Everyone who chooses to shop online instead of in-store is choosing to participate in e-commerce shopping. The premise of an e-commerce website is to allow businesses to sell products or services to reach a larger array of clientele, beyond those in their local area. If you want to expand your customer base or have your products more accessible in a digital world, you will ideally have an e-commerce website.
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What Is Shopify?
Shopify is a website builder geared toward businesses looking to create a new e-commerce website. Whether you are starting from scratch or have experience in coding and website building, you can use Shopify to create a new home for your business. Shopify is a Canadian-based company that is one of the largest online shopping platforms in the world. When you use Shopify, there are walk-throughs and tools to help you create the website of your dreams. If you are just beginning your Shopify website design journey, you are not alone. Every day, more businesses are creating their online stores through Shopify. In fact, more than 1.7 million businesses have made over $200 billion in sales with their Shopify websites! So, it’s no wonder new Shopify websites are being created each day.
Businesses That Use Shopify
Let’s take a look at a few of the most well-known and recognizable companies that use Shopify as their website’s home. In the realm of makeup and cosmetics, Kylie Cosmetics, Jeffree Star Cosmetics, KKW Beauty, and Sephora rely on Shopify. A few other notable companies that utilize Shopify are Tesla, Busweiser, RedBull, and Lollapalooza.
Four Tiers of Shopify Pricing
The answer to how much Shopify costs depends on which plan you choose. There are four different pricing tiers to choose from, which we will dive into here.
Shopify Lite
Pricing for Shopify starts at $9 per month, for a plan called Shopify Lite. This plan is typically for a business that would like to add a buy button to their existing site or those who choose to sell their products in person and simply need a point-of-sale (POS) processor. If you are a smaller company, this is likely the best choice.
Shopify Basic
The basic plan begins at $39 per month but can be lowered to $29 per month if you purchase the annual plan. With this plan, you can create an online store with a website and blog. There is no limit to the items you can list on your website. In addition, you get unlimited storage as well as an Inventory location cap of 4. This allows you to expand your business more than the Lite plan offers.
Shopify Standard
At $105 per month or $79 per month when purchased annually, is the Basic plan. Along with all the features from the Lite and Basic plans, you also receive performance reports and five staff accounts. This is one of the plans that larger companies typically prefer due to the ability to begin selling your products in an international setting.
Shopify Advanced
Shopify Advanced starts at $399 per month or the discounted rate of $299 per month when paid annually. Large corporations or businesses selling large quantities of items have the ability to do so effortlessly. Whether your store is online, in person, or both, you may need more advanced features to keep up with your production and foot traffic. With this plan, you get unlimited storage, 15 staff accounts, customized reporting, and e-commerce automation. This plan is ideal for a large business that sees a huge amount of traffic daily. You are also able to utilize up to 8 inventory locations for the extensive stock that you may have.
Additional Factors Influencing How Much Shopify Costs
There are a few additional fees that can increase how much Shopify costs. These features can help you bring you the largest revenue stream possible. There are only a few things that are necessary to consider when creating your budget, one of which is the domain name for your site. You must purchase this separately for about $15 per year. Luckily, this is a very small charge.
Benefits of Using a Professional Shopify Expert
In today’s digital age, you need a strong online presence for successful business growth. With technology always improving and growing, e-commerce is a significant part of any business. Just about any business will benefit from a user-friendly store that attracts customers and increases conversions. Unfortunately, creating, updating, and maintaining your Shopify website is a time-consuming job. While you may have staff who deal with digital marketing, having someone who specializes in Shopify’s website builder can push your website over the top. Working with a Shopify expert will allow your company to grow in ways that it wouldn’t without a dedicated Shopify employee.
With every version of Shopify, there are free templates you can use to set up your online store. However, one of the advantages of working with a Shopify expert is the ability to fully customize your store to fit your brand. They can help you customize these templates to create a website that fully aligns with your business goals and objectives.
Building an online store takes a lot of time and experience. Shopify is a very user-friendly site and even without any coding experience, people can get their websites up and running. Still, hiring a Shopify professional can help you save time by having someone set up and launch your store for you. They can navigate the process much more quickly and effectively. While it may seem like a lot to hire a Shopify expert to build and maintain your site, in the long run, it will end up being cheaper for you.
How Do I Know Whether Shopify Is Right For My Business?
We know that choosing a website builder is an important decision. That’s why you might want to hear from people who do this all the time before you decide whether it is the right platform for your business. At SEO Design Chicago, we can help you determine if your website needs a Shopify account and if so, what we should do or should not add to your website to make it cost-efficient and user-friendly. Reach out to us to learn more today.
FAQ:
- What is Shopify?
- What are some businesses that use Shopify?
- How much does Shopify Lite cost?
- How much does Shopify Advanced cost?
- Why should you work with a Shopify expert?
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