Is It Worth It To Sell On Shopify? Review, Pros & Cons [2023]

Choosing the right platform for online selling is crucial for the success of your business. Here are some factors to consider when choosing an e-commerce platform:

• Features: Every platform offers different features, benefits, and costs. It’s important to choose a platform that offers the features that are important to your business.
• Security: Security is a critical factor to consider when choosing an e-commerce platform. You want to make sure that your customers’ personal and financial information is secure.
• SEO: Search engine optimization (SEO) is important for driving traffic to your website. Choose a platform that is SEO-friendly and allows you to optimize your website for search engines.
• Responsive web design: A responsive website design is essential for providing a good user experience on all devices, including desktops, tablets, and smartphones.
• Multiple selling channels: Choose a platform that supports multiple selling channels, such as social media, marketplaces, and mobile apps.
• Integrations: Integrations with other tools and services, such as payment gateways, shipping providers, and marketing automation software, can help streamline your business operations.
• Technical support: Make sure the platform you choose offers good technical support. Consider how they provide support, such as through a call, online or chat, self-service, etc.
• Scalability: Choose a platform that can scale up as your business grows. The platform should not charge exorbitant fees for providing extra features and storage for your increased business needs.
• Price: When choosing a platform, make sure to factor in its cost and ensure it aligns with your budget. Remember, the most affordable choice may not necessarily be the most suitable one.
• Hosting and platform ownership: eCommerce platforms can either be self-hosted or on the cloud. If you choose self-hosting, you’ll need to handle the hosting, installation, and updates yourself. This gives you more control over your platform and better security management, plus you can save on hosting fees but this is not always practical. On the other hand, cloud-based platforms are more user-friendly and require less technical expertise.

Choosing the right platform for your business can be a difficult decision, but analyzing the above-mentioned aspects of available platforms will help you make an informed decision.

Customization Options

Shopify offers extensive customization options for its users. Here are some ways to customize products on Shopify:

• Theme selection and customization: Shopify offers a wide range of 100+ themes that can be customized to fit the user’s needs. Users can select a theme and customize it to match their brand and style.
• Adding and managing products: Users can add and manage products on Shopify easily. They can add product descriptions, images, and prices. Shopify also allows users to manage inventory and track orders.
• Integrating third-party apps and plugins: Shopify offers a variety of third-party apps and plugins that can be integrated into the platform. These apps and plugins can help users customize their products and improve their online store’s functionality.
• Product options and customizations: Shopify offers several apps that allow users to add unlimited product options and customizations. These apps include Product Options & Customizer, W3 Custom Product Options, and Infinite Options. These apps allow users to add dropdown menus, color and variant image swatches, radio buttons, and more. They also allow users to bundle add-on products to their product option selections to increase prices.
• Customizing product options without an app: Users can also customize product options without using an app. They can do this by entering a line of code in the backend of their store. To do this, users can go to Online Store, click on their theme, and click Actions. From the dropdown menu, they can click Duplicate. Then, they can add the line of code to the new theme.
• Adding custom options to products: Users can add custom options to products on Shopify by going to Products > All products in their Shopify admin. They can find the product they want to add an option to and click Edit. Then, they can click on the Variants tab and scroll down to the Options section. They can add a new option and customize it to their liking.

Overall, Shopify offers a variety of customization options for its users, allowing them to create unique and personalized online stores. Though, they’re not hyper personalized but get the job done.

Robust E-commerce Features

Here are some of the key features related to ecommerce:

• Inventory management: Shopify offers a comprehensive set of tools for inventory management, including the ability to track stock levels, set up alerts for low inventory, and manage multiple locations.
• Payment gateways and secure transactions: Shopify provides a secure payment gateway and SSL encryption to ensure that transactions are safe and secure.
• Order fulfillment and shipping options: Shopify offers a range of shipping options, including integration with major carriers, the ability to print shipping labels, and automatic tracking updates.
• Marketing and promotional tools: Shopify comes with built-in marketing tools to help businesses build, execute, and analyze digital marketing campaigns. It also offers the ability to sell products on multiple channels, including social media and third-party marketplaces.

In addition to these features, Shopify also offers a range of other tools to help businesses manage their online stores, including website builders, analytics reporting, and ecommerce automation.

Shopify App Store

The Shopify App Store offers a wide range of apps and extensions that can enhance store functionality and customer experience. Here are some details about the Shopify App Store and its app extensions:

• With more than 8,000 apps available, the Shopify App Store offers a wide range of options to personalize your store. These apps are conveniently grouped into categories like product sourcing, sales, shipping, design, marketing, and management.
• Each app goes through a 100-checkpoint review before it hits the Shopify App Store.
• There are apps to track your competitors as well. One such example is Fera.ai which lets you detect which Shopify apps and themes are being run on a specific Shopify store.

Customer Support and Resources

There are various ways in which Shopify assists its users with their queries and concerns. These consist of a variety of customer support alternatives and resources:

• 24/7 customer support: If you need help with any questions or issues, Shopify’s support team is always available to assist you. You can reach out to them through chat, email, or phone and they’ll be happy to help.
• Knowledge base and documentation: The Shopify Help Center provides documentation and videos to answer users’ questions. The Help Center covers a wide range of topics, including starting a store, managing shipping and delivery, marketing and promotions, and designing themes.
• Community forums: The Shopify Community is a place where users can connect with other Shopify users and experts to get advice, share ideas, and discuss best practices. Users can find answers to their questions by searching the forums or posting a new question.
• Additional resources and events: Shopify also offers additional resources and events to help users run their stores, including free online learning sessions and in-person events.
• Contacting support: Users can log in to their Shopify account to get support for their store. The Shopify Help Center also provides a contact form where users can select a topic to connect with the right articles and support teams.

Here are some comparisons between Shopify and other popular e-commerce platforms:

Shopify vs WooCommerce

• If you’re looking for a way to sell products online, WooCommerce might be just what you need. It’s a platform that’s free and open-source, which means you can install it on your own web server or host it yourself. Plus, because it’s built on WordPress, it’s simple to set up and get started with. That’s why so many people use it – it’s the most popular eCommerce platform out there! You can use it to sell both physical and digital products.
• With Shopify, you can access a variety of features and integrations such as payment gateways and shipping providers. It’s renowned for being user-friendly and simple to navigate. Plus, it’s a paid platform.

Shopify vs BigCommerce

• Both Shopify and BigCommerce come with built-in marketing tools, but Shopify is somewhat simpler to use. This is because Shopify has a more intuitive interface and a more straightforward setup process.
• BigCommerce is another popular platform that falls into the same category as Shopify. It is known for its ease of use, uncomplicated content management system, and drag-and-drop website builder.

Shopify vs Magento

• Magento is an ideal choice for non-trivial, custom e-commerce projects. It is an open-source platform that offers a high degree of customization and flexibility.
• Shopify is a more user-friendly platform that is easier to set up and use. Because it’s a paid platform, it offers a range of features and integrations, including payment gateways, shipping providers, and more.

Shopify vs other popular e-commerce platforms

• While there are other e-commerce platforms like Wix and Adobe Commerce (formerly Magento) that have a variety of features and integrations, Shopify stands out for its user-friendly interface and ease of use. This is why it’s a top pick for small and medium-sized businesses.
• While Jimdo also provides a variety of features and integrations, it’s Shopify’s user-friendly interface and simplicity that make it a top pick among small and medium-sized businesses.

Overall, the choice between Shopify and other e-commerce platforms depends on the specific needs of the business. Shopify is known for its ease of use and user-friendly interface, making it a popular choice for small and medium-sized businesses. Other platforms like WooCommerce, Adobe Commerce, and BigCommerce offer more customization and flexibility but may require more technical expertise to set up and use.

There are several ways to monitor and analyze your Shopify store’s performance. Here are some options:

• Utilizing Google Analytics with Shopify: You can connect Google Analytics with Shopify for free. This tool is well-liked and gives you a lot of information about your website visitors, what they do on your site, and how many of them turn into customers. When you keep an eye on how your website is doing, you can find ways to make it better and get more out of your advertising.
• Using Shopify built-in Analytics tools: You can use Shopify’s analytics and reports to check out what’s been happening in your store lately, see who’s visiting, and analyze how fast your online store is running. Everyone can access the Analytics page and important financial reports, but stores on the Basic Shopify plan or higher can also use Live View and other reports.
• Tracking key metrics and KPIs: To comprehend your store’s performance and find out where you can enhance, it’s crucial to monitor key metrics and KPIs (key performance indicators). A few significant metrics to keep an eye on are website traffic, conversion rates, average order value, and customer lifetime value.
• Conversion tracking and A/B testing: With conversion tracking, you can keep tabs on how many people do what you want them to on your website, like buying something or filling out a form. A/B testing means trying out two versions of a webpage or marketing campaign to figure out which one works best. When you combine conversion tracking and A/B testing, you can make sure your website and marketing efforts are working as well as they possibly can.

You can also use various 3rd-party analytics tools like Panoply, Putler, and Glew.