A Guide on How to Make Money on Shopify +6 Interesting FAQ Answered
You’ve undoubtedly heard about Shopify, the miracle platform where everybody seems to have found fame and fortune. We’re talking about people who went from nothing to owning a multi-billion dollar company overnight.
When the stakes are this high, you can bet we’ll take a closer look at something. So, will Shopify make you rich? We have the answers, and you’ll be surprised.
We’ve compiled this handy guide on how to make money on Shopify to help you get started.
How to Make Money with Shopify
So, here’s the deal. You can make a lot of money on Shopify if you know what you’re doing. Those that figured it out are swimming in cash right now. Take Leesa, a Shopify mattress company, as an example: it made $800,000 in sales in its first month, and all it took was a well-designed online storefront and a quality product. That’s it.
Here are the best strategies to succeed on Shopify.
The Traditional E-Commerce Route
Let’s look at the “classic” way to make money with Shopify: starting a traditional e-commerce business.
The things you sell can range from handmade items to services or books—basically anything that you can make people pay for—but you’ll have to take care of stocking, shipping, and customer service.
However, thanks to Shopify, you won’t have to worry about coding, hosting, and designing an online storefront by yourself. The platform will help you set up a professional-looking website in no time at all.
What’s the best way to make your shop successful? Running a blog. Shopify allows you to do that, helping you bring more organic traffic to your site.
Sell Clothing
You can start making money on Shopify by selling clothing you designed. Thanks to apps like Printify or Printful, you won’t need much expertise to get the process going.
These days, all you have to do is come up with an exciting design, and you can start printing on-demand immediately—no need to rent warehouses or buy expensive tools. You can easily connect these apps to your Shopify store and let them do everything automatically. All you have to worry about is marketing and customer service.
You can also sell vintage or handmade clothing on Shopify as well. Here’s an example of a luxury vintage clothing Shopify store.
Dropshipping
Dropshipping is all the rage these days. We asked ourselves a simple question: is dropshipping worth it? The answer is a resounding yes, but only if you’re willing to put in the time and effort.
At its core, dropshipping is a business model that allows business owners to sell outsourced products, acting as a middleman between the end-user and the manufacturer. Your job would be to find suitable suppliers, advertise your store, and take care of customer service.
A lot of Shopify stores are dropshipping businesses, and that’s why the platform offers some great benefits for them, such as seamless integration with the biggest dropshipping suppliers, as well apps and social media integration options.
Sell Digital Goods
Selling digital goods and services is among the most original and lucrative ways to make money on Shopify. We’ve always been intrigued by the concept of marketing ideas, be it in the form of e-books, podcasts, NFTs, or games.
Shopify offers you the possibility to sell intangible products, thanks to its support of third-party apps and services as well as the myriad of tools it gives you to build an appealing online storefront and blog.
Offer Freelance Services
Are you already a freelancer, but feel restricted on websites like Upwork and Freelancer? Would you like to take your business elsewhere but fear missing out on clients and opportunities? You might be surprised that your way out also is one of the most common Shopify business ideas: building a freelance services store.
With Shopify, you can start setting up a professional website to showcase your portfolio and sell your services to all kinds of clients.
Your Questions Answered
1. What Is Shopify?
Founded in 2006, Shopify is a subscription-based platform where anyone can sell products.
At its core, Shopify is a platform that offers convenient tools for business owners to sell things online. It’s not just a website-building tool—Shopify comes with an easy-to-set-up online storefront, payment processor, and marketing; everything a business needs to thrive.
Let’s focus on marketing. Did you know that, according to Shopify statistics, Shopify stores’ traffic is 93.95% organic? These numbers are possible thanks to the platform’s SEO and marketing tools, like the fact you can integrate a blog into your website.
That’s why we like Shopify. It’s a complete package that helps budding entrepreneurs make their dreams come true at an affordable price. Let’s talk prices:
- The “Basic” package is $29 per month and comes with everything a smaller e-commerce enterprise needs.
- If you need more staff accounts, inventory locations, more detailed reports, and lower debit/credit card rates, you can opt for the “Shopify” package for $79 a month.
- Finally, the “Advanced” package comes with the best possible features, perfect for bigger companies, at $299 a month.
All packages come with a two-week free trial, so you can test out the services before you decide to commit.
2. Are Shopify Stores Profitable?
Yes, Shopify stores can be profitable.
If you already own a business, selling things online will open up many possibilities and potential clients that will surely bolster your profits.
Even if you don’t own a brick-and-mortar store, you can still make money. Recent e-commerce statistics show that the industry is snowballing, with more and more people moving away from in-store shopping in favor of online alternatives.
If you think you’ve got a million-dollar online business model idea, it’s time to get to work.
3. How Much Does the Average Seller Make on Shopify?
On average, a Shopify seller earns $3,897 a month. However, if we’re only counting profits, a real average income can be around $1,000–1,500 per month.
Don’t take these numbers as definitive—they account for numerous underperforming stores. A better figure to look at is a shop’s average revenue per customer, which was $72 in 2020.
4. How to Start Dropshipping
Starting a dropshipping business on Shopify is very straightforward.
Register on Shopify
The first thing you have to do is register on the platform and choose a package. If you’re just starting, we suggest the “Basic” one.
Adjust Your Expectations
It’s essential to approach this whole endeavor with a realistic mindset. Yes, dropshipping can be profitable, but it will be a long, arduous journey, and you’ll have to stay focused and work hard.
Choose a Business Idea
Now, you must choose a business idea. The platform itself has set up a list of all trending products you can sell. Here are some of the best Shopify store ideas, according to the website itself:
- Print books and e-books
- Vinyl CDs and LPs
- Computers
- Cables
- Mousepads
- Phone cases
Google Trends is another excellent tool to learn what people want to buy.
Find a Supplier
Now you can choose a supplier. DSers is the most popular website to find suppliers, and it’s supported by Shopify.
Build Your Store
Finally, you can start to build your storefront. Keep it slick and attractive—you won’t sway potential customers with an ugly website. Shopify offers a few themes you can work around to keep things pretty and orderly.
Marketing and Paperwork
Now, you can start marketing on social media or through a blog. At this stage, you should start sorting out your finance-related paperwork.
5. How to Make Money by Dropshipping on Shopify
Making money by dropshipping on Shopify isn’t easy. We’re talking about a very crowded and competitive industry, where it’s hard to get noticed and even harder to stay relevant. You need to know what you’re doing if you want to become a successful business owner.
So, what’s the secret?
The point of dropshipping is that you’re not manufacturing or shipping the product yourself. Your website acts as a middleman between the customer and a supplier. As such, your main worry should be the user experience.
To make money, you need to market your product well and make it look unique. Go above and beyond with customer service, website design, and promotion. That’s what’s going to attract returning customers.
6. How Long Does It Take to Make Money on Shopify?
It’s hard to say how long it will take to make any substantial money on Shopify. If you already own a business and just opened an online storefront, you might start bringing in sales immediately.
On the other hand, if you’re just starting and own no brick-and-mortar locations, our research shows that, on average, it can take you 6–12 months to ramp up your Shopify store. Usually, the more time you can dedicate to your business, the quicker it will take off.
If you’re not strategic about your business, you’ll likely never see any profits. You should learn how to manage your store before expecting any returns.
Also, if you haven’t made any profit yet, and your business takes more time than expected, you might consider pausing or even canceling your Shopify account.
Conclusion
As you can see, turning a profit on Shopify can be done, but it requires willpower and a lot of effort, as with any business idea.
Whether you’ve got a million-dollar idea or already own a business and want to open up new horizons, Shopify is the right platform to try out!
