The e-commerce economy is prevalent In our day-to-day activity, ranging from online purchases to online cash payments. Business owners and entrepreneurs leverage the e-commerce ecosystem to make both passive and direct income. Hence the trending focal point for online stores.
Shopify is one of the most commonly used platforms popular for its low start-up cost ranging from $9 to $29 to establish an online store. A business owner or entrepreneur with little or no funds to start on Shopify can be burdensome.
To start a Shopify store with no money, you should:
- Set up a business strategy.
- Choose a niche
- Set up your Shopify account
- Add a theme
- Add products
- Sell the right items and market your store.
Let’s dive in.
1. Set up a Business Strategy
The business strategy is the plan of action intended to accomplish your business goals. The structure represents the general shape and size of your business. Here are two essential strategies for your Shopify business. Set realistic goals to achieve them, and also estimates the cost of achieving the goals.
To start a Shopify business with little or no money, keep your business plan simple and direct to satisfy customers’ needs and cover your target audience. Your business plan should include the target market, business characteristics, team, key roles, overview, sales and marketing, and the current customer problem you intend to satisfy.
As the business increases, you can adjust the plan to make room for more opportunities; however, the goal is to keep you focused. You can outsource resources and get partners or investors to join you on the online store.
2. Choose a Niche
For your Shopify business, start with a single product line and expand when you start getting more returns. Your niche has a significant part to play in the success of your business, and because you have little or no cost to run the business, it’s better to choose a niche that is not highly competitive but still high in customer demand.
Use Google.com or any other search engine to get a variety of options to choose from.
3. Set up your Shopify Account
After choosing a niche, the next step you need is to register an account on Shopify. For beginners, it is better to begin with a free 14-day trial first. It will allow you to test the tools in the platform before registering the real account. The account will be automatically canceled at the end of the 14-day trial, and you don’t need a credit card to sign up for the trial.
After the trial duration, you can reactivate it by purchasing a plan. You can skip the free trial period and go ahead to buy a plan for your store.
Here are the details necessary to create your Shopify store:
- Go to Shopify.com
- Fill in your store name. Your niche can be your store name, and this will become the primary domain name. The store name should be unique and not have a duplicate. Shopify will send an error message if it has a copy.
- Answer the questions about your business and the revenue questions if you already have a store on Shopify.
- Fill in your business address details to enable Shopify to verify your store to facilitate payment.
- Register.
On the Shopify homepage, you can add products, customize themes, add domains, etc. Add your domain to your store by choosing a domain address. The address is the URL link to your page where potential customers can access your store. Shopify gives a domain to its users, but you can edit it by connecting your domain or purchasing one.
Do not have more than one domain on Shopify. Your domain should be search engine optimized, rank top on search engines, and should convey the message of your product even before potential customers click on the link.
4. Add a Theme
It is like the physical outfit of your traditional store, and it is what potential customers will see when they visit the site. An attractive theme is vital in making sure you have a high-quality store. Customize your own Shopify theme store for every detail. Shopify has both paid and free themes to choose from.
To add Shopify free themes:
- Go to the “Shopify Theme Store” and choose a paid theme.
- Click Try theme to add the theme to your online store.
- In your Shopify admin, click Online Store
- Click Themes.
- In the Theme library section, click Actions next to the theme that wants to preview.
- Click Preview.
To save cost, you should try the free themes available but ensure that they have a good outlook for a better shopping experience.
5. Add Products
This step is crucial to boost your income, so the products should be in high demand with reasonable pricing. To add your product to your Shopify store
- Click Products on the admin panel to view your inventory
- You can add a product manually by filling in the product details like product type, name, vendor, description, etc. And upload the product images.
- You can also import a CSV file to upload many products.
6. Sell the Right Item and Market Your Store
Shopify charges $29 per month, but you can get the amount and more by leveraging the 14-day free trial. Your marketing and advertising strategy should bring your customers to your site not only to click the link and generate traffic to your site but also to make purchases.
To do this, you need to leverage social media by advertising on various social media platforms and build your email list by strategically placing email subscription forms on your site.
To improve your product page, you should upload the product that customers are looking for that suits your target audience.
Conclusion
Shopify helps you manage and supervise inventory, and collect orders, gives you an excellent online store, and offers a free trial, enough to get the amount needed to pay for the first month’s charge. To start a Shopify store with no money, you have to set up a business strategy, choose a niche, set up your Shopify account, add a theme, add products, sell the right items, and market your store.
Follow the above steps, and your online store will be up and running in no time, even as a business owner with little or no funds.
