How to Start a Shopify Store in 8 Easy Steps & No Money (2024)

Discover how to start a Shopify website with our step-by-step guide. Turn your idea into a thriving online store in no time!

In this article, we’ll unveil the secrets to successfully start a Shopify website, ensuring you have all the tools to launch with confidence.

Here is Shopify’s video, “How to Build A Shopify Business In Under 1 Hour” that you can quickly refer to.

Step 1: Market Research – Find the Perfect Product

This foundational step will define your brand, audience, and marketing strategies.

While it might be tempting to jump on the latest trend, it’s crucial to differentiate between saturated and emerging trends to ensure your product stands out in the market.

1.1. Idea generation

You can watch this video to know what are the exact steps you need to follow before starting your online store:

Understanding Saturated vs. Emerging Trends

As you contemplate what to sell when you start a Shopify website, it’s crucial to consider both saturated and emerging trends.

Saturated Trend: These are products that have dominated the market for a considerable time.

• Pros: Established demand, known market behavior, plenty of reference points for marketing.
• Cons: High competition, potential for low-profit margins, harder to differentiate your brand.

Emerging Trend: These are the new kids on the block. They’re innovative products that have recently entered the market and are experiencing a surge in popularity.

• Pros: Less competition, potential for high-profit margins, easier to establish a unique brand identity.
• Cons: Market behavior can be unpredictable, risk of the trend dying out, potential for copycats as the trend becomes popular.

Think about your passions and interests

Start by focusing on products you enjoy and have some knowledge about.

This approach allows you to gauge a product’s worth and predict what customers might want.

You could also explore annual trend reports to identify highly sought-after items.

Staying ahead in the market involves monitoring top influencers on social media, examining Google Trends, and reading niche blogs to spot emerging trends. Nonetheless, it’s important to remember that trends are fleeting.

Relying solely on them may challenge the sustained growth of your new Shopify store, underscoring the need for long-term planning and strategies.

1.2. Conducting Your Market Research

• Industry Reports & Publications: Start by browsing industry-specific reports and publications. These often provide valuable insights into market trends, consumer preferences, and potential product opportunities.
• Competitor Analysis: Identify your potential competitors. Analyze their product range, pricing, branding, and marketing strategies. Tools like Google Trends, SEMrush, or Ahrefs can offer insights into product popularity and keyword searches.
• Social Media Listening: Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter can be gold mines for spotting emerging trends. Track hashtags, monitor influencers, and pay attention to what’s going viral.
• Consumer Surveys: If you have an idea in mind, why not ask potential customers directly? Use platforms like SurveyMonkey or Google Forms to gather feedback on product interest, pricing, and preferences.
• Test & Validate: Before going all-in, consider running a small pilot. Use platforms like Kickstarter or even a simple pre-order page to gauge real-world interest and gather pre-sales.

Step 2: Start Your Shopify Store

2.1 Sign Up for Shopify store

To start using Shopify and maybe make some money, here’s what you need to do in simple steps:

Step 1: Sign Up for Free

• Go to Shopify’s website where you can try it for free.
• Put in your email and click on “Start Free Trial”.
• Make a password, then click to make your Shopify account. 

You can check out Shopify for 3 days without paying anything. If you like it, you can keep using it for just $1 for the first month.

Here’s how to sign up for Shopify and kickstart your journey:

Step 2: Tell Shopify About Your Shop

• Let Shopify know where you want to sell, if you’re just starting or already selling, and what you want to sell.

Step 3: Get Your Free Trial

• Find the “Select a Plan” button on the bottom right, click it. Shopify has pricing plans: Shopify Starter, Basic, Shopify Plan, and Shopify Advanced Plan.
• Enter how you’ll pay and click “Subscribe” to continue.

These steps help you get started with Shopify, from signing up for free to choosing a plan, with no money needed upfront. This way, you can try it out and see if it’s right for you.

To determine the monthly cost of running your Shopify store with different Shopify plans, use our Shopify fee calculator tool. This will help you select the best plan for your business based on your specific financial needs.

2.2 Choose a Theme

Your store’s theme determines its visual appeal, user experience, and overall impression on your visitors.

A carefully selected theme can effortlessly blend functionality with aesthetics, ensuring that your brand story is told effectively and your products shine. 

If you’re unsure about the right theme for your own business, take some time to explore the Shopify theme store. Additionally, check out your competitors or the leading Shopify stores in your field using our theme detection tool to get a better understanding of the Shopify themes they are using.

Browsing the Available Themes

• Free Themes: Shopify offers a collection of free themes, each designed with a specific type of business in mind.
• Shopify Theme Store: For those looking for more advanced features, unique designs, or specific functionalities, the Shopify Theme Store is the place to explore. Here, you’ll find paid themes crafted by professional designers.

There are some important considerations when picking a theme to answer how to start a shopify website:

• Fonts and Colors: Most themes, both free and paid, allow easy customization of fonts and colors post-installation.
• Key Features: Make a list of must-have features for your online store. Do you need a mega menu for extensive product categories? Perhaps you want a quick-view option for products or a specific type of product carousel? Ensure the theme you’re considering supports these functionalities or can easily integrate them.
• Explore Theme Variants: Many premium themes offer multiple variants. These are essentially different styles or layouts of the same theme. Each variant might cater to a different aesthetic or industry. 

Before settling on a theme, make sure to preview all its available variants. One might align more closely with your brand or offer a layout that’s better suited for your products.

• Test Before You Invest

Shopify’s platform is user-centric, allowing you to try out paid themes before making a purchase. This “try before you buy” approach ensures that you’re entirely satisfied with your theme choice, both in terms of design and functionality.

Keep in mind that when you decide to purchase a paid theme, the price listed is a one-off fee. There are no recurring monthly charges for theme use. This investment ensures you get a high-quality, well-designed theme that can elevate your store’s user experience.

2.3 Customize Your Store

Customizing your Shopify store allows you to infuse your brand’s essence into every element, from the header to the footer. While themes offer a structural foundation, it’s the customization that truly makes your store unique. 

Accessing the Customization Interface

In your Shopify dashboard, locate the “Customize” option within the “Online Store” dropdown. To make the process smoother and to easily reference any required information, right-click on “Customize” and select “Open link in a new tab.” This way to answer how to start a business with Shopify, your Shopify dashboard remains accessible in the background.

Understanding the Store Layout

• Once you’re in the customization interface, you’ll notice the live preview of your ecommerce store on the right, reflecting real-time changes as you make them.
• Your store’s structure comprises consistent header and footer sections. In between these, you have the main content area which is adaptable and customizable based on the pages or product categories you want to showcase.

Tailoring the Header

• The header is the first thing visitors see, making it crucial for setting the right impression. Start by clicking on “Header” listed in the left sidebar of the customization interface.
• Adding Your Brand’s Logo: Within the header customization options, you’ll find an option labeled “Select Image” under the “Logo” section. Click on it to upload your brand’s logo from your device. After selecting the desired logo file, click on “Select” to insert it into the header.

• Adjusting Logo Dimensions: Once your logo is uploaded, you’ll notice sliders or input fields that allow you to tweak its size. Drag the slider or input the desired dimensions to make the logo bigger or smaller, ensuring it aligns well with the overall header design. 

Some themes might also offer options to adjust the logo’s placement, either centering it, aligning it to the left, or placing it in line with the navigation menu.

Further Customization Options

• After setting up the header, you can delve into other customization areas like the main content, sidebar, footer, etc. Remember, every change you make is instantly reflected in the live preview, allowing you to assess aesthetics and functionality in real time.
• Don’t forget to save your changes regularly by clicking the “Save” button at the top right corner of the customization interface.

2.4 Customize Homepage Sections

The homepage is the virtual storefront of your online shop. It sets the first impression, dictates user navigation, and can significantly impact conversion rates. Customizing homepage sections ensures that visitors are greeted with a coherent, engaging, and informative experience.

Navigating to Homepage Sections

While in the customization interface, you’ll find a list of elements in the left sidebar. Scroll down until you locate “Homepage Sections.” This will be the primary area where you’ll customize the core content displayed on your store’s front page.

Understanding Section Types

Each section represents a distinct block of content. Depending on your chosen theme, you might have sections for featured products, banners, testimonials, blogs, and more. Each section is designed to present specific types of information in a visually appealing manner.

Customizing Individual Sections

• Images: Most sections allow you to incorporate images. Whether it’s a banner image, product photos, or background images, ensure they’re high quality and representative of your brand. Clicking on an image placeholder or existing image usually provides options to change, remove, or edit the image.

• Text: Text areas in each section enable you to convey essential information, be it product descriptions, brand stories, or customer testimonials. Ensure the text is concise, clear, and aligns with your brand’s voice. Click on text boxes to edit content directly.
• Buttons: Many sections offer call-to-action buttons that can lead visitors to product pages, promotional offers, or other vital areas of your online store. Customize the button text to make it action-oriented, like “Shop Now” or “Discover More.” Ensure the linked destination is set correctly.

Rearranging and Adding Sections

• Beyond editing the content within sections, you can also adjust their order. Drag and drop sections to reorder them, placing the most critical content at the top for maximum visibility.
• Some themes also allow you to add new sections, expanding your homepage’s functionality. Look for an “Add Section” button or similar option, and choose from the available section types.

Preview and Save

• As you make changes, continually preview them in the live view to the right. This ensures your modifications create a cohesive visual flow and offer an optimal user experience.
• Always remember to save your progress. The “Save” button, usually located at the top right corner, ensures your customizations are stored and applied to your live store.

2.5 Add Products

Here’s a step-by-step guide to effectively add products when you start a Shopify website:

Initiating the Product Addition Process

• Navigate to the Products section in your Shopify dashboard.
• Choose the Add products option to begin.

Adding Key Product Information

• Product Title: This is the name of your product. Ensure it’s clear, accurate, and catchy but relatively short.
• Product Description: Here’s your chance to captivate and convince. Keep your target audience in mind, use easily digestible formats (bullet points, headings), highlight the product’s unique features, and preemptively address potential customer concerns.
• Product Media: This is where you’ll add photos, videos, and possibly 3D models of your items.
• Quality Matters: Always upload high-resolution images or videos. Consider hiring a professional photographer or videographer, but if you’re DIY-ing, use a quality camera.
• Consistency in Images: Use the same aspect ratio for all product photos for a unified look.
• Resolution Requirements: For the product zoom feature in Shopify to work, images need a minimum resolution of 800 x 800 pixels. If you’re selling on Amazon or Etsy via Shopify, they should be at least 1000 x 1000 pixels. Ideally, Shopify suggests a width of 2048 pixels.
• Alt Text for Images: Always add alt text to your product images. It’s essential for SEO and accessibility.

Pricing

• Determining Your Price:

When setting your product’s price, it’s essential to balance your costs (employee expenses, raw materials, shipping, etc.) and the product’s perceived value. Overpricing can deter sales, while underpricing might lead to skepticism regarding the product’s quality.

• Adjusting Your Price:

Ecommerce offers flexibility. If a price doesn’t work, you can adjust it based on feedback and sales data.

• Implementing Your Price on Shopify:

Simply input your chosen price in the ‘Price’ field on the product page. To showcase discounts, you can use the ‘Compare at price’ field. For instance, inputting $3 in the ‘price’ field and $5 in the ‘compare at price’ will display a discounted rate.

Inventory

• Managing Your Stock:

The inventory section lets you manage stock levels. Here, you can input SKUs, barcodes, quantity, and the location of your inventory. Pay special attention to the ‘quantity’ setting, as it informs Shopify about available stock and what to do when a product is out.

• Multiple Locations:

If you use different locations for storing products, specify the number of products at each location.

Product Shipping

For physical products, add weight and customs info in this section. The weight data is essential for accurate shipping rate calculations.

Product Variants

If your product has various options (sizes, colors, etc.), add them in this section. Shopify supports up to 3 options and 100 variants (combinations of these options). If these limits don’t suffice, consider purchasing an app like Infinite Options.

Search Engine Listing Preview

This section impacts how your product appears in search engine results. Fill in:

• Page Title: The primary clickable heading in search results.
• Meta Description: A concise description that sometimes appears in search results.
• URL/Handle: Your product’s unique web address.

Product Organization

On the right side of your product page:

• Product Category: Define your product’s main category.
• Product Type: Specify the exact type of product.
• Vendor: Identify the manufacturer or seller.
• Collections: These are catalogs of products that you can display in various ways.
• Tags: Keywords associated with your products, aiding in creating collections and improving store search functionality.

Product Activation

Once satisfied with the product details, set the product status to ‘active’. Additionally, in the ‘Publishing’ section, decide on the sales channels where the product should be available.

2.6 Create Collections

• After adding your products, go back to the “Products” section in the sidebar.
• Below “All Products,” you will find the “Collections” option. Click on it.
• On the top right corner, click the “Create Collection” button.
• Provide a name for your collection.
• Under “Collection Type“, you can choose to manually select products for your collection or set up conditions to automatically add products based on criteria like product title, tag, price, etc.
• If you choose manual, you can pick products from your product list. If you choose automated, set up the necessary rules.
• Save your collection.

Pro Tip: Collections not only enhance user experience but also provide an opportunity for upselling and cross-selling. For instance, a ‘Summer Collection’ might motivate a customer to buy a complete set of summer essentials.

2.7 Set Up Legal Pages

Having clear and accessible legal pages is not just a good practice for transparency; it’s also essential for compliance, trust-building, and ensuring smooth operations of your online store. Shopify simplifies this process by offering templates for key legal documents.

• Privacy Policy: This essential document outlines how you will handle and protect your customers’ personal information. Given the emphasis on digital privacy in today’s world, having a clear privacy policy can help build trust with your customers and ensure you’re compliant with data protection laws.
• Terms of Service: This document provides the rules and guidelines that customers must agree to start a shopify website. It covers areas like payment methods, delivery terms, returns, and other vital aspects of the purchasing process.
• Refund Policy: Clearly articulating your return and refund procedures ensures transparency and can prevent potential conflicts with customers in the future.

Saving the Legal Pages

• Once you’ve customized each policy to your satisfaction, click the “Save” button at the bottom.

Pro Tip: Legal pages play a critical role in building trust. Ensure that your language is clear, concise, and free from excessive legal jargon. Your aim should be for customers to understand their rights, responsibilities, and how their data is used without feeling overwhelmed or confused.

2.8 Create a Navigation Menu

As you start a Shopify website, setting up a navigation menu is a straightforward process.

Remember to add essential pages. Here are some suggestions:

• Home: A link back to the main landing page of your store.
• Collections: Directs customers to grouped product listings.
• Contact: Leads to a page where customers can reach out for inquiries or support.
• Legal Pages: Make sure to include links to your Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, and any other vital legal pages you’ve set up.

Arranging Menu Items

• Shopify allows you to set the order of your menu items. Drag and drop each item to position it in the desired sequence.
• Additionally, you can create sub-menu items (dropdown menus) by dragging a menu item slightly to the right under another item. This is particularly useful for grouping similar pages or collections.

Saving Your Menu

Once you’ve set up your menu to your satisfaction, ensure you click the “Save” button at the top right corner.

Assigning Your Menu

After creating your menu, ensure it’s assigned to the correct location. Typically:

• “Main Menu” would be set as your primary header navigation.
• “Footer Menu” might contain secondary information, like legal pages or an FAQ.

To set these, navigate back to the “Navigation” main page and assign each menu to its respective location.

Pro Tip: When designing your navigation, prioritize clarity over creativity. Use straightforward names for your menu items to ensure visitors can effortlessly navigate your store.

Regularly reviewing your site analytics can also provide insights into which pages customers visit the most, allowing you to optimize your navigation menu accordingly.

2.9 Configure Checkout and Payments

A seamless checkout experience enhances the user’s confidence in your online store, while diverse payment options cater to a broader audience. In Shopify, the process to configure checkout and payments is user-friendly and secure.

Pro Tip: Regularly review and update your payment and checkout settings to ensure they align with your business’s evolving needs. Offering trending or region-specific payment methods can boost conversions and cater to a global audience.

2.10 Set Up Shipping Rates and Zones

Customers expect a seamless payment process and flexible, cost-effective shipping solutions. In Shopify, streamlining both these processes is intuitive. Let’s delve deep into how you can configure payment providers and set up your shipping:

• Flat Rates: A fixed shipping cost regardless of order value or weight.
• Weight-Based Rates: Shipping costs that vary based on the weight of the ordered products.
• Value-Based Rates: Shipping costs that vary depending on the total order value.

Additionally, Shopify supports carrier-calculated rates if you’ve integrated with carriers like UPS, FedEx, etc. This allows real-time shipping rate calculations based on the customer’s location and chosen delivery method.

Review and Testing

• Ensure you thoroughly review all shipping settings to avoid overcharging or undercharging customers.
• It’s a good practice to place a few test orders or use Shopify’s shipping calculator to ensure your rates are correctly applied based on different product combinations and destinations.

Pro Tip: Consider offering promotional shipping options, such as free shipping over a certain order value, to incentivize larger purchases and enhance the shopping experience.

2.11 Connect a Domain

Having a personalized domain can boost your store’s credibility, make it easier for customers to remember, and strengthen your online presence. Shopify simplifies the domain connection process, whether you purchase it through Shopify or an external registrar.

Through Shopify

• Navigate to “Online Store” and then select “Domains.”
• Click “Add domain.” Enter the desired domain name and see if it’s available.
• If it is, proceed to purchase. Shopify will automatically configure and connect this domain to your shopify store.

Using Third-Party Registrars

• Websites like GoDaddy, Namecheap, or Bluehost offer a vast array of domain names.
• Search for your preferred domain name and follow their purchasing process.
• Once purchased, keep the login details for your domain registrar account handy. You’ll need them for the connection process.

Final Steps and Considerations

• Ensure you have an SSL certificate activated for your domain. This provides a secure shopping environment for your customers. Shopify automatically offers SSL for domains purchased through them. For third-party domains, SSL is typically activated within 48 hours of domain connection.
• Remember that domain settings, especially DNS changes, can take time to propagate. It might be a few hours to even 48 hours before your custom domain starts directing to your Shopify store.

2.12 Test Your Store

Before you officially start a Shopify website , it’s crucial to conduct thorough testing. This ensures that customers have a seamless shopping experience from the moment they land on your homepage to the final checkout step. By simulating the customer journey, you can identify and address any potential hiccups. 

Preview Your Store

Accessing the Preview

• Go to the “Online Store” section.
• You’ll notice an eye icon located towards the top or bottom, depending on your Shopify version. Click on it.
• This action will open your Shopify store in a new browser tab, providing you with a live preview of what customers will see.

Navigate Your Store Like a Customer

Homepage Evaluation

• Ensure all images load correctly, and there are no broken links.
• Check that your brand elements (colors, logos, and fonts) are consistent.
• Confirm that promotional banners or pop-ups work as intended.

Product Listings

• Browse through product categories or collections.
• Open a few product pages to verify that images, descriptions, and prices appear correctly.
• Confirm that product variants (like sizes or colors) are selectable.

Search Functionality

Use the search bar to find specific products. Ensure that the results are relevant.

Contact and Information Pages

• Navigate to the ‘Contact’ page and ensure contact forms or details are visible and functional.
• Visit other information pages like “About Us,” “FAQ,” and your legal pages (Privacy Policy, Terms of Service) to confirm they’re correctly set up.

Test the Checkout Process

Adding Products to Cart

• Select a product and add it to your cart. Ensure the cart updates correctly with the selected product variant and quantity.
• Try adding multiple products to gauge the cart’s handling of multiple items.

Cart Review

• Navigate to the cart page. Check if all added products are listed with the correct details.
• Ensure that promo code fields or other cart functionalities work correctly.

Proceeding to Checkout

• Initiate the checkout process. Ensure all steps are intuitive and functional.
• Confirm that shipping options and rates appear as set up in your Shopify dashboard.
• Check the payment methods available to ensure they align with what you’ve configured.

Finalizing a Test Order

If you want to complete a purchase to test payment gateways, make sure to do so with a real transaction, then immediately refund yourself to avoid unnecessary charges.

Test Notifications

After placing an order, check if you receive a notification as the store owner.

Also, check the customer’s viewpoint by ensuring confirmation emails or messages are sent out.

Additional Considerations

• Test your store on different devices (desktop, mobile, tablet) to ensure responsive design works properly.
• If you have third-party apps integrated, ensure they function as intended and don’t interfere with the user experience.
• Consider asking friends or colleagues to test the store for you. Fresh eyes might catch issues you’ve overlooked.

Step 3: Choose Your Suppliers

Criteria to Choose the Right Suppliers on Shopify

Your suppliers not only impact the quality of products you offer but also influence customer satisfaction levels, shipping times, and even your brand reputation.

• Product Quality: This is paramount. Always request samples before making a bulk order.
• Reliability & Consistency: How reliable is the supplier in fulfilling orders accurately and on time? Check if they maintain consistent stock levels or if they frequently run out of products.
• Communication: Suppliers should be responsive to inquiries, open to feedback, and proactive in addressing potential issues.
• Shipping Times & Methods: Look for suppliers who can offer reasonable shipping times and provide tracking. If they offer multiple shipping methods, you can provide more options to your customers.
• Pricing: Competitive pricing ensures better profit margins.
• Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ): Some suppliers might require you to purchase products in large quantities. Ensure their MOQ aligns with your business model and cash flow.
• Return & Refund Policies: Understand their policies for defective or returned products.
• Reputation & Reviews: Research potential suppliers online. Look for reviews or testimonials, ideally from other Shopify store owners.
• Flexibility: Suppliers should be flexible in terms of order scaling, customization, or adapting to feedback.
• Ethical Practices: Ensure that the suppliers adhere to ethical manufacturing practices. This includes fair wages, safe working conditions, and sustainable methods.

Step 4: Create Your Brand

Building a robust brand is not merely about aesthetics; it’s about creating a perception, a feeling, and an emotional connection with your customers.

4.1. Designing Your Logo

• Reflect Your Identity: Ensure it captures the essence of what you’re selling and the ethos of your business. For instance, if you’re selling eco-friendly products, consider incorporating nature-inspired elements or colors.
• Free Online Tools: Platforms like Canva, Looka, and Hatchful by Shopify offer user-friendly design interfaces to create professional-looking logos without any design experience.
• Color Matters: Different colors evoke different emotions. Research color psychology to understand which colors align best with your brand’s message.
• Versatility: Ensure your logo looks good in various sizes and on different platforms, from social media icons to large banners.

4.2.  Beyond the Logo

• Brand Story: Every brand has a story. Whether it’s how you started or why you’re passionate about what you sell, sharing your journey can create a deeper connection with your audience.
• Tagline: Think of a catchy, concise phrase that encapsulates your brand. It should be memorable and give insight into what you offer or stand for.
• Typography: Choose a consistent font style for your website, marketing materials, and products. Typography plays a subtle yet crucial role in conveying brand personality.
• Visual Elements: Beyond the logo, consider other design elements like patterns, icons, or illustrations that can be consistently used across your Shopify store and marketing materials.

4.3. Seek Feedback

As you develop your brand, seek feedback from potential customers, friends, or mentors. A fresh perspective can offer invaluable insights and highlight aspects you might have overlooked.

Step 5: Product Imagery

Ensuring that your product images are high-quality, clear, and varied can significantly enhance user experience and boost conversions.

5.1. The Two Essential Types of Product Images

Product Shots

• Purpose: These images offer a clear and unobstructed view of your product, showcasing its features, design, and quality.
• Background: Typically, these shots are taken against a white or neutral background to avoid any distractions and to ensure the focus remains solely on the product.
• Angles and Zoom: Offer multiple angles of the product. Include close-ups to showcase intricate details or features.
• Consistency: Ensure consistency in lighting, size, and orientation for all products. This uniformity provides a professional look to your store and eases the browsing experience for customers.

Lifestyle Images

• Purpose: These images portray the product in real-life scenarios, helping customers visualize its use and benefits.
• Setting: Choose a setting that resonates with your target audience and aligns with your brand’s ethos. For instance, a camping gear product can be depicted in a forest or mountain setting.
• Models: If relevant, using models can offer scale and context to the product. Ensure the models reflect the diversity of your potential customer base.
• Storytelling: Lifestyle images can narrate a story, evoke emotions, or depict a desired lifestyle, thereby enticing customers not just to buy a product but to buy into an experience.

5.2. Continual Improvement

Regularly update product images based on feedback, product changes, or emerging trends. A/B testing, where you try different images to see which one resonates better with your audience, can also offer insights for improvement.

The dashboard will also feature a setup checklist, guiding you through essential steps to get your store up and running. Whether it’s adding products, setting up a payment gateway, or choosing a theme, the checklist ensures you don’t miss out on any crucial aspect of store setup.

Step 6: Adopt Organic Growth Strategies

While paid advertising is an effective way to quickly attract customers to your store, organic growth strategies are essential for long-term, sustainable growth.

Organic growth refers to attracting customers without direct advertising costs, relying instead on high-quality content, authentic engagement, and word-of-mouth.

Here’s a closer look at the organic growth strategies you can implement when you start a shopify website:

Content Marketing: Crafting Value-Driven Content

It involves creating and sharing relevant and valuable content to attract and engage a specific target audience. The goal is not always direct sales but building trust and authority in your niche.

Social Media Marketing: Building Communities and Engagement

It revolves around creating content and engaging with your audience on social media platforms to build brand loyalty, awareness, and direct traffic to your website.

Email Marketing: Direct Line to Your Audience

A strategy where you send emails to customers and prospects to inform, engage, and promote.

Step 7: Marketing your store

7.1 Configure Facebook Ads

Importantly, promoting your online store is just as crucial as setting it up. Facebook offers an unparalleled platform for reaching a vast audience. By harnessing the power of Facebook Ads, you can drive traffic, boost sales, and enhance brand awareness. Here’s a detailed guide on configuring Facebook Ads for your Shopify store.

7.2 Run Google Ads

Expanding your online store’s reach through Google Ads is a strategic move for those looking to tap into the vast potential of search engine marketing. Google Ads allows businesses to appear at the top of search results, making it easier for potential customers to find you.

7.3 Outsource Tasks

Expanding your Shopify store can be thrilling, but as orders pile up and responsibilities increase, it may become overwhelming to manage every aspect on your own.

To ensure smooth operations and maintain the quality of your brand, outsourcing certain tasks can be a game-changer. 

Tasks Ideal For Outsourcing

• Content Creation: Engaging content can drive traffic and boost sales. Hiring professional writers or videographers ensures your brand message is communicated effectively.
• Customer Service: As your customer base grows, so will inquiries and complaints. Consider hiring dedicated customer service personnel or a virtual assistant to ensure prompt responses and high customer satisfaction.
• Advertising: Digital advertising can be complex. Outsourcing to specialists ensures that your ad budget is utilized effectively and optimally.
• Accounting and Finances: Bookkeeping, tax preparation, and financial forecasting are critical tasks that require precision. An experienced accountant can keep your business financially healthy and compliant.

7.4 Influencer Marketing

Finding the right influencers

• Relevance: Ensure the influencer’s audience aligns with your target demographic. It’s not just about large follower counts; it’s about the right followers.
• Engagement: An influencer with high engagement (likes, comments, shares) usually has a more active and invested audience. This can translate to better visibility for your product.
• Authenticity: Choose influencers who are genuine in their endorsements and aren’t flooded with too many promotional posts, which can dilute their impact.

Step 8: Scale and Optimize

Analyze customer feedback, website analytics, and sales data to pinpoint areas that require attention. Maybe it’s tweaking your marketing strategies for better ROI, introducing new, trending products, or even revamping the store’s design based on user behavior.

Moreover, growth doesn’t just mean scaling upwards; it’s also about evolving with the market. The digital landscape, especially e-commerce, witnesses swift shifts in consumer behavior, technology, and trends. 

As you progress through 2023 and beyond, it’s essential to remain vigilant and adaptable. This adaptability can mean exploring untapped markets, adopting emerging technologies, or simply refining your brand messaging. 

How to start selling on Shopify with very little to no money?

Speaking for real, eCommerce is not a walk in the park; both success and failure can come in the blink of an eye. But with small, careful steps that I will take you through now, your online store can have a good start at a little cost.

Build a business plan

A business plan is a document made by you to describe your business, products or services, how to start making money on shopify, the leadership, and staffing, operation model, the financing, and other essentials to success.

So why do you need a business plan? Well, for several benefits:

• If you are just trying things out: Your business plans can help you set clear goals and have an action plan to achieve them. This will also help you realistically estimate budget and cost.
• If you are looking for funding: The business plan is a standard way that who potential investors why they should bet on your business.
• If you are considering going big: If you want to make your eCommerce business a full-time job, you need a business plan to see the options you have and what to do if things fail.

Since you are looking for the least cost possible way to start a Shopify store, this business plan will help you keep things organized nicely and reasonably for the long run.

These are the questions that you would want to answer with your business plan:

1. Overview: Who are you and the business you are owning?
2. The Opportunity: What is the current customer’s problem? And what is your solution to it?
3. Target Market: Gender, Age, Characteristics of your prospect? How are your products better than competitors? How much fund is needed? and for what?
4. Sales and Marketing: What channels should you use to reach your prospects? With what marketing activities? Current and expected Sales, Expenses, Profit? What are the milestones?
5. Team & Key Roles: Who are they? What do they do?
6. Partnership & Resources: Who can help you? and which services to go when you need something?

Through time, your business plan can always expand and change, but the key thing is it helps you see what you do, keep you on track, make clear goals to achieve.

Decide on your niche

The choice of products has a crucial role in determining the success of your online business. You can focus on a single product line, then expanding to multiple lines depending on your budget and resources.

In case you want to have a more detailed guide on how to find products to sell online, read our resource on What To Sell Online.

On another hand, dropshipping allows you to switch between ideas quickly, so you can easily try other things later. And it cost very little too, let’s see what it is!

Dropshipping – the perfect choice to start selling on Shopify with no money

In a way, dropshipping is like an eCommerce hack for entrepreneurs without money. You don’t hold inventory, you order the product from the supplier to ship directly to the customer under your name. Which means:

• No warehouse cost
• More items on your eCommerce store
• No money needed to purchase the items in the first place
• No picking and packing all the orders

With a system like that, anyone can get into eCommerce business with little to zero cost, and of course, you can too!

Cost so far: 0$.

Also, you’ll learn some tips and tactics on how to get more sales from Corey Ferreira – a Shopify educator and dropshipping expert who built a 6-figure dropshipping business.

FAQs: How To Start A Shopify Store

How To Start A Business With Shopify: Conclusion

In conclusion, mastering how to start a Shopify website can pave the way for your e-commerce success, empowering you to tap into a world of digital opportunities and growth.