In this article, Bluefocus will introduce you to Shopify, while also analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of this platform. Through this, your business can conduct an analysis and devise appropriate measures aligned with your business strategy.
Shopify Concept
This is a comprehensive global Software as a Service (SaaS) solution that allows you to build an online retail website complete with features such as shopping cart and payment processing, order management, omnichannel selling, and marketing automation, all integrated within Platform..
This is a subscription-based service, offering a free trial for you to experience all features before deciding on a suitable service package.
According to surveys, there are over 4,000,000 customers currently using this platform, making it the most popular e-commerce platform worldwide.
Unlike platforms like open-source solutions such as Magento or OpenCart, which require knowledge of website management, hosting, or HTML, Platform is designed to be user-friendly even for beginners.
Platform is utilized by many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as over 13,000 Enterprise customers with the Platform service package.
When you’re searching for an e-commerce website solution, It is indeed the best choice. Let’s explore with Bluefocus the factors that make Platform the most popular e-commerce platform in the world.
Operation of Shopify
Platform is an all-in-one e-commerce platform that allows you to create an online store, manage products, process orders, engage in omnichannel selling, and advertise, enabling you to focus on growing your online business.
You should know that the Shopify Admin (Dashboard) is where you perform all operations, from posting and managing products, processing orders, creating marketing campaigns, managing customers, editing interfaces and code, to managing third-party apps.
Understanding the Benefits of Shopify
It’s no coincidence that Platform is the number one choice for those looking to do business online.
Ease of Use
Shopify’s interface is scientifically designed and user-friendly, with detailed guidance on the necessary steps to optimize your business operations.
When using the admin interface, it’s neatly organized, and the onboarding process helps new users understand which tasks they need to perform for each section of the website. Moreover, having the admin interface available in Vietnamese is incredibly beneficial.
According to statistics, Platform is over 20% easier to use than BigCommerce and more than 10% easier than Wix Commerce.
Beautiful Interface with a Wide Range of Themes
Furthermore, Platform offers professional e-commerce templates. You can choose from these free templates to get started.
For those opting for paid themes with professional designs, prices typically range from $150 to $300.
In addition, you can explore the Shopify Theme Store with hundreds of paid themes designed specifically for various industries such as fashion, cosmetics, jewelry, furniture, and more.
Shopify themes are crafted by professional designers from studios, meticulously curated to ensure the highest quality. Moreover, with paid themes, you can experience a demo on your store before deciding to purchase and publish.
The Most Effective All-in-One E-commerce Solution
Platform is globally renowned for its all-in-one e-commerce solution, encompassing hosting, themes, shopping cart features, payment processing, omnichannel selling, and marketing, all integrated into this platform.
As a result, you save a significant amount of time, effort, money, and personnel in building an online sales website. You don’t need a maintenance or upgrade team since Platform continuously updates features over time, and these features are automatically updated for you, similar to an operating system upgrade.
Unlimited Bandwidth
Shopify uses cloud services, which have become the standard for service platforms worldwide. Platform leverages Google’s Cloud services to store all system data, ensuring the safety of your data.
Are you frustrated with outdated websites limited to 3GB, 6GB of bandwidth, and having to pay extra for more storage? The great news is that Platform offers unlimited bandwidth and unlimited file storage on its system.
High-Performance CDN Technology
It’s important to know that one of the main reasons customers quickly leave your website is slow page loading speed. This significantly affects the conversion rate and revenue of your online store. Customers tend to leave a site if the load time exceeds 4 seconds.
The issue to note is that page load speed is one of the critical factors determining the success of an online store. With Content Delivery Network (CDN) technology and servers distributed worldwide, Shopify ensures fast page loading speed and stable access from anywhere.
If your website easily crashes and gets overloaded during sales peaks with just 2000 visitors, Shopify keeps your site running smoothly even with 20,000 or 200,000 simultaneous visitors.
Combining sales across multiple channels,
Shopify is the best solution for multi-channel selling. You can sell on various channels while centrally managing everything. Imagine selling on 5 different channels but only needing one person to manage them all.
Here are some sales channels you can connect with Platform:
- Facebook Shop: The Facebook store feature redirects customers to Platform to complete the payment.
- Messenger: Automatically suggests products to customers who message the page.
- Instagram: Tag products and checkout directly on Instagram (currently not available in the Vietnamese market).
- Google: Sync products to Google Merchant Center for Google Smart Shopping ads.
- In-store (POS): Sell in physical stores through Shopify‘s POS software, syncing orders, sales, and customer information.
- Amazon, eBay, Etsy: International marketplace platforms.
Naturally, multi-channel orders are synced in real-time to the Platform system, allowing you to manage and process orders easily, saving time and labor.
When selling across multiple channels, connecting with e-commerce platforms in various countries may require third-party software, which comes with additional costs.
Integrate Facebook and Google Ads
Advertising is essential for any online store, and Shopify makes it easier than ever to manage your ads. Integrate seamlessly with Facebook and Google to streamline your advertising efforts and drive traffic to your store.
The Shopify platform provides integrated systems that make executing marketing campaigns easier:
- Email Marketing: Use Platform Email or automated email platforms like Seguno and Klaviyo to send automatic emails to customers about promotions and discounts.
- Facebook Dynamic Retargeting: Connect Facebook Pixel (Business Manager) directly with Platform to create ads targeting customers or retarget visitors who have accessed your website, all within your set budget.
- Google Smart Shopping: Automatically link your Google Shopping account to run Google Smart Shopping campaigns, displaying ads when users search for your product keywords.
- TikTok Ads: Platform is partnership with TikTok allows you to connect your TikTok ad account, create campaigns, and generate video ads directly within the Platform system.
If you want to create ads on Facebook, Google, or TikTok, Platform enables you to create and view real-time reports all in one place. Track effectiveness with metrics such as clicks, add-to-cart actions, and completed checkouts, without the need to set up ads separately on each platform.
When using platforms like Magento or WooCommerce, advertising on Google Shopping can be challenging due to the difficulties in syncing the Product Feed to Google Merchant Center (GMC) and the longer approval times for ad accounts.
With Platform, connecting the Product Feed between your Shopify store and GMC is straightforward and synced in real-time. Consequently, your GMC approval likelihood with Platform is higher compared to other platforms.
In 2020, Shopify’s official partnership with TikTok marked a significant integration for advertising. This partnership allows you to automatically create video ads on TikTok, adding music, sounds, and effects for free using your existing product images.
Over 9,000 Apps on the App Store
With the increasing demands of customers, Platform continues to grow and meet these needs. You may require many additional features for your website, and the Shopify App Store, with over 9,000 apps (both free and paid), can fulfill all your requirements.
Popular features include live chat, product reviews, email marketing, loyalty programs, landing page design, upselling & cross-selling, abandoned cart recovery, and many more functionalities for you to explore.
The great thing is that these apps are developed by Shopify and leading technology companies worldwide. Some of the most renowned Platform apps include Klaviyo, PageFly, YotPo, Privy, Okendo, and Recharge.
24/7 Customer Support
Shopify’s extensive team provides robust online support with 24/7 customer care through live chat, phone, and email. You can open a live chat support window from the admin interface and join the queue for assistance.
One of the benefits of using Platform is the short wait time for support—typically just 2-4 minutes. At certain times, you may receive immediate assistance. Most platform support teams communicate in English, but you can use Google Translate if you’re not fluent.
Shopify Provides SEO-Optimized and Mobile-Friendly Design
To succeed in online business, your website needs to be visible on the internet and rank high in search engine results from platforms like Google, CocCoc, or Bing.
Platform is specifically designed for e-commerce, meaning its structure is standardized and optimized for SEO (Search Engine Optimization). This includes:
- Meta Tags: Homepage Title, Meta Description, ALT Text
- Heading Tags, URL-friendly structures, and handling 404 errors
- High speed with CDN technology
- XML sitemap submission to Google Search Console
You should know that an important SEO criterion is mobile-friendliness, with 70% of customers shopping via mobile devices. Therefore, all Platform themes are designed with a mobile-first and responsive approach, ensuring optimal display on all devices. This helps you achieve higher scores in search engine algorithms.
Shopify Provides SSL Certification & PCI Compliance
As a customer, would you be willing to enter your credit card information and make a purchase from a website that your browser flags as “not secure”? The answer is undoubtedly no, and your customers will feel the same way. Platform addresses this concern by providing SSL certification and ensuring PCI compliance, making transactions secure and trustworthy.
On the Platform website, all pages are secured with SSL certificates provided by Let’s Encrypt, indicated by the green padlock icon before the URL in your web browser.
Additionally, communication is PCI Compliant, meeting the stringent standards required for companies that process credit and debit card payments. This compliance ensures that all credit card information, including VISA, MasterCard, and AMEX, is securely protected.
Moreover, customer data, order information, and credit card details are safeguarded when using communication, providing peace of mind and security for both you and your customers.
Shopify Deployment Costs
On the platform’s website, there is a transparent breakdown of Shopify deployment costs, allowing you to envision how much you’ll need to invest when using this platform.
Shopify deployment costs include various packages: starting from $25/month for the Basic package, billed monthly, or $19/month when billed annually.
You can opt for the Platform package ($49/month) or the Advanced packages ($299/month) with more advanced features.
High Scalability to Meet Business Needs
Whether it’s 200 orders a day or 20,000, Shopify has a solution for you. The advantage of platform lies in its flexibility and connectivity, almost limitless with the Shopify API ecosystem.
Of course, Shopify also provides API documentation for seamless integration with any third-party systems. Easy integration with third-party software or in-house ERP, CRM systems such as Salesforce, Microsoft AX, SAP, Oracle, Odoo, is made possible.
If you need further assistance, you can search for Platform developers specialized in API integration, or utilize in-house business developers following the documentation published by Platform.
Conclusion
Bluefocus emphasizes the immense benefits Shopify offers to businesses. With its user-friendly interface, extensive app ecosystem, and seamless integration capabilities, platform stands as a powerful solution for businesses of all sizes. Whether it’s enhancing online visibility, streamlining operations, or expanding market reach, platform provides the tools necessary for businesses to thrive in the competitive e-commerce landscape.
