Setting up an eCommerce store can be expensive and takes time. In my country of birth – South Africa – it is next to impossible to take online payments and the postal service is unsafe. But in Canada people are keen to “buy local”, and the banking and logistics infrastructure is very friendly to online stores.
Shopify is a Canadian company, so it is Canada-ready!
Is Shopify right for you?
Probably, yes. I recommend it as the best platform for international financial transactions.
Shopify does all the tech for you. Google and SEO are built in. Canada post and most North American options for post and shipping can be set up with a few clicks. If you are just starting out, Shopify will get you up and running quickly and legally.
The negatives. You will NEVER own the channel and will always be subject to its rules and changes – including price increases. The more you sell, the more Shopify costs. If you are really looking for a showroom and people can buy offline, Shopify is very cost effective. If you have very expensive products, maybe look into other options.
Shopify isn’t your ONLY option. I work with WordPress WooCommerce as well – it’s powerful, and you WILL own it forever. You are getting a full website as well as a store, which give flexibility as your business evolves. This easy comparison might help you decide if Shopify or WordPress Woocommerce is right for you!
Your theme choice is critical
The look of your Shopify store is 100% about your theme. If you want to look professional, change your theme from one of the defaults to a Pro option.
- Check all the reviews first.
- Make sure it’s flexible.
- Make sure it’s kept updated. Shopify updates often, your theme must too.
- Beware of themes with a monthly cost – you will find your Shopify store monthly costs creep up with apps and additions, you don’t want your theme to be one of them.
I personally recommend “Pipeline” theme because it balances design, flexibility and price. Sadly, they don’t pay me for referrals.
The kind of services I offer for Shopify in Canada
I work with you live on Zoom so you can see how it all works, and learn to do it yourself.
I charge an hourly fee; if your store is successful and you’re getting bogged down in admin, we can consider a retainer.
- Write wording for local audiences, and humanise AI wording.
- Export and import products, and bulk editing.
- Set up colour and style variations with variable pricing and photos.
- Set up discounts and sales.
- Add blogs and give you blog ideas.
- Add tempting checkout and cart abandonment emails.
- Set up scheduled newsletters.
- Help you categorize, name and then set up Collections.
- Crop and size product photos so your “slideshows” don’t jump around.
- Photo-retouching and colour correction.
- Help with your home page design within the limitations of your theme.
- Help with marketing ideas to boost your store including branding, postcards etc.
Shopify Store Parameters
Business
- Company name
- Company registration number for invoices
Taxes
- PST for Canada is a preset – it needs your PST number.
- Don’t forget you need to charge tax on shipping rates in Canada.
- GST and other taxes will be based on your province, and they are also presets.
Location
- Your own locations
- If you fufill via a 3rd party, you will need their location
Shipping and Delivery
- Local pickup is great for existing bricks-and-mortar stores. Chat to a local store near you in a similar business – perhaps they will keep a stock of your products?
- Local delivery – consider delivering it yourself and meet your local customers.
- Canada Post is inexpensive, and it’s all set up for you with default pricing. Don’t forget to add the cost of packaging.
- Other Options
- Flat rate (same price no matter what they buy)
- Price-based (the more they spend, the less they pay)
- Weight-based (you will need to add a weight to each product)
- Free shipping (People love it – but you might find your prices don’t look competitive against companies who move their profit margin into their shipping fees)
- DHL and others are available
- Check if any of your suppliers will do fulfillment for you
Checkout
- Unless you offer tracking, you can disable Accounts. Many people hate setting up an account first.
- If you don’t have accounts, customers can receive shipping updates via the Shopify app
- You will need to add an address where you will ship from, to get the right delivery costs.
- You will need to tick “fulfilled” under status as each order is delivered.
- Do you have Mailchimp? “Sign up for our mailing list” is offered at checkout
Payments
- Shopify Payment fees are shown on their website. It needs your credit card information to pay out.
- If you have store pickup you can have COD.
- Bank Deposit. The order must only be dispatched after it appears in your bank account.
- There are several local payment gateways, including RBC’s Moneris.
Legal
- Refund policy
- Privacy policy
- Terms of Service
- Shopping policy
Useful functionality
- Link to your Mailchimp account to add email addresses to receive promotions
- Integrate with your website
Products
- Categories are called collections. They could be brands, or just groups of products. I recommend creating a category “Featured” for items that you show on your home pages. It’s easier to manage them that way.
- Products can be imported off a spreadsheet or CSV file, but the process is not easy and open to errors, especially if you have sizes or colours (sub-products).
- What you will need for each product
- Exact Product Name
- Brand
- Weight
- Package dimensions
- Price excluding PST
- Sales Description
- Custom Shipping – fragile, must be kept upright
- Custom Fulfillment
- Product Photograph
Things to think about before launching your store…
Appropriate products
- Do your customers comfortable about buying over the internet? Do they have a credit or debit card?
- Do you have great photos of your products?
- How difficult is your product to transport? Is it heavy or breakable?
- How expensive is your product – people don’t like buying high priced goods online, and you might be over their daily credit llimit.
- Are other online resellers selling the same products?
- How do your prices compare – especially once you add shipping and packaging?
Branding
The site needs to make the RIGHT impression for your buyer. You might need it to say “expensive”, you might want it to say “big bargains”. The look and feel needs to attract attention as well as establish your brand and credibility.
There are several free templates with Shopify, and I suggest waiting for your first orders before investing in a custom design. Learn first what customers want.
Passing trade
A store needs passing trade – this is why most small physical shops are found in busy shopping malls. The internet has some passing trade, but there is also a lot of competition and it’s easy to find with a search. You will need to advertise both online and offline to get buyers to stop by for a visit.
Getting seen on the search engines
Shopify provides various features and functionalities that allow you to optimize your store for search engine organic results. Here’s how you can achieve each item on Shopify:
- Optimize product titles and descriptions: In your Shopify admin, you can customize the titles and descriptions for each product to make sure they are keyword-rich, descriptive, and engaging.
- Improve website speed: Shopify manages website speed, but use a lightweight theme and don’t forget to compress your images. I don’t recommend using gratuitous video, even if it looks cool!
- Implement structured data markup: Shopify offers apps and plugins to add structured data markup to product pages without coding but I recommend talking to an expert. My favourite partner for SEO is Method and Metric in Vancouver – I’ve learned a lot working with them. SEO is a field that attracts dishonest people because everyone NEEDS to be first on Google, so try to get references and speak to existing customers.
- Publish regularly to your Shopify blog: These articles add to your keywords and build credibility.
- Generate high-quality backlinks: You need good quality web pages to link to your store. Create your own landing pages, or LinkedIn articles or Substack pages. Partner with specialists, agents and franchisees for commission! Reach out to industry websites and directories, and engage with people on social media to to encourage link sharing.
Customers need to feel safe
Post your contact details clearly. If all the shopper can see is an anonymous email address and contact form, they won’t risk buying.
- Immediately deal with problems and complaints.
- Protect their privacy and don’t misuse their email address
- Be clear about your T&Cs, and don’t hide exclusions and limited warranties.
What goes wrong with Shopify stores?
- Top 10 pitfalls of owning a Shopify store and 10 ways to increase sales
- Should your store be on Shopify or Woocommerce?
- Is risk and admin killing your store? Pivot to a showroom!