How to Develop an eCommerce Store with Shopify: Complete Guide

The global eCommerce industry is expanding and becoming an innate part of modern consumer behavior. The biggest drivers of this are revolutionizing technologies, increasing smartphone usage, and seamless payment gateways. However, small businesses or giants with a lot of traction need help to grab success. From identifying target customers and crafting marketing strategies to shipping delays and security breaches, most e-commerce businesses are suffering. Here, they need to opt for an eCommerce platform that can keep them away from such barriers to increased conversions and revenue.

Besides other eCommerce platforms available to merchants, businesses are increasingly adopting Shopify to redefine how they interact with consumers in the digital ecommerce world. 

Looking at the latest stats recorded in Q4 2023, Shopify revenue increased 24% to $2.1 billion compared to the previous year. 

Being a feature-rich, scalable, and fastest emerging eCommerce platform, Shopify has 4.4+ million live stores globally, as reported in 2024, with around 2 million merchants selling via it and about 5 million active stores running successfully in about 175 countries. Moreover, the platform powers various giants, like Deliveroo, GymShark, and Huel & Red Bull stores. 

These facts and figures are good to go with Shopify’s ecommerce store development. How? 

This blog post will help you with reasons to choose Shopify for online store development and all the essential information to make a Shopify store seamlessly following a few steps, cost, and more. 

Let’s get the ball rolling. 

Checklist to Build Ecommerce Website with Shopify

Why Choose Shopify For Online Store Development?

Besides having every feature merchants need for their Shopify eCommerce website, the eCommerce platform supports growing and scaling businesses. 

Let’s get deeper to pull out the top reasons that may state choosing Shopify is a profitable move: 

1. Allow International Expansion

Shopify Markets, a cross-border management tool by Shopify, assists in creating customized online shopping experiences aimed at specific regions or countries, easing expansion efforts. 

2. Sell In-store 

With Shopify POS, businesses can sell in-person via pop-ups or brick-and-mortar. It arrives with complete hardware, payment gateways, and apps, ensuring perfect sync between customer data, inventory, and sales. 

3. Shipping Carrier Integrations

With Shopify, you will get pre-integrated connections with shipping carriers that send notifications directly to customers, like time estimates and out for delivery, which leads to improved customer experience.  

4. Shopify Reports & Analytics

Opting for Shopify e-commerce store development lets you reap the benefits of Shopify reporting, which provides merchants with insights into businesses. Further, these can be organized into understandable categories for further seamless analysis. 

5. Accelerated Checkout

One of the top eCommerce platforms known for their speed and best performance is Shopify’s checkout, which includes express checkouts that save shipping details and customer payment. Thus, returning customers can swiftly complete payments for their orders. 

Shopify Usage, Sales, & Revenue Statistics – Notable Facts and Figures

Shopify is a competitive eCommerce platform; let’s get deeper into some facts and figures stating the same:

• Recorded in December 2023, Shopify has 4.8+ million online stores. 
• Currently, around 17,683 domains run Shopify Plus. 
• By 2025, eCommerce retail sales are expected to hit 23.6%, which was 21.5% in 2023.
• When comparing statistics, the US is the top country for using the Shopify website, with runners-up the UK and Australia. 

Various statistics portray Shopify as the most chosen for making a Shopify website or store (web or app); you can opt for it to build one for your business and catch up with improved conversions and sales. 

What Can You Do With Shopify?

From building an online store to selling online, Shopify eCommerce development allows all-sized businesses to do various jobs:

1. Can Start Your Business 

• Set up business following step-by-step guides.
• Migrate your online store to Shopify from another platform.
• Learn about Shopify admin, Shopify home, and Shopify mobile app. 
• Manage staff’s access, financing, and bills. 

2. Can Sell Your Products Online

• Directly sell to other brands with B2B leveraging company profiles and custom catalogs.
• Sell online from the Shopify store.
• Sell products using online sales channels.
• Sell in any retail setting to customers using the Shopify POS. 
• Customize the checkout experience for online customers. 

3. Can Manage Your Business 

• Add products to store, categorize them, and manage inventory. 
• Manage customers’ payment process for products they buy and set up Shopify Payments. 
• Track inventory and meet orders for varied locations. 
• Manage product delivery to customers.
• Add customer profiles to the store and manage customer segments. 
• Process, fulfill, and manage existing orders and draft new ones. 
• Ensure the store’s compliance with Shopify’s policies.

4. Can Market Your Business 

• Create automation and marketing campaigns or set up promotions to increase sales. 
• Create discount and offer codes and set up automatic discounts for product promotions. 
• Gain insights by viewing data and reports into businesses. 
• Shopify Markets can sell from anywhere to anywhere. 

Things To Do Before You Start An Online Store With Shopify

Before setting up your Shopify store, you should understand your objectives. For that, you can simply ask yourself a few questions about your store. 

For Example:

• Do you want to sell your products in person and online?
• Do you want to sell your products via social media channels, such as Facebook?

That way, you can aim your goals and pace your setup process. You can also think about pricing plans that fulfill your requirements. I want to let you know that you don’t need to go with any plan until your trial period lasts. 

Some Crucial Points to Consider:

• Get advice from local experts about laws and taxes applicable to your business. 
• Choose the sales channels you need to use. 
• Consider migrating to Shopify if you already own an eCommerce website. 
• To sell in person, learn about Shopify POS.
• Choose a pricing plan that can go perfectly with your needs. 

Steps To Build and SetUp Ecommerce Website With Shopify

1. Set up Your Online Store

While setting up a store, the most time-consuming job is adding and organizing your product listing based on how many products you decide to offer. It would be good to organize your online store as customers find it easy to use a well-organized store and quickly find the products they need. 

Step 1: Log In To Your Store

Step 2: Password-Protect Your Store

Step 3: Name Your Store and Set Your Legal Business Name & Address

Step 4: Add Your Billing Information

Step 5: Set the Default Currency for Your Store

Step 6: Set a Default Weight Unit for Your Store Listings

Step 7: Set up Your Shipping Settings

Step 8: Set up Shopify Markets, if Applicable

Step 9: Set up Pickup and Local Delivery

Step 10: Set up Your Taxes

Step 11: Set up Your Payment Gateways

Step 12: Staff Your Store, if Applicable

Step 13: Set up Your Domain

Note*: On the Shopify dashboard, you will find settings for Store details, 

Billing, Plan, Users and permissions, Checkout, Payments, Customer accounts, Shipping and delivery, Locations, Taxes and duties, Gift cards, Apps, Markets, and sales channels, Customer events, Domains, Brand, Custom data, Notifications, Languages, Policies,  Customer privacy, Store activity log, etc. 

2. Organize Your Online Store

Two crucial parts of your online store are the look of your store and the kind of products you will sell. You can try varied themes to make your store appear appealing, and next, add some products you want to sell. As it’s a time-consuming process to add and organize your products, you must ensure you spare a considerable amount of time for that and setting the applicable tax and shipping information. 

Step 1: Setup and Customize Your Theme & Make Your Website Look Great

Step 2: Add and Organize Your Products Into Collections

Step 3: Customize Your Menu and Navigation

Step 4: Add a Blog to Your Store

3. Test Your Online Store & Prepare It for Launch

Before launching an online store, conduct its testing and analyze its checkout performance. Fix the issues caught and make your store ready to launch. 

• Test Successful and Failed Transactions
• Test Refunding and Canceling Orders
• Test Fulfilling and Partially Fulfilling Orders
• Test Archiving Successful Orders
• Learn About Shopify’s Fraud Analysis Settings

4. Launch Your Shopify Online Store

Now, as you launch your online store, make your store password-free and make it available to access for customers. 

Remove Your Online Store Password to Give Customers Access to Your Store

* Note: When launching your online store, you must remove password protection to make it accessible for end users. But here’s the catch.

You should buy a pricing plan to remove the password of your online store. You can do this in two ways:

• From your Theme page (in your Shopify admin) or
• From the Prefrence page (Go to Shopify admin > Prefrence page (under the Online Store).

Tip*: Pick a plan while you are on a free trial to avoid any subscription fees (until the expiration of your free trial).

5. Add Other Online Sales Channels

After launching your Shopify store successfully, add other online channels to your store to benefit from them. You can consider adding various online channels to your Shopify admin when opting to sell online. 

• Sell with Buy Buttons
• Sell on Facebook and Instagram by Meta

6. Promote Your Online Store

Launching an online store doesn’t end your job; promotion is also crucial. You can add information for search engine usage and promote your store in every apt space. 

• Define Your Home Page Metadata
• Promote Your Store
• Create a Marketing Plan
• Set up Shopify Email and Send Your First Email Marketing Campaign
• Improve Your Store’s SEO
• Use Discount Codes and Sales

• Customize Your Abandoned Cart Emails
• Read and Respond to Messages in Shopify Inbox

You need to follow these steps to start selling online with Shopify. This way, you can get guidance to build, open, and market your online store. 

Must Read : How to create a Shopify app using PHP?

Cost To Build and Start Online Store With Shopify

After deciding to choose shopify development services, knowing pricing initially would help in a successful run ahead. 

Per Your Business Size and Requirements, Shopify Arrives with Distinctive Pricing Plans:

Alternative Solutions

Shopify Developer Cost: Starts from $2,000 (fluctuates depending on your project needs). 

Additional Charges: Payment gateway, shipping charges, app integration for functionality, etc. 

Why To Hire Shopify Developers?

Building a Shopify store demands going beyond just choosing a theme and listing products. That’s why Hiring Shopify Developers would give your business a positive push. 

Reasons Why To Hire Shopify Developers:

How to Hire Shopify Developers?

After knowing how Shopify developers can benefit your store, let’s check out how to hire them. 

Partnering with the right Shopify developers or a Shopify development company depends on your business needs, budget, and timeframe. 

You Can Opt for Any of The Below Alternatives:

Also Read: Magento vs WooCommerce vs Shopify vs Opencart – Best Comparision

Why Choose EmizenTech For Shopify Website & Mobile App Development

When you are looking to start a new eCommerce store from scratch or improve your existing one, you should choose an all-in-one solution. 

Emizentech has a team of certified Shopify experts, decades years of experience, a proven work record, and an engaging portfolio of successful projects. 

Partner with A Shopify Development Company, Emizentech, For:

• Shopify Store Setup
• Shopify Store Design and Development
• Theme Development
• Shopify Apps Integration & Configuration
• Payment & Shipping Zones Set-Up
• Product & Inventory Set-Up
• Shopify Migrations
• Shopify SEO Implementation

Key Highlights of Emizentech

• Design aiming to scale
• Follow continued innovation
• Bug-free coding
• 24/7 technical support
• Agile development approach
• Expert domain knowledge
• Global client base
• In-depth requirement analysis
• Fastest time-to-market

Conclusion

While wrapping up, we hope you have learned how beneficial it would be to choose Shopify for an online store development. 

To build an ecommerce site on Shopify, you can go ahead and hunt for a reliable Shopify development company with years of experience, expected expertise, and a team of skilled developers. 

Connect with a company for Shopify Development Services and let your business expand worldwide, reach global customers, and boost conversions. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)