1O THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE STARTING A BUSINESS ON SHOPIFY
These are modern times with modern solutions. Everything has changed drastically and mostly for the better and to improve our ease of methods. The world isn’t as black and white as it was before. In this world, the rules set on how to do things and go about them. There are a lot of options to carry out an important task or job. It applies to every mundane and necessary stuff. Fast and easy to operate methods have taken over and simplified functions for us that was considered one of the hardest to fulfill in the previous decades.
This same rule applies to the world of merchandise. Previously, it only confined to shops and markets. Sometimes, this was proven to be very difficult, for example, in case of extreme storms and thunder. However, times have now changed. Now, people are going about making online stores on Shopify and starting a business there. There are many Shopify experts out there with blooming businesses. Shopify is an e-commerce company situated in Canada. It is the new up and coming business platform for many young entrepreneurs and also experienced business tycoons. However, you cannot just go and establish an online store on Shopify. It is not as easy as that, to do so, you need to be thoroughly informed about how to go about it and know a set of things. Thus, to help you out, the following is a list of ten things you should know before starting a business on Shopify.
1. ADD ANY AVAILABLE SALES CHANNELS
According to several different surveys carried out, a large percentage of people are using multi-channel retailing for their online stores. So, that is what you need to do as well. You need to add channels to your stores, such as Google Shopping or eBay. Doing so improves your relationship with your consumers and develop smooth coordination between you and the consumer world
2. ADD A CUSTOM DOMAIN
A custom domain is the identification of your online store and your business. It gives your brand instant recognition and also conditions their minds to remember the URL. However, the thing with custom domains is that you need yours to be one of its kind and different. It means that you need an area that isn’t used by anyone. It is how, when you sign up on a social media platform, you need a username that isn’t used by anybody else. So, research before finalizing on your custom domain and check if it is occupied by someone else already.
3. PAYMENT GETAWAY
Before finishing up, you need to make sure that your consumers can complete a purchase. It means that from selecting the items and putting them in their carts to choosing whether it will be cash on delivery or via credit card, everything needs to be smooth and able to be carried out. You don’t want people coming to your site and liking something but not being able to be ready to go through the checkout process now, do you? For any assistance with payment gateways or accounting, we suggest seeking a consult with a Shopify Accounting specialist.
4. SET THE STANDARD PAGES
When customers come to your website, they need to inform them in the right manner. You need to remember that they are guests that have knocked on your door and need to be shown around by the host, which is you. It means that your website must have the standard pages. These pages include a homepage that acts as a guide to your complete web page and from where the visitors know what they are looking at and end up going to the correct places. Then comes the contact page. You need to establish a link with your consumers, which can only happen when you keep them in the loop and remain in contact with them. That is why you must have a standard contact page with your location, email, and phone information.
5. REVIEW YOUR EMAIL NOTIFICATION SETTINGS
In the world of online shopping and online shops, the best way of communication you have is via emails. That doesn’t mean sending out emails of simply saying ‘’Hi’’ and ‘’good day’’ to each other. It means that you need to prepare a set of standardized emails for you to send out to the customers. You know how you order something online and immediately get an update email. Yep, this is what that is.
6. HAVE CONTENT AUDITORS
Like you don’t want your final thesis paper to have any grammatical or any mistakes, you don’t want them for your web page either. So, have a team of content auditors that proof checks your work and eliminate errors. They can replace old and unwanted stuff with the new one.
7. IMAGE OPTIMIZATION
You want your website to adorned with fancy and classy images. You don’t wish to slow loading pictures or pictures in all different forms and types. Thus, you need to have them optimized to ensure efficiency and to keep the images in one format.
8. ANALYTICS TOOLS
Analytical tools provide you with sets of data that are pivotal. These allow you to analyze your business and the progress of it and to make the necessary changes.
9. PRE-LAUNCH MARKETING PLAN
To ensure the rise and success of any business, you need to make sure that people know of it. It means that you need to do marketing and let the company known to the consumer world. So, print out flyers, brochures, send out emails, run TV advertisements, and radio broadcasts about your venture. Make social media pages like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and spread the word. Post stories and send out tweets. Bombard social media with news all about you and what you are going to do. It is time to be famous!
10. TAX AND SHIPPING
Tax and shipping are that every online store caters. The key is that you need to be smart about this. You need to know just what amount of tax and shipping charges are perfect. You don’t want to exploit your customers and don’t want them to use you either. Know what fees go with what sorts of products. Know what shipping charges apply to what types of distances involved.
CONCLUSION
Setting an online store is not an easy task, nor does it happen in a couple of hours. It takes a lot of effort and very well carried out the research. So, take your time before embarking on such a journey. Make a well thought laid out plan and know what you are going to do. Don’t make last-minute rash changes and decisions. You got this, good luck to you!