What is Shopify?

Shopify is a platform for creating online shops, based in Canada. It is very easy to use, because unlike systems like Magento or Shopware, major skills for you to maintain your page are not required. The shop does not have to be developed in a specific programming language. The platform is most suitable for companies that want to develop smaller online shops.
Despite the simple features, Shopify contains enough services to make the shop competitive. For example, social media channels can be linked directly to your shop so that your customers can easily reach you. Rating systems can also be integrated in order to maintain transparency with your customers. All payment providers from PayPal to credit cards and other purchase accounts, are also available. In addition, search engine optimization is taken into account in accordance to Google regulations. The URLs and all other coding of the shop are incorporated “neatly” so that unnecessary errors can be avoided.

The templates are created individually and tailored to your corporate philosophy. The appealing design encourages the customer to buy from you and stay engaged with your shop. While other shop systems expect their processing of the security regulations, this is done automatically with Shopify. SSL encryption and regular security updates are integrated directly into the booking process, which gives you a secure server for you and your customers.

The cost of Shopify depends on the size of your online shop. A minimum rate is calculated from the sales obtained by the shop. Added to this are the costs for the cloud, but also the theme and the “rental costs” of the domain used. Compared to other systems, Shopify is still within a rather affordable range.

With Shopify it should be noted that the purchase is made differently than with conventional shop systems. It cannot simply be downloaded as open-source software on your system, but runs via a cloud. Therefore, Shopify is considered a pure SaaS solution. However, you do not have to complete these steps, because Shopify takes care of your personal set-up itself.
Like many other shop systems, the founders decided to offer Shopify Plus as an alternative platform. This counts only for the premium version of Shopify. Companies with a larger product selection and a higher budget have the opportunity to have a more complex online shop developed. For this, however, more knowledge and a higher cost and performance expenditure are expected. For smaller businesses, Shopify Plus is ideal.

If you want to learn more about e-commerce development platforms or apps, make sure to read our Shopware lexicon as well. Our dedicated outsourcing team can be your partner in e-commerce.