Do you Need help launching your first Shopify store? Undoubtedly, you should be working with Shopify development services that can help you build stores and market them. However, before you do that you should know about the platform, the pros, the cons and other key aspects so that you can make a good choice.
Global e-commerce industry is growing and it is only going to grow more driven by AI and data analytics like technological advancements. Shopify is a leading platform in this spectrum and it would be wise to learn about it before deploying it.
Key Factors When Selecting an E-commerce Platform:
Choosing an e-com platform is not just about picking a platform randomly, there are many factors that you must consider before using a platform.
Simplicity for Non-Tech Users:
You should always make sure that you are taking a look at backend and it should have a user-friendly dashboard. The dashboard will allow you to manage orders, product category and other things easily without the need for codes.
Payment Gateways and Flexibility:
The conversion rate of your site depends upon how good the payment gateway is, a lot of customers abandon the cart on payment gateway. The best platforms would offer you many different options such as payment gateway debit card payment, credit card, wallets and more, it must be regional too.
Customer Support and Community Access
You should be looking for platform where you can get responsive and efficient customer support, preferably round the clock support. The platform should also have active user groups, developer community and more, this would help you gain.
Data Privacy and Legal Compliance:
It is a fact that good platforms always comply with regulations such as GDPR, which means you will never have issues as far as legalities are concerned while running business.
Customizable Appearance and Branding Tools:
It would not be too intelligent to lose sight of how your brand is looking because brand images matter, you should choose a platform that offers themes and branding tools to ensure that brand look is perfect.
Shopify in 2025: Is It Still the Industry Leader?
Shopify has more than 4 million active stores worldwide which accounts for more than 10% of global market share in platforms segment. In addition, Shopify is bringing new features such as AI powered features, data analytics and performance enhancing tools, which makes it still a dominant force in the market in 2025
What Kinds of Businesses Thrive on Shopify?
- General B2C Retail: ~60% (fashion, electronics, beauty, etc.)
- Digital Product Sellers: ~4%
- Service-Based E-commerce: ~3%
- Nonprofits and Fundraisers: ~2%
- Dropshipping Ventures: ~15%
- Wholesale & B2B Models: ~8%
- Subscription Services: ~5%
Top industries using Shopify include:
- Fashion: 23%
- Health & Beauty: 15%
- Home Decor & Furnishings: 11%
This distribution of industries signifies that this is pretty much a good platform for any kind of business that you have, you need to make sure that you hire Shopify developer who can help you build stores.
What Makes Shopify Ideal for New Businesses?
Recent data suggest that almost 99% e-commerce business fail within 4 months of the inception due to bad marketing plan and thoughtless strategy or planning. Having a good platform from the beginning can be helpful in avoiding such mistakes that lead to crashes.
Beginner-Friendly Setup:
You are not going to spend too much time in launching as this would only take a few hours to launch a site with Shopify rather than days.
Vast App Marketplace:
When it comes to functionality, you can get many different apps, from email marketing tools, pop up builders and more, the apps can facilitate growth.
Built-in SEO & Marketing Tools:
Without marketing and SEO, it would be pretty much difficult to succeed in a highly cluttered and competitive marketplace. You can take advantage of built in SEO and marketing.
Integrated Payment System:
Payment system is important and when it comes to Shopify, it has its own payment gateway which would mean you will not have to pay to third parties if you choose this. This would also mean more customer trust and more conversion, payment gateway is the most important thing in e-com, and Shopify leads, you would need hire Shopify developer for this.
Reliable Support & Active Communities:
If you are managing the store on your own, then you would be glad to know that fact that Shopify has a 24X7 support system to help you, in addition, there are many forums and active user groups who can help you when you need.
Shopify vs. The Competition: What Are the Alternatives?
The fact of the matter is that there would be competition which is pretty much obvious when you look into any industry and the same is with Shopify, let’s find out.
WooCommerce: This is built into WordPress ecosystem, this is customizable but can be good choice only you have high level of technical skills.
BigCommerce: This one is good platform for bigger inventories and if you have big business or you are looking for enterprise level solutions, you should choose this one.
Wix eCommerce: This is a drag and drop feature platform, which is good for beginners, you also can code in there, however, it would be good to use only for small stores
Etsy: You would not call it a platform it is more like a marketplace with limited audience and many of those migrate to Shopify eventually.
The crux of the matter is that each platform has its benefits, what sets Shopify is that it can be used for both small and large business although. Might not be too good for enterprise level but with Shopify development services, you can do it.
Understanding Shopify’s Pricing Model in 2025:
Knowing the cost of running Shopify stores can help you plan better and get desired output.
Subscription Costs
Basic Plan: This comes with minimal features but essential ones and costs $39/month
Shopify Plan: This has a little more feature at $105/month
Advanced Plan: you can get many apps and features that you won’t get with basic plan, this will cost you $399/month
Shopify Plus: Custom enterprise-level pricing it would cost you somewhere around $2,000/month
Good Shopify store setup services can help you find out plans according to what you would need for your business and strategy.
Theme Costs: You can get free themes but they come with limited customization capabilities, for more customization themes you would need better themes that can cost you somewhere between $140 to $400 one-time
Domain Name Registration: When you use Shopify, you can get domain names directly and that can be good choice as they can be a little less costly. you can get domain name and registration ranging from $14 to $20/year on average and that is way too less than other platforms.
Transaction Fees:
There would be transaction fee if you use anything other than Shopify Payment and that can range from 0.5% to 2%.
Development & Customization:
You can get themes but customization would help you in getting better customer engagement and ROI. It can cost you $50 to $100, if you want full customized builds, they might have to pay $1,000.
Apps & Extensions:
Many sites use paid apps to get enhanced performance and it can range from $5 per month to $50 depending upon the features.
Working with the right Shopify agency for startups:
- Are you looking for Get expert Shopify support for your startup? If the answer is yes, then you should ensure that you are looking for experienced ones. You should be taking a look at the startup work they have already done, that would help you get a fair idea about how good they are and how they can perform.
- Make sure that you find out more about features and discuss about the platforms, it would be pretty wise to learn about different features. You can have shipping features, one-page check out and more, it would be wise to know them all.
- Make sure that when you are looking for Shopify agency for small businesses, you must ensure that you tell them your plans. At this juncture, you should also be considering your brand images and brand ideology, because that would help them design better.
- You need to make sure that you also talk to them about what would be the cost of development, there are many agencies like eBizTrait Inc which can get you customized rates. They can help you get the right plans, the best features and can pull any design for you within your budget on Shopify.
- Ensure that you find out about maintenance cost because that would be something you would be needing here and there. For instance, during festive seasons, a down site can wreak havoc as far as your business is concerned. The best Shopify agency for startups will have the right system in place to help your maintenance.
Conclusion:
Undoubtedly, Shopify remains one of the most advanced and desired platforms for e-commerce store. You can strike a perfect balance between simplicity and performance without too much tech skill. This can be a great choice for small business startup as well as for big ones looking for scaling the business.
