Updated By // Begin Editor’s Note //
This post is in the process of being updated from 2012 to 2017. It’s still fairly useful, but needs some freshening.
Please check out the following related posts –
- Shopify Review w/ Pros + Cons
- Shopify vs. WordPress + WooCommerce
- Shopify vs. Etsy
- Shopify vs. BigCommerce
- Guide to Choosing An Ecommerce Platform
- Ecommerce Platform Quiz
// End Editor’s Note //
I recently talked about how to choose an eCommerce platform and reasons why you should use WordPress for eCommerce.
And as I said in both – sometimes the out of the box solution is the best.
Among the “big 3” eCommerce solutions (BigCommerce, Volusion, and Shopify) – I really love working with Shopify. In fact, I used to own a store there for a year or so.
Here’s why you should go for an out of the box solution (using Shopify as an example/recommendation).
8 Reasons To Choose An Out of The Box Solution Like Shopify
1. Everything works together
Since Shopify (and other platforms) are all built by one company – all the pieces work together flawlessly. Similar to how Apple designs and manufactures the software and hardware to all sync up just right – Shopify builds the website, shopping cart, payment, and inventory to all sync up well with no problems.
2. The technical stuff is taken care of
Unless you use WPengine for your WordPress installation – you will be responsible for security, speed, and hosting. Shopify has it built-in and taken care of by professionals. Your store will be fast, secure, and taken care of.
3. Tons of payment gateways
By far the most awkward part of running an online store is handling payments. If you run your store off WordPress or another platform like Magento – you usually have to buy extra extensions to add each gateway.
Shopify makes it easy to plug and play nearly any payment gateway.
4. Easy backend administration
As a storeowner, you’ll be spending most of your time in the backend of your website – setting things up, adding product, and serving customers. Shopify has an amazingly simple backend system that makes your administrative chores easy.
I personally am a fan of the paste-in Analytics fields, the drop down settings, and the set up checklist. Click the image above for a full-size view.
5. Professional support
Unlike WordPress and other shopping carts which are open-source and rely on community (ie, not right now) support – Shopify has a dedicated support team. I was especially impressed with Caroline Schnapp – who if you look on their Facebook page still impresses customers to this day with detailed and helpful service on the forums.
6. Large community of developers and 3rd party professionals
Shopify encourages (and provides incentives for) developers, designers, and consultants to be familiar with the Shopify platform (like ShivarWeb is).
Whether you need a specialized add-on app, a custom design, or help marketing – Shopify has a vetted network to help you out.
7. Cashflow friendly pricing
Over time, Shopify can be pricey – but short-term and for a growing storefront – it’s a deal.
You have no upfront development costs – all your costs are spread out month to month for as cheap as $29.
They charge a transaction fee on the smallest stores – but remove it as your store grows (and pays a higher monthly fee).
Overall – it’s structured so that you don’t ever have a huge one-time investment, and can spend your money on inventory. It’s a great setup – and there’s no contracts either.
So in my case – when my brother and I decided to pivot our store into being a pure publisher – we didn’t lose any huge upfront development cost – we just cancelled our month to month.
8. Lots of built-in tools
Whether its a blog, coupon codes, upsells, crossells, analytics, inventory management – Shopify has a full toolbox to help you sell all in one place. No hunting – it’s probably right there.
Get Started
Head over to Shopify here for a free trial.
Unsure if Shopify is a fit? Check out 8 reasons to use WordPress as your ecommerce platform here – and learn how to set up your online store with WordPress here.
