To start an eCommerce business that becomes successful, the first step is to develop an enticing online store. When it comes to eCommerce website development, Shopify is one of the most preferred platforms. Because of the several benefits, it offers to businesses in terms of user experience, intuitive storefront design, capabilities to sell more products, and more, no wonder this platform is used by numerous online traders to build reliable and robust eCommerce stores for their businesses.

However, building a Shopify website doesn’t guarantee that your business will thrive. There are several things to consider like,

Choosing the right theme,
Creating a sales and marketing strategy,
Gaining the trust of customers,
And opting for the right Shopify website development company

Moreover, you need to create a stellar portfolio of products, choose the best apps for work support, and drive massive traffic to the store. Numerous small businesses fail in this segment because of not creating a great eCommerce strategy. Those who have become successful with Shopify eCommerce stores have a number of things in common.

For instance, they use selected apps, enhance the quality of the store and product design, provide a convenient customer experience, and develop a winning strategy.

In this write-up, we’ll take you through the process of how to build an eCommerce site with Shopify the right way. We will cover everything related to Shopify store development, including setting up the online marketplace, creating social media stores, and adding options for shipping, payment, etc.

Things to Consider Before Making Shopify Website

Before you invest in the creation of a Shopify online store, you must have the following things handy. It will help you get started quickly and in the right way.

Business idea: Every business claims to provide the best products and services. To stand apart from them, you must have a solid business idea.
Business name: Brainstorm some great names for your online store and business. Also, check whether the domain names are available for the names you are finalizing for your business. This is crucial before you jump into starting a Shopify eCommerce store.
Logo: After getting the domain name, it is time to get a logo designed that represents your business and its niche. When you set up the online store, the logo will work as your business’s representative. It will not only be used on the site, but also across social media handles and graphics.
List of products & services: Prepare a comprehensive list of all the products and services that you aim to sell with your Shopify store. Categorize those products so that when you go for making the website, things become easier and save you time.
Product photos: An eCommerce website can’t succeed without the relevant photos of the products. Customers want to see how the products look from different angles before making the purchase. So, go for a professional photoshoot for your products. In case you are on a budget, you can do it yourself in the initial phase.

How to Develop an eCommerce Site Using Shopify?

Creating an intuitive Shopify store will take your time and resources. It is not something that you can get done within a few minutes or so. There are several extensive processes to follow. This is the reason many individuals and business owners outsource this part to a Shopify development agency.

For those interested to know what is involved in setting up a Shopify store or want to learn how to create an online store using Shopify, below is the answer.

1. Create a Shopify Account

The first step is to create a Shopify account by visiting shopify.com. Go for the free trial or get the subscription by submitting the details asked. Once done, you will get the option to create the store, starting with the name of the store.

Here, enter the name you have decided on for your business. You will also be asked for your contact details and some information about the business you intend to start. When you are done filling in all the required details, you will be taken to the administrator page. This will successfully make your Shopify account from where you can set up your own storefront.

2. Customize the store

In the admin panel, you will get all the options that you need to set up your online marketplace. It's your turn to start customization and define how you want your website to look.

There are options to add products that you want to sell. You can add one by one or import a sheet with details to save time. In addition, it allows you to add services, files, or other solutions that can be sold online, like PDFs, books, courses, clothing, etc.

Next, browse some appealing themes and decide the best one according to your preference. There are 100+ free and premium themes available. You can get the one based on your budget and theme appearance.

While choosing a theme, make sure it is modern, beautiful, and represents the niche of your business idea. After choosing it, you can customize things (footer, menu bar, fonts, colors, etc.) to make it more suitable for your brand. Along with the customization options available within the admin panel, you can also use HTML and CSS for further personalizing the store.

In case you are not proficient with coding, it would be better to hire a Shopify website developer and get things done in a professional manner. Some basic coding work can be done on your own.

3. Add Products & Categorize Them

Start uploading your products or services to the store. For this, open the admin panel and navigate to Products. From here, click on Add new product. Upload the products to the listing.

Here, add the name of the product, description, photos, cost, etc. It also allows you to add terms and keywords for search engine optimization (SEO), shipping details, among other details.

The next step is to create a number of relevant categories according to the products. For instance, if you are selling electronic items, the categories can be Laptops, Mobile Phones, Mobile Accessories, Laptop Accessories, etc.

Now, add your products to respective categories so that it becomes easier for your visitors to browse the solutions according to the categories.

Now that you’ve decided exactly how your site should look, it is crucial to list all the products you have up for sale, or the services available. The category option can be found in the admin panel under the Products dropdown.

4. Payment Gateway Integrations

Now that you are ready with the online store and product listing, it is time to add an option for payments. When customers order your solutions, they can choose to pay online with a credit/debit card, net banking, PayPal, UPI, etc. Multiple payment options should be there for a convenient checkout process.

For this purpose, Shopify comes with its own payment integration, but you can also go for third-party options. While choosing a payment gateway, ensure to know about their charges, transaction fee, accepted payment modes, etc., so that you don’t end up regretting things later.

5. Learn About Shipping and Taxation

This is one of the most important steps towards making a Shopify website. You need to know about the taxation and show the same to your customers. For instance, you have to show the percentage of tax charges to the customers which will be added to the final cost of the product.

Furthermore, define the shipping charges with the products so that customers know how much they will need to pay to get things delivered to their address. For instance, you can ask for a $3 shipping fee if the order is below $30.

6. Optimize it for Search Engines

To make your products and overall website appear in search results on Google, Bing, and other search engines, you should opt for SEO. The primary SEO factors include effective product descriptions, use of the right keywords according to products, the loading speed of your site, image optimization, mobile responsiveness, etc.

For a robust and SEO-friendly site, you should look out for eCommerce development services and an SEO expert. Together, they will improve the ranking of your site, bring you more traffic, which will eventually accelerate your sales.

7. Keep Testing and Brainstorming

To increase sales, it is essential to run periodic checks on your site to check whether every feature and functionality is working as expected. The marketing strategy and website optimization is an ongoing practice that needs to be in focus for business growth.

Wrapping Up:

These are some of the most important steps towards developing a great eCommerce site with Shopify and accelerating sales. You must have a unique business idea, solid online store, good products, multiple payment options, and an SEO-optimized site. Customer experience should be a priority always for fast growth. For this, you should consider reviews of customers, run regular tests, and provide the best solutions.