investing in ads, they realize that the cost of advertising is too high.

With SEO and content marketing, you can drive organic traffic to your e-commerce website. The right strategy can also lower acquisition costs and increase conversion rates.

Promote Your Store on Social Media

Before making your store public, you should already have an audience. For example, starting by creating an Instagram account a few weeks before your store launch allows you to promote to your audience at launch.

Building an audience on social media before launching your store can help you generate sales through links or ads.

I hope this article on what Shopify is and how it works has been helpful Mangcoding shared. If you have any feedback or suggestions, feel free to comment or contact Mangcoding through email or social media.

Thank you!

Source : What is Shopify and How Does It Work