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by Mike Vestil 

How To Set Up My Shopify Store – Success Aspects To Consider

Shopify allows you to set up your online store without any technical skills or knowledge of web design. This is not just a platform for selling products online; it also allows you to handle customers, manage orders, and track sales.

With that said, knowing how to set up a Shopify store is not completely straightforward. It does take some time and effort to learn the basics of how to set up your own Shopify store, but I'm here to help you get started.

In this article, I will show you how to set up a Shopify store so that you can get your feet wet and start selling right away. Let's get right into it.

Aspects To Consider When Setting Up Your Shopify Store

While remembering that you have a free 14-day trial to test everything out, it's also crucial to remember that if you're new to Shopify, a two-week window will quickly pass by.

In this window, it makes sense to do your best to set up everything you can to be ready as soon as your Shopify store goes live.

So, with that said, here are the core things you need to get done before your trial expires - or even once your shop is live to make it even better.

Choosing Your Shopify Theme

Your Shopify theme store will serve as the foundation of your Shopify store. Your Shopify will not look professional or attractive to customers without a good theme. To ensure you're starting with a solid foundation, do your homework and research Shopify themes that are well made, up to date, and have plenty of features.

Start browsing through various Shopify Theme Store to find one that fits your style/look. Shopify has a great selection of hundreds of pre-made themes.

Once you've found a suitable theme for you, go ahead and set it up on Shopify so that your theme is ready to go once the store is live.

Choosing Your Shopify Theme

Image Credit: http://bsscommerce.com

While your online store uses Dawn, the default theme that comes with Shopify, I recommend switching to a theme that better fits your brand.

You could also decide to use the theme editor to create your own unique Shopify theme, but this process is more complex and might require a developer to code it.

I wouldn't recommend going down this route for a small business owner unless you have the technical know-how or a developer on hand that can set up a custom solution for you.

Setting Up Your Products And Images

Setting up the products you'll sell on Shopify is the next step in setting up your Shopify store.

Understanding the general category of products you will sell on your Shopify store is essential.

For example, if you're planning to sell kitchen utensils online, it makes sense to source products related to this theme.

Conversely, it wouldn't make sense to opt for unrelated items (such as makeup when you're selling utensils) if you're not a makeup expert or have no experience selling cosmetics online. Instead, it's better to focus on an area you know and have experience in.

Once you have a general idea of what kind of products you'll sell, go ahead and add them to your Shopify store. This process is relatively painless and can be done in a matter of minutes:

  • Go to your Shopify admin panel
  • Click Products
  • Click The Products Page
  • Then, choose Add product

Organize Your Products Through Collection

When opening a new Shopify store, ensuring that you make Shopify product listings easy to browse through is highly critical.

While having your own online store design is critical, you should also consider grouping products into collections that help shoppers quickly identify specific types of products without searching for them.

When selling online on Shopify, a collection is a great way to organize your products and make it easier for customers to find what they're looking for.

Organize Your Products Through Collection

Image Credit: http://help.stylehatch.com

You can also use collections as a basic version of an online store category page. While categorizing products is integral, having product collections is another critical step in correctly setting up your Shopify store.

To set up a collection, do the following:

  • Go to the Collections page on your Shopify admin panel
  • Click Create a collection
  • Input a title and description that best describes your Shopify collection
  • Provide the proper active sales channels: this can be anything from your online Shopify store, Messenger, Amazon, the Buy Buttons, Shopify POS, etc

This makes the collection available on the set channel.

You also have to choose whether products will be made part of a collection manually or whether it's to be done automatically.

Finally, ensure you save your collection.

An automatic collection will ensure that any products that match a particular description will automatically be added to the collection. This will save you time when adding products to your Shopify store.

For example, you can create an automatic collection that populates with all 'home decor' type products when you enter in your description as "Home Decor."

That way, if someone searched for home decor items, they would automatically see the products in the appropriate collection when visiting your online shop.

Add The Right Pages To Your Store

Pages such as "About Us," "Contact Us," "Privacy Policy," etc . are critical to the success of your online store.

They not only help you connect with customers but also allow potential buyers to get a better idea about who you are and what your shop is all about.

Having these pages on your store will also save you from having potential customers going to competitors, where you could potentially lose out on a sale.

Setting up these pages is easy:

  • Go to your Shopify admin
  • Choose Online Store
  • Hit Pages
  • Choose Add page

A new webpage editor will then appear where you can make the appropriate changes.

Once you're done making the changes, you can then save it and publish the page, or else, you could also keep the page in drafts for later publishing.

When building out these pages, you should put a lot of thought into your company's unique selling proposition (USP).

The USP is what sets your store apart from the competition and can come in many different forms - however, it should always be evident and apparent to customers.

This will help customers trust that you are an expert in your field who you can trust to provide high-quality products.

These pages will also help with your SEO efforts, helping customers locate you across search engines when they search for specific keywords.

Keeping these points in mind when creating the appropriate Shopify store pages will ensure that you're providing potential buyers with all of the information they need to make a purchase.

Having The Right Store Links

Having your Shopify online store set up with the correct links is essential.

If you aren't careful, it's possible that customers won't find critical pages or products on your store, which would lead them to abandon the site and shop elsewhere.

Some crucial links to have on your pages include:

  • Home page links
  • Collection links
  • Product pages links
  • Blog links

The links you include should always be relevant to what your customers are looking for.

Avoid including links that seem unrelated or distracting, as this can frustrate customers and potentially drive them away.

That being said, you must use the correct anchor text when adding links to your pages. Anchor text can be defined as the clickable words in a hyperlink.

Choosing the right anchor text for your links is essential, as it can help guide customers to other pages on your site that may be relevant to what they're looking for.

To ensure you're using the right anchor text when creating these links, there are two main tips you should keep in mind:

  • The main thing you'll want to ensure is that the words in your anchor text are easily understood by search engines and, more importantly, potential buyers who would be clicking on these links. If your words are too complicated or ambiguous, customers may not click on them, leading to fewer page views and lost sales opportunities.
  • Too many keywords can also make it seem like you're trying to game search engines, which could get your site penalized for spamming. It's best to keep things simple whenever possible.

Having A Custom Domain Name

While you don't have to create your Shopify store using a custom domain name, it is highly recommended that you do so.

Customizing your domain will help build customer trust since they can know that this is a legitimate online store and not just a poorly made landing page.

Using a custom domain for your eCommerce site's URL also allows customers to use many other services in addition to shopping on your sites, such as Google My Business, Facebook Messenger chatbots, Pinterest business accounts, and more.

Failure to use a custom domain means that potential clients will have to input something like youusername.shopify.com to get to your store.
Having A Custom Domain Name

Image Credit: http://instapage.com

When you have a custom domain, customers can type in yourdomainname.com to find themselves on your site - which is much easier and pleasing to the eye.

This is a much more user-friendly experience that helps promote sales and build customer trust.

Using a custom domain also makes it easier to search for your company on Google, which could bring additional sales through the door. Plus, it just looks more professional and trustworthy.

After importing a domain on Shopify, you can go to your Shopify admin panel and click on domains. Here, you'll be able to see all of the domains that are currently on your Shopify store. You can also click on the + button beside "Add a domain" to create new domain records.

Having A Blog On Your Online Store

This is another feature that isn't necessarily required but is worth doing to build customer trust.

Having an online store blog can be very helpful for new store owners, as it allows them to share updates on their business and its products with visitors.

It also provides a place to add more context and content about your company, which helps search engines index your store better. This leads to increased search results when people are looking for information about your brand or what you have to offer.

Your store's blog is also a good place for sharing valuable guides and tips that help customers shop with confidence on your site.  

These types of posts show potential buyers that there's a natural person behind the brand who cares enough about their customers to put this sort of helpful content on their site.

Blog posts can also help you establish yourself as a thought leader in the industry, which will make customers trust you more. This is a nice touch to have that will increase the chances of your target audience buying from you.

In addition to all these benefits, having an eCommerce store blog is also great for getting new links to your online store. These links provide search engine ranking benefits and would likely bring additional traffic through your door if they're coming from high-quality sites.

There are many different types of content that you could create for your website's blog, including how-to guides, reviews, recommendations, and more. Each one provides the potential for increasing sales with its unique benefits.

For example, a meat shop blog could publish an incredibly detailed guide for grilling the perfect steak. Additionally, that same website could use their blog to write about all of the different cuts of meat that they offer.

Or, perhaps, you're running an eCommerce store that sells custom t-shirts and other apparel. In this case, you might want to create content aimed at helping customers learn how to choose the right size and fit for them based on their body type.

This content is beneficial and can go a long way towards building trust between your business and potential customers.

To set up a blog for your store online, do the following:

  • Go to your Shopify Admin
  • Choose Online Store
  • Click Blog Posts
  • Choose the 'Create blog post' option
  • Enter your new blog title
  • Enter content for your blog
  • Click Save

Taking Advantage Of Your Shopify Inbox

A Shopify Inbox creates a mailbox for all your online customer interactions. This means that when a customer messages your business, they can do so in one place regardless of which method they used to contact you.

The Shopify Inbox is an excellent way for new store owners to stay updated with their customers. It also allows you to ensure that each interaction with your online business receives the attention it needs. 

Here are some examples of when you might need to use Shopify Inbox: helping a customer find an item or add it to their cart, checking if someone is having issues with making a purchase, thanking them for their order, etc.

Taking Advantage Of Your Shopify Inbox

Image Credit: http://apps.shopify.com

The possibilities here are nearly endless because almost anything that has the potential of being replied to by email can be added as a task in Shopify Inbox.

This feature is beneficial because it notifies you of anything that requires your attention. All the information about the customer interaction is available to you right within this email, so there's no need to go digging around your online store looking for details.

You can also access Shopify Inbox on the go with mobile apps that ship with the Shopify package. This means that you can manage your online store from pretty much anywhere.

Other Factors To Consider When Setting Up Your Shopify Store

Here are some other factors to consider.

Shopify Payments

Ensuring your store accepts payments as seamlessly as possible is a big deal for eCommerce store owners. If your online store cannot accept specific payment methods from its customers, you will lose potential sales that will never be seen.

Fortunately, Shopify has several different payment options available to its sellers. These include credit cards, debit cards, PayPal, and more - all of which can be set up through Shopify payments.
Shopify Payments

Image Credit: http://news.shopify.com

Ensuring that this is set up correctly will make it easier to help you manage your customers' payments. This way, they can easily purchase the products they desire without having any problems or issues.

Shipping Options

One of the best ways for an eCommerce store owner to ensure sales is by selling items online with free shipping. By making this an option in your online store, you'll likely see more customers willing to make their purchases through your shop.

Many factors go into setting up accurate shipping rates for your business including weight, size, and destination address. 

For many online stores, Shopify's default settings work just fine. However, sometimes as a store owner, you may run into a situation where you'll have to tweak those settings.

Shipping costs also depend on where your online store is located. This means that you will need to factor in the costs of shipping through your business location, as well as the destination of where your customers are ordering from.

It's Time To Go Live

After all the hard work you've put into building your online store, it's now time to open up the doors to your potential customers and get started selling.

To do so, all you'll need to do is remove the password page that Shopify automatically creates when creating a new store. This is the page that customers will see when they enter your online store if you have not yet put your store live.

How To Set Up My Shopify Store - FAQ

What Is A Shopify Sales Channel?

A sales channel acts as a bridge between your Shopify store and another platform.

When you use a sales channel, you can link your online store with an external website like Amazon or eBay. This allows you to manage orders and fulfill customer orders outside Shopify.

What Types Of Shopify Shipping Exist?

The three main methods are :

  • shipping
  • local delivery
  • local pickup

Choosing the service that works best for you and your business will depend on several factors, including how many items you're selling and whether or not there are any extra services you provide. For example, local pickup isn't the best option if an item comes with installation.

How Do I Choose The Perfect Store Name?

Ensuring that your online store has a catchy, unique name will help customers find your site more easily. You'll also want to make sure that another company does not trademark this name because this could cause significant legal problems down the road.

There is also a Shopify name checker that you can use to see if your choice of name is available.

Conclusion

Getting your online store to be successful starts with having a solid plan when setting it up. There are many logistical decisions to make at the beginning that will later affect your business for good or bad.

By following the advice given above when setting up your store, you will be more likely to succeed in the long run, having a store that makes money on Shopify and delivers consistent results.

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About the author 

Mike Vestil

Mike Vestil is the author of the Lazy Man's Guide To Living The Good Life. He also has a YouTube channel with over 700,000 subscribers where he talks about personal development and personal finance.

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