Business Insight
5 Steps to Get Your Shopify Online Store Up and Running
Sail smoothly into online retail with Shopify
Setting up a business on Shopify doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. Our article provides an easy-to-follow guide to shorten the journey as you extend your business globally. Keep reading for tips on how to get started!
<Table of Contents>
Introduction
。What is Shopify?
。How does it help start an online store?
。Who needs Shopify?
。Before you start: How to choose a pricing plan
5 Simple Steps to Set Up an Online Store on Shopify
。Step 1: Sign-up for a Shopify account
。Step 2: Fill in details
。Step 3: Choose payment gateway & vendor management/payouts
。Step 4: Build your online shop
。Step 5: Pick a pricing plan & uncover your shop
ConclusionWhat is Shopify?
Founded in 2004, Shopify is a Canadian multinational e-commerce platform that helps users create their own online store. It has become one of the most popular solutions for creating and managing online stores. With Shopify, you can quickly create an online store, set up payment processing, manage inventory, customize your store design, and more. In this article, we’ll guide you through the process and help you get started on your journey.
How does Shopify help start an online store?
With a wide range of features on Shopify, you can set up an e-commerce website with minimal effort. Be it creating product pages, tracking orders, accepting payments, or managing inventory, all can be done by yourself. Moreover, its intuitive interface allows you to customize the look of your store according to your brand’s identity.
Who needs Shopify?
Small-medium businesses
Are you running a brick-and-mortar store but thinking about going online as well? An online store allows you to extend the reach to other parts of the country or even the whole world. You can also leverage Shopify’s POS system to sync and track all the online, mobile, and in-store orders in one place. Reap the benefits of innovative technology and enjoy convenience and efficiency with ease.
Companies/individuals looking to start a dropshipping business or sell digital products/services
If you plan to start a business and try to minimize your costs by not owning a physical store, Shopify is a good place to start. Be it physical or digital products, you can list them easily in your online shop even if you are not a developer and know nothing about coding. List your products, choose your preferred logistics partners, fill in the required information such as tax details, and explore the global business world!
Social media influencers/YouTubers/content creators, etc.
With thousands or even millions of followers, it is worth considering whether to start a business for influencers or content creators. Connect your Shopify store to different online sales channels such as Facebook, Instagram, and WordPress and transform the traffic into potential purchases. If you’re not into running a business yourself, you can also try Shopify Collabs, which matches influencers and brands seeking influencer marketing.
In addition to the examples above, anyone who has products or services ready for sale can open a store with a few steps on Shopify. The costs and thresholds are significantly lower than traditional physical stores, which makes it worth a try.
Before you start:
Starting a Shopify store can be exciting, but there are a few things to consider before you get started. One of the most important things is to choose the right pricing plan for your business. Finding the right pricing plan for your store will help you maximize profits and ensure that you have enough budget to cover all of your expenses. In the table below, we list the three pricing plans and key features that you should consider when making your decision.
How to choose a pricing plan
The right pricing plan helps you save money while offering the features that you need to run your business efficiently. Therefore, it is important to take time to research each pricing option and make an informed decision that will benefit your business in the long run.
Differences:
Here are some major differences among the Shopify plans available, including the number of staff accounts, variables available in reports, and automation features. Please refer to the detail in the table below:
Staff accounts
No matter the size of your team, there is a pricing plan to accommodate everyone. If you are an individual or small business, the basic plan may have all that you need. But if you collaborate as part of a larger group, then a standard Shopify plan or higher can make it easier to work together.
Reports
As your business grows, you may need reports with more detailed data to make informed decisions. If you are using the basic Shopify plan, you can only access “Sessions attributed to marketing.” To develop a more comprehensive strategy, you may consider upgrading to the standard Shopify plan, which offers more variables.
Estimations of third-party shipping rates, duties, and import taxes
If you need to handle orders from abroad, it’s worth considering the additional features offered by the Advanced Shopify plan. International orders can be expensive when factoring in the shipping and taxes, so customers need to have a rough idea before checkout. The estimation feature can help minimize the risk of parcel returns or refusals caused by unexpected costs. However, if your business focuses on domestic operations, you can go for the standard plan.
5 Simple Steps to Set Up an Online Store on Shopify
Step 1: Sign-up for a Shopify account
Creating an account with Shopify is quick and easy: click on the “Sign Up” button in the top right corner to start. Answer or skip a series of questions and name your online shop (you can change the name later in “Settings.” Input your email address, or simply sign up with your Google or Facebook account. Please note that signing up with a third-party account may not always function if there are issues or changes to their APIs.
Step 2: Fill in the details
Setting up an online store takes time and effort, and it is crucial to fill in your information correctly. This includes naming your store, setting a legal business name, entering your business address, and billing information, and choosing a default currency, weight unit, and target markets.
Additionally, you can simplify the taxation process with Shopify Tax, a paid service of the platform, or take advantage of the Basic Tax feature, which provides semi-automated services at no extra cost.
By taking the time to fill in all of your information correctly now, you will save yourself a lot of hassle down the line. So don’t forget to double-check everything before submitting it!
Follow the steps below to complete your information filling in no time:
- Name Your Store/Set Legal Business Name
- Business address/billing information/default currency/default weight unit
- Logistics: markets/shipping settings/(roll down) local delivery/pickup
- Taxes
Step 3: Choose payment gateway & vendor management/payouts
Payment Gateway:
Setting up payment methods and fulfillment options for your customers is a crucial step in setting up an online store. It’s important to make sure that you have the right payment gateway and payment methods for your customers. With the right payment gateway, you can easily accept payments from customers and deliver products or services without any hassle.
Shopify Payment, PayPal, and other popular payment gateways are available for setting up payments on your online store. You can choose from a variety of payment methods such as credit cards, debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, etc. Based on your needs and preferences, you can select the best one for your business.
Vendor Management & Payouts:
Vendor payments, like customer payments, need to be organized and managed. As your business grows and more orders come in, tracking, splitting, and sending vendor payouts can become a daunting task that consumes time and resources.
If you are trying to diversify your product lines by working with global suppliers, you may soon be intimidated by the issue of making overseas payouts. International bank transfers are the most common way to pay global vendors; however, the costs of cross-border payments can be high, with a fee of $30 per transaction and long settlement times. That’s why having a fast and cost-efficient online payment process is essential to ensure prompt payments to overseas suppliers.
OwlPay is the perfect solution, among others. OwlPay’s Shopify app allows you to easily sync orders, import vendor information, complete reconciliation, and make vendor payouts all in one place. You can benefit from fees 70% lower than banks and enjoy same-day settlements with other time-saving features.
You can start using OwlPay today by going to Shopify App Store and adding OwlPay for free. Try syncing your orders and explore other time-saving features on the one-stop platform!
Step 4: Build Your Online Shop
Add product
Adding products to your online shop is made straightforward as all you have to do is add product images, details, pricing, and other necessary data.
- Click “Product” on the side panel and click “Add products”
- Enter the product name
- Upload product images
- Add details, pricing, and inventory
Here you are! View the clean, stylish product page that presents your product to your customers.
Pick a Theme
Once the listing of products is done, you can start customizing the settings of your store. Pick a theme that best reflects your brand and customize menus so that customers can easily find what they are looking for. By taking the time to customize these settings, you are ensuring that customers have a pleasant shopping experience when they visit your store.
- Click “Online store” on the side panel
- Click “Themes” below the “Online Store”
- Customize the default theme, or roll down to select the other one
Step 5: Pick a Pricing Plan & Uncover Your Shop
Pricing Plan
Have you made a decision on which pricing plan is the best for your store? This choice should depend on the criteria that have been listed here. It’s great to have an understanding of what will best suit your needs to let people find and access your online store. Don’t worry if you change your mind, you can always upgrade or switch plans in the future!
Uncover Your Shop
You’ve made it here! Now, to get your online shop up and running you just need to remove the password protection. It’s easy, simply follow these steps:
- Click on “Online Store” on the side panel & “Preferences” below.
- Scroll down to the section “Password protection”
- Tick off the box “Restrict access to visitors with the password”
Conclusion
Shopify is a great e-commerce platform for those who want to open an online store. It provides a simple and easy-to-use interface that allows users to quickly set up their stores and start selling products. With Shopify, users can easily customize their store, add payment options, and manage orders with ease. Harness the power of advanced tools and get ahead of the curve; begin your e-commerce journey today!
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【About OwlTing Group】
Founded in 2010, OwlTing Group covers B2B, B2B2C, and B2C services. As a Taiwan-based company, OwlTing has branch offices in the U.S., Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Singapore, and seeks to expand globally. In 2018, OwlTing announced an eight-figure USD investment from the Japanese financial giant SBI Group. In recent years, OwlTing has formed partnerships with government agencies, industry, and academia globally and applied blockchain technology to the FinTech industry, medical industry, automotive industry, defense industry, food industry, forestry, agriculture, etc. OwlTing aims to build blockchain services for various industries to solve pain points and improve industry ecosystems.
OwlTing Group: https://bit.ly/46PfVrJ
OwlPay: https://bit.ly/44kLB6H
OwlPay in Shopify App Store: https://bit.ly/44nv81g
Contact Us: owlpaysupport@owlting.com
