Today I’m going to talk to you about how to make money with Shopify; it’s easily one of the most popular eCommerce platforms. With the right expertise, you can build a serious business, thousands of people have found complete financial freedom by harnessing the power of Shopify.
Whether you want to start a business from scratch or diversify your current business, this guide will outline the important things you need to know about making money on Shopify.
Let’s get into it.
How to Make Money with Shopify
Here are some of the tactics you can use to start earning money using Shopify.
1. Start Dropshipping.
One of the biggest benefits of dropshipping is that sellers never have to deal with inventory. As a drop shipper, you are the middleman between the supplier and the customer. All that’s required from your side is to set up a storefront and market the products you want to sell to your desired target audience.
You will also be responsible for customer support, but you will never have to worry about picking, packing, and shipping products; I suppose it’s similar to Amazon FBA in some ways.
The low set-up costs, overheads, and reduced risk are just some of the reasons why dropshipping is such a popular choice.
The only thing to really be aware of if you choose to go down this route is your pricing strategy. It’s important to carefully calculate your profit margins if you want to succeed as a Shopify drop shipper.
I know a fair few people that have found success with this strategy. If you want to win, you’ll need to become very good at running paid ads (usually FB or google ads) and building landing pages that convert.
You can read my complete guide on dropshipping on Shopify here.
2. Start an eCommerce Store.
If you aren’t concerned about dealing with physical products, there is also the option of starting an eCommerce store on Shopify. Setting up an online store is quick and easy, and you can sell anything you want (within reason), including your own creations.
A Shopify eCommerce store also functions as a general website, so you can easily include a blog, details about your brand, and tell customers how to reach you.
Choose from a number of integrations that make your store a safe and user-friendly space for customers to shop, including PayPal, Facebook Messenger, and Stripe.
It’s even possible to sell on Amazon via Shopify.
Watch the below video to find out how.
3. Become an Affiliate.
Many people aren’t aware of Shopify’s affiliate program, allowing you to earn by successfully referring people to the platform. The more sellers you send Shopify’s way, the more you can earn.
A bit like I’m doing here in a sense, I’m trying to provide you with a valuable article to help you understand how you can make money with Shopify; if you sign up using one of my links, I make a commission as an affiliate.
As you can imagine, you will need a sizeable online following to make this a viable business opportunity. This is not to say it’s impossible to start from scratch, though; you will need to be more patient.
4. Start a Niche Store.
Now I know this might sound strange, but it can work.
If the usual eCommerce product categories don’t appeal to you, there is always the option to stock products that have a smaller market but with less competition.
Do you have any opportunities close to where you live? Maybe you know of a local farm or beekeeper that might be worth approaching.
Niche foods like a particular honey or cooking oil might be an option for you; you need to think outside of the box. I know that there are quite a few small but interesting food niches you could look into; you’ll certainly have less competition if you find the right space.
Amazon is another platform where it’s possible to sell food – you can read through my guide on this here.
5. Develop Shopify Stores.
You don’t have to run a Shopify store to make money – you can help build them instead.
Even though it’s easy to get set up on Shopify, many business owners don’t have the time, while others aren’t technically inclined.
You can learn how to build a Shopify store for free, too (have a look at the video below); there are SO many free tutorials online. Learn how to do it, maybe even do one or two for free, then start charging people!
Along with helping entrepreneurs with customer storefronts, there is also the option of app development.
Developing apps and or any form of software is a highly desired skill; I know some people have made $10s of Millions developing apps for Shopify.
A large percentage of online merchants use third-party apps to add additional functionality to their site and store.
Related: The 6 Best Shopify Apps You Need To Know About
How Much Does the Average Person Make on Shopify?
It’s difficult to say exactly how much you can make on Shopify because it’s so dependent on your niche and the products you sell.
I did come across a survey conducted by Littledata, though, that showed the average seller makes around $72 per customer on Shopify. Anyone who earns over $149 per customer would place them in the top 20% of Shopify store owners.
Is It Worth It to Sell on Shopify?
This once again depends on the niche you decide on, what you choose to sell, and how well you market your Shopify store.
Let me take you through some of the pros and cons of selling on Shopify.
Shopify Pros
- Speed & Security. The Shopify platform is not only secure but it’s built to provide a fast, user-friendly experience. That rules out the need to find a hosting solution that will provide you with security and speed.
- Feature-Rich. Shopify is packed with features, so you won’t need to pay a developer to spend days adding fancy functionality to your eCommerce site. There are also thousands of add-ons and plugins to choose from.
- Marketing Essentials Included. Shopify provides users with several useful marketing metrics and reports that can be used to guide company decisions.
Shopify Cons
- Additional Costs. Any platform that you use to run an online store is going to cost something. This is a potential con if you’re starting with a minimal budget. However, there isn’t really a way around monthly or per-sale costs, regardless of whether you use Shopify or Amazon for your online business. This is why it’s important to carefully structure your pricing strategy before you start selling.
- Customization Can Be Tricky. If you ever wanted to tweak your Shopify theme, you would need to have knowledge of Liquid, which is a programming language. However, with the many customization options available on Shopify, this is hardly ever necessary.
- Content Marketing Limitations. If you’ve ever used the WordPress platform, you will know how advanced its content marketing capabilities are. This is not the case with Shopify. If you plan to have a blog and use content to drive users to your site, expect the very basics and way less compatible plugins.
- Site Migration is Difficult. If you ever decide to move your online store to another platform, don’t expect it to be easy (I know this from experience). Besides your product information, it’s next to impossible to move anything else from your Shopify store to another platform such as WordPress.
The Final Word
As someone who has experimented with Shopify, I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to earn money via their own website.
This all-in-one eCommerce solution has some limitations, but overall, it has everything you need to establish yourself as an online seller.
Tags: ecommerce, online store, seller tools, shopify
