{"id":8119,"date":"2023-09-21T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-21T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businessyield.com\/tech\/?p=8119"},"modified":"2023-09-20T19:05:56","modified_gmt":"2023-09-20T19:05:56","slug":"shopify-features-pricing-pros-cons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businessyield.com\/tech\/reviews\/shopify-features-pricing-pros-cons\/","title":{"rendered":"Shopify: Features, Pricing, Pros & Cons","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"
Shopify is one of the most used e-commerce platforms on the internet. It is an all-in-one e-commerce solution for which you don\u2019t need any technical skills, design knowledge, or significant investment to sell products or services. This means that anyone in the world can build a potentially successful online store with it.<\/p>
The platform offers over 100 optimized themes for your website and allows you to accept online payments (with credit cards, PayPal, etc.). It also integrates with third-party apps so you can extend your toolkit without slowing down your website.<\/p>
Shopify is a user-friendly e-commerce platform that helps small businesses build an online store and sell online through one streamlined dashboard. Its merchants can build a modern online store and sell on social media sites, seller marketplaces, other blogs, and websites and via email, text and chat. <\/p>
In-person selling is a snap on Shopify too, with its built-in point-of-sale (POS) for retail stores, pop-up shops, market sales, and more.<\/p>
Shopify works by centralizing your product data, customers and operational tasks in one system that connects to all of your sales channels seamlessly. Once the essentials are in place, the platform makes it easy to explore and expand into new product lines and sales channels. On the backend, it has a Storefront Renderer infrastructure that accelerates site speed, making your website load x2.97 faster than the average. It also has built-in SEO features that help you optimize your website for search.<\/p>
Using Shopify is as easy as registering on their website, following an effortless setup process, and customizing it to your likings with its highly intuitive interface.<\/p>
Here\u2019s a step-by-step look at how Shopify works from initial set-up to managing sales.<\/p>
Shopify is a solid platform that is made for anyone to use. And the reason why it stands out is because of how versatile and user-friendly it can be.<\/p>
With its easy usability, affordable pricing, third-party integration, offline support, and scalability, Shopify can fit almost any business. We can recommend Shopify for:<\/p>
However, if there were a perfect Shopify user, it would be someone who is either starting in the e-commerce space, building a business on a low budget, or both. This is because they would benefit the most from the platform\u2019s user-friendliness, low pricing, and complete kit of features.<\/p>
On the other hand, an e-commerce expert with years in the industry and significant funding might still benefit from Shopify\u2019s advanced plan.<\/p>
Shopify offers an easy way to quickly launch an online store without the fuss over servers and development costs that can be incurred with self-hosted platforms such as Magento. The admin interface is clean and user-friendly and pretty intuitive because all the features are logically structured. <\/p>
You can also find extensive documentation and video guides on the Shopify site. All you really need is a product to sell.<\/p>
There are 160 themes to choose from (free and paid) in the Shopify Theme Store. All of them are mobile responsive, plus hundreds are available on sites such as ThemeForest. Each theme is also fully customizable by editing the code. <\/p>
One of the big advantages of a hosted solution is the reliability it provides. If you have an e-commerce store, you will be dealing with sensitive customer information including credit card details, plus impatient customers. This means your site needs to be fast, secure, and always online. <\/p>
Shopify will take care of all server maintenance and upgrades to keep your store and shopping cart available at all times and ensure that pages load quickly. You can enable SSL certificates for your store to encrypt all data and pass it through a secure connection. Shopify also takes care of PCI compliance for you (required when you deal with credit cards).<\/p>
With mobile visits to websites now higher than desktop, it is essential, not optional, to have a mobile-optimised site. Luckily Shopify knows this. All of Shopify\u2019s themes are mobile responsive and the platform includes a free built-in mobile commerce shopping cart, meaning your store looks great on all devices and your customers can shop freely wherever they are.<\/p>
In addition, there are free iPhone and Android apps that let you manage your store on the go.<\/p>
Shopify\u2019s app store is a treasure trove of functionality that you can add to your shop. You can add reviews, loyalty programmes, and customer wishlists. You can also get in-depth analytics, print labels and packing slips, and integrate with accounting software, shipping programs, and social media sites. All the marketing apps are also available. <\/p>
With over 1,500 to choose from, it is likely there is an app for whatever you want to do. But note that whilst many are free, over half are paid.<\/p>
As stated above, you do not need any technical expertise to launch a basic Shopify store. The platform provides all software and hosting. <\/p>
Not only does this make it easier to get up and running, but it is likely that Shopify\u2019s hosting will be faster and more secure than you could achieve alone. It will also easily accommodate any spikes in traffic you might receive. <\/p>
Shopify also takes care of all software updates so you can focus all your efforts on selling and not worry about technical issues.<\/p>
Shopify is big on customer support. They are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and the response time is fairly instant. This means your business is never on its own. <\/p>
You can get in touch via phone, email, or web chat. There are also a number of community forums, extensive documentation in the Shopify Help Centre, and a range of advanced Shopify University guides.<\/p>
What happens if a visitor to your store places a product in their shopping basket but leaves without buying it? According to statistics, over two-thirds of potential customers will do this. Shopify offers an abandoned checkout cart recovery service that automatically tracks and emails these potential customers to remind them to complete their purchases.<\/p>
This is an easy way to potentially generate more revenue.<\/p>
Having a beautiful online shop means nothing if no one visits. Another of Shopify\u2019s big selling points is its powerful Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) features that will help your website rank higher in search results so customers can find you. You also have access to advanced analytics to tell you where your customers are coming from so you can tailor your marketing accordingly. <\/p>
The app store gives you access to a huge range of marketing tools including social media integration, product reviews, and email marketing. As standard, Shopify allows you to create discount codes. Gift vouchers are available at the next level up. Social media icons are included in all themes. <\/p>
And if you\u2019re a bit overwhelmed by digital marketing and the time it could take, Shopify Kit has been designed to help. It acts like a virtual employee, recommending and executing marketing tasks based on your products, audience and store performance.<\/p>
Here\u2019s the official Shopify pricing table for the premium plans:<\/p>
The difference between these pricing plans is quite high as they\u2019re designed for different segments and the size of the business.<\/p>